Clutch Replacement – At a Glance

So you are planning to replace your clutch. These are the following tips that can help you in making it easier. One may need a professional for replacing it, but one drivers and owners can learn and save a lot of money and time.

First things first, before you actually replace your clutch you need to have a few basic things in place.

Here’s the list

• New Pressure Plate. Size of the pressure plate is of utmost importance. The choice you make is dependent on the flywheel; choose a pressure plate which suits your needs. Pressure plates from Nissan are preferred and regarded to be a good choice.
• Clutch Disc the size of a clutch disc depends on the pressure plates. And Nissan again is a safe bet in this category.
• Throw-Out Bearing this usually comes with the kit which contains the pressure plate and the clutch disc.
• Pilot Bushing
• Clutch Alignment Tool 
• Exhaust Flange Gasket
• Grease. Bearing grease is preferred.

List of things you would like to replace

• Input Shaft Seal
• Front Cover Gasket
• Output Shaft Seal
• Pressure Plate Dowel Pegs
• Two Quarts of Transmission/Gear Fluid

Tools required

• Repair manual or help book
• Factory manual book
• A well equipped mechanic’s tool

Test Drive

Test driving is very important as it helps you keep track of abnormal noises and also about the frequency of these noises in relation to a particular temperature or vehicle. You can also detect if something is stopping your clutch system to operate efficiently.

First check if your clutch system is the cause of your vehicles not the pedal-arm bushings, activate the slave-master cylinder.

• Elimination of exhaust pipes and the speedometer is important as it may affect your efforts to replace the clutch
• Place your car in a safe position before starting to work on it.
• Stabilize the engine.
• Remove the bolts and separate the engine and transaxle
• Clean the pressure plate by separating and pushing away the transaxle from the engine.
• Remove the bolts around the pressure plate to extract out the clutch plate. if the flywheel has hot spots reinstall it
• Check the pilot bearing near the centre of the flywheel to check the lubrication of the needle bearing and rule out the doubts of galling and leaking of oil.

Replacing the Clutch

• Remove a factory and user guide manual for easy replacement of clutch.
• If the transaxle’s input shaft is leaking; try replacing it.
• Remove the flywheel and the old seal and install a new seal.

Installing a New Clutch

• First cleaning of crankshaft flange is important before putting in the flywheel. The bolts must be in a star formed position.
• Start with installing the clutch disc and pressure plate. Before inserting the transaxle, attach the new release bearing to the release fork, make sure it works freely.
• Put the transaxle in such a position that it moves ahead till the input shaft gets into the clutch disc’s spindled hole. Avoid applying coercion.
• Reinstall removed bolts or mounts for replacing the car’s clutch while holding the transaxle, releasing the jack and lowering your car.
• Replace the cable of your car’s clutch. Adjust it so that it can operate freely.
• To test a clutch’s self operating operation after depression of the slave cylinder’s piston into its bore.
• Test drive to cross check whether the clutch is operating efficiently.

Warnings

• Refer owner’s manual for model-specific instructions .each car has its own method of replacing the clutch.

Make sure your transaxle doesn’t dangle unsupported from your vehicle’s engine. If dangling is left unchecked it may destroy pilot bearings, the input shaft and front input shaft bearing.