Throw out bearing pooped out

[wmrcs]

Tonight I was driving back from an amazing dinner (Roxy's Hawaiian Grill in Tualatin, OR!) with my fiance. I was driving like usual, just a small pull through first gear and when I tried to put it in second, I couldn't. So I let the clutch back out and pushed it back in, then it went into second but hard. Then I couldn't get it out of second and the clutch started to feel kind of bubbly. I managed to get it out of gear and pulled over. Pushed it over to the side of the road and still can't get it in gear. I had it towed back to my place and now I'm just wondering what to inspect next. My clutch fluid was quite low, and it was greenish and thick. I'm suspecting that it is just a master/slave cylinder issue, but which one?

Also, I do have a slight chirp at idle that changes pitch and goes away depending on how far I push the clutch in. I'm suspecting TOB for that? Anyway, it'd be great to get some input on possible causes of this! Thanks!

 

[Dsmkauai]

If your fluid was low sounds like the slave or lines have a leak. I would refill and bleed the system and test to see what happens. Then check for leaks and replace what you find. There is a inspection cover you can pull off and get a look inside to see if anything is broken or loose inside the bell housing. How many miles on your clutch? Could be time to replace it!

 

[b00stAdict]

If your fluid was low sounds like the slave or lines have a leak. I would refill and bleed the system and test to see what happens. Then check for leaks and replace what you find. There is a inspection cover you can pull of and get a look inside to see if anything is broken or loose inside the bell housing. How many miles on your clutch? Could be time to replace it!

+1 on adding fluid and bleeding the clutch system and going from there. If it's low then it seems to have a leak somewhere.

Also +1 on could be time to replace clutch OR T.O.B. depending on how many miles are on them.

To me it sounds like your T.O.B. went out

 

[VtecvrsTurbo]

When i replaced my clutch, I went with the SS line and wow did that work great. Only two spots to leak from, and feels much better. Swap the line and bleed the system well.
The squeak IS the TOB because as soon as you push the clutch in it applies pressure and eliminates the squeak. I cheated when my TOB squeaked, I used spray grease with the long straw and stuck it between the rubber near the fork arm and got it on the TOB, (making sure to stay away from clutch/flywheel). Pow! Squeak gone. This was on a brand new OEM TOB that I must have missed a small spot of grease on durning install.

 

[wmrcs]

When i replaced my clutch, I went with the SS line and wow did that work great. Only two spots to leak from, and feels much better. Swap the line and bleed the system well.
The squeak IS the TOB because as soon as you push the clutch in it applies pressure and eliminates the squeak. I cheated when my TOB squeaked, I used spray grease with the long straw and stuck it between the rubber near the fork arm and got it on the TOB, (making sure to stay away from clutch/flywheel). Pow! Squeak gone. This was on a brand new OEM TOB that I must have missed a small spot of grease on durning install.

Hey yea that sounds like an okay shut up for the TOB until I can replace it haha. I am going to bleed the system and put new fluid in and see what happens. Maybe just replace the slave cylinder because I can and see if it fixes it. I don't think the throw out bearing would make the clutch feel the way it did, it would just not work right. The pedal is spongy and bubbly down low, which makes me think the hydraulic system and not the actual clutch really.

 

[Dsmkauai]

Ya sounds like either a seal blew inside the master and isn't allowing proper pressure. Or the slave or line have a leak and therefore you have air entering the system and fluid being lost. The tob might be making noise due to the low fluid and air in the lines, since its not properly functioning and probably not releasing all the way. So fixing that issue could solve the tob noise, but if it doesn't I would think about doing a clutch job before things get worse!

 

[wmrcs]

I changed out the slave cylinder tonight, and the car would shift to 1, 2, and 3, but not 4 or 5, and it grinded in reverse. On the ground it wouldn't shift into any. Also, the TOB is way louder now and the clutch rumbles even more in the middle when the TOB gets loud so I guess the TOB pooped out.

How laborious is the TOB process on my FWD? I might as well replace the clutch when I'm down there because I think it's the original, I'll need to check my papers and see if it was replaced. I am in college, but I do have access to a garage and some mechanic friends with tranny experience to assist me. Should I order an OEM TOB or aftermarket?

