Zero Knievel Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Okay...a 1998 B3000 pickup with about 185,000 miles on it. The manual transmission is giving me a bitch shifting, but the problem is that it's inconsistent. This morning, it shifted smooth as butter. Other days, it's so hard to shift that I've pulled the knob off the shift lever. I suspected the clutch hydraulics to be the problem. Flushed the system. It came out grey with bits of black particulate matter in it. Clutch seemed to work better, but the problem went from consistent to inconsistent. IF IT WAS THE CLUTCH FLUID, as I suspected, I would have figured the problem would be totally solved, but it's not. That the transmission shifts as smooth as butter tells me it likely isn't a gross mechanical problem in the transmission. I don't know what to say about the particulate matter in the clutch fluid. Yes, it's possible it's a disintegrated o-ring, but I had the clutch plates and throwout bearing replaced since the last time I flushed the clutch fluid, and I don't know what the shop might have done to introduce contamination into the clutch line. I could do another flush and see if contamination is again present, but I'd like to see if there's another cause. Even then, I'm hard pressed about why it works smooth at one time and hard at another. I thought it might be air temperature (near-freezing temps), but that shouldn't have much of an effect on hydraulic fluid...at least not in a temp range of 30-60 degrees. I wonder if it could be something with the transmission, but once the vehicle has put about 10 miles on it, you'd think the heat in the moving parts would negate outside temperature being a factor. I'm not certain when I last changed the transmission fluid. I believe it was done around 50,000 and again at 100,000. It should not need changing until 200,000 miles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Krypt Keeper Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 does it have a rubber hydrolic line? inside could be breakings down causing blockage. (small black chunks) seen it done on brakelines.. some days smooth operation and then the next dragging and not very smooth.. food for thought.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zero Knievel Posted February 22, 2012 Author Share Posted February 22, 2012 does it have a rubber hydrolic line? inside could be breakings down causing blockage. (small black chunks) seen it done on brakelines.. some days smooth operation and then the next dragging and not very smooth.. food for thought.. Don't know for certain, but under the circumstances, I'd expect it to be rubber....hard lines cost more and don't give you any freedom of movement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Krypt Keeper Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 thats where I would start.. might have to drop tranny and replace slave cylinder if debis has gotton into it. flush system, replace line, and get back with us... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon haney Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 The particles in your old clutch fluid are likely from mild corrosion in the system. Totally normal unless you change it every 2-3 years. If a rubber hose was dis-integrating from the inside, I would think it would have ruptured by now or at least be showing some blistering on the outer cover. Your shifting issue is likely under the rubber boot at the base of the stick. There is a linkage under a cover plate held on by (I think) 4 screws. There are some nylon parts under there that may have cracked or worn just enough to cause the intermittent problem you describe. If your hard shifting involves some "grinding" to get it to the next gear, then I would look at replacing the synchronizers. That's where it gets more expensive. Another option would be a salvage yard transmission. I bet Ford and Mazda are still using that same design. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomek Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 5 bucks says it is clutch slave cylider . I`ve had similar case , flushed system ,stainless steel hydraulic line , bleeded the fucker , etc . and it still sucked . New slave cylinder fixed that permanently . I`ve checked schematics and it looks replacement procedure sucks in your case because offending piece is the shaft , in other words you have to drop tranny . Whoever designed it like that should be castrated . Usually it is bolted to bell housing and the swap is very quick . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zero Knievel Posted February 23, 2012 Author Share Posted February 23, 2012 So far, it's now behaving itself. So, I'm going to hold off on ordering parts until it returns. The problem with the clutch is two-fold. 1. No power assist. If you flush the system you might need 100-200 pumps before the line is fully pressurized. I forgot about that, and even though there is no air in the system, it's a quirk I've dealt with every time I change the fluid. Perhaps I just now got the line fully pressurized after flushing it with new fluid. 2. Idiots mount the master cylinder at an angle. While it didn't happen this time, if air gets in, it will be inclined to always flow away from the outlet line. First time I got air in the system during a flush, I had a hell of a time getting the last of the air out. Doesn't surprise me with them putting the slave in the transmission case. That means I'll have to pay someone to do the work. I'm in no position to drop a transmission to replace a part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon haney Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 If the clutch doesn't dis-engage with one stroke of the pedal, replace the master and/or slave cylinder. This is assuming there is no air in the system. Also, it sounds like you need to have a professional look at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redxxrdr Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I have a 93 F150 that uses a Mazda 5 speed transmission. It is a manual but uses ATF as the lubricant. I have replaced the master cylinder twice and the slave once during it's 400K+ miles. It was always a bitch to bleed properly. I learned to bleed the master on the bench before installing it. This made the system bleed go better. On my transmission, the slave is donut shaped. The pilot shaft on the transmission goes through the center. Have to pull the transmission to get to it. It also had this neat quick disconnect that used to kick my ass. Finally got some of those cheap AC line tools. They look like tiny plastic top hats with a split on the side. 15 bucks for a set and your done. Symptoms on the ford of a poor bleed was difficult shifting, grinding to get into gear, and the clutch pedal did not return to the full up position. Mine has really been reliable. The first failure was when wife decided to top the master using degreaser from a rusty can that "LOOKED" like brake fluid. The second was when the clip came off the master cylinder actuator and the pedal snapped the plastic actuator off. I would have a shop with a power bleeder give it a try before adding parts. It only takes a little air to cause major problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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