Stuck Flywheel
 

I have a 1988 Mazda RX7 with 100,000 miles. I am installing the second clutch in the car. The first time I installed the clutch, I did not have the flywheel turned.

I have removed the clutch and pressure plate. I have also removed the nut on the flywheel. I can not get the flywheel loose. I have tried hitting around the perimeter of the flywheel with a hammer. I Pulled the theads on the two holes in the flywheel trying to get it off with a puller. Tried putting penetrating oil around the flywheel and shaft. Tried applying heat although I did this lightly since I am afraid of damaging the seals or building up too much heat in the engine compartment. I used a pry bar around the edge of the flywheel. DOES ANYONE HAVE A SUGGESTION?

Sincerely,

Tom Kunkel

Ok, heres what I have done (im not a mechanic and Im guessing you arent either or you would have the proper tool) If you have a bearing puller try and use that but becareful not to damage the spiget bearing in the eccentric shaft, but the way I find best is to get two wedges and put them on oppisites sides and just start tapping them in evenly.
You will find that the flywheel will just fall off straight away without to much effort, just becareful cause standard they are bloody heavy, so watch ya toes

Go New Zealand Rotors
Aotearota

So you stripped the threads on the puller holes?.. ouch. The only way I have been able to pull a flywheel off with out a puller was with a 4lb. dead blow hammer (not a metal hammer, and not a rubber hammer). About 20 hits on the face of the flywheel with everything I had finally popped it off. But before you do this put the flywheel nut back on it a few turns to keep it from falling completely off the motor, otherwise it will fall on you and it will hurt!

You might want to try tapping out your stripped holes to a slighly larger thread size and getting the proper size bolts to fit the new threads and the puller. But don't use the puller to actually pull the flywheel off. Just tighten it up enough to put pressure on the flywheel and then hit it a few times with a deadblow hammer. I pulled a flywheel off like this in 2 hits last weekend.

And Don't be afraid to use a torch on it.. The seals are designed to withstand around 200 degrees during normal driving. And even if you do cook your rear e-shaft seal it would be an easy replacement once the flywheel is off.

Good luck.

Wedge a pry bar behind the flywheel to apply pressure, then hit the flywheel in the area straight across from where the pry bar is. Usually only takes 3 or 4 good hits. Pullers don't work that well cause that end of the e-shaft is tappered and it's pressed against that tapper with the nut when torqued at 300 lb/ft.

slightly heat the nut with a torch to break the seal. then use chisel and hammer to loosen the nut. be sure to grind the chisel slightly to get rid of the pointy or sharp end. Otherwise, you will slice it like a cake.

loosen the nut (not all the way), get a heavy set of rubber mallet and hit the flywheel with a good blow a few time. That should loosen it and nut will prevent the flywheel from falling out.

flywheel
 

rxtasy had the right idea. have someone pry outward 180deg off where you hit it on the face with a deadblow hammer. thread the nut halfway on so when it pops loose it wont fall.

justin

Once upon a time, I too had a nightmare flywheel removal problem. People who have not encountered this cannot possibly understand how bad it can get, as it only strikes one out of about 100 flywheel removal jobs. They are all tough, but they can be unfreakingbelievablygoddamn tough if they want to be. Heat, hammers, prybars, pullers are not enough; I think you need an excorsist. I spent perhaps 20 hours over two days doing nothing but beat on my flywheel, pry on it, heat it up, and use a puller. Persistence was the only solution and it eventually popped off after enough torture was applied. Just stick with it.

For more forgiving jobs, I find the best tool is a metal drill hammer (aka Mini-sledge or BFH) swung with great force and speed in a circular pattern around the edge of the flywheel (try to avoid the PP mounting surfaces). Do your best to keep the ringing sound consistent, so the sound waves traveling through the steel are bombarding the mating surface with the e-shaft constantly and from every direction. Also wear hearing protection and hope your neigbors don't call the cops. Baaaannnnngannngggannnngaannngaaaaannnngaaaannnnng aaaannngannnnngaannnngaaaaaaannggggggg <thud>
Also make sure you thread the flywheel nut back on a few threads to keep the flywheel from popping off and landing in your lap or against your chest!

Someone Has A Sense Of Humor!!!!!! Lol :d

Yup. I've used that with much success after other methods failed.

-=Russ=-

Mine took about 5 hours.... I used a pry bar on one side with the puller pulling for tension and then i took a ruber mallet and beat the shit out of it and it poped off and was undamaged cause of the rubber mallet :P. But before I used that method I tried about everything... They can be a bitch. Just keep at it.

it comes off first time everytime. Get something very very very heavy. Rap a nice thick rag around the flywheel. And hit it anywere but your clutch surface.
HIT IT HARD. and the thing will just go wobble and fall off.:)

I adapted a standard puller to fit the bolt spread on the flywheel. I tighten it down with the impact and rap it from the back with a hammer. In a dozen or so flywheels I haven't had any problem using this method. I did notice in the Turrnetine video, that he hits the flywheel on the back edge, I have always hit it from the front edge.

Pry bars?
Waste of time - you take a chance of breaking a piece of the rear iron off.

Wedges?
Waste of time.

Get the biggest hammer you can find.
I can normally do this within 3 tries - most of them in 2.
Hell, I even tried this with a "regular" hammer, and managed to do it in 2.

The trick is to WAIL at it like you're going to destroy it.
Think of your ex...
Think if your mother-in-law...
Think of someone you HATE...
Then go swinging!
If you don't have the feeling the hammer is going to go flying across the other side of the room, you're not swinging it hard enough!
The flywheel should ring loud enough to make you deaf.
You can tell the flywheel is loosening when the tone changes (it gets lower as it pops off).
Keep the flywheel nut threaded on so it doesn't pop off onto your foot!
Keep away from the clutch disc mating surfaces AND position dowels AND the ring gear!!!
You basically got a 2" area around the outer diameter to work with - yes, it's very hard to swing a hammer this hard and hit this area!

I've been through pullers...
I've wasted my time with torches.
I've been through the pry bar method.
It never takes me more than 5 minutes to take off any flywheel nowadays.

Once you figure out this method, you'd be kicking yourself for trying all the other methods which just waste your time...


-Ted

I'm a big fan of wailing on stuck car parts, but can that possibly damage something inside the engine?

That's actually a really good question.
About the only thing that would possible get damaged is the Torrington thrust bearings under the front oil cover.
Typically on an engine tear-down, I would remove all the little bits under the front cover and then remove the flywheel last before removing the tension bolts.
I've also done it without removing the Torrington thrust bearings without any ill effects...yet. :)


-Ted

Teds way is the best... beat on it like nobodys business.

:d
 

thanks. with all your threds it took me and a buddy seconds to take off a turbo flywheel :D site is the shit!