a serious mysterious clutch problem
Trackems
01-29-2005, 02:03 PM
I have a very upsetting clutch problem and I can’t figure out what is wrong....
I haven’t had any real problems with my tracker since I had bought it, but one day on a 5 mile trip it left me stranded. About half way through the trip it would be easier to release the clutch (take up half the pedal space to release) while taking off at a light. The more I used the clutch pedal the less room it would take to release the clutch. Finally at the end of my street I took off from a stop light in first gear and then pressed the clutch pedal to the floor (witch felt very free) to shift and I tried to shift but I couldn’t. I was stuck in first gear with the clutch pedal pressed all the way to the floor but unable to shift. So I drove slowly into a parking lot and staled into a spot. When the car stopped I looked at the clutch pedal, my foot wasn’t on it, and it was still all the way to the floor. I was able to put the shifter into neutral (without touching the clutch pedal) and I tried pushing the pedal some more to see if I could shift into reverse but I had no luck, just grinding sound as if the clutch pedal wasn’t being pushed at all. It is not a hydraulic clutch and I thought it was the clutch cable but it seemed to be functioning and the cheap, hole in the wall garage place said it wasn’t the cable but just the entire clutch system.
I didn’t think clutches gave out like that, but I still believed them, took the car home and started a very long clutch job. After spending two weeks in the cold dealing with all the striped and stuck nuts and bolts I got to the clutch system. I took it apart, inspected it and found nothing wrong. The disk and pressure plate look fine, the fly wheel is stuck to the engine but looks good, and the release bearing and pilot bearing look almost like new. There were no signs of oil contamination, a warped disk, or anything, and I am presently making ridiculous monthly payments on a car that doesn’t work.
Does anyone have any idea of what could be wrong? I’m leaning to the idea of it being the clutch cable but the cable was still able to move the shifter rod on the transmission. Also since I cannot get the Fly wheel off do you think it would be ok to just leave it there and put all the new clutch parts on. I don’t want to Spend all this time in the cold putting it all back together and get nothing accomplished.
Any help at all would be great
Thanks…..
I haven’t had any real problems with my tracker since I had bought it, but one day on a 5 mile trip it left me stranded. About half way through the trip it would be easier to release the clutch (take up half the pedal space to release) while taking off at a light. The more I used the clutch pedal the less room it would take to release the clutch. Finally at the end of my street I took off from a stop light in first gear and then pressed the clutch pedal to the floor (witch felt very free) to shift and I tried to shift but I couldn’t. I was stuck in first gear with the clutch pedal pressed all the way to the floor but unable to shift. So I drove slowly into a parking lot and staled into a spot. When the car stopped I looked at the clutch pedal, my foot wasn’t on it, and it was still all the way to the floor. I was able to put the shifter into neutral (without touching the clutch pedal) and I tried pushing the pedal some more to see if I could shift into reverse but I had no luck, just grinding sound as if the clutch pedal wasn’t being pushed at all. It is not a hydraulic clutch and I thought it was the clutch cable but it seemed to be functioning and the cheap, hole in the wall garage place said it wasn’t the cable but just the entire clutch system.
I didn’t think clutches gave out like that, but I still believed them, took the car home and started a very long clutch job. After spending two weeks in the cold dealing with all the striped and stuck nuts and bolts I got to the clutch system. I took it apart, inspected it and found nothing wrong. The disk and pressure plate look fine, the fly wheel is stuck to the engine but looks good, and the release bearing and pilot bearing look almost like new. There were no signs of oil contamination, a warped disk, or anything, and I am presently making ridiculous monthly payments on a car that doesn’t work.
Does anyone have any idea of what could be wrong? I’m leaning to the idea of it being the clutch cable but the cable was still able to move the shifter rod on the transmission. Also since I cannot get the Fly wheel off do you think it would be ok to just leave it there and put all the new clutch parts on. I don’t want to Spend all this time in the cold putting it all back together and get nothing accomplished.
Any help at all would be great
Thanks…..
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