I have a 81 rx7 and I need to do some clutch work. I went ahead and bought the whole clutch kit. Only thing is my book only has the release bearing discribed in bolth manuals that I have and the kit came with 3 bearings. I can tell wich one is the release bearing is but the other two I have no idea what they are.

Anyone have any idea what these extra two bearings are?

 

You should have a small one with needle bearings in it- that's the pilot shaft bearing. What does the other one look like?

- David

 

Here is a picture.



I know the one in the plastic is the "release" a.k.a Throwout. But as I said there are no mentions of the other ones there.

 

I replyin to myself to get this bumped up. I really need to know what those bearings are. I got the car up on blocks today. Needless to say the book is far from accurate. Not only does it not list these extra bearings anywhere. Also the book doesnt show all of these sheet metal plates that are under there.

Anyway, if anyone can help ID these two bearings I would appriciate it.

 

The small bearing is the correct pilot bearing. You must have some sort of a generic kit that is designed for maybe the 626 mazdas also.

 

Cool well I guess Ill see if that other bearing pops out of anywhere once I get the tranny off.

Like I said the book I have does not even mention a pilot bearing. I am assuming I will find the old one installed in the flywheel and the transmission shaft goes into it. Am I going to need any tools to remove / install it. The kit came with a little thing of grease I also assume that this is to lube the bearing. Is this correct?

 

You'll need a clutch alignment tool to center the new clutch plate before you re-join the bell housing to the engine. They have wooden ones, plastic and steel. I recommend steel, or possibly an old transmission shaft from an old wrecked transmission, but that can be hard to find. Sometimes you can find the right diameter shaft elsewhere, though, like a hardware store. Reason you want steel shaft is because usually the old worn pilot bearing doesn't come out easily, so you pack up the hole with heavy grease, fit that steel shaft in there tight and bang it sharp with a 2 lb. mall and hope the hydraulic shock pops the PB cage out towards you. Somewtimes that even works. Next you try a slide hammer with 3 or 4 hardened tongs that go inside and catch the back of the PB cage, etc. After that try you go to maybe a small cold chisel, or sometimes just skip right to the Dreml tool.

There's a lot of PB removal lore for cars, and all of them are reproduced somewhere on the rx7club site, here.

 

Yep the little one is the pilot. And it is in there and is not giving up its ghost without a fight. I have a plastic tool that came with the kit so that wont help. I have a bearing puller and there is no room in there. Looks like its dremel time.

I have no idea where that third bearing goes. I cannot find it on the car as it sits. I think your right it must be a generic kit or something cause this little sad fella looks like it is gonna go in the coffee can.

 

Stop by every hardware store in your neighborhood with the new PB in your pocket and look for a nice fit so you can try the grease pack method first. Sometimes a bolt will fit good, too, and you can try that. If it works it's quick and clean.The dreml sometimes gives people problems, like requiring a lot of work to get all the pieces out, etc.

Save the plastic tool for centering.

 

I found a bolt that fits in there pretty well might have to bang it a bit with a mallet. And if that doesnt work I got my dremel handy.

My next question is im ready to remove the starter and the rest of the bolts and drop the transmission.

If anyone knows where would be the best place to put the floor jack to drop the tranny and have the best balance? More than once I have ended up dropping a tranny on its side.

 

Did you get it out? There is no real science on how to drop a tranny... The only thing I could suggest is that you do it with someone... Doing it alone (especially going back in) can be a real bear because what ends up happening is when you drop the tranny the engine rolls back on the engine mounts and getting the tranny and engine to mate again isn't a one man job on your back... on a lift...sure... but working with 12-18 inches isn't much!

When we were chasing a national championship we used to yank the engine if the trans needed to come out... with quick disconnects it was faster! We could have the engine and tranny out in 25 minutes with 3 guys...!

Cheers... best of luck!

 

No not yet its not out. Thats why I was asking about the jack spot. Ive pulled out about 15 trannys and only about 3 times did I have it balanced right so it stayed on the jack. Thats why I was asking.

