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mud
New Member
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2018
- Messages
- 5
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 1
- Location
- East Jesus, NM
- Vehicle Year
- 2002
- Make / Model
- Ford
- Engine Size
- 3.0 L
- Transmission
- Manual
Hi, I have difficulty changing gears, especially from a start. It feels like clutch drag to me, but the mechanic said "it's definitely releasing." He thought it could be a transmission lubrication or possibly synchro issue, certainly possible. I asked him to verify the clutch release by jacking up one wheel and spinning that wheel by hand while someone presses in the clutch in first gear. He didn't think it was worth it to do that test, so today I did my best to test this on my own.
My procedure:
1. Jack up one wheel.
2. Secure a strap around the tire, and rotate hook to desired position.
3. Place the truck in first gear.
4. Hang a weight on the hook.
5. Slowly depress the clutch until wheel movement is seen.
(This was at about 1.5" before the floor with sufficient weight.)
6. Increase or decrease weight until decent upper and lower bounds are found.
I found it took about 24 lbs of weight (30-35 ft•lbs of torque) to turn the wheel when the clutch was pressed to the floor. If I used anything less, the wheel wouldn't move until I pulled the gearshift lever with what felt like too much force. As I moved it from first to neutral, clutch pedal still down, the wheel would suddenly release, and the weights would fall to the ground.
This definitely confirms that I have clutch drag, but how much is too much?
I used to have this problem before the clutch was changed, about a year ago. It would show up out of the blue, then sometimes slowly go away. This seems to have gotten worse almost overnight.
Possible culprits:
1. Air in hydraulics
2. Worn clutch pedal mechanism
3. Worn throwout bearing (in 8k mi??)
4. Tight pilot bearing.
Just trying to get a sense of how much drag is too much before I crawl underneath the thing and spend who knows how long trying to free the MC in in freezing weather.
Thanks for any input.
My procedure:
1. Jack up one wheel.
2. Secure a strap around the tire, and rotate hook to desired position.
3. Place the truck in first gear.
4. Hang a weight on the hook.
5. Slowly depress the clutch until wheel movement is seen.
(This was at about 1.5" before the floor with sufficient weight.)
6. Increase or decrease weight until decent upper and lower bounds are found.
I found it took about 24 lbs of weight (30-35 ft•lbs of torque) to turn the wheel when the clutch was pressed to the floor. If I used anything less, the wheel wouldn't move until I pulled the gearshift lever with what felt like too much force. As I moved it from first to neutral, clutch pedal still down, the wheel would suddenly release, and the weights would fall to the ground.
This definitely confirms that I have clutch drag, but how much is too much?
I used to have this problem before the clutch was changed, about a year ago. It would show up out of the blue, then sometimes slowly go away. This seems to have gotten worse almost overnight.
Possible culprits:
1. Air in hydraulics
2. Worn clutch pedal mechanism
3. Worn throwout bearing (in 8k mi??)
4. Tight pilot bearing.
Just trying to get a sense of how much drag is too much before I crawl underneath the thing and spend who knows how long trying to free the MC in in freezing weather.
Thanks for any input.
Last edited:
I too had ‘shifting issues’ this was at 78k, to which I believe is the main reason truck was traded in....but that is another story! Lol my issues were neutral to 1 once stopped ,shifting 1st to 2 nd moving and 2 nd to 3rd gear moving.....almost always had to go neutral to 2 nd with some force before shifting to 1 st to take off, then hope I could slide it into 2nd once moving.....
Also, people use the word Mechanic Very loosely........so, me personally almost always discount when I here the mechanic........ I mean no disrespect to Mechanics, The ones who are professional mechanics..... I can get around a car and have the ability to fix most anything on my vehicles, but never will I call myself a mechanic.....
Definetly do as RonD recommended 1st , then I’d follow up with the other.... 
