About to drop trans

[mattZ]

So after seeing a leaking slave cylinder and having my shifting being rough, I realized my slave cylinder is going out.
I'm about to replace the slave this weekend and wanted to stop in and see if you guys have any tips/advice for me. This is the largest repair I will have done so far, but I can't afford to take it into a shop. I have all the tools I need (hopefully ). I have watched many slave cylinder replacement videos and read write ups on it.

My explorer is a 96 4x4 sport with the 4.0l v6 and the M5OD trans.
I learned that the after market slaves (even by perfection) were all junk and leak WAY to soon so I ordered the part through my local dealership.

Any advice would be great! I need to finish this in a weekend. (Friday night, Saturday and night and Sunday is is all the time I have) I want to be well prepared to make this as quick and painless as possible.

Thanks guys!

 

[gatzdon]

+1 for the OEM slave cylinder. When I changed the slave cylinder on my 95 F-150, It became an almost annual affair after that. I would know as soon as it started leaking because it would cause the clutch to slip.

My only advise is to pick up the clutch pad and have it ready to swap out. When you get to the slave cylinder, you'll see just how easy it is to replace your clutch pad.

Buy it from somewhere you can return without a restocking fee in case you decide it doesn't need replacing after you see it.

 

[mattZ]

I have noticed my clutch starting to slip while accelerating in 2nd gear...

Ill have to do that, thanks! Ill call my local oreillys and see what their return policy is.

 

[rb142]

Get a long (2 to 3 foot) extension bar and a 13mm swivel socket. That makes a huge difference getting the trans out/in.

Also spend the two bucks (or whatever it is) on the little clutch line release tool. That makes it a lot easier to release the white ring instead of tearing it up with screwdrivers.

Change the pilot bearing while you are in there too.

 

[mattZ]

Thanks a lot!

 

[mattZ]

Get a long (2 to 3 foot) extension bar and a 13mm swivel socket. That makes a huge difference getting the trans out/in.

Also spend the two bucks (or whatever it is) on the little clutch line release tool. That makes it a lot easier to release the white ring instead of tearing it up with screwdrivers.

Change the pilot bearing while you are in there too.

Well I'm mid project. Want to say thanks for the pilot bearing recommendation. This is the old one. Had to chisel it out.

The exhaust bolts for the "y" snapped off so I'll be drilling them out today and replacing them.

Any tips would be appreciated!

 

[rb142]

Yeah, that pilot bearing was done!

Not much to say for the exhaust bolts. If there is anything left sticking out and you have an acetylene torch, you can try to heat them and remove what's left. (Weld a nut on, heat the flange, and impact out while red works best.) (Or burn them out with a cutting torch.) Otherwise, it's just a drill-out job in an unpleasant location.

 

[mattZ]

Yup just had to grind off the remainder of them and drill them out. Only one more to drill and I can start putting it together. I'm glad I went with the drilling... I was going to just c-clamp them back on as a quick fix...

I'll post some pics tomorrow on my progress. Thanks for all the help guys!

 

[mattZ]

We'll I got it all put together. Still need to bleed the clutch because it's spongy. I noticed there is a grinding noise when I start to engage the clutch. Once it's fully engaged the noise stops... I was reading maybe it's the bell housing bolts not being tight enough? I replaced the slave, pilot bearing and throw out bearing. The noise definitely sounds like it's coming from the bell housing area. Any ideas? I did clean off the flywheel with brake parts cleaner... Was this a mistake?

 

[masospaghetti]

Did you replace the clutch and/or flywheel?

In my experience, new clutches make some noise until they break in, although I wouldn't describe the noise as "grinding". Normally you would want to resurface or replace the flywheel to give a new mating surface for the clutch pad.

Did you torque the pressure plate down in a cross pattern? If you don't, you can bend the fingers on the diaphragm.

 

[mattZ]

Did you replace the clutch and/or flywheel?

In my experience, new clutches make some noise until they break in, although I wouldn't describe the noise as "grinding". Normally you would want to resurface or replace the flywheel to give a new mating surface for the clutch pad.

Did you torque the pressure plate down in a cross pattern? If you don't, you can bend the fingers on the diaphragm.

I didn't replace the clutch or flywheel. The clutch was replaced about a year ago.
I did torque them down properly and used a torque wrench. It wasn't happening until I did this repair, so I'm guessing it's something I did wrong...

 

[mattZ]

So i talked to a mechanic about the grinding and he said it could possibly be the transmission input shaft worn down and unbalanced because of the old pilot bearing. He said it could just take time. I haven't noticed and clutch slipping or smells or any problems but that odd noise.
Other than that, shifting is amazing. So smooth and easy. Cant remember where on here but i followed a write up on bleeding the master cylinder to get my pedal nice and hard.

Thank you to everyone who has helped!! i ran into a lot of problems on my way, so if anyone is about to do this fix, pm me and we'll make sure you don't make my mistakes. haha.

 

[freak]

Well I'm mid project. Want to say thanks for the pilot bearing recommendation. This is the old one. Had to chisel it out.

The exhaust bolts for the "y" snapped off so I'll be drilling them out today and replacing them.

Any tips would be appreciated!

So is the input shaft ruined? Based on that pilot bearing I'd bet it was.

 

[mattZ]

Basically. Instead of being a perfectly round shaft, It was tapered down on the tip. I tested the shaft play and it seemed normal. I just had to put it together and hope for the best. I don't have the money to put into a rebuild or a new one.

 

[freak]

A new input shaft is under $50.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2053587.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xm5od+input+shaft.TRS0&_nkw=m5od+input+shaft&_sacat=0

 

[mattZ]

That's good to know! I thought I read somewhere you needed a whole rebuild. Although I don't feel confident in my mechanical abilities enough to open up the trans... There doesn't happen to be a front plate you take off to easily replace the input shaft does there?

 

[freak]

No but it's not that hard. It was a while ago I did mine and I don't recall any special tools other than maybe snap ring pliers. You do have to completely gut the trans to get it in.

 

[freak]

There's a plastic oil slinger on the shaft that you should buy along with the shaft if you decide to do it. The old one will likely break if you try to reuse it. It's only like $2.00.

 

[mattZ]

We'll I think I found my next project on my x! Is there anything else I should look out for or replace while I'm in there? Maybe input shaft seal/bearing?

 

[freak]

I don't remember specifically but I would guess I put all new seals in mine. My biggest regret was using a slave cylinder from autozone. It didn't last. There was nothing wrong with the original one. I just thought I would replace it since I had it all apart and it had over 200000 miles. Big mistake. I bet the original one would still be working. Would have been well worth the extra $$$ to get an oem one. I think others here have reported the same results with aftermarket slave cylinders.