jumpy clutch, hopefully it's not something big

[2ndGen]

the 99 i bought has been fine till saturday, the manual trans started to feel funny.

after the tranny warmed up, 1st gear is fine, when in second gear, once the clutch is completely engaged, i can feel few times of mini slips or jumps, if i keep the gas padle down power through it, the bottom half is fine. same thing through 5th gear. and the shifter shaft getting warm, too. another symptom is when i'm gliding down from like 65mph to 30 mph just to prepare exiting freeway while still in 5th gear, without my foot on the gas padle, the jumpy motion starts again.

i remember when right before my last clutch on the 94 worn out, i could feel the slipping motion but in an opposite way, it woudl grab and hold, when gas up the power, it would start to slip. so i think this time it's not the clutch disk's problem.

soem exceptions:
a.) when it's cold, everything is fine
b.) cruising on the freeway is fine(no frequent shifting).
shifter was cold for both sitiuations.

the previous owner had the clutch job done a year ago, could that be a burnt flywheel? in receipts the previous owner provided, there is no indication of re-surfacing the flywheel. also the master and slave cylinders were replaced.

i suspected the tranny fluids were bad, so i had it replaced with RedLine MT-90 on sunday. after that the problem is still there.

i have been driving stick shift for about 20 years, it feels like the pressure plate won't grab. i do't think that the bearings are out becuse it doesn't make any weird noises. is there a way to check the conditions of clutch, pp and flywheel without taking the tranny out($$$)? if i have to take it out, i'd rather to have everything replaced with a Marlin 1200lb semi-ceramic kit because i'm gonna pay for the labor anyway.

[4runnerchevy]

There should be an inspection cover under the bellhousing, if I remember right.

[BruceTS]

There should be an inspection cover under the bellhousing, if I remember right.


there is, but you can't see the clutch, just the flywheel......

[DeathCougar]

Sounds like the clutch is toast. Depending on what they used, if it wa some cheapo aftermarket clutch, it may have failed. Only way to tell on the clutch is to yank it apart and inspect it.

[4runnerchevy]

Sounds like the tranny is gonna get pulled. :(

[2ndGen]

ok, the problem is still the same but i haven't got the chance to check it into a shop to have a look at the flywheel. one thing i just notice over the weekend was when i drove around town, the 4WD lever got very very hot, so did the shifter lever, that means the tranny and t-case are hot, i'm not sure if they are overheating or not. i have checked the oil levels 3 times of both tranny and t-case, they are fine. both were filled with fresh Redline MT-90.

i have never had any problems with MT-90 with i filled my old 94 with it, could it be the problem. i retracted my memeories i know when i first purchased this 99, everything was fine, also one of my buddies test drove it, he confirmed the cluth/tranny worked just fine. i got the jumpy clucth feel right after the fluid change. but it just doesn't make any sense to me.

[4runnerchevy]

Isn't MT-90 meant for manual transmission, and don't they make a seperate oil for gear boxes ?

[04 Rocko Taco]

TO me, it seems simple. The problem came with the fluid change, or at least thats the only change in the time frame where it started messing up, so undo that, and put back what OEM specs call for, and see what happens (if you want, keep your redline around so you can replace it later if you choose to do so.)

[2ndGen]

look at this:

i drained the transfer case fluid out tonight, and i'm getting scared. on the left, 25-day, 1000 miles old MT-90. on the right, fresh MT-90.

i have 2 qts of regular 75-90 GL-5 laying in the garage so i put them in. don't have enough to cover the tranny so i will do it tomorrow.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w38/tonniechengca/RUNNER/P1020009.jpg

would you guys please chime in?

[warriors_03]

looks like you need to do another flush....looks like theres some really dirty crap i there...

[2ndGen]

drained the tranny fluid out yesterday, same filthy black, i can't believe that's only 25 days old. i put in some traditional fluid in and let it run couple weeks, then drian it see how it holds.

by the way, after the fluid change, it runs a lot better, shifter lever didn't get hot at all, 4WD lever still a little bit warm. but i got a CEL says P0304, misfire on #4 cylinder, cleared it with an OBD-II, but it popped up again last night, both were while i was cruising on freeway. i'm waiting new plugs and wires from Rafa@NTP.

[4runnerchevy]

Glad you got the right fluid in there. If your hot on redline, they do make a 80-90 syn gear oil for your t-case. Ran it for years with no problem. I also ran Redline MT in my manual tranny and never had a problem. I don't use either now but Red is a good product.

[2ndGen]

just an update:

the jumpy clutch was caused by misfire due to a faulty spark plug. now it runs good with brand new OEM plugs and wires. thanks RAFA@NTP.

[04 Rocko Taco]

Good news!

Glad it is running smooth, have you drained fluid again? I recently did a fluid change in my '84, and from the looks of it, it may have been its first ever. I am going to run it for a few hundred miles, and do the fluid change again, see if I can get the crap out. :)

[2ndGen]

not yet, i'm gonna do it this weekend.