Where are you guys buying these items from? Decent quality, good price.

My clutch is engaging really really low and sometimes I can't even get into gear (clutch not fully disengaging from flywheel when I press the clutch pedal). I suspect the hydralic system is to blame.

 

I assume you've already tried bleeding the system at both bleeders. And I assume you're not leaking any fluid? Check the 'banjo joint' to see if it's wet. It's the gold colored box under airbox near the fusebox where the fluid hardline changes into a rubber hose. That's a common place for leaks. The slave cyl can also leak (I've seen it in other cars, but never on my maxima of 220k miles.)

If you're gonna swap things out, Get the Raybestos master Cyl from Kragen with lifetime warranty:
http://www.partsamerica.com/productd...pe=234&PTSet=A

You can get a new stainless steal clutch line that goes from Master to Slave in the groupdeal forum, or if you need a hookup on another source I can send u to a 240/Z site that can make a custom one for about $45.

Raybestos also has lifetime on slave cyl.
http://www.partsamerica.com/productd...pe=236&PTSet=A

For the slave, you might be able to get away with a rebuild kit... Replace the rubber stuff and piston if necessary
http://www.partsamerica.com/productd...pe=237&PTSet=A

Dr J

 

If you tried bleeding the system and its still the same I recommend trying raising the pedal. If you adjust that it might solve your problem

 

i bought my slave from the dealer because it was the only place in town i could get one without having to wait. I think slave and master are $50 a piece from the dealer and about $35 from any local parts store

 

I actually haven't tried to do anything yet. I have another car, so I just parked it. Its dark when I get home, so I need to make a special effort to pin point the source of the issue before I start ordering parts.

I don't see any leaks (on the ground), but I did notice that the brake fluid is a little on the low side.

Has anyone actually fixed this issue by simply bleeding the system?

 

OEM nissan rebuild kits, dirt cheap, I've got 3 sitting on my desk right now

 

Which reservoir are you looking at? The big one for brakes, or the little one for clutch?

The banjo joint I mention leaks very slowly. People say it "sweats".

Dr J

 

Big one for the brakes.

 

I had a similar issue a while back. I added fluid to the clutch reservoir (the smaller one to the right of the brake fluid reservoir) and bled it. It's been ok ever since. I've just had to keep an eye on the fluid level and add some when needed. Like previously mentioned, the rubber hose between the hardlines and the slave cylinder is a common place to have a leak. That's where my problem is. I bought a stainless steel replacement from Technafit ($25 IIRC) but haven't had a chance to install it. I suggest filling the reservoir and bleeding it before buying anything.

 

i had a problem like this i had to press my clutch so hard that i had to hold my steering wheel just so it can go into gear and when it did the car stalled lol it turned out it was the fork in the tranny after i changed my master cylinder, slave cylinder & my clutch pedal it was the fork in the tranny it was bent

 

I'm going to have to check that out. When I was broke and doing my 5 speed swap I made the mistake of buying a cheap *** master cylinder off ebay and the clutch has NEVER felt right since. Sometimes really stiff, usually mushy and very unpredictable with its engagement point. I can't find a leak, and the slave is brand new as well as the SS line.

I'd break down and buy a new one from Nissan if they weren't expensive.

fck 66 bucks aint too cheap either.

edit- rock auto has the same exact one for 59 bucks btw.

 

If the pedal pressure's getting heavy, then yeah, it's likely something else. I was going to suggest the clutch springs going out. But a bent fork makes sense too. That sucks! How'd it happen?

Dr J

 

At this stage, with 220,000 miles, I stopped buying from the dealership, and now I get whatever's cheapest with lifetime warranty. So far so good!

Dr J

 

If I thought Nissans master cylinder was of significantly better quality than the aftermarket brands, I'd go for it...but this is one of those questionables. And I think the ebay POS is definitely my problem.

 

It's almost 10yrs since 4th gens been out... I don't know what incentive Nissan would have to keep producing parts for us. another question is how much longer are you gonna hold onto your car? Is it worth the extra cost? Do you think the aftermarket (yet still oem) will fail before you stop driving it?

Dr J

 

Its not a matter of failing, its a matter of how well it operates. Whatever garbage i got off ebay was aftermarket and the pedal feel is ridiculous. The question to me is not "will the parts outlast my ownership of the car?" but rather "for how long can I stand to own this car if the parts operate crappily?"

