Clutch bearing type noise when pedal is out, both in neutral and in gear (1 Viewer)

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Sep 18, 2019
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Location
Mississippi Gulf Coast
I am experiencing a squealing noise like a bearing going when the clutch pedal is released. It happens in neutral or in gear. When I depress the clutch, the noise goes away. So this is the opposite of the traditional throwout bearing noise. The noise is definitely coming from the clutch area. The frequency increases with engine rpm. I only hear it at low speeds or idle because I think I have one of the world's loudest mud tires (Ironman).

Supplemental/tangential info:

  • This is a new clutch and transmission. It is an H55 and was swapped about 2008 by a PO. The H55 was bought new.
  • The clutch inspection cover is in place and the rubber is there.
  • The clutch fork boot is old and rotten and letting plenty of water, mud, etc in there.
  • I have done a few water/mud crossings in the past year
  • There is some squeaking in the clutch pedal when it is pressed and released, I understand that is due to lack of lubrication in the clutch fork movement contact areas.
My understanding is there are three bearings in this area. Pilot, throwout, and the transmission input shaft bearing. Going one by one:

  • Pilot Bearing: Since the noise completely goes away when the pedal is depressed, and occurs in gear, it seems this is not it.
  • Throwout/Release bearing: I have no pedal vibration, and the pedal is not stiff. This is only known to make a noise when the clutch pedal is depressed (opposite of my problem), so it seems unlikely this is it.
  • Transmission input shaft bearing: Since the problem occurs in neutral, when this shaft is not spinning, I don’t see how this is the cause either.
Am I incorrect in my troubleshooting? Is there another possible cause of the noise?
 
Is it possible that the throw out bearing is only spinning with the clutch when in full contact (like with some pressure on it) and as you move the pedal there is less pressure on it so it's not turning and the noise/squeal is the face of the t/o bearing on the clutch fingers? Try putting some NLGI 2 grease on the face of the t/o bearing where it contact the clutch and see if this helps. You can do this by removing the inspection plate and while someone depresses the pedal you can get some grease on it. this helped mine. And I do remember seeing somewhere in FSM that this is recommended so it certainly won't hurt. While your in there grease the pivot point on the clutch fork. You may have to loosen the bolts on the clutch slave to get some play in the fork to pull it out a little.
 
I had a noise like that and it was the clutch release fork contacting the throwout surface. The spring that brings the fork back into position was broken (spring that is on the slide of the clutch slave)... You might want to check that for an easy peasy fix.
 
On your cruiser, the release bearing needs to have a grip on the clutch tangs so it can spin continuously with them. Applying grease to that contact surface will only make the problem worse.
Whats happening is the release bearing is slipping on the clutch spring tangs and making a racket. Its quiet when pushing the clutch pedal in because the increased force allows the rubbing surface of the bearing to grab onto the tangs - no slipping.
The only thing applying pressure to the bearing is the spring inside the clutch slave cylinder. If you've got an aftermarket slave cylinder installed, it may have insufficient spring tension. Ive experienced that before.
If the throw out bearing is not a genuine Toyota bearing... thats likely the cause - stiff bearing.

Try resting your foot on the clutch pedal, applying light presure to the bearing to make the noise go away. Not so much though that it releases the clutch. After a few miles, the bearing grease may heat up enough to allow the bearing to spin more freely .
 
So I applied grease to the front of the throwout/release bearing and the fork contacts as best I could per @g-man's recommendation. I also looked for a return spring on the side of the slave cylinder (per Icolon's suggestion) and there isn't one...

I also applied grease on the shaft that is exposed when the throwout/release bearing is pushed forward as the clutch pedal is pressed. Took it for a test drive and no change. I then crawled under the truck and took the below video. Not sure if it comes over well in the video, but in the fully released position there is noticeable wobble in the entire TO assembly, including the forks. As soon as the clutch pedal is just slightly pressed, the vibration and the noise stops.

I'm very surprised that the TO bearing is spinning when the clutch is released. Is that normal? Do you agree that this seems to point to a throwout/release bearing that is starting to go? Or is it the spring in the slave cylinder....?

 
So I applied grease to the front of the throwout/release bearing and the fork contacts as best I could per @g-man's recommendation. I also looked for a return spring on the side of the slave cylinder (per Icolon's suggestion) and there isn't one...

I also applied grease on the shaft that is exposed when the throwout/release bearing is pushed forward as the clutch pedal is pressed. Took it for a test drive and no change. I then crawled under the truck and took the below video. Not sure if it comes over well in the video, but in the fully released position there is noticeable wobble in the entire TO assembly, including the forks. As soon as the clutch pedal is just slightly pressed, the vibration and the noise stops.

