Why won't my clutch disengage? NEW PICS
 

I was driving home today (a 4 hour trip), and after I got off the interstate, my clutch wouldn't disengage. As I came to a stop, I was able to pull it out of gear, but it wouldn't go back in gear. I had to shut the car off to put it in gear. I started the car and had to immediately start moving to keep the engine running. I limped over to a parking lot and had my mom come pick me up. No fluid was leaking, the reservoir was full, and the clutch pedal was stiffer. I'd love to search to find some answers, but that of course isn't possible. I have a feeling I might be able to fix it myself (I've replaced the slave cylinder and hose with no problems before), but I wouldn't know how to diagnose it. Any ideas?
I'll probably take it to my mechanic after rush hour traffic dies down. That will probably be the easiest thing to do. What makes this so much worse, though, is that the UPS man just delivered my Illuminas to go with my H&Rs. I guess the install will have to wait a while.:(

Open the hood and have someone press down on the clutch pedal. Peer down and confirm the slave cylinder is actually moving the clutch fork to disengage the clutch. If it's not moving or moving very little, you should bleed the system. And take a look under the firewall in the interior to see if fluid is leaking down from the master cylinder. You might have to pull back the carpet and sound deadening to see the leak.

If it's moving the right amount, you might have a bent fork or a bad throw out bearing. But you didn't mention any weird noises that are usually associated with bad t/o bearings. I'm thinking the system needs to be bleed or your slave/ms/clutch line has a leak.

Is your clutch pedal still functioning normally?

as my chinese boss would say...."I DONT KNOW!!!"

Thanks guys. I'll go take a look at it and maybe bleed it before taking it to my mechanic. Yes, the pedal does move normally, just a little stiffer. No noises that I remember.

oh and your chinese boss says " I DUN NO, YOU ASK I TELL YOU I DUN NO WHEA HE LIVE, STOP HARRASING ME STUPID AMERICAN, PWEASE DON HIT MY CAR! PWEASE STOP HITTING MY CAR WITH BAT!!"

That's what I was going to suggest. Try bleeding it before you take it to your mechanic. Bleed the upper hose first, then the lower. That's the only thing that I oan think of that would cause that. I'm assuming that with the car off you can shift normally and that you can drive it in the gear that you get it into correct?

The slave cylinder piston appeared to be moving quite freely, so I decided against bleeding it. I just took it to the shop. Hopefully they're not busy and can get to it soon. If it's not a hydraulic problem, will the tranny have to be removed for most other problems? If so, Jeff, do you have any Fidanzas left?:)

Yes, if not's a hydraulic problem, in most cases, the tranny will have to be removed and opened.

Yes I have one left. But about 3 guys have inquired about it. But it's up for grabs for the 1st person to paypal me.
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....8&pagenumber=5

Pics of Nissan Key Value Clutch After 40K Miles
 

http://www.cardomain.com/id/brittbhmax
As you can see, around two of the springs the metal tore. Is this due to me driving too hard, or is it just the quality of the clutch? The old tranny mount and flywheel are for sale if anyone needs them.

it's essentially impossible to tell, there are a number of variables in clutch installs and so forth that could have caused this... my best guess is that its the shtty quality of the clutch