Freelander 1 1.8 Gearbox Clutch Fork

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Jim Watt

New Member
Posts
4
Location
Aberdeenshire
I recently had to change my clutch master / slave and bracket because the pedal fell to the floor. After changing these items i thought the car was running ok until i drove a mile or two then i couldn't select 1st, 2nd and reverse gears. I got back home and relised that the clutch fork was seized. I have managed to free the fork off but now think i have damaged the new master / slave assembly. I have ordered another new assembly and will fit this when it arrives but my question is, does the clutch fork spring back on it's own or is there an internal spring that pushes the fork back after the clutch has been pressed?

I would like to know before this new master / slave assembly comes incase i need to strip the gearbox
 
The clutch lever is only returned by the bearing because it's against the cover fingers. The lever, its shaft and the release bearing should be free to move by hand some way towards the cylinder. If you can't move the lever by an inch or so freely, it's not fee enough to operate correctly.
 
Hi, Thanks for replying. I have managed to free the lever off and i can now move it by hand and it appears free enough but i will still apply oil over the next few days until the 2nd new master / slave cylinder arrives.
I think i have damaged the new master / slave cylinder with the lever being seized solid so i'm hoping when the new cylinders arrive the problem will be solved.

Do you think the cover fingers could be damaged as the lever doesn't return, or will it return when the engine is running?
 
The clutch fingers will be fine as long as the lever is free to move. The release bearing is more likely to fail before the fingers do. But to me it sounds free enough to work correctly.
For long term maintenance. Put a couple of drops of engine oil on the lever shaft at every oil change. This will keep it working the way it should.
 
This morning i removed the slave cylinder from the mounting bracket and tryed to operate the clutch manually with the wife in the car trying to get it into first gear.
The clutch lever is 100% free and moving about 1", with the engine started i asked the missus to try putting it into 1st gear when i was pushing the lever as far to the engine as possible but we had no joy.

Do you think this could be the bearing failure?

I have looked on ebay and i can get a clutch kit including the bearing for £60 and 5ltrs of MTF94 oil for £20. Will i need any other parts or will this be enough?
 
You won't be able to operate the clutch by hand. You'll need to install the hydraulics and use the pedal. I would doubt there's any bearing damage as the hydraulics are the weakest link in the system.
 
This morning i removed the slave cylinder from the mounting bracket and tryed to operate the clutch manually with the wife in the car trying to get it into first gear.
The clutch lever is 100% free and moving about 1", with the engine started i asked the missus to try putting it into 1st gear when i was pushing the lever as far to the engine as possible but we had no joy.

Do you think this could be the bearing failure?

I have looked on ebay and i can get a clutch kit including the bearing for £60 and 5ltrs of MTF94 oil for £20. Will i need any other parts or will this be enough?
A clutch kit for £60 sounds like a pile of sh1te. Get a good quality one or regret it later. Luk are supposed to be oem, and should be around £100 ish. You should only need 2 and a bit litres of oil.
 
You won't be able to operate the clutch by hand. You'll need to install the hydraulics and use the pedal. I would doubt there's any bearing damage as the hydraulics are the weakest link in the system.

After reading your reply yesterday i went out and removed the slave cylinder and placed a small car jack between the lever and under the battery holder and placed a small amount of pressure on it, started the motor and i managed to get every gear with no problem.
I removed the jack and placed the slave cylinder back into the bracket and i managed to get 1st gear but when i took my foot off the clutch a little the car wanted to fly forward when the clutch was only up a little so i'm hoping that if the new master / slave cylinders arrive today that the problem will be fixed.

I was thinking about putting in the jack again and applying pressure on and off with penetrating oil applied before replacing the cylinders just incase i break the new cylinders again.

Many thanks for your support, i'm really happy that i won't have to remove the gearbox but on the other hand i was kinda looking forward to challange.
 
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