Replacing clutch/flywheel tomarrow, do i have everything?

[Santoku240]

OK, like the post title says, im replacing my clutch and flywheel tomarrow (due to massive slipping problems and a supposed crack in the flywheel as well....)

I have the clutch kit to replace the clutch(disc, pressure plate, t/o bearing, pilot bushing, alignment tool)

The flywheel arrives at schucks tomarrow morning.

hell, i even bought replacement master/slave cylinders cus the ones on there are just damn old.

so yeah... i have the core parts.. im jsut wondering what all exactly im going to need to get the job done., so to list what i have:

Clutch DiscPressure plateThrow-Out bearingPilot bushingFlywheelmaster clutch cylinderslave clutch cylinderdot3 brake fluidtransmission fluidmetric ratchet setbreaker bartorque wrenchmisc. jacks and stands (2 ramps, 2 adjustable stationary stands, 2 3-ton hydraulic jacks)

that sound like all i need to get the job done? not gonna need any gaskets or small random parts like that will I ?

THanks ahead of time.

[erich]

I have heard people recommend loc-tite on the flywheel bolts.

[180fan]

10mm flare nut wrench for the hydraulic lines from the clutch master to the slave. double check that gear oil for the transmission's gl4 not gl5. Might need some grease for your throw out where it slides around on the spline part. Might help to have a friend help you out too, it's a pain to get the transmission to rotate and push in by yourself.

[Santoku240]

erich: Thanks, good idea! I definately don't want those puppies coming loose on me when I'm past the break-in period and taking the sucker out on a test drive going upwards of 4500rpm

180fan: Yeah, I will more than likely have a friend there helping by the time im re-assembling everything, but the dissasembly will be in the morning by myself (currently jobless and on spring break [ college ] ) as i wait for everyone to get off work.

Thanks for the tip on the gear oil, i'll definately make sure to get gl4.

And as for greasing the t/o spline contact... any particular grease i need? anything in particular to avoid? and do i have to worry about that grease getting on the contact surfaces (flywheel, clutch disc and plate) at all (i.e. getting flung up onto these surfaces in operation)? cuz that sounds like it wouldnt be good :P

thanks for help guys, i appreciate it!

[180fan]

all you need is a thin coat of standard grease, it'll help keep the TO smoother and just where the TO rubs against the spline in daily operation. Yeah I'm a college student too, and I can't wait for my spring break. Get to install my 180sx windows, finish the head on my sr and do my last minute check on all the parts for my install come around the summer. I'll be one giddy camper! Good luck with the clutch job too. The one that was a pain in the butt for me to get to was the one 14mm bolt that sits on the passengers side near the very top of the bell housing. It might help to have a 14mm ratcheting box wrench for that one.

[Santoku240]

haha yeah, I've actually had some experience taking a transmission off a car before :P my friend was swapping out his 86 300zx NA motor for a turbo one and i was there when he took the transmission off, and boy... the last two bolts up on the top of that thing had us stumped for hours! unfortunately i wasnt around when he got around to putting the clutch/flywheel/transmission back on when he dropped the new engine in

but thankfully he will be the one arriving later in the day to assist me and he'll be bringing a ratcheting box wrench for sure now *Grin*

and hey, good-luck with the SR! and i should say congrats on being able to afford it too, being a college student! this clutch and flywheel job is draining all of my funds at the moment....

Hope it all goes well when you complete it this summer, I hear the SR can be beastly in a 240( or in your case, a 180 now! props on changing it to reflect the engine swap !)

[180fan]

Yeah man that 14mm saved me alot of cussing but it still took some twisting to get up in there. Oh one thing you might want to try to help you out, undo the nuts at the bottom of your motor mounts. Lift the engine a little so it tilts backwards. That should aid you a little in getting the transmission and block together.

[SRdave240]

I do your rear trannny seal to. The FSM says to replace it everytime you remove teh driveshaft. I didn't and mine leaked. They are only like 5 bux

[JW240sx]

If you don't want lower the engine make sure you get a swivel and about 10-12 inches of extensions for those top 2 bolts.I just got done putting mine in and I didn't have any problems.The only thing that took so long was putting the transmition back in.I forgot to take the bracket off that connects the trans to the exaust and it wasn't letting me get the trans up high enough to spline in.It kept hitting the body off the car underneath.Once I took that off it slipped right in.:oface

[f s t caz]

you really should get a rear main engine seal and a tube of RTV. i can almost guarantee that the back of your motor has a layer of oil on it from that seal and/or the oil pan seal around the end of the crankshaft. Install a new seal, and then apply RTV over the gap between the pan and the block and smooth it out. You don't have the trans off all too often, and there's almost always oil leaking back there.

a transmission jack will save you MUCH time and effort.

[Santoku240]

ARGH!!!

okay... So far i have removed the Drive-Shaft, unplugged everything from the transmission, drained the transmission, drained the clutch hydraulics, replaced the master cylinder, and removed all but TWO of the damn transmission bolts!

THESE LAST TWO ARE HARD AS NUTS!