 

Just to wrap this thread up for future searchers.

I bled the clutch system and I have been driving the car over a week with no problems!

I plan to keep an eye of the clutch fluid and eventually replace the hose. There is a slow sweat, but I am not exactly sure from where.

 

I had a new slave cylinder installed by a mechanic for $330 (parts and labor) on a 97 Max SE with 173000 miles. Then the clutch failed on me within two days and I had to spend about $950 on a new clutch (parts and labor) about four months ago.
Last week, I had no pedal pressure and there was no fluid in the reservoir. So the mechanic replaced the Master Cylinder and bled the system and everything is working or so I thought.

In the morning, the clutch pedal pressure is very light and it builds up after five-ten minutes of driving. Is this normal? I asked the mechanic and he said the brake fluid inside the reservoir expands after five minutes of driving.

Any pointers/advice from Maxima gurus who have had their clutch replaced?

Thanks,
-Andy

 

If brake fluid expands that much, we're all in trouble. I highly doubt the clutch fluid is expanding like that.

Do you have any more info?

 

Yep i had to replace my hose and bled it. Did this at 120K, now have 165K. Been good so far. This seems to be a common place to leak.

 

ThurzNite,
So, now the Max has a new Master, Slave and a new Clutch as well. As told before, the mechanic bled the system and refilled it with fresh DOT-3 fluid.

In the morning, when I leave for work at 8am, the pedal pressure is very light (i.e it offers less resistance). As I drive for about 5 -10 miles ( stop and go traffic), the pedal pressure increases (i.e it offers more resistance to my left foot) when you depress the pedal for gear shift changes. I find this annoying because it has two different modes now and I am stalling the car sometimes (I have been driving a manual for 15 years now and this behavior makes me feel like a novice)

Once I reach my work place, I park the car and do not touch it until 5.oo PM. The cycle repeats again (the pedal offers less resistance at first when I start driving and then it increases as described above)

I took it the same mechanic who replaced my Clutch, Master & Slave Cylinder and he thought it was quite normal behavior (due to fluid expansion).

I am reasonbly mechanical and change my oil/ brakes /plugs/filters etc. I am not a transimission expert by any means but this does not seem right to me. Hence the posting.

Thanks,
-Andy

 

Tony,
Are you saying that you experienced the unstable pressure problem that I described above?

I asked the mechanic if there were any leaks between the master and slave cylinder and he replied in the negative.

Thanks,
-Andy

 

Clutch pedal pressure should never change.

I'd take it to another mechanic. You have a lot of new parts here and there is no reason they can't get a simple clutch/slave/master system working.

Dave

 

Dave,
Thanks for your input. I shall take it in for a second opinion (to a different mechanic).

-Andy

 

Check you clutch line at the transmission. They are prone to cracking and failing. They are not very expensive or hard to replace.

 

there is definitely still air in the system. weather it is because of a poor bleed job or another leak that the mechanic didnt fix is hard to tell. Tell your mechanic he is retarded and fluids dont expand, nor do they compress.

I dont know how handy you are but bleeding the lines is pretty easy and you can try doing it yourself. If you have a leak somewhere it is very minor so bleeding them right would make your clutch feel right at least for a while.

If it gets bled right and there are no leaks it will stay fine forever, if you bleed it and it gets mushy after a few days-weeks then you still have a leak.

I would make the mechanic bleed it again since you already paid for it but i hate having my car in other peoples hands...

 

Thanks Loren00Miata and Feldman,
I appreciate your time and responses. I will take the car to a different mechanic and ask him to check for leaks, a second bleed and clutch line check.

-Andy

 

Okay Nissan gurus,
Based on the above posts for my clutch pedal pressure problem (the pedal pressure feels different at different times of the day), I went back to the mechanic and asked him to check the lines between the master and the slave cylinder. He replaced the lines and re-bled the system.

The car worked fine for one day and then the same problem started happening again. The pedal feels soft and then it stiffens up as I drive and there are times when I feel like the pedal pressure is lost and it is driving me crazy.

As I said, the clutch is new, new master/slave combo, new lines and new brake fluid. I check the brake fluid level every day as I have to drive 50-80 miles every day.

Any other pointers? Does the pedal assembly need to be replaced ? The car is 11 years old now.

