Clutch "slipping with brand new clutch/press.plate/flywheel

[Deadrodent]

hey everyone, i've found a new set of problems i need to fix. basically my car feels as if the clutch is slipping...but the thing is i just put in a new 6 puck, pressure plate, and jun flywheel. The clutch pedal engages ridiculously late...basically to the top of it's pedal travel. i installed everything correctly and have bled the system 2 times already.

At one time it was so bad i could release the clutch pedal all the way in first gear and i would just sit there and idle. i would then proceed to add brake fluid to the reservoir and pump the pedal a few times and then i would be able to drive the car.

But i know for a fact it is not the new parts causing this. the car had the EXACT same problem before the engine and transmission swap. i've tried searching for similar problems but everyone basically describes a sticky pedal or it engaging early (like the clutch engages almost at the floor)

i need to drive my car ASAP so if anyone can point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance!

[Aworkinprogress]

sounds like your clutch master cylinder is not letting the fluid back in....is your clutch pedal real stiff as if it has no play ( ie clutch woulldnt catch untill pedal was all the way up?) This should tell you. Go under your car on passenger side with a 17mm wrench. next you will see your clutch flex hose running to your slave cylinder. break it free real quick as this will let preasure off without air comming into lines. check your peddal to see if it is not as stiff or just see if your clutch will catch. if so change your clutch master cylinder and your flex hose...... oh sorry thought of an easier way to test the same thing. see if there is play on the nuckle(peice in between slave and fork) if there is no play then that is your problem and replace clutch master and the flex line.

I had the problem with my clutch not cathing with the pedal all the way disengaged and above was how i figured out.

[jt15833]

before you try ^ idea, id consider adjusting your clutch pedal. new clutches / flyhweels are thicker/thinner so often time the system will have engagement issues. its in the FSM for s13 or s14, but basically theres a pushrod behind your clutch pedal going into the master cylinder that forces the hydraulic fluid to the slave cylinder. since your clutch is disengaged with the pedal all the way out, the pushrod is probably too far into the master cylinder and not letting all the fluid escape the slave and releasing the clutch. go under by ur clutch pedal and undo the nut on the pushrod behind the pedal (14mm iirc). since your case is drastic i would screw the rod maybe 3 4 or 5 revolutions INTO the pedal. tighten the nut and check again. this will allow more fluid to come back when the pedal is all the way disengaged. you can actually check for a good amount by looking at the slave cylinder piston and where it joins with the clutch fork, with the clutch pedal all the way out the piston should be very close, but not touching. i suppose it could be touching but with NO pressure and basically the only way to know that is if its not really touching just close, so go with that. fsm recommends a lithium based grease between the piston and fork, id use some as often times this joint squeaks. both my new clutchs needed some form of adjustment, i wouldnt be surprised if this was your problem. goodluck

[ILikeMy240sx]

look under your clutch pedal to see if your clutch is leaking fluid into the interior of the car. Oh and like jt said... clutch adjustment seems like your problem if not the master it self.

[Aworkinprogress]

Just go underneath ur car and check if the knuckle (bar between slave and clutch fork) has play. if does then that is not your problem. But i will tell you I had similar problem. actually sounds the same and it was the master clutch cylindeer not letting the fluid back in all the way that is why you have clutch slippage varies. somtimes it catches a little and other times it doesnt... plus adjusting your clutch pedal "height" wouldnt solve the riddle of why you seem to have some catch sometimes and other rimes not at all.... We have hydrualic clutch systems in our cars not linkages. BTW if you read i have had a similar experience to what you are having it takes 10 seconds to check. If you have play then it is not anything before your clutch fork, "including height adjustment on the peddal", if so it will most likley be your flex line or your clutch master.PS: seeing fluid on ground( having a clutch fluid leak) would mean you have no preasure on your pedal or preasure on the hat so the clutch would not be disengaged which means you would not be getting any slippage. in fact with car started you would not be able to even get it into a gear from neatral position. and if you started with clutch in first the starter would move your car. so you can rule that out.
Modified by Aworkinprogress at 11:01 PM 2/23/2006

[jt15833]

there are two parts to adjusting clutch pedal, the height with the clutch switch (i beleive for cruise control) and the engagement point with the pushrod. adjusting the pushrod does not change height, it changes the amount of the rod inside the master cylinder while the pedal is all the way out thus changing how much is also inside the master cylinder with the clutch pedal all the way in. fsm clearly states this. aworkinprogress i think im beginning to understand why your user name is what it is, I'm not sure could ever finish a project with the knowledge you've demonstrated here

[Deadrodent]

guys i appreciate your help but you don't have to flame eachother. i just got under the car and noticed that the slave cylinder pushrod looks slightly bent and pushes the clutch fork maybe 3 inches (seems like a bit too much travel) i also noticed that when the clutch pedal is released up (as in the clutch should be engaged - pedal up/clutch engaged-pedal to the floor/clutch disengaged) it makes a very noticeable "pssh" noise...definitely air escaping. is this normal? i will go back to my car in about 2 minutes to check if there is play in the pushrod slave cyl...if i recall it looked like there was.

