Clutch won't disengage

yeaaaaaaaa-doni & all the tools & 2 helpers too - doesnt that vacation you had planned??come about that time too??

LeftCoasts van is in VanAgains driveway,,,,,,,and that is 50 miles from me,,,,,,,they both work different days and hours, so  the van aint getting too much attention,,,,,,,but I will bring the tools and equipment and  pull the engine and haul it to the machine shop,  when they get it loose,,,,,,,,,and I plan on being on the road for the month of May,,,,,,,,,

Yup, we put the oil pan on, crossmember, valve cover, starter. Had the bellhousing (and clutch & pressure plate) on but left the tranny off. Started it up. It did not run well. Lots of little backfires thru the carb. But the knock was still there. I crawled underneath. It was not in the area of the bellhousing. I even held onto the clutch fork arm to make sure it wasn't hitting anything. Knock is definitely in the engine.

I think three connecting rod caps were inspected a couple weeks ago. We looked at the rear bearing while replacing the rear seal. It looked okay. All silver, no brass showing. We talked about inspecting the rest but then we forgot about it. I think you're right, we should have looked at all of them and the main bearings. I'll suggest it but we're tired of crossing our fingers and hoping we'll find an easy fix. It's time to get the engine rebuilt.

BTW, remember when we said we could see a loose clip on the clutch fork arm, while peeking through the torn boot? When we had the bellhousing off, we saw that the arm was still attached to the ball and the clip was there. BUT there was a second clip loose on the shaft of the ball! It had one "ear" broken off it. How we ended up with two on there, I don't know!! Don and I installed the good clip on the arm together. So, anyway, that rules out any theories about the arm flopping around in there or a clip getting caught in the clutch or something.

Youze boys are!! Getting Smarter - Rebuild time!! Then =Guess what???????????????????

A Happy Van & Summer Awaits YOU!!

OK,,,,,,brought over my equipment, pulled the engine, dropped it off at the machine shop,,,,,

all cause the ="Clutch Wont Disengage!!"

Got my clutch job done!  Disc was shot, flywheel was glazed and bearing was rattling. Other parts were OK, lever, ball stud, etc.  Had the shop do the rear main seal, oil pan and side cover gaskets and trans seals all at the same time.  Put in a new oil pump while the pan was down too!  Shifts like butter, no more shake and rattle everytime starting out in 1st gear!  Great oil pressure now too, 15 at idle over 30 going down the road.  And no more leaks! They did the oil pan first using floor stand jacks to hold the engine while removing the cross member, then they did the trans and clutch afterwards.  Rotated the trans to slide out.  Said the hanger bushing was fine and reused it.  Used a Sachs brand clutch kit.



Nothing like a clean painted oil pan with no drips!  Notice we found a bunch of small holes drilled into the bell housing, there were also some larger 1/2" holes on the top.  Mechanic said it looked like some one made the holes to insert tools to turn the flywheel or clutch, maybe to free a jammed starter drive?? who knows...I plan to plug with some JB weld to keep dust and water out though! Some oil is still seeping from the starter from the main seal leak, should dry up after a few miles...