Apparently the engine will lean back and not forward, thats going to be a good thing for the alignment. I am doing the job myself. I got a trusty assistant (my old man) but so far the only thing he has been good at is laughing. It seems like every bolt was put on with a air wrench. Well I guess because they were the car sat in a shed for quite along time many years before I got it going 6 months ago. So everything Im doing has been done for the first time.

Going to do the dirty tommorw. I just hope I can get that pilot out and everything goes smooth going back in. Of course thats not whats going to happen. Going back on has never gone as smooth as taking it off. And so far getting this thing out has been a pain.

 

PB Blaster is your friend. Soak every bolt you can find that you might need to remove the day before whenever possible. This method has saved me hours of work...

On the pilot bearing removal; another method I've heard works well, which is similar to the grease method, is to use wet toilet paper. Stuff a bunch of it in there, insert your bolt of correct size, hammer it, then stuff more TP in there and keep on repeating until the bearing is driven out. Good luck...

 

Your photo does not show the Pilotbearing Seal. The Mazda puller is best. Other Techniques work, but less well.

 

Well I got the tranny off and all the new stuff installed. Going to put everything back together tommorow it was getting to late.

You wont belive it but a hell of a bit of luck. I sprayed wd-40 into the flywheel where the pilot bearing is just to try to get it a bit slick in there. And then stuck my pinky in there and I was able to work the bearing out with my freakin finger.

Then the bad luck. The tranny fell of the jack boy thats gonna suck getting it back on there.

 

I've swapped the tranny in my car, and I found the balance point was right in front of the drain plug.

The tranny is surprisingly light, it's pretty awkward handling in on your back on the pavement, but invite a buddy over, and between the two of you, you can comfortably lift the tranny up and slide it into place.

Also, I put another jack under the engine, to keep it from shifting out of place. Other wise I imagine there would be huge stress on the 2 engine mounts.

 

Yea I got a jack under the engine. It did not move a lick when I dropped the tranny off it. Only problem is I live way out in the sticks and the only person close to me is pops. He's pretty old. I'm thinking about dropping a strap through the engine compartment and another through the stick hole in the passenger compartment to keep it from moving to far forward then lift it up high enough a little at a time, or just high enough to get a jack under it. Ill make sure to take pictures and post em somewhere if it works. Another method Ive used before is to put blocks of wood under each end a little at a time until the jack fits under it. But the strap thing would be cooler.

And your right the tranny is way light. I'm pretty sure I could bench it if it were on my chest. Either way I'm sure I can get it back up there myself. Ive done a ton of clutches and about half the time the darn thing falls off the jack.

 

If you were closer, I'd give ya a hand! Yeah, you would be able to bench it up, but it's kinda tricky to get the bolts started, and hold up the tranny . And it is light, but after holding it above your head for a minute, it starts getting heavy.

 

It just takes patience and time. As long as I do it slow and careful I should not have that many problems and the neighbors won't have to hear my sailors mouth. I'm just glad that the flywheel was in great condition and that there were no oil leaks going into the bell housing. The only thing that went wrong (with the exceptions of someone using wacky glue, or the hulk putting in all the bolts) is I broke a small fabric braided wire that leads to the starter.

What part of Canada are you in 84?

 

East Coast, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Yeah, I broke one of the bolts (the top one that has the motor lifting hoop on it) and it took like 20 minutes with vice grips to get the broken threaded section out.

You should also clean out the bell housing while your in there. Mine was filthy with black sludge.

 

Who's your team mine was the wings before the Av's came to town.

Mine doesnt have any sludge in there. It was coated with the remains of the clutch disc though. But it was still pretty dry. Just enough to get it to stick to the sides and after I cracked it off alot of powder came out.

I just can't wait for the sun to come up so I can get it put back together. I was gonna bypass the cat while I had it up but I have to drive it on monday so that can wait for another day. I put a generic cat on there to get it to pass emissions but here in Colorado its considered a classic and only has to be tested every five years.