No power to the wheels, is it the clutch?

[saintsairforce]

Hello,

I'm driving a 91 Laser, 2l, fwd. On my way home tonight I had to slow down for the car in front of me so I took my car out of gear and used the brakes. When the other car turned I went to put my car into third gear and heard a clunk and then rpm neddle jumped up when I went to give it gas. I pulled over and tried putting it in first but now power. Thried all the gears and nothing. I checked the manual quick and it's telling me it's probaubly the transaxle or clutch. As a test I tried shifting into the gears with the car on with out pushing in the clutch. Sure enough it had no problem going in. By this I'm guessing it is the clutch. Was wondering what others think it could be. If it is the clutch I plan to just follow the manual and replace it myself. Any pointers, tips or other suggested threads?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Cheers,
Ricky

 

[boostin92awd]

was the clutch slipping before you had this problem?because ive never heard of a clutch just going all of a sudden,usually theres signs before hand.

 

[saintsairforce]

I believe it was slipping from time to time. Not to noticable. Usually I would just back off on the gas and it would be fine. I'm also hearing an unusal noise under my hood now when it's idling, like a tinging from the transmission side of the engine. Not sure what that might be, it comes and goes and is not that noticable but new. Now that I think about it it has been slipping. I've noticed it only really when I try to do a fast take off. The more I think about it the more I'm convinced it is the cluth, although I also hope that's the problem because it's cheaper than fixing the transmission.

 

[jking29]

Really the only way to find out what you broke is to raise it up with a jack, put some jack stands under it and crawl under and start checking it out. Check to make sure that both axles are still intact. Try spinning each front tire by hand while in gear and see if the opposite tire spins. Listen for any noises. Lower one tire down to the ground and see if the tire in the air will spin, it should not. Have someone sit in the car and move the shifter to each gear and watch to see if the levers are fully moving on the transmission. If you don't see anything jumping out at you it is time for the transmission to come out. Let us know what you find.

 

[saintsairforce]

Ok, I tested those things. Not looking so good. Both axles are intact, and the levers move well. Only thing that really jumps out at me is the oil that's all over, but that's because of my main oil seal is leaking. I tried lifting both tires and spinning one, the other did not move. Tried from both sides, no luck. Also tried one wheel on the ground and one in the air, the one in the air moved freely. I made sure to have it in gear. So I guess it's not a clutch problem now, although if I pull the tranny I might as well inspect/replace that if need be. Any ideas on where to go from here?

Thanks for the help so far.

cheers,
Ricky

 

[jking29]

It sounds like you lost the differential in the trans. With both wheels in the air and spinning one of them, the other should move the opposite direction unless you have an lsd in which case you should not be able to move either wheel with the trans in gear. With one tire on the ground and the other in the air, you should not be able to move the tire in the air with the trans in gear. Definitely time for the trans to come out.

 

[saintsairforce]

Well, I guess I'll have to pull the tranny and see if I can fix it. If not I'll have to see if I can find a good used one. Thanks for your help.

 

[boostin92awd]

well I was pullin for ya on it to be just the clutch but doesnt look to be that way. as for your options of what to do now it depends on how much you wanna spend. you can have it sent to sheppard to get rebuilt(exspensive but worth it),have it rebuilt locally(not as exspensive),replace it completely by checking classifieds,junk yards,ebay,ect,ect(probably the cheapest way if you get a good deal).

 

[saintsairforce]

Well, It's been a couple weeks now. I ended up finding another laser for sale and manageed to get it cheap. It had a newly rebuild tranny and clutch in it and the previous owner was in a hurry to sell the car as he was about to move for work and couldn't bring it with him. It's a 93 laser with the same engine so I'm basically just taking all upgraded parts from my car and adding them to this new car. This new car is also a pretty rust free compared to my old car. This was not what I was planning on doing but now I can tqake my time and look at trying and rebuilding the old tranny on my own for fun.

Thanks for your help,
Ricky