why isnt my clutch disengaging from the flywheel? the slave and master cylinders are operating as properly as i can tell, no leaking from anywhere, i've bled the system several times with nothing abnormal (flud spewing out when bleeder valve is released).
its a remanufactured VLSD from phoenix hardparts.
everything is visually alright as far as i can tell.
now for the stupidity: the throwout bearing would not fit over the sleeve that covers part of the input shaft(red flag in my head but i figured if it were the wrong tranny, it wouldnt bolt up and look so similar), ordered a new one, same problem so i shaved it down so it fit, nice and smooth. also sanded off any paint that may have been on the sleeve from the reman process (i have no idea what that entails really), lubed everything up real nice(white lithium grease)..there seemed to still be a slight lip on the end of the sleeve but the bearing still slid over it (mind you i didnt have to do any pounding, pressing, exerting a ton of effort or anything of the like to get the bearing on, it was just alot more effort than none). so the bearing is on and will come off of the sleeve without a big hassle. clutch fork, clips, everything assembled and put together, mounted tranny...
today i get the axles on and attach them to the spindles, car is on jack stands and jacks (jacks are just under the frame rails near the stands just for added security), axles are attached to both tranny and spindles, nothing looks out of place. linkage is still a little wierd but i can get it into first and second with some trouble..whatever, i can play with it later.
clutch to the floor, engine started..try to put it into first, nothing..ok, adjust linkage, same thing, finally get it into first and the axles are spinning..clutch is still on the floor (i'm holding it there) WTF? theres no load on the axles so it went in pretty easily considering the conditions.
bled the clutch...3 more times, same thing. gave up and went to work (late as usual)
what is my problem?

secondary problem, linkage is hooked up but it wont go into first without some trouble, second is rare, third, fourth, fifth and reverse i havent been able to get. could it be possible i need to reattach the linkage with the thing(gear selector?)on the tranny the linkage attaches to in a different position?

if at all possible, IM me, my sn is "beakmoney" on AIM.
thanks in advance.
i really hope i dont have to drop the tranny again

 

Sounds like both your problems are related: clutch. If clutch mal-adjusted, you can't engage gear properly.
Stupid question, but I gotta ask it - is the clutch drive plate in the right way round?
Seeing as throw out bearing didn't fit properly, did the auto-parts store give you the right clutch kit?

BTW: Throw out bearing unlikely the cause of the problems you're having - it's only job is to press the pressure plate against the drive plate whilst spinning up to same speed as flywheel - think of it as a synchromesh for the clutch.

Good luck

 

i dont see any other way of adjusting the clutch, as soon as the pedal moves, the slave cylinder starts pushing on the fork.
the clutch kit came from maxxtuning (group deal), everything else fit fine.
as far as the disc, its on, springs facing away from flywheel.

 

new information...
with the car still on jacks, i put the brakes on.
started the car, in gear and the axles would spin if the brake was not pressed. pressed the brake with the clutch in and the axles would stop spinning (obviously). let the clutch out with the brake pressed, the car would die immediatly.
is this a clutch adjustment issue? if so, how do i adjust it?
i put the wheels on and tried to move the car...it moved but i have a frozen caliper or two..
shifter problem:
attached linkage, tightened everything, still will only go into first and second, feels like its only half in each gear also. any ideas with that?
keep the IMs comin' guys, they're giving me hope that its not something major.

 

first make sure that the clutch is the right clutch. If it is then it sounds like the clutch isnt disengaging right for some reason. Check the position of the fork and the condition of the slave cylinder and make sure its releasing all the way.

 

Okay, I re-read your original post & clutch mechanism would appear to be the problem - it's not releasing at all. The pressure plate is holding the drive plate against the flywheel and no amount of pedal adjustment or fluid bleeding is gonna stop that.
Two questions come to mind:

1) the reman tranny. Did your car used to have non-VLSD manual & has the tranny company actually supplied you with VLSD unit?
2) has maxxtuning actually supplied you with correct clutch kit? If you had to modify the throwout bearing, that would suggest you've either got the wrong tranny or the wrong kit.