I unfortunately didnt manage to get ahold of anything other than standard and metric ratchets and various sizes of wrenches... and some extensions... and with these... i cant access the last two bolts...

or i should say... i can ACCESS them... but having the leverage to do anything with them is 100% impossible. I started at about 4 today and it is now 11pm, and i havent even managed to get my transmission off the damn engine this is looking bad for me .

man... that 300zx sure wasnt as much a pain as my car ...

sooooooooooooo,.... givin the limited tools i have... what is the secret method to getting these last two bolts to turn?I kinda want this damn thing offa there before i hit the sack tonight, so i can spend all day tomarrow cleaning it all out.

ALSO!

Rear transmission Seal, Rear Main Engine Seal, Tube of RTV...ok, how what why where?

Are you saying i need to replace the oilpan gasket? and does that require lifting the engine out of the engine bay? because i absolutely do not have the resources to do so

if im interpreting that wrong then please, explain what these are, thanks.

[Santoku240]

ba-bump

[f s t caz]

ARGH!!!

ALSO!

Rear transmission Seal, Rear Main Engine Seal, Tube of RTV...ok, how what why where?

Are you saying i need to replace the oilpan gasket? and does that require lifting the engine out of the engine bay? because i absolutely do not have the resources to do so

if im interpreting that wrong then please, explain what these are, thanks.

No, just apply a layer of rtv over the pan/gap/motor on the back side. You're not resealing the pan, just adding more sealant around the outside to make sure its sealed shut.

And, for those last 2 bolts, i'd recommend you go out and buy a few long 1/2" extensions, and perhaps a swivel, and a 14mm if you don't already have a 14mm 1/2" socket. Now install 2 of the easily accessable trans bolts on the sides (1 per side) and remove the trans mount bolts, which will result in the back of the transmission lowering down , and the motor tilting backwards. It's ok, its not going anywhere (though i guess it might if your motor mounts are completely shot. anyways, now that the back of the trans is lowered, you might actually be able to see the bolts you're trying to get to. now create an insanely long extension out of the multiple extensions you just bought. essentially, you'll need to have an extension to about the back of the transmission. put a swivel on the end w/ the socket if need be (i'd recommend wrapping the swivel in electrical tape to restrict the movement of the socket, so its not flapping all over the place and giving you a hard time) and try taking it loose that way. The reason i recommend 1/2" extensions, as opposed to the 3/8"s which you probably already have, is that you will notice that the 3/8"s will flex a good amount across that distance. I'd imagine that the 1/2" with more metal would be more rigid and thus work better. Once you take the top bolts out, then it should be easy to remove the side bolts you reinstalled as a safety precaution and drop the trans.

[Santoku240]

Wow man, thanks for the awesome writeup

unfortunately I managed to get the last two buggers out.

The top on on the driver side i got with just pure muscle... and removing all the heat-sheilds off of the downpipe.

the top one... well... a friend of mine came to help me today and he managed to weasel his hands up there with a wrench, and then used the rubber butt-end of my breaker bar to brace on the end of the wrench, and then proceeded to hammer on the wrench untill success.

SOOOO yeah... now my new obsacle is my freaking flywheel. this one is a mother of a pain cuz it wont stop moving

thanks again for the info! greatly appreciated!

[f s t caz]

SOOOO yeah... now my new obsacle is my freaking flywheel. this one is a mother of a pain cuz it wont stop moving

27mm on a breaker bar, stuck over the crank pulley bolt. If your breaker bar is long enough, you can just keep turning the flywheel until the breaker bar is lodged against the tension rod/tension rod bracket. or you could just have someone hold the breaker bar, but those flywheel bolts require a good amount of a$$ at times, and it makes life so much easier if the breaker bar is stuck against something thats not going to give. Another option is to place a transmission bellhousing bolt into a side hole on the back of the block, and then have a friend stick a good sized screw driver inbetween 2 teeth, and use the trans-bellhousing bolt as a pry/pivot point. so, in other words, since you're prying counterclockwise, if you place a trans bolt on the right side of the block, you would place the screwdriver on the bottom side of the trans bolt, inbetween 2 teeth, and basically try to move the flywheel clockwise (push up on the handle of the screwdriver, and the flat end will then be pushing down against flywheel). The 27mm/breaker bar combo is easier b/c that puts the extra hands in the front of the motor, and not in your way, but the trans bolt is a viable option.

also, make certain when you get 7 of the 8 (or 5 of 6 or however many) of the flywheel bolts off that you thread 1 or 2 back in there while you take that last one loose. believe me, the flywheel is heavy as ****! you do not want that thing falling on you as you remove the last bolt. for 1, it'll crush your hand and or give any part a nice bruise if it falls on it, and depending on height, and the angle it falls, the teeth can cut you nicely.

have fun, play safe, good luck

[Tictakman]

i just did my clutch and we had problems putting it back it. what we finally did was, two of us where under the car and rotated it so we could get a little clearance then we had it almost in. third guy was out near the engine bay holding the engine. on the count of three he pulled on the engine and we pushed on the transmission.

Zak

[Santoku240]

ohhhh yeah, trust me i know how heavy the dern thing is... 23lbs might not sound like much but dayam... its not a fun thin if it falls.

So yeah, i'm gonna definately take precautions. think im gonna do the whole breaker bar on the crank pully method. sounds best to me.

THanks for your replies, much appreciated!