Topic: 1990 yj clutch

[chardrc]

I final drove my jeep for the first time in too long today and when i was driving my clutch pedal started out being loose at about the first inch of its travel (first inch didn't push on anything leaving the pedal to be able to bounce, it had been like this for a year). but when i was on my way home the pedal got drastically looser and the clutch is now doing all of this engagement and disengagement in the last, lets say 3 inches (out of about 6 inches of normal travel (gestimation)), and the rest of the travel of the clutch pedal isn't doing anything/ pushing on anything. im thinking that it is the clutch master cylinder. we had replaced the slave cylinder when i got it but never the master...  i checked the fluid level and its rite at full so "no leaks". just thought i would post this and see what other people think.... hopefully this isn't too confusing.

thanks for any replies 

[Jeffy]

I final drove my jeep for the first time in too long today and when i was driving my clutch pedal started out being loose at about the first inch of its travel (first inch didn't push on anything leaving the pedal to be able to bounce, it had been like this for a year). but when i was on my way home the pedal got drastically looser and the clutch is now doing all of this engagement and disengagement in the last, lets say 3 inches (out of about 6 inches of normal travel (gestimation)), and the rest of the travel of the clutch pedal isn't doing anything/ pushing on anything. im thinking that it is the clutch master cylinder. we had replaced the slave cylinder when i got it but never the master...  i checked the fluid level and its rite at full so "no leaks". just thought i would post this and see what other people think.... hopefully this isn't too confusing.

thanks for any replies 

When my master let loose I was in the middle of a Jeep trail with no real turn around.  When the clutch went the pedal was free to swing.  Changing it is rather simple though.

[Mr_Random]

I was recently fighting with a similar problem;

The clutch would get progressively worse as I drove it until the point I couldn't even shift OUT of gear.

What it came down to was us replacing the master, to no avail, then cutting a hole in the floor (XJ's suck when it comes to space) to get the slave out. My dad didn't want to return it just yet (brand new; just replaced clutch too), so he went on a hunch;

He "Primed" the slave by pumping it a little while pouring hydro fluid in it while OFF the jeep, until it was full to the threads and there were no more bubbles, then we just put it back on and bled the system as normal. This time the bleeding was WAY easier and faster, and everything works now!

In short, take the slave off and "prime" it, then reinstall and bleed everything again before you blame other parts and get stuck when replacing those doesn't work...

[jfrabat]

Mine was similar; I would put the pedal all the way down, and I still would not be able to get out of gear because the clutch was not engaging.  Changed the master, slave and the line (it was a kit I found for a good price), and it worked kind of nice.  If this happens to you on the trail, my only advice is to try pumping the clutch; I remember it kind of worked for a while when I did it (but then, as it got worse, not even pumping the clutch pedal would work!).

[GeorgiaYJguy]

Mine craped out on the way to church one sunday morning. It was going bad anyways. I only had pedal about an inch off the floor. It was hard to shift up or down. A centerforce clutch and new slave cylinder fixed the problem. AX5s are prone to poor slave cylinders, to bad you have to pull the tranny to fix it.

[chardrc]

thanks for the replies... i was gone all week at camp.. i think its got air in the line.. cuz i tried it today and it had pressure again... so ill have to bleed it i guess. o and the master was replaced shortly before i got the jeep because old owner was to lazy/ cheap to get the slave fixed.... hopefully i can get this fixed and my radio in tomorrow..  ...

[chardrc]

ok so there is a line with an end like a greasesurk coming out of the slave cylinder (passenger side of trany).. would i be correct in assuming this is for bleeding the system.

[GeorgiaYJguy]

Yes you are correct! mite want to get you some help to pump the clutch and you bleed the valve. Just be carefull you dont twist the line in two when you open the bleeder valve.   Good luck!

