[HHGadget]

Holy mother of god! We got the damn trans on this afternoon.
Differential and propeller shaft are all in and torqued.

let me tell you, future person reading this thread.
Just take all the advice of the folks that have posted here previously and drop the differential so that you can remove the god forsaken torque arm.

I am here to tell you it “can” be done without completely removing the differential but it will cost you hours and hours of extra time if you don’t.

that being said the Shop manuals are particularly lax / wrong on the details of removing the transmission and I found at least two different torque specs for the same bolts.

also, probably must helpful comment I can add to the zeitgeist here on GXP clutch swaps that I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere else or in the manual..

-Make sure you are checking your shifter shaft position in the boot.

Tomorrow I am going to take a 3rd pass at loosening the torque arm and getting the trans about 1/4 inch further forward.
once that is done just have to fill the differential back up and then put all the tunnel bracing, exhaust and cat back on, replace the windshield cowl, fender liners, make sure everything is connected and (finger crossed) back on the road…
Sorry no pics today as we were hustinling against the clock and it was 95 degrees on the driveway.

PS> transmissions bolts, going back in were the easiest part.
As other here have said the bracket for the clutch hose, AAA, five star pain in the rear.

but by a large margin, playing Jenga with the engine, tranny, torque bar and differential was just some of the best hours of my and my helpers life.

Future reader, please just remove the dif. You will thank me for it later.

more pics tomorrow. Say a prayer for me that I didn’t mess this up as I don’t see pulling it back apart again. Ever.

 

[kgschlosser]

question... did you measure and shim the release bearing/slave cylinder if needed?

 

[HHGadget]

nope. not sure I would have any idea how to do that.

DDM did pitch it as a plug and play solution.. can you enlighten me?

 

[kgschlosser]

https://clutchmasters.com/file/24-Hydraulic+Release+Bearing+Air+Gap+Shimming+Instructions.pdf

 

[HHGadget]

Holy schnikes!
finished up today and drove around the block.
Yay! I am back on the road (so far).
May or may not have a leak. Could be the drippings from reconnecting the the brake resevoir.
Spent a long time “bleeding” (clutch in and out for 20 minutes) - probably going to need some more but she runs great, the clutch grabs quicker than it used to and feels like an inch higher up.
So far so good

 

[kgschlosser]

See we told you you could do it. 😁. You don't have enough confidence in your skills and abilities. You have the one tool that is needed to be able to do anything.. you know how to read!!!

 

[HHGadget]

See we told you you could do it. 😁. You don't have enough confidence in your skills and abilities. You have the one tool that is needed to be able to do anything.. you know how to read!!!

And a young friend with a strong back

 

[HHGadget]

Also broke during this project:
-Torque wrench
-gauge on Vacuum system for coolant
-Harbor freight transmission lift. Didn’t even work one time. I mean it “works” but only if you assist it by taking some of the transmission weight off of it while cranking it up. Which means it was barely useful, but slightly better than a pile of bricks

 

[HHGadget]

Also the clutch dropped to the floor once during the test drive. It came back after about 10 seconds and I continued on my way.
I assume it is still bleeding? (Or it burped a bubble?)

 

[HHGadget]

I should mention I am currently back to the stock K04 and stock tune and sensors for now.
New turbo should be in next week but I need a break and want to start with the basics after the clutch job to not have multiple issues simultaneously.

 

[agent008]

Harbor freight transmission lift.

Is this similar to a jack?

 

[kgschlosser]

Yes it uses a hydraulic jack in it. As I have always said with harbor freight tools, don't ever put your life in the hands of one of their tools. not jacks, or jack stands or anything else that is supposed to lift or hold something heavy above your head/body.

 

[HHGadget]

Not hydraulic. It’s a screw.
Never was underneath it so no life in your hands but once I got it past the first 6 inches of lift, it mostly worked.

 

[kgschlosser]

why the hell wouldn't it work? did you use a 1/2 inch impact gun on it or a 1/2" breaker bar?? That is what you are supposed to use on it. Look at the mechanism and the leverage advantage you get from using it. If I had to guess I would say a 2 to 1 mechanical advantage maybe 3 to 1. at 2 to 1 to lift 400 lbs you would have to apply 200 ft/lbs to the screw.. Did you lube the screw and the scissors?

 

[HHGadget]

Yes breaker bar and impact.
Wheels inside on the track were ready to come off when under load. It should have totally worked but once there was a load on it it locked up.
Essentially a POS as far as components.

 

[HHGadget]

Also, just did a very short 2 mile round trip. The clutch seems the chatter when in neutral at idle and specifically when I turn on the AC (slightly lower idle).
Slight rev and it’s gone, gently move the stick towards a gear and it’s gone.

hope it is part of break in. Everything operates fine
And again only down around 650-750 rpm when I kick on the AC.

 

[kgschlosser]

why do you say the clutch is chattering when you turn the AC on?

One of the things you have to remember is you now have a billet flywheel which is a decent amount lighter then the stock flywheel This is a good thing to get more power to the road but it is a bad thing when sudden loads are placed onto the engine like turning the AC on. What happens is the sudden load causes a sharp drop in RPM where when you had the stock flywheel the heavier weight spinning at RPM has a lot more stored energy to be able to handle those kinds of sudden loads. So what happens is the RPMs are dropping suddenly and the ECM is "stepping on the accelerator" to bring the RPMs back up. That is hard to do when the engine is under load at a low RPM. Think of driving at 10 MPH with the car in 3rd gear. What happens? The engine shudders under the load at the low RPM.

Maybe that is what is happening?

 

[HHGadget]

No shudder just a chattering in neutral, mostly when I turn in the ac and the RPMs drop.
I can put my ear to the shift and heat it clearly.
Depressing the clutch makes it go away until I release the clutch again.
Gently nudging the shifter towards a gear while idling without the clutch engage also makes it stop.
Again I have less than 3 miles on the clutch so I hope it is just bedding the new clutch as part of the break in. Will keep the thread updated as I have more data.
Yes I can feel the new lighter flywheel (vroom vrooms in neutral are definitely faster and I could swear rev hang is noticeably less) and the clutch is, as advertised a bit tougher to shift just right. I even stalled it at a light. Just gotta relearn it.

 

[kgschlosser]

The clutch you got is a mild clutch too. When I replace the clutch in my car I will be putting the twin plate springless clutch into it.

The shifter should make a clutch stop chattering, so something else is going on. a clutch should not be chattering at all. It's not a shim thing because if you needed shims the clutch would be slipping when in gear. I am thinking it is a vibration from low RPM. it's the only thing that fits your symptoms. I mean think about it. If the clutch was chattering with the AC on because of the additional load when you went to drive the car it would be chattering something fierce because there is a lot more load. you giving it a little throttle and the chatter goes away would be because you increase the RPM and that removed the chatter (vibration).

 

[R&T]

Do you have a single disk clutch or did you upgrade to a dual disk? I can’t remember if you mentioned this. Dual disks clutches chatter at idle, at least the heavy duty clutches on pickup trucks that I’ve had or rode in.