Clutch engagement issues
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From: Phoenix, Az
Clutch engagement issues I think I've got a different issue than most. My problem is the the clutch will not disengage. If you push the clutch in, it will not disengage the clutch. If you start it in any gear with the clutch in, the car will take off. I was at the track last night and made a pass and everything went great. I let the car cool off for a while and the headed up to the lanes. Everything was fine the whole way up thru the lines, to the burnout, did a small burnout (I didn't fully load the line lock), I rolled out of the burnout and put the car in neutral. I want to stage the car and that's when the problems started! When I pushed in the clutch to put it in first, it did not want to go into gear. So I tried double clucthing it and still could not get it into any gear, reverse included. I was pushed to the side. Keep in mind that the clucth has felt completely normal every single minute of the night, even after "it happened". The clutch still feel like normal, it just won't go into gear. 
I tried reading thru the threads and search with no luck. The clutch fluid was a very minimal amount low (you typically wouldn't add anything if you seen it.), but it was dark and dirty looking. Is it possible that a simple clutch bleed would fix it? Should I go to the bleedar screw for ths one? Any help or links would be great.
I tried reading thru the threads and search with no luck. The clutch fluid was a very minimal amount low (you typically wouldn't add anything if you seen it.), but it was dark and dirty looking. Is it possible that a simple clutch bleed would fix it? Should I go to the bleedar screw for ths one? Any help or links would be great. Thread Starter
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From: Phoenix, Az
Originally Posted by 1BADAIR
stock or aftermarket
how long has it been installed?
how long has it been installed?
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From: Bergen County, NJ
If the clutch feels normal, then either the pressure plate went bad and is not releasing or the maybe the input shaft is stuck to the pilot bushing (although unlikely).
You should try bleeding it since that's an easy check.
If it doesn't work try this if you can safely: Start the car in gear then when you're accelerating depress the clutch. If it slips then you probably have a broken pressue plate, if it doesn't then you probably have a failed slave although it probably wouldn't feel normal.
Either way, if bleeding doesn't solve it, you will probably need to pull the clutch.
You should try bleeding it since that's an easy check.
If it doesn't work try this if you can safely: Start the car in gear then when you're accelerating depress the clutch. If it slips then you probably have a broken pressue plate, if it doesn't then you probably have a failed slave although it probably wouldn't feel normal.
Either way, if bleeding doesn't solve it, you will probably need to pull the clutch.
I would say pull the trans and tighten the pressure plate bolts. If you did not put red permanant loctite on them and torque them to the maximun torque spec they are probably loose.
I have had this issue with mine and a few others now
I have had this issue with mine and a few others now
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From: Phoenix, Az
Well, I bled the clutch tonight and things just got worse. The pedal felt normal before we bled the system and now it just feels "dead". The pedal takes almost no force to push it down now and goes right to the floor when pushed. It does come back up into the normal postion without having to do it manually. I just picked up a new master for it and will be ordering a slave just in case. What does it sound like now? I don't think it has anything to do with bolts or the pressure plate being loose. We locktighted everything in place when it was installed and went to full GM specs and torqued everything twice. Besides, if the pressure plat was loose or some of the bolts came undone, wouldn't you hear some sort of ratteling noises or an odd vibration? I drove the car all the way home from the track without using the clutch. I just timed the lights right and shifted without the clutch (it didn't make any difference if it was pushed in anyway). Any other suggestion beside pulling the trans? I wish the was some sort of inspection cover on the damn thing.
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This sounds like a Master Problem although I have seen Slaves do this before too on my personal car (with a stock clutch and only 1000 miles). Remember, as easy as it is to say "this sounds like a clutch problem", it is pretty unlikely. Change out the hydraulics and let me know what you find. If you want to you can pull the clutch and email me some pictures and I will be happy to check them for any visible issues. Let me know if you need anything else. Thanks,
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From: Phoenix, Az
Originally Posted by gun5l1ng3r
I had a very similar problem and it ended up being a loose pressure plate. I will never trust a shop to install anything on my car again!
Originally Posted by myfast70
When it was loose, did you hear any weird ratteling noises or anything out the ordinary? I would think I would get some sort of noise or vibration. If your preesure plate bolts come loose, doesn't the clutch then disengage? If the plate is loose then it would lose all of it's clamping force and cause the car to not go anywhere. If I were to start my car in gear, it would take off. You didn't have that issue did you? Or am I way off base?
When they loosen the clutch spring(fingers) move away from the slave so the slave won't reach. Its not loose enough to make the disk loose inside but the hydraulics just won't reach the fingers
I have seen bolts back off on a very limited number of occasions. The other thing to consider is that the bolts may not be torque evenly which can lead to the same problem. Consistency is key and red Loktite is a must....
yep all seem true... i had that same issue. when the transmission came down, pieces of clutch fell off and the flywheel was warped... put new one and it was also my master that was not holding the pressure and i ordered a mcleod from thunderracing its the best...ask anyone with an ls1 6-speed and they will tell you the same thing... yeah seems like maybe your master is expanded and is not holding pressure... that or even your slave...if replacing ur slave, id recommend a 2001 slave from thunderracing also which is the advanced slave for the 98-99 and the best replacement...let me know whats up with ur problem...
Hopefully I can pull the trans and do the slave next weekend. 
I've got the exact problem with mine with the same clutch; I've got it narrowed down to a bad pp or clutch disk. The clutch is only about 1200 mi old 80% of which is interstate driving, no burn outs, racing or general abuse. When you pull the transmission let me suggest having a replacement on hand and save yourself the trouble of dropping it again in the near future.