Clutch Trouble in Salt Lake

[jaredheath]

so i found myself a Tercel!
a little ways down the highway i ran into some trouble with the clutch not engaging the gears.
i've stopped so as to not cause any further harm to the car and am going to have it checked out tomorrow morning.
the engine still turns over and starts fine, but none of the gears engage. any ideas?

also wanted to throw this information your way so that a mechanic can't over charge me for what could be either a simple or possibly complex repair.

on this same note, i'm currently traveling through Salt Lake City, anyone in the area?
i'm headed south east.

[xirdneh]

if you can get the car to move in the low gears
but in the high gears the engine revs but the car does not move any faster
that is common when clutch is worn

is clutch cable broken?

if car does not move when you let out clutch
the clutch or pressure plate is probably broken

other things that cause this
broken front differential (test: put it in 4wd and if car moves clutch is good and front diff is bad or one of the following)
one of the front drive axles is broken car will not move
one of the front drive axles has popped part way out of differential car will not move

worst case --something is wrong with tranny

[Jonymoto]

When you press the clutch pedal, do you feel any resistance? If so, the cable is ok but may still need some adjustment.
Can you engage 1st or any other gears with the engine not running? If so, can you then start the engine in 1st or any gear by holding the clutch pedal down? If that is the case, can you then drive the car in first gear? If you can, the front diff and axles are ok as well. If the car jerks forward in first gear whilst you hold the clutch pedal down, your throw out bearings and/or the clutch springs could be broken.
If the bearing and springs are ok but the clutch lining is worn, you should still be able to engage the gears and drive the car, but the clutch will slip as you accelerate, but you will be scoring your flywheel and pressure plate.
You need to give us more detail information to diagnose the problem. Tell us what you mean exactly when you say none of the gears will engage. Can you drive the car in 1st gear at all but not in the other gears?

[Petros]

as pointed out a number of conditions can cause this, usually a worn out clutch will still push the car forward but the slipping will not allow high speed, and usually you will smell burning clutch.

If you have no forward movement at all, more likely something broke. This could be failed clutch (not just worn out), this usually makes a bad noise too. occasionally the spline shaft on one of the CV axles will break, and cause it act like that. that is an easy fix, replace the CV axle. Also on occasion, the front diff input shaft will shear, separating the front wheel drive from the trans and RWD system. This can be repaired by replacing the front diff assembly, not too costly. both of these can be verified by putting it in 4wd and see if it drives normally. this would engage the rear wheels, so effectively you have a RWD car, and you can drive it that way (though I would change, and flush, the gear oil in the front diff to get any metal partials out of it, to prevent further damage to the trans).

If it does not drive at all in both 4wd or FWD, besides a failed clutch, it might be the trans input shaft failed, which is also a fairly easy fix if the internal parts are not shattered. If the input gears are failed the trans would have to be rebuilt or replaced. very costly.

So of all of the things it could be, most of them are fairly easy repairs, but several of these repairs will require the trans to be removed. A big job if you do not have a good place to work on the car.

BTW, before going on a road trip with an unknown car I always change or at least top up the trans axle gear oil, and the rear diff gear oil. I also inquire about how old the clutch is, how long since the last clutch change. If less than about 60-70k miles, likely the clutch is okay.

Good luck

[Jonymoto]

Has anybody heard from this poor guy who is broken down in Salt Lake?

[jaredheath]

so sorry i haven't gotten back here to update!
i ended up in the parking lot of a shop that was extremely helpful, but as you all diagnosed, the clutch was worn totally.

so i got the clutch replaced and went ahead and had them replace the main seal as well.
everything seemed to be going fine until my idle shot pretty high in the rpms. as if i had the pedal down when the clutch was engaged. i pulled off and was looking at the throttle and possibly the spring has just worn out? so that might be a pretty simple fix.
as i was diagnosing that, i got back in and once again could not get the car to engage a gear. but the clutch is brand new. tried both FWD and 4WD, no luck.

i'm hoping this time is a simpler/cheaper fix. the clutch was quite the project, including finding the right kit.

still on the journey, and it's quite the adventure.. but i will say, when this thing is feeling good. it's a blast to drive.

[jaredheath]

could it really be as simple as the trans fluid?
i'm reading the manual on how to check/fill it.

[Jonymoto]

Jared, when they replaced the clutch, they would've removed the transmission from the car. So they would've had to remove the drive shafts. So they would've drained the transmission oil. To check the oil level, loosen the third drain plug underneath the gearbox by 8 turns (3rd from the front of the car). Then remove the 1st or 2nd filler plugs half way up on the left side of the gearbox (driver side in your case, LH drive Tercel). I find the 2nd plug easier to remove. Fill the gear box until oil comes out the filler plug. If the filler plug is standard, you will need a 24mm socket. Re-install the filler plug and retighten the 3rd drain plug that you previously loosened by 8 turns.
I hope this helps and I wish you a safe and break down free journey home.

[xirdneh]

temporary high idle, i would check throttle cable. it might be too loose. there are two #12 nuts to loosen and adjust at back of carb on cable mount. if too loose tighten it up but "leave a little slack" and line it up.

also what do you mean by "will not engage a gear" ?
does the shifter move but nothings there"
or does the shifter not move?

[Petros]

It does not sound like these issues are related.

Possible the clutch cable became disengaged or broke. If the clutch does not disengage all the way it is almost impossible to get the trans into gear. an easy check is with engine off, put the car in gear and hold the clutch down and start the car. If it lurches forward on start up it means the clutch is not disengaged. you can drive it but be aware that you will not be able to come to a stop with the car in gear, unless you kill the engine. you might just need the clutch cable checked at both ends, if it is broken you will need another one. difficult to drive without a clutch cable, but it can be done if you are careful.

Also, some brands of clutches are too thick for this car, and will not disengage, only option but to change the clutch out with the correct one.

[Petros]

Also, there is a rare occurrence of the shift linkage being messed up during a trans R and R. there is a thread on this topic by forum member Xirdneh, that has a fairly easy fix, it can be done without removing the trans.

[xirdneh]

they had to remove the shifter when they pulled the tranny so i would hope they inspected it