No clutch pressure

Nick- I think whatever your YJ has is contagious. I got the YJ all de-iced this morning and went to pull out of my spot and I had no pressure in the clutch petal and it was making the same grinding type noise yours was making on Sunday when I tried to get it in gear.

Rich - would the bleeding trick you've been doing help here? or is it something more serious?
My little frozen fingers couldn't get the cap off the filler by the firewall to add more DOT 3.
Usually when it is cold out I have to pump the clutch 2x to get some pressure, but that didn't work this morning.


On the bright side the 4WD light started working again on the YJ!

If it's not something simple, it could be your slave cylinder. You can keep refilling the DOT 3 & that may work for awhile but eventually it will go out for good. Hopefully on a '91 the slave cylinder is external. It's not on a '93 so mine had to go to the transmission shop when it went up.

Ax-15's 94 and up have external slave cylinders.......



Jim Jennings transmissions on Eastern ave.. Doug... Best tranny shop around...and he is a jeeper too...


when he put the one in Mudslingers jeep he didnt want to change the clutch because he said it wasnt bad.. I just didnt want to have to go back knowing what the jeep was going to be used for.....

Not many shops want to save you money....

Hmmmm. I had the slave cylander replaced in 2002, but that was probrobly only 8 or 10k miles ago. I don't know if it was ext or internal.... it was before I began working on my own vehicles.

Matt thanks for the shop advice! I live right on Eastern Ave so it should be pretty close.

I'm trying to remember what it felt like when it went out last time. I was driving from Ocean City to my parents house in PG Co.... I know it sucked - I tried to avoid coming to a complete stop as much as possible bc 1st gear was the hardest to get it into. I was at one stop light for at least 7 light cycles trying to get it moving

Just add some fluid and keep an eye on it.. If it leaks down, its probably the slave cylinder...

I could be way off on this one but if its not your cylinder it could be the throw out bearing on your clutch fork that is getting worn out. I know that if the throw out bearing is worn out shifting will get really sloppy. If you need one of those your better off just replacing the clutch assembly which includes a new throw out bearing.

Also make sure you aren't leaking fluid from your clutch master cylinder (If you are, you will probably see it leaking down the firewall behind your brake & clutch pedals). That's an easy fix.

makitupthehardway wrote:

I could be way off on this one but if its not your cylinder it could be the throw out bearing on your clutch fork that is getting worn out. I know that if the throw out bearing is worn out shifting will get really sloppy. If you need one of those your better off just replacing the clutch assembly which includes a new throw out bearing.

Dan,
Nester is right but you would of felt some play or problems with engagement prior to today. Have you had to double clutch it to get it in gear?

On mudslinger's yj I never felt any problems and all the sudden she was driving it one day and lost the clutch completely.. Once we got fluid in it the clutch came back.

Usually a throw out bearing would start to show symptons prior to completely going out.. Wouldnt it???

I've had to pump the clutch 2-3 times especially when I first start it. It has shifted smooth all along. It bucs violently in reverse after I drive it for a long time, but it has done that for the last 7 yrs.

I'll try to get the master cyl open and add fluid

Danny - use channel locks to get the cap off. To get the slave cylinder & clutch replaced at Jim Jennings cost about $800. They did it quick & I've had no problems since. They are at 601 Eastern Blvd. 410-686-6700.

there is a conversion to move the cylinder external that alot of guys do.. check the internet..

okay Danny, the slave and throw out bearing are one in the same. You can fill with fluid. See if it is low. Also you can bleed it. It takes a 1/4" wrench or socket. The part you need is only 95.00 from quadratec. And is easy to do. Just time consuming. And it is internal on your ax5

Just checked the master cyl and it is full. The fluid is dark....I don't know what color it is supposed to be. I pumped the clutch about 10 times and got pressure and was able to shift into gear fine.

Edit:
Drove it to work this morning and it shifted fine....never made that grinding noise again....
Maybe the Jeep just hates the cold and ice as much as our dog does....she doesn't like to go "outside" lately....

Umm silly question...

Could it be something as simple as gelled up fluid?

Like if you run the wrong oil viscocity in cold weather... same reason why I used to have to preheat the oil pan in buffalo when the temps dropped below zero...

Maybe the fluid just gelled up, then after the yj ran a little the engine temp warmed it up enough to make it flow right again?

Just a thought... shot in the dark...

Umm silly question...

Could it be something as simple as gelled up fluid?

Like if you run the wrong oil viscocity in cold weather... same reason why I used to have to preheat the oil pan in buffalo when the temps dropped below zero...

Maybe the fluid just gelled up, then after the yj ran a little the engine temp warmed it up enough to make it flow right again?

Just a thought... shot in the dark...