Car won't go into gear when on - But wheels spin when attempting
 

Hi everyone,

I'm currently having issues getting my 97 NA into gear when its turned on.

Just finished swapping in:
-99 NB motor/5 speed NB transmission
-Exedy Stage 1 clutch (1.6)
-XTD flywheel (1.6)
-New pilot/throwout bearings
-949 Stainless steel clutch line

I retrofitted the NA ebay short shifter from my old transmission by slightly punching out the rear dowel in the shift turret on the NB transmission. We tried playing around the the clutch pedal height as well as the master cylinder free play adjustments, and was able to get the car to go into gear, but was inconsistent and still required more force than normal to get it in.

Regardless, we found that after putting the car on jacks, even if we can't get the shifter into gear, we can get the rear wheels to spin simply by putting pressure in the direction of the gear we want to go into.

The clutch pedal itself feels very soft too. As a result, I bought a new slave cylinder and master cylinder, installed them and bled the entire system. Nothing changed. The slave cylinder is still able to move the clutch fork like it did before, and after pulling the boot on the clutch fork, we can see the pressure plate moving as well.

Any suggestions on what it may be?

Thanks,
Kris

Sounds like the clutch is not fully disengaging, is there any more room in the pedal adjustment? Aftermarket clutches have different throws, so you have a little less freeplay in the pedal to increase the throw. If you hadn't already replaced the master/slave, I would have suggested that. Also make sure the fork is properly installed on it's pivot (most likely is, but it's one more thing to check).

Jason

how about retrofitting the oem shifter that actually lets you select gears...

Sounds like a clutch hydro issue. Clutch isnt disengaging.

Try bleeding again. If you've still got the curly-q line, there's a very large chance you still have air in the line. Flush that thing with plenty of fluid (at least a pint) before even starting to bleed normally.

Am I the only one reading?

he replaced the shifter and now it doesn't work.


so in teh course of replacing the shifter, somehow is hydraulics failed?

or am I missing a part of the story where he fucked with other shit?

Looks like he replaced the everything in the engine bay and trans tunnel. And I'm just guessing that the 949 stainless clutch pedal is actually the stainless clutch line.

fuck, i cant read. it's so shameful.

:facepalm:

Thank you everyone for the responses so far.

No more room in pedal adjustment. It's all the way up. The solenoid doesn't even touch the pedal at this point. The master cylinder freeplay touched the master, then backed it off like 1/4 turn. How can I check the fork?

I'll try doing that, might as well. The only reason why I figured it might not be the case because if it was a shifter issue, I'd also have troubles getting into gear when the car is off.

Stainless steel flex line replaced the curly-q. We must've bled it for 15 minutes. I guess I could try gravity bleeding it first as you said.


Yes, I meant the clutch line. Sorry, fixed it in the OP.

I'm hoping its not a TOB or a reversed clutch disc issue, which is why I'm trying to rule out other options first before dropping the trans. Doesn't seem like a TOB issue though since we saw the pressure plate move? I don't know if that would confirm it or not though.

As far as the pedal adjustment goes, it sounds like you took all of the load off (shortened the rod) based on your statement of not touching the solenoid. You need to lengthen the rod to increase the preload on the clutch.

Jason

But wouldn't that shorten the amount of pedal travel available? I loosened the clutch pedal height solenoid (17mm nut) to the point where I no longer saw the pedal getting higher as I turned it.

Unless you were referring to the rod that pushes into the master cylinder (12mm nut), which is currently lengthened to the point where it is just barely touching the piston on the master cylinder.

The rod that pushes on the master. You need to lengthen it to get more push on the clutch. Right now it sounds like you don't have enough push to fully disengage the clutch. Lengthen it until you get full disengagement, then adjust to the engagement point that you prefer.

Jason

You want to lengthen the rod that actually connects to the pedal > booster.

I lol'd :dealwithit:

Ahhh got it. I'm currently out of town until Friday, but I'll definitely try that out and get back to you guys. That being said, its okay to lengthen the rod past the point of feeling resistance from the master cylinder?

The reason why I ask is because I was using the Flyin Miata instructions as a reference (http://www.flyinmiata.com/support/in...isc/Clutch.pdf). According to the document, it says to lengthen the pushrod until you feel it touch the piston on the master cylinder, then back it off a hair. My clutch is Exedy though so it may need a bit more preload than that. I never thought to actually lengthen it past the point of resistance.

Also, is it also possible that I may have installed the clutch plate backwards? Or based on my description in the OP, can I rule that out?

I just adjusted mine until I got the engagement point I wanted.

I think the issue is more of the pedal adjustment, or needing to be bled some more versus backwards disc. Try those first, then if it's not better, time to pull the tranny.

Jason

That was going to be my answer. I did it once, my results were exactly the symptoms you describe. Hopefully it's hydraulic, but if the fork is moving like it should, then it would be pretty obvious to me that the problem is inside the bell housing.

i dont see how it's even possible for someone to do that.

Do you remember how u installed the disc? Flat side flywheel, raised side rear is the way it should be.

Jason

I honestly don't. Ive been working on the car since last September whenever im back in town and have time. It was done sometime over winter. I do recall triple checking it with the instructions from the exedy kit, but it was still my first time changing it out so there's always a possibility.