I'm very surprised that the TO bearing is spinning when the clutch is released. Is that normal? Do you agree that this seems to point to a throwout/release bearing that is starting to go? Or is it the spring in the slave cylinder....?



Start with pedal adjustment.

1608842552379.png
 
The fork return spring is missing? As others have said that is very possibly your problem. Mine broke , fell off, and was very noisy, I replaced it (years ago) with a non stock, similar, spring I had on hand, and it’s still running perfectly.
1608842874498.jpeg
 
The fork return spring is missing? As others have said that is very possibly your problem. Mine broke , fell off, and was very noisy, I replaced it (years ago) with a non stock, similar, spring I had on hand, and it’s still running perfectly.
View attachment 2534052

No, he has the later design, no external spring.
 
The release bearing is supposed to spin all the time exactly as shown in your video. Nothing visibly looks wrong.
If the clutch was replaced recently, I'd assume the release bearng was too. If not, that was very lazy and the bearing could be acting up. If it's a new bearing then it's not worn out.

It could still be slipping a bit and making weird noises but visibly look like it's spinning with the clutch.
Wipe off that grease that was applied to the contact surface. It's making the problem worse.
 
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Here in the 84-90 chassis and body FSM it shows that you DO in fact lube the front of the T/O bearing and the contact parts on the fork.

1608845431710.png


I do agree with OSS that the bearing is squealing against the tangs/fingers of the clutch until enough pressure is exerted to make the t/o bearing spin with the clutch w/o slipping. I also agree that a smooth spinning t/o bearing should be in contact all the time and spin all the time. Mine did this with an aftermarket t/o bearing when I first installed it. Like squeaking sound when depressing the pedal and releasing the pedal. It was NOT the bushings at the top of the pedal arm. Maybe it just needed to loosen up. But I did think putting some grease on helped.
 
So, slightly pushing on the clutch pedal makes the noise go away? If so, maybe the clutch fork is worn to the point that you are losing a bit of pressure at the t/o bearing-clutch finger contact. I don't think your t/o bearing is bad.
 
@mattressking called it. Adjusting the clutch pedal height fixed it. It was 10-12 mm out of spec. I'm not entirely sure how that fixed it, as the TO assembly is still wobbling with the pedal released...

Wonders never cease. Thanks to all that responded. If we ever meet, I owe you a drink. As long as @g-man isn't a UVA fan. (j/k). Go Hokies!
 
I put a clutch and rear main seal in my truck and had an awful squeak. Believe it or not, it ended up being the rear main seal. I apparently didn’t put enough grease on it and it squealed something fierce. I got a can of white lithium grease with one of those thin nozzles that attaches and sprayed up towards the seal between the flywheel and motor. The noise went away, but came back a few days later. More grease made it go away again. I ordered another rear main seal and pulled the trans and greased the crap out of it. It’s been over a year now and it hasn’t made a peep.
 
So the pedal height was to high? I mean 10 -12 mm too far away from the floor? If so, pushing down on the pedal would move the stroke of the push rod on the master and so move the slave rod and put a little pressure on the clutch fork.
 
So the pedal height was to high? I mean 10 -12 mm too far away from the floor? If so, pushing down on the pedal would move the stroke of the push rod on the master and so move the slave rod and put a little pressure on the clutch fork.

Pedal was too low. I raised it, which pulled out on the master cylinder push rod.
 
I had the exact problem as well. Almost a chirp sound when no pressure was on the clutch. I did adjust my clutch pedal but that was just temporary becuase the chirp came back.

Ended up replacing the clutch and the sound has never been heard again. I could not tell you which bearing it was but after replacing all of them it fix thed issue.. that first startup was a great day because the chirp was gone.
 
I had the exact problem as well. Almost a chirp sound when no pressure was on the clutch. I did adjust my clutch pedal but that was just temporary becuase the chirp came back.

Ended up replacing the clutch and the sound has never been heard again. I could not tell you which bearing it was but after replacing all of them it fix thed issue.. that first startup was a great day because the chirp was gone.

Thank you. If it comes back, I'll keep that in mind.
 
the TO assembly is still wobbling with the pedal released...


youll see that as theres no pressure on the to bearing, a little pressure on the bearing will smooth that out as noted in the video you posted. it sounds like the to bearing is the culprit for your noise, if hte noise comes back i would try just tyhe bearing and fork before doing hte clutch if hte clutch looks ok
 

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