Clutch questions - strange behaviour

[bmnelsc]

Hi all - I have a '91 S2 (LHD but imported to Canada from Japan) with low miles indicated (48K when I got it and 4 years later 55K now). It is parked over the winter months here so runs from May 1 to November 1. The release bearing was noted as noisy during the PPI when I bought the car and clutch engagement was pretty high on the pedal. No way of knowing if this is the original rubber clutch or a replacement with a spring center. The clutch disc "appears" near new with a 20mm measurement taken at the inspection port.

Sometime during my first year, the clutch started engaging about mid travel and seemed to run from none to fully engaged almost like an on/off switch. It was pretty stiff at that point - pedal pushed back hard from the floor to about mid travel. Was like this until a short while ago when it started making a lot more noise during a highway run of about 225 miles. After a weeks rest and a couple of shorter trips, it has quieted down and clutch pickup has moved back up to high on the pedal and effort is much lighter than before.

Does all this sound like release bearing trouble or something else like guide tube binding or what? I'm tempted to pull it apart and have a look although it won't be an easy job for me (old, weak and have to use jack stands) so I have a few questions before I determine if I can tackle this myself.

1. The Haynes 924 manual talks about using a shaped wooden block under the torque tube at the front cross support so it won't fall and potentially be damaged. Is this valid with the later 944s? The Porsche manual makes no mention of the wooden block or other supports on the torque tube.

2. The Haynes manual says to use VW-1022 or an engine hoist to take the weight off the engine mounts (but doesn't say anything about detaching the mounts). The Porsche manual talks about removing the nuts from the engine mounts and pushing the engine to the right before removing the lower bell housing bolts. It also says you only need to support the engine with VW-1022 if you can't easily pull the torque tube back from the engine (excessive rear inclination - check engine suspension). What are they really saying? You need to undo the motor mounts, suspend the engine and shift it to the right? If so - why - is clearance needed to remove the release lever shaft or ???

3. The Haynes manual does not require the torque tube be detached at the transmission end for clutch service but the Porsche manual describes detaching the torque tube, moving the selector rod guide tube out of the transmission and a bunch of other steps. I'm confused????

I'd really appreciate some advice from those who have traveled this path []

 

[DavidL]

Haynes is notoriously poor for 944s. I'd read the Clarke's garage Site which will be more reliable.

 

[chrisg]

Bruce

I'm no expert regarding clutch removal and replacement, I have had the clutch apart on my turbo a couple of time though so can share my limited expertise.

Firstly, david is spot on, Haynes is pants stick with Clarke garage.

Regarding the symptoms it sounds like a sticky pedal caused by the release bearing catching on the clutch sleeve.

I've had a similar issue with my turbo and managed to 'patent' a quick fix without pulling it all apart= flexible USB camera laptop and pipe and syringe full of spline grease.

Regarding your car, pure guess work, age, mileage etc I would guess it's still on its first clutch, not sure whether the rubber centred version was fitted to the S2, given the extra torque vs 2.5 or2.7 I wouldn't have thought so.

So my thoughts for what it's worth, u could try my fix happy to talk it thru with you (07540 193874) but for longevity you'd be better off changing the clutch.

Given your car is an s2 the process will be slightly quicker and easier as you dont have turbo pipework gearbox oil cooler etc to remove. It is still a long and arduous job particularly if you're tackling it on the garage floor vs 4 post lift.

In short exhaust off, driveshafts off, box out and down, starter motor off, torque tube back then remove the bell housing (after undoing the gear linkage).
All of these steps are covered on Clarkes garage web pages, you will find that many of the nuts and bolts will be well and truly stuck not having been apart for several decades !

If youre very skilled, got the space, time and tools dive in and have a go, there's nothing massively complex just time consuming and grunt worthy! The other option is to take the plunge and pay a quality indie to do the job for you ?

Any other help or advice feel free to ring or email me,

Yours

Chris

 

[zcacogp]

Bruce,

I've done a clutch on an S2 and agree with all ChrisG said; it's probably something catching as it all moves along the spline shaft and it's worth investigating whether it can be fixed without dismantling it as this will save a lot of time. His synopsis of the job is spot on as well; there are no special tools needed but a reasonable toolkit is a necessity and air tools are very nice to have. A pit is also nice to have but not essential.

S2 clutches did have rubber centres and changing them is not hard in any way, it's just a long old job. Clarke's Garage is the place to go for the instructions and the bin is the best place to keep your Haynes manual.

I wrote a small thread about the clutch change job here:

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=435928&mpage=1&key=clutch&#435928

... but it's more a set of observations than instructions.

Keep us posted with how you get on.


Oli.

 

[bmnelsc]

Thanks for the info Chris and Oli. The Clark's Garage site is quite good - thanks for directing me there.

Chris - as per email - I'll contact you once I'm ready for a close look at things - thanks again for the offer.
Oli - I read your thread and thanks - there are some things there I hadn't considered so good information.

I'm pretty handy with a decent set of tools but 3.5 men will be a challenge for me - I'll have to buy more beers at the local gatherings

Thanks again.