Hi I havean 85 fiero 2.8 and a couple of strange issues. One when I shift into any gear the engine revs the correct amount for how hard I'm pressing on the gas but it doesn't seem to "grab" until I press the pedal over halfway down. Meaning if I don't press hard it accelerates slowly and when I do you hear the revs drop and I accelerate as I should. Also I can be in second gear completely stopped without the car dying... That's clutch released... What's going on?

That's weird... I'm no expert but perhaps your slave or master cylinder is getting stuck... I'd look at that first... Otherwise it might be something with the thrust bearing or fork.

So master cylinder looks like its disengaging properly... How do I check the other two?

Its really hard to understand because I cant see how pushing the clutch would make it "grab", when having the pedal out farther it doesnt grab. I assume when the clutch is opressed down like normal it also doesnt grab?

If the slave were hanging up wouldnt pushing the clutch not make any difference?
I had the wrong idea /\/\

Whats the back story on this car? Just got it running? Just bought it? Just replaced clutch?

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 02-12-2014).]

Sorry it's hard to explain. When clutch pedal is released (not pressed) the car doesn't seem to care about what gear your in as far as revs go it just keeps revving in accordance with how hard I press on the gas. When I press the gas pedal halfway then the revs drop and the car starts accelerating at a normal rate. I just purchased it a couple months ago and have mainly been working on the engine and electrical system.

quote Originally posted by Jecklen16: Sorry it's hard to explain. When clutch pedal is released (not pressed) the car doesn't seem to care about what gear your in as far as revs go it just keeps revving in accordance with how hard I press on the gas. When I press the gas pedal halfway then the revs drop and the car starts accelerating at a normal rate. I just purchased it a couple months ago and have mainly been working on the engine and electrical system.

That IS hard to understand.
I think you can disregard my previous post I thought you said "clutch pedal half way" but you said gas pedal.

Are you saying you can let the clutch out and it just keeps idling in gear, and the car doesnt go forward until you push the gas pedal down at least half way? That seems like it is slipping unless the rpms are "high"...

Sundowner is probably right on what to check. If the slave is stays pushed out (it pushes out when you press down the clutch pedal) it would keep teh car from moving forward. But I'm not sure how more rpms would make it change. Open your decklid and have a friend push the clutch pedal in and out and watch for the slave to move.

It moves forward regardless of how high its revving but the revs don't drop like they would when you normally go into gear until I put my foot down then it launches forward. I guess I would compare it to turbo lag. And once again what i find craziest is thay i can be stopped in 2nd gear (clutch released) the engine idling normally. thank you. And sorry for the confusion.

quote Open your decklid and have a friend push the clutch pedal in and out and watch for the slave to move.

There should be a very noticeable movement of the clutch lever where the slave cylinder pushes against it. It's easy to see with the left vent off and looking straight down. It's kinda tucked behind the shift cables. You may need a flashlight.

If it's not moving properly or getting stuck somehow you should notice it. See if it sticks somewhere when you're "half pressing" the clutch pedal. Maybe the fluid is leaking... maybe one of the studs is broken where it mounts to the engine. I broke a stud once and went for months with it just C-clamped in. I hope that's all it is because it's a fairly inexpensive repair. Good luck man!

Your slave cylinder is not retracting into the cylinder and is holding pressure on the fork / tb / pressure plate or your clutch / pressure plate is smoked! Either way - you will need a new clutch / pressure plate / tb.