Thanks,
-Andy

 

Was the flywheel resurfaced when it was last worked on, like when the clutch was changed?

 

i'm going to replace my master cylinder. I cant think of any other reason my clutch varies so much in feel. I swear sometimes the difference between complete disengagement and complete engagement of the clutch is within a quarter of an inch. I cant even ease into it properly I either slip it too much or drop it too fast.

 

I was just thinking again, and this's very possible. The master cyl, as it seems like most know, is a great place to start.

The other thing is the clutch. The clutch disc could be worn excessively if the master cyl was not functioning correctly. So even after replacing the Master Cyl, the worn disc will slip when it warms up, giving soft, inconsistent feel.

Should also check out the flywheel and pressure plate. If the disc was damaged, it could have glazed the PP or FW. Or maybe the clutch setup wasn't properly broken in after replaced. When I replaced my clutch with an ACT Street, I called them up and was told to drive 300 miles of 'normal' driving. Well, most of my miles were highway, so they said break in would take more miles then (duh). The store that I bought it from recommended no hard launches for 1000 miles. Well, the ACT is very twitchy, on/off, it's hard to engage smoothly (plus maxima's inherent chatter).

Dr J

 

yeah I know I didn't do a good job of breaking in my clutch either. Its an OEM 01 maxima clutch. The flywheel was freshly resurface when I installed it but I learned how to drive manual on these new components. My clutch feeling is very twitchy as well, VERY hard to engage smoothly 75% of the time. I have poly filled mounts (although i noticed the rear is cracking) and when I slowly release the clutch from a dead stop I get god AWFUL clutch chatter, it feels like wheel hop!

first thing I'm going to replace is the master cylinder though, and the motor mounts with some poly inserts.

 

I wouldn't be suprised if your mechanic doesn't know that there are TWO clutch bleed's, the one on the fender & the one the slave.

 

Chillen: when I upgraded to ES Motor Mounts, the engagement chatter was majorly reduced. Also, after I rebuilt the tranny and shimmed it correctly, the chatter was 90% gone. Finally, when I swapped in a 2001 5sp, there was no chatter at all.

 

Thurznite,

The clutch labor and parts are still under warranty. I will ask my mechanic to take a look at the tranny.

BTW, since I replaced everything (Clutch, Master/Slave combo and the lines connecting the Master/Slave), should I also replace the clutch pedal assembly (am sure there is a spring in there behind the clutch pedal). Since the car is 11 years old, I wanted to check out that possibility as well.

If so, where can I find the clutch pedal assembly kit (I did a google search and could not find it) for the 97 Maxima.

This would be a cheaper option than tearing down the transmission. As they say, start with the easy stuff first.

Thanks to everyone who is helping me on this unique problem. I have called two different mechanics over the phone and they were laughing at my problem.

-Andy

 

I am hoping its the fact that my poly filled mount is cracking because I dont necessarily remember it engaging like that before. My tranny is shimmed properly and rebuilt. I would love to get an 01 5 speed though

 

The pedal pressure should not change as you drive.
Something is binding and I bet it's got something to do with the clutch or possibly the release bearing. It's not in the hydraulic system.

I'm thinking the tranny needs to come out and your clutch installation needs to be gone over again.

I think you also need to find another mechanic, AFTER you make the one that screwed up your clutch job FIX IT.

My .02

 

njmaxseltd,
Thanks so much for your post and information. Like I said, the only thing not changed is the clutch pedal per se. I am going to ask him about it and then ask him for a tranny diagnosis and see if some of the clutch components are worn out or something.

I got a new clutch installed in Summer 08 from the same mechanic.

Thanks and have a great weekend.

-Andy

 

Clutch pedal spring? Never heard of that needing replacement (at least not from the forums here).

Starting with the easiest thing first... In my opinion, the easiest thing is dropping the tranny. But that's easy for me cuz I've done it a few times. Taking the tranny out allows you to check a couple things...not asking for rebuild, just dropping the tranny, and inspecting the flywheel, disc, pressure plate, fork, and throwout bearing.

Dr J

 

ThurzNite,

Based on your post, I went back to the mechanic and told him exactly what you told me since I am not an expert on Trannies or Clutches.

He asked me to come back on Wednesday and leave the car with him.

This forum has been very helpful and I appreciate your response and all others who have contributed answers to my peculiar problem.

Thanks!
-Andy