Clutch won't engage

L

Lucian08

Member
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1992 Delica L300 5sp Diesel
Just over a month into ownership, and we hit our first snag. A few days ago after getting off the highway the clutch pedal lost all pressure, and would not engage/disengage the clutch. It still went up/down, but had no resistance. Not awesome. I was able to turn the van off, put it into gear, and then start the van while in gear and limp to a parking spot.

Random note number 1: The red exclamation point dash light came on a week prior that signals a variety of potential brake issues. I put some brake fluid in the reservoir, and the light went out. Not sure if this note means anything, just thought it possibly relevant since the brake and clutch fluid share a common tank.

Back to the clutch issue. Bled the clutch at the slave cylinder today. Cracked the bleeder and let it run for a minute; pretty dark fluid, but nothing crazy. Then went through a regular bleed session; partner pushes down pedal, crack bleeder, close bleeder, release pedal. Repeat. Went through about 6ish ounces of brake fluid. Maybe 20-30 pedal presses. Everything seemed to go fine; fluid came out more clear, no bubbles that I could see. But no change in performance. Pedal maybe feels a bit better, but still wont disengage/engage the clutch. No apparent leaks from slave, nearby hoses, or any leaks under the dash from the master.

Lemme know if anyone has suggestions of what to check next!

I've driven almost every day for over a month, including a 1500 mile roadtrip the days after I bought it. No other issues, or any clutch or shifting issues for that matter. Shifter bushing seems a bit sloppy, but thats about it.

Cheers
 
If the slave cylinder moves when the pedal is pressed and you have no leaks, I'd guess the problem lies with the clutch itself. Maybe a disintegrated release bearing?

Try removing the rubber bellhousing boot around the release lever and shine a light in there. That'll show you if the bearing has fallen apart.
 
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Behind here? Hard to see much of anything, even when my bright headlamp. I'll google what it's supposed to look like, but at first glance there doesn't appear to be anything amiss. But I can barely see anything other than a few screws and those clutch fin things. More to come soon! Thanks!!
 
I'm gonna see if I can borrow a probe/inspection camera to get a better look, but after some further clutch issue digging it unfortunately sounds like the release bearing is a likely culprit (crying face).

I started to look for clutches and clutch kits. Parts finder says the clutch is MD742366 or replacement MN110717, and the bearing is MD719469. I'm new to finding parts for this bad boy, so lemme know if y'all have any suggestions.

I can get those individual parts on amayama, and I found posts on delicausa and ccauto for clutch kits.

https://www.delicausa.com/product/5-spd-manual-clutch-kit/
https://www.ccautos.ca/l300-clutch-assembly-aftermarket-part/

I also messaged rising sun auto.
Adventure awaits!!

Maybe this is a good time to find the oil leak that looks like its coming from the back top of the engine, or anything else around this area that y'all recommend.
 
Operate the clutch and watch how much the slave to clutch fork moves. If you have good throw I would be replacing the clutch
 
Probe camera inbound so I can get a better look, but sure seems like clutch is to blame and not the hydraulics. Thanks for all the replies! I'll take a pic of the slave with and without the pedal pushed in, but it sure seemed to move a lot while I was down there bleeding the clutch.

Question: would a poor/leaky hydraulic system have cause the clutch to fail prematurely? Should I be considering replacing the master/slave or hoses at this time too? Maybe it wasn't moving the clutch enough between shifts? The shifting was a bit notchy, but nothing I was concerned with in my previous experience with manuals. Trying not to overthink it; I've had manual cars for over 20 years, and never had to replace anything. This Deli is my oldest car, but not as many miles as my other cars. The Deli has 197k kilometers, so around 120k miles.
 
If you’re going to replace the clutch I would just replace everything. Including the rear main seal since you will have the transmission pulled. Trans bushings as well, it all needs to be replaced anyway.
 
This potential clutch failure appears to be a slippery slope of what should be replaced regardless of what actually failed; I'm not made of time and money after all, hahaha. Here's where I'm at assuming the bearing is the culprit.