 

[grothe3297venge]

OEM throw out bearings are the way to go! Aftermarket ones are sometimes cheap, and useless.

Also a good time to check all gears and make sure everything is up to par since the trans will be out.

 

[wmrcs]

OEM throw out bearings are the way to go! Aftermarket ones are sometimes cheap, and useless.

Also a good time to check all gears and make sure everything is up to par since the trans will be out.

I just want to check though, do my symptoms sound like the TOB? Won't go into any gear, clutch is bubbly/crunchy down low, chirping intensifies as the clutch gets into the bubbly/crunchy zone.

 

[grothe3297venge]

I know when my throw out bearing was going out, the chirping would go away as I depressed the clutch pedal, but yours could be worse so it's really hard to tell. Only reason I said to look at all gears and synchros was because it wasn't going into 4, 5, and reverse. Only way you'll truly know the issue is when you get it out sadly. Which leads to the other reason why I said to check the trans while it is out, it would suck to have to put it in with the possibility of not fixing the issue and have to take it out again.

Be one laboring process of eliminations . Good luck man!

 

[VtecvrsTurbo]

Taking the tranny out and putting a new clutch and TOB isnt hard, just kinda time consuming. Theres a few annoying things you have to do (like removing axles) but no real special tools, and a friend that can help makes it easy. I did mine in about 8-10 hours by myself, but took my time and do it all right. Mines FWD as well.

 

[wmrcs]

Taking the tranny out and putting a new clutch and TOB isnt hard, just kinda time consuming. Theres a few annoying things you have to do (like removing axles) but no real special tools, and a friend that can help makes it easy. I did mine in about 8-10 hours by myself, but took my time and do it all right. Mines FWD as well.

Cool. I looked at the VFAQ for changing a clutch but I don't remember if that was AWD or FWD or both. Got any good links for a how-to? I also read that there was a place on the tranny that you could look inside to see if something was broken? That might be useful before I pull anything.

I know when my throw out bearing was going out, the chirping would go away as I depressed the clutch pedal, but yours could be worse so it's really hard to tell. Only reason I said to look at all gears and synchros was because it wasn't going into 4, 5, and reverse. Only way you'll truly know the issue is when you get it out sadly. Which leads to the other reason why I said to check the trans while it is out, it would suck to have to put it in with the possibility of not fixing the issue and have to take it out again.

Be one laboring process of eliminations . Good luck man!

That was how mine started, it was just a slight chirp at idle that would go away with slight to minimal pressure on the clutch. Obviously it's super bad now and about halfway down the clutch pedal it's just screaming haha

 

[wmrcs]

Oh, I also didn't mention this! When this ordeal first happened, the friction point was much lower right before the clutch wouldn't disengage anymore. So the engagement point moved from it's usual spot, to right off of the ground, and then it was gone. Still sound like TOB? I'm dropping the tranny this week and want to make sure to order any extra parts if I can be convinced of other damages.

 

[nelliott500]

The actual clutch issues sound like a problem with the hydraulic system. You said you changed out the slave but did you do a full bleed? Did you take a look at the master to see if it's leaking at all? You can check under the dash. See if it's wet around the bottom of the master or at the carpet. Your engagement point changing is likely related to this hydraulic issue but it could also be from a worn clutch. As the clutch wears, your engagement point will change as well and the master will require an adjustment. However, if the engagement point changed in short time, something else is wrong.

The "window" on the trans is just the fork hole where your slave and clutch fork is. If you pull the rubber boot out of the window, you can sort of see in there but it's not a great view.

Your noise issue sounds like the TOB though, especially since it goes away when you push the clutch in.

If you have the means to pull the trans, I would just take care of everything while it's out. Check your axles. If they're old or any of the boots are torn, replace them. I put in brand new (not rebuilt) O'Reilly's axles and I have no complaints. Check your control arm bushings, balljoints, etc. Order a new clutch (I went with a stage 1 Exedy but I wish I had just spent the extra money on a Southbend from Tim Zimmer), a new OEM TOB, a new clutch fork, and a new pivot ball. Get some new trans fluid while you're at it (Redline MT90, OEM Mitsu oil, or Mitsu Diaqueen if you can find it/shell out the money). Make sure you use blue Loctite on all the trans bolts.