Do you still have original throwout bearing? Compare that with the first replacement bearing & see what the difference is. It could be much deeper and is actually pressing against the pressure plate. It is possible the throwout bearing slipped off the fork on assembly and is sitting between fork and pressure plate. Either way, you're gonna have to drop the tranny to fix - sorry.

 

i dont exactly know how to make sure its the right clutch. the pressure plate fits the flywheel, the bearing fits the fork, the pilot bushing fits where it goes, the disc fits onto the input shaft fine.
the only problem i had was the pressure plate onto the sleeve.
the slave cylinder is new, the old one was spurting fluid out of the boot when i tried to bleed it, so i had to pick up a new one..othewise i would've had this problem 4 or 5 days earlier.

 

i did have a VLSD, and they did ship me one that bolts to the motor, works with the axles, fits the linkage (apparently still needs adjustment). i was always under the impression that the VLSD axles would not fit the open diff. tranny.
if i do infact have the wrong tranny, then why is everything else fitting without any trouble? the clutch kits are the same from 89-01, arent they?
as for the old throwout bearing, the main piece is the same thickness as the new one, i cant really tell about the inside diameter as that piece is worn pretty badly
also, the bearing that maxxtuning shipped, was the exact same one as my local shop ordered for me.
as for the bearing slipping off the fork, no, i poked around through the starter hole and its still attached.

 

Okay - that's cool. It just eliminates a whole bunch of possibles. Unless someone else has given you correct diagnosis already, looks like you're gonna have to pull the tranny out to find the cause. You may not actually have to drop it completely. I've never seen a new clutch jam up & I've been working on cars for 18 years! (both professionally & in spare time).
Almost sounds like some of the pressure plate forks have bent in - yet it's a new unit. I had a pulsar/nx that had same problem with pressure plate, but it was old...
Good luck...

 

it sucks because i could tell you everything i know its not, and that doesnt leave much room for a reasonable explanation. i'm going to adjust the pedal today and see what happens, i mean the disc is barely contacting the flywheel so....
that still doesnt explain the shifting issue...but we'll see..
i refuse to pull the tranny unless i'm sending it back to get another one (6month, 6k warrentee)

 

Good luck with adjusting the pedal - not sure that's your problem, though.
If clutch is mal-adjusted, you're gonna have trouble shifting into gear - esp as it seems clutch drive plate isn't releasing with the pedal. More I think about it, the more it sounds like the pressure plate not pressing against the drive plate, for whatever reason (bent forks / tongues on the plate?).
This means you're gonna have to pull tranny out - sorry...

 

his problem is either the clutch pedal needs adjusting or there is a lot of air in the lines. i talked to him the other night and he said the clutch doesn't disengage until the pedal is really close to the floor. i'm thinking it is one of those two problems.

edit: i forgot it could be one more thing, the master cylinder. at the moment i'm leaning more torwards it needing to be bleed since i hardly hear of people needing to adjust the clutch pedal. hopefully it's not the master cylinder since those are pricey.

 

when you say disengage, you mean engage, right?
when i let up on the pedal, it starts to catch VERY close to the floor.
i never had the opportunity to let the pedal completely out with the engine running so i have no idea when it starts to try to disengage..however, when i push the pedal down with the engine off, the slave cylinder moves immediately.
i'm going to bleed it and adjust the pedal tomorrow...i forgot one thing with the shifting...i bent the linkage as i was pulling the motor (careless mistake, i know), i thought i bent it back accordingly but maybe not..we'll see tomorrow, i have 2 good friends that know their sh*t helping me from noon until we come up with either success or a definate problem.
mark, thanks for helping me on AIM..you too subs1000w..i'm sure i'll talk to you guys later.