Definitely replace: Clutch disc and release bearing
Probably: clutch cover, clutch hose, boot
Probably/Maybe: clutch release fork

Since I'm in there: rear main oil seal. Trans bushings
Maybe next time if there continues to be issues: Slave Cylinder. Master cylinder

Lemme know if you recommend anything else for any of these beautifully laid out categories, or if one should be moved/removed from said category. I'll be doing the work myself, so I'm not worried about labor (other than I only have so much time each week, and I need to get the van running) but the part cost is a concern (isnt it always? haha)
 
Lucian08 said:
This potential clutch failure appears to be a slippery slope of what should be replaced regardless of what actually failed; I'm not made of time and money after all, hahaha. Here's where I'm at assuming the bearing is the culprit.


Lemme know if you recommend anything else for any of these beautifully laid out categories, or if one should be moved/removed from said category. I'll be doing the work myself, so I'm not worried about labor (other than I only have so much time each week, and I need to get the van running) but the part cost is a concern (isnt it always? haha)
Click to expand...
Feel ya here, for what it’s worth. If you can get your hands on an impact driver (with extenders/sockets) other than floor jack, this job really isn’t that bad. Was able to get it done in a couple days. All in all, I spent about $400 I believe.

You may be able to find a Hyundai Clutch stateside (Call Nomadic Van or Good Karrma to see if they have one sitting around from an engine swap). Wouldn’t advise on a Luk clutch kit (sold by DelicaUSA / ebay). The springs start chattering pretty quickly and is so bloody annoying. Don’t use the Hyundai flywheel as the pilot bearing ID is the wrong size (it is possible to source the correct one but it’s a bit rare). Easy enough to just get the OEM one resurfaced.

Shouldn’t need to replace the clutch fork. Check the main shaft bearing seal for leaks (into the transmission).
Maybe also replace the clutch pivot bolt, which the clutch fork pivots against. (it’s like 1$)
Ordered throwout, clutch boot, pivot bolt, slave cylinder rebuild kit, pilot bearing from Megazip. They run sales almost weekly and shipping was pretty quick.

As for time down, feel ya there. Was able to get this done in three days. Most of the time spent was in the auto parts store trying to source the correct pilot bearing for my hyundai flywheel before giving up and just reusing the old one.
 
Plenty of tools over here, including 2 impact drivers and a floor jack. Although I've never done a clutch, I've done almost everything else on my other cars, hahaha.

I got some parts from Rising Sun the other week, so I'm having them quote me this job as well. Super responsive and helpful, so I'll keep with them for now. Then I just need to find a shop to resurface my flywheel (hopefully easy enough to find in Minneapolis), and away we go! Hopefully post an update or 2 in the next 2 weeks.

I want my baby back! We named him Benoit Blanc, or Benie for short.
I just got my hitch mounted, and the clutch failed the next day so I haven't tested towing the teardrop yet!! Hopefully get this buttoned up and a test run in before making the 500 mile trip to MO in April for Moore Expo.
Thanks again for all your help and input!!
 
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The transmission has been removed! And there appears to be a few chunks of metal in the bellhousing from the clutch bearing.
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Clutch kit came in from Rising Sun the other day, picked up the flywheel from being resurfaced this morning, and my car buddy is scheduled tomorrow so I can have a pair of extra hands putting it back together. Never been closer!
 
So I thought I was ready to go, but I can't find the flywheel bolt spec anywhere. I promise I looked through all pertinent manuals. Help!
 
Lucian08 said:
I still can't find it, but I found this similar manual for a 4D56 which suggests 98ft lbs. So that's what I'm doing, but post here if I'll need to do this over again!!
@Growlerbearnz
Cheers
Click to expand...
The torque for all of the 4D5 series is 127-137 Nm. 132 Nm is just the middle of the range; the 1991 4D56 manual has it at 135 Nm...


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We're back on the road! The pedal feels like it has less pressure than I recall, but maybe its the new butter smooth clutch, haha. I was hoping to tow the teardrop on my camping trip this weekend, but now I'm thinking maybe let the clutch break in a few more miles before I start towing.

Thanks again for everyone's help and expertise!
 
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