No Longer Lurking

[mindovaanything]

[Cliffs] I used to be a lurker. Just got a 90 5spd hatchback, transmission has an issue, doesn't go into gears easily, especially from a stop. 1st gear is impossible to get in with the car running but if you put it in first then start it, works ok. Shifting into second is ok once rolling. It's like as if the clutch pedal doesn't engage/disengage in the way a normal pedal works. Much better to start car in second. 3rd, 4th, and 5th seem to engage normally once rolling.The guy who sold it me uses a strange combo of pushing the clutch peddle in slightly and giving it some throttle then putting it into gear and he can then take of in second. Also the car starts to shudder when coming to a stop even with the peddle all the way in. Reverse is very difficult to get into also. Need help diagnosing issue and suggestions on getting the car in proper running order. [Cliffs]

Hey Everyone,
Figured I'd give a proper introduction and what not as I plan to begin being an active member of this forum.
I've been Lurking on these and several other car forums for many years. I read magazines, follow people's builds, go to shows/events and have generally followed import tuning culture since I caught the bug from my cousin when I was like 14. Unfortunately my car ownership has been very limited. I had an auto 93 Maxima as my first car in high school that I did intake/exhaust on and had for about 8 months before I totaled it. Last year I bought an 02 WRX that I had done bolt-ons and diy mods to that suffered and spun rod and got parted out because at the time it happened I was unemployed and couldn't fix it.
Yesterday I bought 5spd 90 240sx hatchback with 165k on it. Its all stock, and from what I know no accidents, never been modded. Got it for $650. Overall the body seems to be in good shape. The interior is in really good condition overall. There's a dent in the driver fender and a quarter panel but they aren't bad. The hatch is rusted really bad from where a spoiler used to be. But it seems like water wasn't getting inside because inside the trunk area isn't rusted. The guy I bought it from had it for the past 4 years and bought it as a clean chassis that he planned to do an SR swap on but never got around to it and basically started to neglect the car and just driving to get to/from the train station. I'm assuming he's neglected regular maintenance stuff so I'll be addressing that second. He says its never broken down or given him any issues aside from this transmission problem that it has now. Which he says has gotten worse over time. Please help me diagnose this transmission issue. There are a few trannys available locally and I may just pick one up and swap it but not if the issue is just a clutch or something else. My plan is to do a swap sooner than later so I'd rather not spend money on this KA but I don't want to at least be able to drive the car while I save up for the swap. There are also some de motor and transmission's available for cheap so if the compression isn't good then I'll probly put one of those in asap instead of just fixing/replacing the transmission. The guy who sold it to me actually drove it about 20 mins including highway to get it to my place. :scratch: He's got the technique down to a science, a strange combo of pushing the clutch peddle slightly and giving it some throttle then putting it into gear and he can then take of in second. Then proceeds to drive normally through 5th gear. He didn't even attempt to use first and the only way I could get it into first gear was with the car off. Then starting it. It's like as if the clutch pedal doesn't engage/disengage in the way a normal pedal works. Also seems like something may be up with the syncros. I really don't know. Also the car starts to shudder when coming to a stop even with the peddle all the way in.I'm hoping you guys have some insight. Open to all suggestion about the transmission. As well as what I should do about maintenance stuff and checking out the overall condition of the car. I'll have pics up this afternoon. I'm interested in transmission's, clutch's and other parts that may fix this problem in the NYC area and can come pick them up. Also looking for a hatch to replace this rusted one.

[PyR0NiAk]

Too much to read, but welcome to the forums..

[breadbox]

The shifting problem could be a couple of things. Like the Pressure plate is about to die, Check out the pivot fork and make sure the clutch Slave is working right, and that the Pivot isnt broken. http://www.frsport.com/Nismo-30537-RS54 ... 12500.html

Pull trans and see how F'd the clutch is.

What kind of swap you looking to do? Another Nissan motor or going outside the family?

[mindovaanything]

Ideally the swap will be RB25 because I would prefer to keep it nissan, but I'm considering 1jz or lsx. It's going to be a few months at least. If this motor will last me a while then I'll get some suspension and exterior work done first. Thanks I'm going to try and pull the transmission today and check it out

[breadbox]

yeah a new clutch and a tune-up might be all in needs for a bit.

[wingFeather]

Welcome! Just get the clutch fixed & drive her stock - you'd be surprised at how much power these engines have.

[mindovaanything]

Yea that would be nice if its just the clutch. I'll know soon enough. I do plan to drive her stock for a while, this is my first RWD car and I need to work on the "nut behind the wheel" before I start making more power etc. Seems like the chassis has a bit more rust than I thought but whatever its a beater project anyway.

[PyR0NiAk]

Yea that would be nice if its just the clutch. I'll know soon enough. I do plan to drive her stock for a while, this is my first RWD car and I need to work on the "nut behind the wheel" before I start making more power etc. Seems like the chassis has a bit more rust than I thought but whatever its a beater project anyway.

This is going to drive you nuts.. I'm now looking for a new chassis to move my stuff to because of rust under the passenger rocker panel and the rear left bumper support. Rust exists nowhere else on the car, but this, alone, was enough for me to decide it wasn't the prime candidate for my build... You'll see what I mean if you start adding power. Driving it stock, the rust won't bother you though.

[mindovaanything]

yea we'll see how it goes, I figure chells are pretty easy to come by and at least I have a car to drive and mess with. Right now my budget will keep me from maing serious power for a while when that changes ill probably get an s14 or an EVO.

How much clearance do I need to get the transmission out? I've got four jack stands 2 are taller than the other two but I don't know if this will be enough height. I figure I use the taller ones in the front and maybe but the stands on top of some plywood for an extra inch.

[mindovaanything]

So my compression test results were approx 90psi in all four cylinders, not sure what I'm going to do now.

[PyR0NiAk]

That doesn't seem right. Usually one or two will be way lower than the rest...

[mindovaanything]

Really? I'm hoping that I did it wrong or that the tester I had was bad or something. I'm going to try it again today.

[breadbox]

What's it look like under the Valve cover? Post up a couple pics of the bay. I know my friend was complaining of rough driving and I noticed his O2 sensor wasn't plugged in at all.

NA KA should be like 165 in all clyinders.

[mindovaanything]

My cousin who used to be a regional Nissan tech says that I probably did something wrong during the test and that since they are all the same that's the most important thing and that the motor overall should be good.

The transmission issue: seems that the clutch just doesn't engage/disengage with the pedal. The car will move if it's in gear with the pedal all the way to the floor so I"m going to buy a clutch kit, he says there may also be an issue with the slave cylinder.

Valve cover removed.

By mindovaanything at 2010-08-15


By mindovaanything at 2010-08-15


By mindovaanything at 2010-08-15

[breadbox]

Not bad, looks good. You could change out the slave cylinder first and bleed it and see if it helps before you remove the whole trans.

[mindovaanything]

It's coming out anyway, It'll be a learning experience and I'm going to put in a new clutch regardless. I'm planning to get the exedy oem replacement kit.

[breadbox]

Yeah, once you do it a couple times, It's like changing a water pump if you have a lift.