 

no problem it was fun and if you do come to the conclution it has anything to do with the master cylinder you could buy a rebiuld kit for about 12$ we rebiult my friends and it was very very simple and as for the clutch i know you dont want to do this but i would put the old messed up clutch back in since you know it worked and see if anyhting is still fu**ed up although if you have some smart help tommarow youll proboly figur it out

 

i meant when you were pushing the clutch in, it would disengage keeping power from going to the wheels. i bet there is just a lot of air in the line. since it's moving the slave cyilnder right when you press it the air is just probably not allowing enough pressure in the line to release the clutch. that's just a guess since i can't really tell first hand what is going on but that's what it sounds like to me. hopefully that's what it is since it's the cheapest route

 

adjusted pedal....pedal is perfect, clutch disengages properly...working on linkage now..
new problem: sticky ebrake..it'll get figured out soon though...
thanks guys!

 

awesome news! hopefully this thing will be on the road and ready to drive soon.

 

i have no 3rd, 4th or reverse. whats the deal with that? i have first, second and 5th so that means i SHOULD have proper shifter movement.. please IM me with all possible solutions...

 

Who woulda thought after all your previous efforts, it was the pedal after all! You lucked out there... As for tranny, keep working on the linkage - the fact that you can get 5th suggests you should be able to get reverse & because the shifter goes from one side to the other, you wouldn't think there's anything restricting it in the middle. Def hope it ain't the tranny...

 

you'd think i would have proper shifter movement..i dont know whats going on so i'm going to try and locate a linkage from a junkyard, or if all else fails get a new one from nissan (mmmm nissan parts at cost )
the reason i think its the linkage is where first is, it doesnt feel like its where it was..although its been sitting for 4..almost 5 months so i'm a little rusty as to how everything was. who knows..if the new linkage doesnt fix it, i'm going to have to pull the tranny and send it back for a new one.
another question: exedy stageI clutch..should it chatter? its got .5miles on it so i havent exactly broken it in yet.
also, it wasnt the sticky ebrake (although the rear rotors are rusted alot so the clean spot where the pad was bumps on every rotation but that'll wear off)..it was a frozen right front caliper (the one i blew the piston out of and hoped would work by just putting it back in.), drove the car around the block and only that pad was smoking..hope i didnt glaze it.

 

I'm gonna ask the question everyone else has probably asked already - have you unhooked the linkage at the tranny & tried selecting gears with a multi-grip or visegrip? If you can select all gears no problem, then linkage or bush shifter sits in. If you have problems, it's the tranny.
BTW - we didn't get the manual tranny max's in NZ so not sure if its a rod link or cable link (I'm going with rod link as that's a Nissan standard for most FWD cars). Rod linkage normally doesn't give any trouble - I've done plenty of tranny / clutch jobs & never had a problem.

You're gonna be an expert once you've got this sorted...

 

usualy to test the tranny its easier to stick a screw driver up throught the bolt hole on the shifter inpute shaft

 

it doesnt work. cant get it into any gears testing it like that.

 

youve got to use some force if not id call the place you got it from

 

well guys, it finally happened..i've exhausted all options, finally got the clutch working, new linkage (HUGE improvement in feel, highly recommended if you can get a good deal). now after testing, playing, adjusting, readjusting it will still not go into 3rd, 4th or reverse and it has developed a pretty good gear oil leak, so now with 7 miles on the motor it sits in my driveway. i suppose this week i'll be pulling the tranny to send it back. hopefully this place (phoenix reman tranmissions) doesnt give me any crap. hopefully when i get another tranny i wont have the same throwout bearing issue
on a side note, i did drive it around in first and second...its VERY much faster than it was even only taking it up to 3500 NOT floored(before: 174k, low compression, bad VTC, no internal goodies, after: rebuilt motor, tranny, clutch, a few other goodies).
thanks for your help and if you wanna tell me "i told you so" go right ahead.