Hi guys,
My clutch has progressively been getting more and more squeeky. This happens whenever the i push in or release the clutch, regardless of gear, neutral or if the engine is on or off. I dont think it is the clutch groan that i have read about. I have looked under the car and it seems to be coming from under the rubber gaskets where the clutch attaches near the engine block. Looking up from under the drivers side, i can see it moving when the clutch is pushed in or released. How can i get this squeek to go away? Is is just in need of some lubrication? It is a very loud squeek and gets worse when the engine heats up. I can feel that the clutch is not smooth as well and it is very annoying. Is this something that I can fix or that i need to take in to be fixed? or something that can not be fixed?

 

Try putting some high-temp grease where the slave cylinder piston contacts the clutch fork (in the cupped recess of the clutch fork "handle"). If the noise doesn't go away then you'll need to grease that contact area where the clutch fork pivots off a ball inside the transmission case. I had to do both. The latter is a bit messier than the slave cylinder lube but still a relatively simple lube job especially with a small grease gun.

 

well, i have to take my car in for some other work while i am at it, so should i just have the pros do it?

i am taking it in to have the air conditioner checked, it is not getting very cold, probably just needs coolant? i will start another thread. anyway...

 

You can add grease to the slave cylinder piston-to-clutch fork yourself. It's pretty much right in front of you when you look at it from the top.

You can also do the clutch fork-to-ballpoint pivot yourself by removing the front mounted intake air tube assembly, pulling the clutch fork rubber cover to the side, having someone fully depress the clutch, and locating the ball pivot with a flashlight. Its only like 3 inches or so deep. A handheld grease gun should be able to dispense the grease right there. If they tell you they'll need to take out the tranny to lube this (I think they'll say this to squeeze out more $$$ from you) then consider trying it yourself.

 

I've had a couple of people that have worked on cars (not maxima's) in general tell me that the squeek means you need a new throw-out bearing. not sure if this is true??

 

My sister's 90 Accord has been like that too for the past 30K miles. It has 160K miles on the original clutch and has plenty of squeek to it.

 

Usually you diagnose the throw out bearing with the engine on, when the bearing is under load. He has noise even with the engine off. It can very well be the throw out bearing itself too. If that ballpoint stud is improperly lubricated/dry it can accelerate the wear on the bearing due to improper movement since the bearing is on the clutch fork itself. It sounds like a lubrication problem I had.

Try this after the engine is warmed up and it starts making the noise again. Turn off the engine. Fully depress the cluch pedal. Do it without any footwear so it won't absorb the vibrations- I pushed and released the pedal in with my hand. Then very slowly release the pedal. If you hear noise and feel a lot of friction from the pedal - sort of like hitting a bunch of detents or like rubbing your fingers over a balloon or across some guitar strings your lube points are dry. After I lubed my clutch fork and slave cylinder the noise went a way and it was smooth as butter.

If the noise is persistent then its time to shop for a new clutch!

 

WRITEUP!!!!