drp

thanks for all the help form all of you.

So just to make sure what you are saying i have the car at a stand still (which i do), then i go to first gear and then to reverse with the clutched pushed in correct, or with the clutch not pushed in?

85 FB

Depressed means the pedal is pushed in.

Yes, have the clutch pedal pushed in, then shift into 1st and then bring it into Reverse.

drp

JUUST CHECKING

85 FB

No problem, bud. You'll probably get rid of that "thump" when you go into Reverse now.

drp

I will let you fellas know if it continues

Howco

There is a simple way to see whats going on here. Trust me I have just went through this.

With the engine not running does the transmission move and shift fine from gear to gear? It should do this without even engaging the clutch.

If it does its its a hydraulic problem.

If you had a bad bearing you would know cause you would have said something along the lines of I cant shift gears and my car squeals like a cat in a sack.

It turned out on my car I had a small leak on the slave that caused me to loose too much fluid. I added fluid and bled the system as long as I check my levels it operates ok. When it starts doing the hard shift. And by that I mean I cant shift into first from a stop, or downshift into second on a turn or something I just bleed the air that has gotten into the system from the leak and everything goes back to working.

Of course I could just replace the slave but Im a poor man and the smoke from the slave leaking fluid on the tranny and then onto the cat doesnt really bother me.

drp

thanks for the input Howco, i will do that test.

85 fb thanks for that little reverse trick you told me about, it worked like a charm!

drp

Ok, so i did that test. When i got the car a few weeks ago it was smooth as silk to change gears, and with the car off i changes gears and it was rough like it has been then i kept doing it 3 more times and it got smooth like when i got it then rough agian through out the gears. When i turned it on and tried to stick it in first it was a no go. So I assume its the hydralics like suggested, you guys are great!!

So I want to replace the slave and master cylinder, what hose(s) do i need to replace if any? It also needs to be bleed correct?

85 FB

To be on the safe side, get a few hydraulic lines for the clutch line leading from the master cylinder into the hose that goes into the slave. Some autoparts stores sell hydraulic lines in categories (European, Asian/Japanes, Standard, etc) so it shouldn't be hard for you to match up the line. Have the new master cylinder in hand to match up the threads on the line to make it easier. Also, get the lines that are, IIRC, 24" long. After bending it, it'll shorten up quick to how you need it. I had to get 3 lines and after a couple tries with my tube bender (a nice $20 part to have), I had a new line. You want 3 just incase you screw up the first one when bending it.

I had to get a new line because the old one's nut was frozen on there with rust. Even a flarenut wrench wouldn't help.

But, I also had a new braided stainless steel hose to run from the hydraulic line to the slave cylinder. And, you can get a one-man(self) bleeding kit for hydraulics (Brake/clutch). I used that, but I still ended up needing some help. If you have the money, get a better one-man bleeding kit. It'll save you a bunch of hassle.

Hope this helps.

Howco

You may simply have a small leak that has let air into the system over time. Try bleeding it first before you replace anything. Even if you have a leak it should last for just a little be so you can confirm thats the problem.

You just need one guy in there to press in the clutch to bleed the system. Before I bled mine the first time I watched the slave to see what it was doing, and of course it was doing nothing. After I bled it it worked for about 2 weeks before needing to be bled agian.

drp

well it ended up being the clutch, the previous owner installed it incorrectly and a small brass ring was sticking out to much. its fixed yaaay!!

Vashner

Dude we are talking about 20-30 year old vehicles. I would put up an FB tranny against ANY in it's age and price range.

Now a clutch is a consumable like brake pads. They are on the scheduled maint list. And the slaves are easy to work on and replace compared to other vehicles.

For it's day of design and the unit cost it's an excellent transmission.

mar3

iTrader: (8)

$100 for a BOP TH400 from 1968 would eat any Mazda transmission made to date....what part of Texas are you in? Can you make any of the DFW meets at Cheddar's on 635 and MacArthur?

Glad to hear yo got this fixed, drp!

Dratix

I've got a somewhat similar problem. I was driving up to my parents house and the electronics in my rx7 are old and don't work all the time. Anyway when I was driving I got extremely low on oil and pulled over to a gas station, but by the time I got there my car wouldn't shift into gear and now the clutch pedal is extremely loose. I can shift it into gear when the cars off, but when it's on it will not go into any gear. The engine still starts up fine and everything.

I'm just starting to learn all the different things about cars and this is my first rx-7 and I only noticed where to put oil and washer fluid into the car and I'm not sure if theres any clutch fluid and where it would be.

My bad I did search and I didn't realize this post was on 1st gen specific. My car is a 2nd gen.