throw out bearing - no contact with pressure plate?

[dwlf89]

Still working on my bluebird swap. Today I pulled my transmission to fix my throw out bearing, so I thought. It had come loose when I last put the transmission in (havn't driven the car since) So I got it all put together and re-installed the transmission. As I was hooking up the clutch, I noticed the lever that goes to the TOB had no resistance on it. it felt like it was working, just not making contact with the pressure plate.. is this possible? What may help fix this?on a side note. this is with a new clutch and pressure plate. also a new flywheel.

[jbart423]

any updates?

[dwlf89]

no updates yet. it's eating away at my head. I can't come up with any reason it won't work. unless the throw out bearing is the wrong size or something... or the pressure plate doesn't stick out as far as the stock one. who knows. I'm still waiting for help

[RED_DET]

did you tighten up the clutch cable. you may have to do a "ghetto" adjustment setup so you can get more adjustment. it is possible the throwout bearing did popoff the fork. when I did my swap years ago and put in a new clutch, I had clutch cable adjustment issues. I ended drilling two extra holes in my clutch cable bracket to position the bracket closer to the front of the car. the other option is the ghetto method I spoke off. you must buy a 3/4 to 1" copper reducer from home depot or lowes and buy large diameter washer (1"). pic is attached:



make sure to put washer between the reducer and rubber section of clutch cable or the reducer will damage the rubber section.

Another option instead of a washer, cut small sections in the reducer and bend them so they are flat.

[dwlf89]

thanks for your detailed response but I'm not sure the issue lies within the cable itself. When I had the transmission outside the car, I kinda simulated the action the TOB should make, moved the lever by hand back and forth to see that it worked smoothly. It did. Once I reinstalled the transmission, I did the same exact thing, I moved the lever by hand again as if the cable was pulling it. As far as I know, there should be much more resistance on that lever. It felt exactly as it did when the transmission was off the car. It moved the full distance allowable with no effort at all. My b13 sentra, on the other hand, has enough resistance to make it so it can't be moved by hand. I've been using that for comparison.

[dwlf89]

Any other suggestions? anybody?

[RED_DET]

Unfortunately if the clutch cable is adjusted properly, then it is something you are going to have to pull the transmission off and make sure the throwout bearing didn't come off the fork.

[dwlf89]

I pulled the transmission out originally to fix that problem. I'm 99% sure it didn't come off because of how careful I was of that exact thing when I installed it again. I talked to a buddy of mine who's a kicka** Mechanic/bodyman that i work with. We're gonna take the car up to the shop and figure it out there.

Have you heard of anybody getting an aftermarket clutch and have the tob just be the wrong size or something? it looks like the original but maybe the pressure plate is a little slimmer... just throwing ideas out there.

thanks for your input.

[RED_DET]

What does it feel like when you have the clutch cable hooked up? The only other option is that you broke the lever. How far can you move it before there is tension? It should only move an inch at most.

[dwlf89]

I'm really glad you mentioned it should have 1" of play in it. I checked it today and sure enough... all that crap I was complaining was within 1". I played around with it a little and figured out how to solve this issue. There's what looks like a weight on the underside of the lever that was hitting the transmission, not allowing it to pass any further. I took my Dremel tool and ground enough off of it to let it swing by. Then I cut a small .5" length piece of pvc pipe to shim the cable and tighten it up. Now the clutch works perfectly. I took the car for the first drive an hour ago. the clutch engages perfectly. the car still isn't running great yet. it's really rich and runs a little rough. but I'm happy with my results for today.

thanks for all the input. I would've still been scratchin my head over this one. much appreciation.