clutch problem

[evil tsi]

i just installed an act 2100 in my 99 gst and if i put the clutch pedal to the floor and put it in a gear its like the clutch is grabbing slightly and if i even think about lifting the pedal it starts to grab while barely off the floor. i know the acts are notorious for this beause they sell the longer rod for it. any input would be great.

 

[XiKeiyaZI]

Ah, yes. I was looking at his Avatar information and not the 99 GST information in the first post. My apologies.

Anway, Good information. +1 for those with informational posts.

 

[kchaazz]

The extended rod really doesnt work. Check your fork once more. This time, grab the end of the fork, where it comes out of the tranny, and push it toward the passenger side of the vehicle until you feel it stop. Now examine the position of the fork. Is it centered, or is it angled toward the passenger side?Even slightly toward the passenger side is too much, and ideally, you want it just slightly angled to the drivers side of the car. One thing that hasnt been mentioned yet regarding machining the flywheel surface and step, is that when this is done, you are removing material from the flywheel, effectively moving the ENTIRE clutch assembly toward the drivers side of the car, which throws off the geometry of the whole setup. Couple this with a worn fork, which places the fulcrum point further to the PASSENGER side of the car, and youve got a clusterf&*k on your hands. Bleed the clutch again, shim the ball, readjust the clutch per Jack's video, and you may solve the problem.
One more thing, the reason you push the end of the fork toward the passenger side is to see where the fork is when the TOB is actually touching the fingers of the pp. Also, the extended rod doesnt work in the case of a badly worn fork because the end of the fork will usually hit the edge of the square hole in the bellhousing before releasing the clutch.

 

[akira235]

You have to remove the transmission again, I'm sorry, really. I pulled mine 6 or 7 times before I worked all the kinks out. After pulling the transmission:

1. Remove clutch fork, and make sure it isn't bent. (People say that they can't be bent and that they can only break, this is NOT true, I know from personal experience, I bent the everloving hell out of mine.) Replace if necessary.

2. Regardless of whether the clutch fork is okay, replace or shim the pivot ball. They are not expensive, and shimming it is a band-aid in my opinion, so I recommend you just get a new one

3. After this, put your transmission back in, test clutch release. Fixed? AWESOME! Not fixed? Yeah I'm not surprised, dsms are like this. Proceed to 4

4. This is the last trick I have, where the rod of the master cylinder connects to a nut on the back of your pedal assembly there is a bracket that resembles this -> |_| that nut is located on the "bottom" of the part of the bracket being symbolized by the underscore. Buy a few nuts that are the same size as this one, remove the bracket from your car, thread a bolt through it, thread the other bolts on top of it and torque them down pretty well, then have a shop weld the nuts together. (you should only need one, I used 2 just in case, but it was overkill) Replace the bracket, now you can adjust your master cylinder out farther and get the little extra bit of pedal that you need.

In all honesty, 1 and 2 should fix it just fine, don't do 3 unless you have to. I actually keep that little bracket on my key ring as a reminder of the pain and suffering I endured getting this car on the road. (Bought a new master, and it included the bracket)

 

[kchaazz]

You have to remove the transmission again, I'm sorry, really. I pulled mine 6 or 7 times before I worked all the kinks out. After pulling the transmission:

1. Remove clutch fork, and make sure it isn't bent. (People say that they can't be bent and that they can only break, this is NOT true, I know from personal experience, I bent the everloving hell out of mine.) Replace if necessary.

2. Regardless of whether the clutch fork is okay, replace or shim the pivot ball. They are not expensive, and shimming it is a band-aid in my opinion, so I recommend you just get a new one

3. After this, put your transmission back in, test clutch release. Fixed? AWESOME! Not fixed? Yeah I'm not surprised, dsms are like this. Proceed to 4

4. This is the last trick I have, where the rod of the master cylinder connects to a nut on the back of your pedal assembly there is a bracket that resembles this -> |_| that nut is located on the "bottom" of the part of the bracket being symbolized by the underscore. Buy a few nuts that are the same size as this one, remove the bracket from your car, thread a bolt through it, thread the other bolts on top of it and torque them down pretty well, then have a shop weld the nuts together. (you should only need one, I used 2 just in case, but it was overkill) Replace the bracket, now you can adjust your master cylinder out farther and get the little extra bit of pedal that you need.

In all honesty, 1 and 2 should fix it just fine, don't do 3 unless you have to. I actually keep that little bracket on my key ring as a reminder of the pain and suffering I endured getting this car on the road. (Bought a new master, and it included the bracket)

Step 4 is a bad idea because if you screw the rod too far into the master cylinder, the relief port in the master cylinder will be blocked by the plunger, and the fluid wont be able to return to the master from the slave and line. This results in pressure in the slave and line which will preload the crap out of the pp fingers. Sure, the clutch will feel like its ok, and will release and engage at the top of the pedal travel, vs just off the floor, but itll kill the clutch and the tob. In Jack's clutch adjustment video, he explains that when you adjust your clutch pedal with the rod and get it releasing and engaging where you want it, you are supposed to check to make sure the relief port isnt blocked by grabbing the end of the fork and pushing it toward the drivers side. If the fork moves easily, the port is not blocked, and if its diffucult to push or cannot be pushed at all, the port is blocked.

 

[evil tsi]

im dreading having to pull this tranny again. at least its nice to have a lift

 

[akira235]

Step 4 is a bad idea because if you screw the rod too far into the master cylinder, the relief port in the master cylinder will be blocked by the plunger, and the fluid wont be able to return to the master from the slave and line. This results in pressure in the slave and line which will preload the crap out of the pp fingers. Sure, the clutch will feel like its ok, and will release and engage at the top of the pedal travel, vs just off the floor, but itll kill the clutch and the tob. In Jack's clutch adjustment video, he explains that when you adjust your clutch pedal with the rod and get it releasing and engaging where you want it, you are supposed to check to make sure the relief port isnt blocked by grabbing the end of the fork and pushing it toward the drivers side. If the fork moves easily, the port is not blocked, and if its diffucult to push or cannot be pushed at all, the port is blocked.

You're absolutely right, I should have mentioned that, you have to be careful when you do it and be sure not to push it past the relief valve. The method is sound though, and its necessary in some cases when all the other stuff doesn't cut it. (its only necessary in a very small number of cases, like I said, only do this if you absolutely have to)

 

[evil tsi]

Its the pivot ball and fork...I can push the fork all the way to passenger side. So its coming back out and ill replace the pivot Ball,, fork, and get an act flywheel. Also ill shim the pivot ball to make sure

 

[akira235]

If you replace the pivot ball, do NOT shim it. I made that mistake and had to pull my transmission out again because it pushed the fork WAY to far over

 

[evil tsi]

Ok thank you for that bit of info. I would've been pissed to have to pull it again.

 

[kchaazz]

Just be sure to check the flywheel step JUST to be sure before putting it on. If you buy the flywheel from Roadrace engineering, checking the step is not necessary, as they are very thorough with every flywheel they sell. Also, dont use the metal sleeved TOB that came with that clutch; the OEM TOB is sleeved with plastic; the metal sleeve of the aftermarket TOB will tear up the shaft, AND the construction of the housing of the aftermarket TOB is as such that the tabs which attach the TOB to the fork via the circular clip are prone to break off. I have first hand experience with the latter of the two issues.