Clutch Issues!!

Ok here is my problem..... I know very very little about clutches... LOL that is my main problem.....

71 CJ5 Dauntless 225, T86 or 90 and a warn overdrive......

I was driving home from work yesterday and went to stop at a light so u disengaged the clutch and pressed the brakes and can to a stop..... i then realized that my RPMs were dropiing so i pressed the gas to see what was up and my jeep lurched forward even though the clutch pedal was pressed in....i limped home and here is what i have found out this morning...

i have some sortof hydraulic clutch in this thing... i went to adjust the lower clutch rod adjuster and adjusted it a few turns and went to drive.... worked fine for a min then back to where i began......

What is going on? Do i need a new clutch? fork out of place? What?

 

how do i know if the clutch is going bad? how do i know if the throw out bearing is out? i am new to this clutch thing... i am pretty mechanical but i am learning all this now!

 

Sounds like your slave cylinder is going south.

 

Hooker, Start with the easy stuff. Find your master cylinder it will be the cast iron thing that the clutch push rod goes into. It should have a cap on it, unscrew this cap and check the fluid level. Be careful as this fluid is brake fluid which is very corrosive. If the master cylinder is full your problem is in either this cylinder or its slave cylinder on the bell housing.
If the master cylinder was very low on fluid, then you have found your problem. Fill it up without spilling any, or as little as you can. Put the cap back on and push on the clutch a few times. the clutch should get better after a while. Now look for leaks from either cylinder, or the hose/tubing that carries the brake fluid between them. The fluid went some where, find out where, or the problem will keep coming back. Fix the leak, refill the master cylinder. Now go down the road checking the fluid level often until it stabilizes.
Now if the fluid level was fine, You need to figure out which cylinder it is. Find the rubber hose that connects the two together, have a friend push in the clutch while they hold the cluch down using smooth jawed vice gripes adjusted to just squeeze the hose closed, clamp off the hose so no fluid will flow. Now have your friend release the cluch, pause, and then try to push the pedal down again, firm but gentle, keep pushing. If it does not go down very far and holds firm you need a new slave cylinder. If it keeps going down slowly then you need a new Master cylinder.
I like to replace both at once as well as the rubber hose, sinse they are all the same age and have seen the same amount of use. If you replace just one, you will probably be back to get the others soon. This has been my experiance.
Do not forget the fluid is very corrosive it will eat paint and your skin if not washed off right away. Hot soapy water works best. Clean yourself as well as your Jeep. Good luck, Happy Jeeping, Matt W.

PS. This is just a guide to help you find the problem. It is not a replacement for your Jeep maintenance manual. I did not talk about the bleeding process that will need to be done if you are out of fluid, or you changed any of the componants. consult your manual and then ask us questions. Matt W.

 

well my slave cylinder is leaking a little so i pulled it offf and jimmied it up to "fix" it.... it is def not a jeep slave cyl or master cylinder... can some one send me a pic of how the slave cylinder attaches to the bell housing?

 

Maybe if you can post pics of your set up we might be able to identify what you have....
Nickmil

 

I WANT PICS OF WHAT EVERYONE ELSE HAS SO I CAN SET MINE UP RIGHT... I WILL POST THE PICS I TOOK TOMORROW WHEN I GET TO WORK..... I THOUGHT I HAD IT FIXED... I DROVE IT TO AND FROM WORK (ABOUT 30 MILES ROUND TRIP AND NO PROBLEMS THEN WHEN I WENT OUT TO LET MY WIFE OUT OF THE DRIVE WAY THE SAME THING WAS HAPPENING.... NO CLUTCH RELEASE...... WELL I AM SURE IT IS THE SLAVE OR THE MASTER BUT MOST LIKELY THE SLAVE... IT WAS A LITTLE WORN OUT IN THE BOTTOM OF THE CYLINDER..... I DONT WANT TO HAVE TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE CLUTCH PEDAL ... CAN THE CLUTCH MASTER GO BAD EVEN IF IT DOES NOT LEAK?

BTW SORRY BOUT THE CAPS...did not realize they were on until it was too late... did not want to rewrite all that/....

 

To quote the Mythbusters, "Now there's your problem..."

"well my slave cylinder is leaking a little so i pulled it offf and jimmied it up to "fix" it.... it is def not a jeep slave cyl or master cylinder... can some one send me a pic of how the slave cylinder attaches to the bell housing?"

For starters, you're gonna have to replace the slave cylinder. How it is mounted is kinda immaterial.

I've had a brake master cylinder or two go bad with an "internal leak" over the years, however they were always the more "modern" dual MC. Your clutch MC will be a single cylinder, so things might be different in your case. Start by replacing the slave.

 

i am thinking about fabbing a bracket for the wilwood pull style one... i am on a very tight budget right now with getting ready to move and all and so the cheaper the better....

 

Here are the pics as promised for you guys to try to decipher.... the numbers on the side are24288 or 24283, on the other side it says MADE IN USA. I would like to get one to replace this one but if not i will getting a southwest or wilwood one and fabbing a bracket for it.... i have no welder or any way to get to one in this area..... let me know what you think it could be... thanks

 

Take it to your FLAPS. A good counterman should be able to tell you what it is. That's your simplest fix. I used a Wilwood pullback but needed the help of a real welder to make a bracket that could withstand the forces generated by the pressure plate.

 

Any one else? any help?

 

Figured it out.... i had already ordered the Wilwood slave cylinder last week and it should be here today but last night i got my new JEEP REPAIR CD in the mail and started looking through it and there was a picture of a slave cylinder set up there and the part matches perfectly..... The slave is off a 62-64 Kaiser J series or Gladiator truck..... I was was upset but hope i can return the wilwood....