I just checked the pushrod for the master cylinder and it looks like it's almost falling out of the master cylinder....
Modified by Deadrodent at 12:49 AM 2/25/2006

[Aworkinprogress]

Sorry deadrodent about the dissagrements. not cool punning my name to discredit me though jt. Anyways i dont see how that pushrod (between pedal and master) would cuase your clutch not to engage. From what I understand hydrualic clutch systems are like plumbing, and well, if you push your pedal in 80% down the master will purge 80% of its fluid, and when you release the pedal all the way back up that 80% of the fluid wil return to the master. so logically to me it seems that this feature can only cuase a problem for clutch disengagement, not clutch engagment, but jt correct me if im wrong. I would like to hear it so i know better for future applications, and that would be more apreciated then a pun. (Also yes the clutch switch is for cruise control) Besides that, it does seem you narrowed a problem to the master cylinder but with the loose pushrod between the fork and slave it doesnt explain why the clutch is not already engaged. Maybe the fork is getting hung up.. Did you lightly grease the throw out bearing and the shaft when you installled the clutch? could be problem but check everything first before concluding to this. Note that if the pushrod between the slave and fork is loose your problem of clutch engagment is not before the slave. Are the flex hose, master and slave all new?

[Deadrodent]

well, i tried to adjust the "pushrod" but i couldn't seem to work it out. i could only find one bolt and that moves the clutch pedal attached to a rubber stopped...this seems to adjust pedal height....how do i adjust the pushrod? there's only one nut around the pushrod and it doesn't adjust anything...

and to make matters worse...i tried to bleed the system again and now the clutch pedal is either "on" or "off"...there's no pressure at all. it just goes to the floor and then i have to pull it back up. help me!??!

[jt15833]

make sure u have fluid and you loosen the nut, then get some pliers and spin the pushrod to desired length then tighten the nut again

[Aworkinprogress]

hey dead did you say that the pushrod from the slave to the fork had play??? Last you said it just "looked like there was" check it for me to ease my greif. ty

[Deadrodent]

there's little to no play on the slave's pushrod. but here's a list of symptoms i've noticed now.

when i push on the clutch pedal, the pedal goes directly to the floor as if there's no pressure...and it doesn't come back up...it just stays stuck to the floor. i have to physically pull it up with my hand or tip of my foot.

to make matters worse the slave's pushrod doesn't move at all when i push the pedal. we tried bleeding it last night and my friend tried bleeding the lines through the dampener's bleeder...after that i immediately felt no pressure in the pedal. we have not been able to get pressure back after pumping it 5 billion times...there is fluid and there should be no openings in the lines...i readjusted the pedal back to where it was (i had moved the pedal height maybe an inch to see what it would do...didn't really do anything. i should have fooled around with the pushrod adjustment)

could i have a bad seal in my master cylinder? or maybe my pushrod for the master cyl is so far out it's not even moving the master's piston? are there any diagnostic steps to check if i have a bad master?

gaaaaaah in the end i just made my problem worse! now i have no pressure at all...and my car is immobile...
Modified by Deadrodent at 4:45 PM 2/25/2006

[Deadrodent]

any other advice?

[Aworkinprogress]

Sounds like your clutch master gave with the load of the new clutch. best bet is to change master, slave and flex. and bleed again. if your on a budget its going to be your master but your slave will follow shortly after. and you mine as well change your flex while your at it to ensure you dont get previous problem " and it is cheap enough. but before this look for any leaks along clutch lines. Good luck! your looking at a good 120 for all parts but im not sure since i get my parts for cost.

[afracer]

I rebuilt my clutch master cyl. (new rod/bushings/spring) for less than $10 with the rebuild kit from Autozone that was in-stock. Make sure when you push the clutch pedal down you can visibly see the pushrod push the master cylinder rod in and out (might have to move the rubber boot out of the way). If you have no hydraulic pressure the pedal will always get stuck on the floor when you push it down, that's the way it was designed. I would rebuild the master cylinder for <$10, bench bleed it as much as possible, install it, and make sure you have the pushrod adjusted properly (no front/back tension on the pin that holds the pushrod to the clutch pedal). After you bleed it through once it's all hooked up (should only take 2 or 3 bleeds if you bench bleed it and got rid of the dampner box/lines) if you are still not getting any pressure then rebuild or replace the slave cylinder. There isn't anything else that it could be otherwise that I can think of.