[chardrc]

ok im reviving this thread in hope that it can revive my plans of an offroading trip next weekend... i did bled my clutch a few weeks ago and it was better after than (the 1 or 2 times i drove it since then) but now today i was driving and my clutch pedal went completely dead. lucky i was only a block from my destination so i chugged it to there(running stop signs and stuff). what i found is mass amounts of brake fluid leaking from the bell housing and the bleeder line is really lose like if it came unscrewed inside or broke. i did drive it home and learned that the starter will start it in first gear .... so i have 2 questions. 1 is there a way to get to the bleeder line on the inside of the bell housing without pulling the motor or dropping the trany/tcase? and ( i know this will involve more than what i can get done in a week (maybe)) but how hard is it to convert to an external slave cylinder. id assume it would involve a new bell housing master and slave cylinder and some internal mechanisms like a clutch fork and throughout bearing.

any replies are appreciated  :bow:as i need to make up my mined and get this thing running for next weekend.

[Jeffy]

ok im reviving this thread in hope that it can revive my plans of an offroading trip next weekend... i did bled my clutch a few weeks ago and it was better after than (the 1 or 2 times i drove it since then) but now today i was driving and my clutch pedal went completely dead. lucky i was only a block from my destination so i chugged it to there(running stop signs and stuff). what i found is mass amounts of brake fluid leaking from the bell housing and the bleeder line is really lose like if it came unscrewed inside or broke. i did drive it home and learned that the starter will start it in first gear .... so i have 2 questions. 1 is there a way to get to the bleeder line on the inside of the bell housing without pulling the motor or dropping the trany/tcase? and ( i know this will involve more than what i can get done in a week (maybe)) but how hard is it to convert to an external slave cylinder. id assume it would involve a new bell housing master and slave cylinder and some internal mechanisms like a clutch fork and throughout bearing.

any replies are appreciated  :bow:as i need to make up my mined and get this thing running for next weekend.

Suck it up and pull the trans out, your hydraulic bearing seals are toast.  If you're in a hurry, then just replace it with a stock setup.  Otherwise, you'll be spending a lot more money and time which you probably don't have, if you convert it over to an external setup.

[chardrc]

im currently pulling the motor... ya i know dropping the trany is easier.. but there is something about pulling the motor that i enjoy more.... and this way i can scrub the motor from the oil leakage... and ounce i pulled the fan shroud it looks like my radiator is on its last leg.. its missing half a row of fins adn the rest don't look so hot... at least i got to use the garage stall with the air conditioner. 

[oldjeep]

That doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun

[Jeffy]

Seems like a lot of extra work with only a week to do it all in.  Then you've got to make sure everything is in the right place.  Lots of little work.  I agree, doesn't sound like fun.

Chuck could have his trans out and back in several times over by the time you pull the engine.   

[chardrc]

true... all the little things add up.. like the damn power steering pump that i still can't figure out how to get off even after looking at the parts catalog thing with exploded views of the mount.. its like a mount inside of a mount thing... and i don't really want to take off the lines so that i don't lose the fluid.. but it looks like that's what has to be done... and it wont take a week... if i wasn't putsing the motor would be out by now but im taking my time.

so what is included in these hydrolic bearing seals. like rear main seal on the motor? is there a seal in the front of the trany that will have to be replaced? ow and what about the clutch.. it was replaced when i did this the first time about 2.5 years ago. but will / did the brake fluid eat up the clutch?

[Jeffy]

true... all the little things add up.. like the damn power steering pump that i still can't figure out how to get off even after looking at the parts catalog thing with exploded views of the mount.. its like a mount inside of a mount thing... and i don't really want to take off the lines so that i don't lose the fluid.. but it looks like that's what has to be done... and it wont take a week... if i wasn't putsing the motor would be out by now but im taking my time.

so what is included in these hydrolic bearing seals. like rear main seal on the motor? is there a seal in the front of the trany that will have to be replaced? ow and what about the clutch.. it was replaced when i did this the first time about 2.5 years ago. but will / did the brake fluid eat up the clutch?

You don't replace just the seals.  You need a complete hydraulic bearing with lines.  That will cost around $100 and look like this;

If you have a lot of miles or fluid got on the clutch then it will need to be replaced.  If you're lucky, the clutch will be dry and you can reuse it.