Somehow, I managed to get everything bolted together today after starting this project in January. When I started the car with the clutch pedal pushed in there's a regular clicking sound like a card is being hit by the non existant radiator fan. Rev the engine and it clicks faster. Let out the clutch and the clicking stops. I just lowered the cradle so had to get help (stronger arms)to get the transmission back in place. We struggled some and finally everything fit together.

The gears just grind when the clutch pedal is pressed in. I've spent a lot of time and effort getting it back together and just want an opinion about what could be wrong before I take the whole thing apart again. I used the same slave cylinder but it seems to be moving the clutch arm fine.

Thanks,
Robert

Did you put in the throw out bearing correctly? If you moved the clutch arm accidentally before installing the transmission it could be off.

------------------

Might help if you told us exactly which new parts you installed, are the stock replacements, or aftemarket. What year car, give us full details, we aren't mind readers.

quote Originally posted by California Kid: Might help if you told us exactly which new parts you installed, are the stock replacements, or aftemarket. What year car, give us full details, we aren't mind readers.

Sorry for the omission.
It's a '86 GT with a Muncie 17 (4-speed). I put in a Sachs clutch pak from CarQuest. This is has been one learning experience. Stabbing the transmission from the side wasn't easy since we were also aligning the passenger half shaft at the same time. At first I was hoping the sound was a lifter clicking since the engine hadn't been started for 5 months but ... For an amatuer mechanic like me this has been like diving off the 10 meter board. The obvious answer is that we messed up stabbing the transmission in but if the throwout bearing is held in place by the clutch arm and the input shaft, how could it get out of shape? If it was only in one half of the clutch arm would that make a clicking sound? I have what seems to clutch pressure when I press the clutch pedal but it's not high. Perhaps I could have missed tightening one of the clutch bolts since the clicking sound is regular and seems to happen once a revolution? Or I guess the sound could be the TO bearing wobbling off center.

I wonder if anybody has considered writing ZEN AND THE ART OF FIERO MAINTENANCE.

Robert

Robert, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but it sounds like the fork isn't engage properly to the clutch release bearing. However, if you did fail to torque one of the pressure plate bolts it could have backed out enough to contact the trans case, but I don't think that's it (think the bolt hanging out would just shear off).
Looks like your going to have to pull it again, hope the fork isn't damaged. I forgot, but if you didn't put a new release bearing in, do it this time for sure.

If you think yours is tough you ought to trying lineing up two clutch disks with no pilot. I leave it to some expert mechanics at top notch shop to handle mine. It just isn't worth it to me to lie under the car and try to manage all this stuff by myself.

Best,
Tom

[This message has been edited by California Kid (edited 06-05-2002).]

Tom,

I agree. This time I'm going to pull the cradle. Put antiseize on everything. Learn patience. Put it off for awhile on work on another Fiero project. I have room for two cars in the shop at once. It would have been amazing if it had worked considering my skills. I did some things at least three times because some parts only go together in a certain order which I found out after attaching a part. I now have two mirrors and a set of metric universal sockets to work in the impossible areas.

Fieros build character,
Robert

DO NOT PULL THE TRANS YET!!!

Before you do, remove the transaxle dust shield ( you will have to drop the starter for this), and start the engine, push on the clutch pedal, and see if the noise is gone.

The Flywheel will flex enough with the clutch disengaged, causing it to catch the dust shield if it ( dustshield) is bent ever so slightly.

It is easy to bend the dust shield out of shape while doing that job, especially if you leave it in position while dropping and installing the transaxle.

The grinding gears is probably an incorrectly bled hydraulic system.

------------------

[This message has been edited by jelly2m8 (edited 06-05-2002).]

Very good point Jelly, didn't think of that one as I don't have that shield on my setup.

quote Originally posted by California Kid: Very good point Jelly, didn't think of that one as I don't have that shield on my setup.

Me either, I was too lazy to straighten that plate out, so I threw it in my collection

------------------

quote Originally posted by jelly2m8: Me either, I was too lazy to straighten that plate out, so I threw it in my collection

Who needs it!!

I been trying to find one of those plates. no wonder cant find em,you guys are all throwing them away, lol. Does sound like the throwout bearing though. Another possiblity, did you have the welded up crap yoke or the one piece forged yoke. The welded up one is known to fall apart/pieces bend or break off. If you dont have the forged one, order it and a new shaft (takes a diff one) Make sure you grease shaft well with weatherproof grease, you cant after its installed.

quote Originally posted by westtexas: ...This is has been one learning experience. Stabbing the transmission from the side wasn't easy since we were also aligning the passenger half shaft at the same time...

First of all, I really hope the dust cover thing fixes the problem. That's something I probably would never have thought of. Thanks for posting this possible solution! One day I'll use this tip, and be glad I read PFF!

(A) Now, I shouldn't even say this, but- if you do end up pulling the trans. again, here's something that helped me: I fabbed some long alignment pins so that I could "hang" the transaxle onto the engine, and was able to do the job alone.

Also, I didn't exactly try to install the RHS axle shaft at the same time as the transaxle. I propped the RHS inner CV joint on a jackstand, grabbed the transaxle from above and concentrated on getting the trans. aligned with the engine, hung it onto the guide pins and started sliding it into place. Once it was on the guide pins, I could reach down and get the RHS CV joint started into the transaxle, then finish sliding the trans. into place.

After that, still had to get under the car and hammer the inner CV joint fully into the trans. (using a big screwdriver and small sledge in the proper grooves in the CV joint, of course).

Anyway, I posted all this mainly to ensure that it's going to be just the dust cover. Right? Right. Good luck!

It may be a matter of pushing the clutch pedal all the way in and overextending the fingers of the pressure plate. I would try "playing" with the clutch pedal and seeing if you have any position that the gears will synch.

For example, if you have a total clutch pedal of 5 inches and you are pushing the clutch all the way in, why don't you try pushing the clutch pedal 4 inches in and engaging the gears. If that doesn't work, try 3 inches. If that doesn't work, try 2 ... you get the picture.

It could also be that you have air in the line if you opened the clutch lines while doing the install (I'm grabbing at straws here)