Have you thought about your flywheel? If you put in a new clutch, you'll need to either resurface the flywheel or replace it. ACT makes a lightweight Streetlite that cuts 5 or 6 lbs out.

 

[motomattx]

I dont want to scare you but it could always be crankwalk.

 

[grothe3297venge]

Wouldn't it always be slapping then?? He says the chirping goes away as he depressed the clutch..

Also I agree with nelliott500, replace all you can and get it done and over with!

 

[wmrcs]

The chirping was before the incident, there isn't a whole lot of noise at idle anymore. All of the squealing and chirping happens now right before, and in, where the engagement point would usually be in the clutch. And I had my friend press the clutch in while I watched to crank pulley and it doesn't seem to be moving, so doesn't that rule out crankwalk? My master isn't leaking and we did do a full bleed of the system.

I am in fact pulling the tranny this weekend, and I already ordered a new OEM throw out bearing that I hope is the issue. The clutch was replaced 30k ago so hopefully it's not the issue. I was selling my car, then this happened. So I'm just going to fix it and sell it like I was planning. I would rather not put in a bunch of money into new axles and clutch etc just to pitch it off.

 

[nelliott500]

It might be a broken clutch fork as well but I don't see any gears working if that were broken. Have you tried looking through the fork hole yet?

 

[wmrcs]

It might be a broken clutch fork as well but I don't see any gears working if that were broken. Have you tried looking through the fork hole yet?

I don't think the clutch fork is broken. It didn't feel different when I changed the slave cylinder. No I haven't, I will today after my classes.

 

[motomattx]

You would have to push the crankshaft back towards the clutch with plenty of force and then have someone push the clutch in to see how far its moving. The sqeaking sound could be your crankshaft sensor rubbing away on the trigger plate from crankwalk or whats left of your thrust bearings making noise. Your instinct to look at the clutch is good though, but if you dont find something in there then its just a suggestion of where to look next.

 

[wmrcs]

You would have to push the crankshaft back towards the clutch with plenty of force and then have someone push the clutch in to see how far its moving. The sqeaking sound could be your crankshaft sensor rubbing away on the trigger plate from crankwalk or whats left of your thrust bearings making noise. Your instinct to look at the clutch is good though, but if you dont find something in there then its just a suggestion of where to look next.

Yea, we'll see what happens when I take the tranny off. Pretty darn sure it didn't walk.

 

[wmrcs]

Got the tranny out last night. Throw out bearing? I didn't even have one! (Sarcasm..) That thing was destroyed and the teeth on the pressure plate weren't even and rather bent so I'm ordering a new clutch tonight and I'll swap it out next week when it gets here.

Do you think the throw out bearing going out caused the pressure plate to bend like that? Also, there was a bunch of fiberglassy stuff in the bell housing. I'm assuming thats my clutch disc being eaten up.

Anyone know where I can get an ACTUAL OEM clutch?

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This is what happened when I unbolted the pressure plate and clutch! Clutch broke... sad deal. Plenty of life in it too. I ordered an Exedy OEM clutch. I didn't really want Exedy but it was cheap and had surprising reviews.

 

[nelliott500]

A bad TOB will definitely screw up a pressure plate. Might want to replace the pivot ball and clutch fork while you're in there.

I have an Exedy stage 1 clutch and can't complain. I'll upgrade it to a Southbend eventually when this one starts to slip but I'm nowhere near that power level yet.

 

[Twinturbo120]

Take a better pic of the pressure plate fingers. Those usually say a lot about the TOB.

 

[wmrcs]

Take a better pic of the pressure plate fingers. Those usually say a lot about the TOB.

I can if you need me to. When the pressure plate was on the car they weren't even, rather wavy. After I unbolted it, it flattened out and looks normal now, but there is some wear on the tips of the fingers (what's the correct term for those guys?)

How do you think the disc broke like that? Throw out bearing pressing unevenly on it?