Im starting a clutch job on my car, and when I pulled the stock shifter out I noticed that it has a curve to it, is that normal or should it be straight?

 

Here's an old picture of my shift mechanism:

https://www.rx7club.com/showpost.php...2&postcount=26

 

That's normal.

 

Im just about ready to unbolt the tranny, but does the engine really have to be braced first? and if so, whats the best way to go about doing that?

 

Braced? No. What can happen is that the engine can tilt forward making it difficult to re-install the transmission. When you re-install, just using a 10mm socket with an extension onto one of the oil pan bolts on the front of the engine, lifting it with a jack. That should tilt the engine back down in the rear to aid in mating the transmission.

 

Is there a special way to remove the rear driveshaft bolts???? I already marked it with whiteout and im trying to remove the 4 14mm bolts at the rear so I can remove the tranny but these damn nuts will NOT come loose. They are so tight that the entire driveshaft/rear end is moving when trying to take them off so I stopped because I dont wanna break/bend anything

Do I need a special tool to remove them?? This is REALLY pissing me off!!

 

No special tools, just PB blaster maybe.

 

Ok WOW I just wasted the ENITRE day trying to remove the 14mm driveshaft bolts (x4) and all I did was slightly strip one of the nuts. The PB Blaster didn't help at all. I'm using 2 wrenches to try to get it off, but the closed end of the wrench does not fit all the way around the nut so I need to use the open end of it which is why it keeps slipping off. I'm gonna need to buy a needle nose vise grip, and try it on one side next.

I really didn't expect out of all things these bolts to be this difficult to remove. If anybody has any ideas i'd REALLY appreciate it

 

If you do not have air tools you may have a hell of a time getting the flywheel nut off. Maybe it is worth it to source out a rental of a compressor and purchase an impact.

It is very odd that the box-end of your wrench does not fit around the bolt properly. Have you tried a 14mm socket? You may try that and a 1/2" drive breaker bar. Before I purchased a compressor I would make sure my wrench/ratchet was securely on the bolt/nut I was trying to remove and then smack the end of it with a 5lb sledge.

 

The reason why the box end of the wrench doesn't fit around the bolt properly, is because there is such a tight clearance with the bolt. By tight clearance, I mean probably 2...or 3 mm MAX and no socket/wrench will fit entirely around the bolt.

I tried a 14mm line wrench, the box end of a 14mm conventional wrench, needle nose vise grip, NOTHING works except for the open end of a conventional wrench which keeps slipping off the bolt and is starting to strip it.

Am I supposed to use a special tool to stop the driveshaft from turning to remove these 14mm bolts (x4)... is there another way to remove the tranny without having to do this?

Am I even doing this right??





Im about ready to CUT these bolts off!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You should have a socket on the nut, not the bolt. Use the parking brake to hold the drive shaft from turning.

 

I thought about that, but thats not gonna damage anything by doing that? Because im gonna have to REALLY put all my weight into it to break these things loose

 

Yah just pull up the e brake and use a long bar to brake it loose.

 

Ok tried it just now and after pulling as HARD as I could, the first bolt broke loose. I just thought that with the handbrake on I might damage something else, but apparently not, and that is the ONLY way to remove these bolts. Thanks Adam

 

Ok I tried and tried to use the screw driver method to pop the throw out bearing out from the pressure plate but I was unsuccessful after many attempts. I used method #2 in which I spun the engine around and removed all of the pressure plate bolts one by one, then wedged it loose with a large screw driver, but couple of questions:

(1 If I removed all of the pressure plate bolts and let it hang loose there, once I remove the bell housing and PPF bolts, the tranny SHOULD come right out with ease right?

(2 Being that I had to spin the engine by hand to undo the bolts, will this affect the engine when I try to start the car? In other words, do I need to set the engine back at TDC or something?

 

1. This is how I have always removed my trans.

2. As long as you spun it in the direction it's supposed to turn, you can assume it's okay. I say ASSUME, bc you never know. However, I've spun mine backwards to get those bolts out, not realizing I was, and never had a problem on restart. Again, this is just my experience, there are many here with much more experience than I.


Good luck, and glad to see you trying this yourself. Once you do it, you'll get better at it, and it'll become second nature.

 

Too late now, but separating the engine from the trans is very easy once you know how to do it. Push the wedge collar flush with the pressure plate, make sure the entire circumference is flush. Insert long flatblade screwdriver in between wedge collar and throwout bearing. Twist the screwdriver 90 degrees. Done.

 

Just removed the tranny today but it didnt come out the way I expected... I loosened all the bolts, then I moved it the wrong way and the whole thing started coming down by itself!! I had to man handle it myself and lower it gently to the ground... I wasnt planning on that, but it really wasnt as heavy as I was expecting it to be thank GOD!

Anyway, this connector/sensor here... the wiring is VERY brittle, im not sure if I wanna replace it or not, still debating. Does anybody know which one this is? These are VERY easy to mix up I dont wanna confuse them. Its the closest connector to the tail shaft of the tranny and is on the wiring harness side. Also the hole in the picture is the other connector I already damaged removing, that ones the backup switch?

 

What did you expect the transmission to do when you completely unbolted it? Is is somehow supposed to defy gravity? How about trying to use some common sense?

 

I forget what that empty one is (is that the filler plug?) but pretty sure that top sensor is your reverse light switch.

I haven't been down there since I had to replace my clutch fork over a year ago so I don't really remember.

 

I replaced my sensors for the same reason (reason being brittle wiring, not because I neglected to support the transmission). They are about $35/ea.

David

 

How difficult would it be to replace the transmission front and rear seals while im here? The rear looks pretty straight forward, but I don't know about the front seal.

 

The front is also easy, you just unbolt the bellhousing to get to it.

 

To me it looks like my old pilot bearing doesn't have a a seal or maby its worn, I cant really tell. From what i've been reading on here, the pilot bearing is supposed to have lubrication and a rubber seal in front of it, but mine is all dried out and I believe that is what was causing the rattling sound when I pressed the clutch inwards, is this what the pilot bearing supposed to look like... shouldn't there be a seal in front of it?

 

Looking like poo or not (which yours does), you should replace high mileage parts like that when you do a job like this. It is a total b**** to take out though.

You can see that your seal is worn (and the polymer/rubber piece that acts as a "seal" is entirely absent).