Clutch issues

Hi all, I recently replaced the clutch master and slave cylinder and bled the system using a vacuum bleeder. Now the clutch only occasionally disengages when pressing the pedal. If I put the transmission in first gear with the car off, press in the pedal, and start the engine, I can smoothly shift through all gears. But once I let the clutch pedal out, it will no longer shift and I’m left with rev matching through the gears until I come to a complete stop. Then I turn off the engine, put the transmission in first and do it all again. The clutch is relatively new.

 

I would suggest bleeding it again. Have someone watch the slave cylinder movement while you step on the clutch. It sounds like you are not getting enough movement or throw on the slave. I assume your clutch fork and clutch release bearing are moving freely. If your clutch release bearing hangs up on the front of the transmission where it is supposed to slide, that can cause an issue too. Also pressure bleed it, not vacuum bleed it. What I do is install everything, fill it up, open the bleeder and let it run out, close the bleeder and bleed it in the normal way by pumping the pedal. Two person job.

 

I'll follow up on this as it may help someone else down the line:
The pilot bearing was worn out to the point where the race was mostly separated from the housing. This resulted in occasional clutch disengagement where it would slip back into contact with the flywheel, ultimately wearing the clutch plate out. When I replaced the clutch, flywheel, pilot bearing, throwout bearing and rear main seal (might as well while you're in there), I was unable to get hydraulic fluid from the master cylinder to the slave cylinder. This was because as the clutch wore out, I had adjusted the master cylinder piston gradually all the way out to account for the clutch wear. In this position, it does not allow fluid to leave the master cylinder. I spent an entire day and purchased three separate clutch master cylinders before I figured this out. Don't make that mistake.

 

Good to know, thanks!

 

Let me bring this back to life... I have a 95 4runner 3.0 I was thinking the clutch was bad but dude said he just replaced it... so I changed the slave and master cylinder and I vaguely remember the guy said he put a master cylinder from an 85 in because the 95 from the part store wasn't long enough.. so I got the one for a 95 and put it in and it was shorter would that make it not get enough pressure to move the clutch fork? The clutch work to start the truck but you can't switch through gears with the truck running..

 

Sounds a lot like the bad pilot bearing I had in February. Has it been popping out of 1st gear? That’s a good indicator that either the clutch or pilot bearing is failing. Otherwise, I’d recommend adjusting the stroke on the master cylinder at the pedal all the way in one direction, giving it a test, then all the way in the opposite direction to see if you can rule out flow limitations. Good luck!

 

Something else to look at is the frame your clutch pedal rides in. It can crack and will give you the feel everything is working but the entire assembly will move and it’s hard to feel. Never hurts to check that.

It took me 2 weeks To figure out after replacing my entire clutch system with all Aisin parts. Had to pull the dash completely apart to get that assembly out, weld then reinforce the entire area, replace.

 

Hmm I don't disagree with this. Is does kick out of first not often but sometimes. But theres a noise coming from the bellhousing which I'm not to sure is related or if it's really coming from the bellhousin . Also. When we went to bleed it. It was bleeding great and then when all of the air was out it didnt really push alot of fluid out. I'm used to a pretty big stream.. and it just like trickled down the wrench onto my hand.. is that normal?

 

Lol. I called the guy I bought it from and he said that broke so he put a bolt or something in it. It's been raining constantly here though. Something I have to wait on and I guess I'm going to try an 85 4runner master cylinder because since he rigged or fixed that frame he said the 95 master cylinder wasnt long enough ‍♀️

 

It is cracked....



But this can't be the whole culprit can it?

 

That whole assembly is moving back when you apply pressure to the pedal. For now I’d start there, it’s quite the job. I highly recommend that if you pursue fixing it, to have a competent welder reweld that area then reinforce it with some flat stock in the critical areas.

That is to say if you don’t own your own tools to handle it. Nothings going to work properly until that’s fixed.

If you plan on keeping your truck it’s worth doing.

Good Luck To You !

 

Okay so I have a guy that will reinforce it for $150 but I new one is $100 off Amazon. ... I'm kind of stuck on which route to take..

 

It’s a known issue on these and the pick ups. If it was me I would pay the extra 50 bucks. Think about it, the oem one is known to fail, imagine how shitty an aftermarket one would be. I see it as being out $150 or being out $250. You might end up having to reinforce the one you buy off Amazon later. That‘a just my 2¢

 

Personally, that’s ridiculously high for what needs to be done. I’d pull the original and maybe hit a muffler shop and ask if it’s something they’d do for maybe $50. Muffler shop guys weld all day long, just a thought. I also agree unless that’s a genuine Toyota part, it’s not gonna last. That’s not a job I’d ever want to do again. If whoever is quoting you $150 to remove or maybe weld in place I’d go that route but it really should be removed.

I thought I had pics stashed away so I could show you what I did but I guess I deleted them, was a few years ago. And I don’t think I had to tear the whole dash out, that was the heater core.


Good luck again, let us know how it all works out, bet your issues disappear when it’s fixed.

 

$150 is a ridiculous amount. Unless he's pulling the part out and reinstalling it. That's a $20 weld job if you placed it in front of a welder. If you are anywhere near Vegas, I'd do it for free. I'm going to go look at mine right now and see if it can even be done in place sufficiently. If it's being reinforced, the crack itself doesn't even need to be messed with other than put back in alignment. Just a clean up of the metal surface and tig weld some thin plate in.

 

There's definitely room for something to be done without removing the whole thing. Just need to pull the clutch pedal off, and probably remove the driver seat just to have room. Mine is fine, but that is some really flimsy sheet metal. I might need to come up with something to be more affordable/easier to repair. I might make a buck or two!