Broke down today .... clutch !

I've had this Disco a few months and it's just one thing after another.

I've just had 2 months of starting problems and the damper pulley keyway problem.

Today is the first day in a long time I've actually started her and decided to go out in her with some confidence.

Oh dear ...

I get 3 miles from home and I go to change gear and the clutch pedal sticks in. I've selected a gear but I have no drive. Then the pedal pops back up and I'm driving again. This happens a few times in half a mile and then ...

... the clutch pedal goes in but won't come back up. I have to do an emergency pull off the road. The clutch pedal is just all loose. I can get it in any gear but there is no drive. It's like the clutch is locked in.

I have to get a local garage to tow me in. So it's now at that garage a few miles from home. The guy there said it will probably need a slave and master unit for the clutch. He said he could just try a slave and that may improve it and make it driveable ... that will be about 30 quid ... but he would fit both which will cost 130 to 150 quid. He couldn't say for sure until he can get quotes for the parts on Monday.

I am now totally titsed off with this old bus.

What do you guys think? Does his evaluation sound right? Are his prices reasonable? Is he talking genuine parts and could I save money getting non standard? Or do I just let him sort it?

Col

sounds like release bearing through clutch unless your very lucky, known issue

OK

So are his quotes realistic?

Col

price it for yourself, on master and slave cylinder.
But from experience it could be.
1)clutch punched through release arm (affects defenders) but excluding gear lever length they both mostly run lt77 boxes.

Or the clutch release bearing has eaten diaphragm spring and punched through- common

prices fair i would think the same unless other symptoms, it sounds as either slave or master is sticking

My advice is ask if they can remove slave cyl and check via slave cylinder hole-will be obvious if it is more internally

Ok guys thanks

So I presume that if it isn't just a slave/master replace then it's a big job.

Any idea of how much at the garage?

To be honest I've had enough of it now.

I've repaired the crank keyway 3 times since Christmas and I'm not sure if that is going to hold.

So I'm looking at either a new crankshaft or a s/h engine to sort that.

The fuel pump is leaking so that needs fixing.

So if this clutch problem is going to cost hundreds then it will have to be broken.

No point me spending a fortune having the clutch problem fixed ( if that's an engine or gearbox out ) and then the engine has to come out again because the damper pulley problem keeps happening.

I'll just have it towed home and then break it.

Shame because It's just flown through it's MOT and I've put 6 months tax on it.

What do you think?

Col

I've just rang Tariq who runs the garage.

I love his optomism lol.

He says they are going to look at the car now.

I asked if he could take the slave out and see if the problem may be more internal as I didn't want it to start costing me if it was going to be a big job as the car will have to be scrapped.

He replied .... " Well it may be an hours work or it may be a gearbox out job "

I said " Well that's then going to cost a lot of money "

He replied " No No No don't worry mate ... it won't cost much even if we have to take the box out "

They are going to look at it at 10am and ring me before lunch. So we'll see what they say.

Fingers crossed eh!

I'll let you know.

Col

Col, with all your problems with the crank,which may not last,if the clutch turns out to be more than the master or slave,or both-then it is going to engine out or box out to change the clutch.Why not drop another engine in there.This way you can fit a new clutch to the new lump before it goes back in ,and your crank is sorted at the same time.As you say you have a new mot,so you basically have a good bus there.
My clutch went within 2 months of owning my 300 tdi (fork punched thru)-It was very depressing,but not too bad a job to do,just takes time-you do start to wonder what is going to go next though,I guess it is to do with older vehicles-good luck

Just a thought ...

What box will this 94 300tdi Disco have in it?

Is it the R380?

I'm just thinking if I have this job done and they have to get the gearbox out ...

The car also has the problem where the reverse lights come on for an instant when you select reverse but then go out again.

Apparently it's a nightmare getting at the switch.

Even people who have changed the switch say it doesn't help as it's inside the box.

Is this something that I can get them to do 'easily' whilst they have the box out?

I'm not desperate to have the reverse lights working.

Col

Cheers Bio

Replacing engines will have to be something I have to pay the garage to do.

This engine has supposedly had a new head gasket a few months back. A local garage towed it away when it wouldn't start and fitted the new set of glows ... and they broke one of the old ones off. So it then cost 120 quid to have that plug removed. So I've already spent a couple of hundred quid on this engine plus it's had the gasket done ( I know one has to ask why that went? ).

So do I just bite the bullet there and pay up again for another s/h engine?

I don't know.

Col

Mine does the same re lights,mine is a 380 (97 300 tdi)-i thought the switch can be adjusted from underneath-thought from memory i saw it when I did clutch-should have done it at the time-also got to do diff lock switch as well-just waiting for some warm dry ground to lie on to sort both

I can live with the lights.

S/H engines are looking at about 450 ish. Then fitting ... prob a few hundred more.

I can't afford that.

I suppose problem is ... if I'm breaking it ... what would I end up getting for it given that the crankshaft is knackered ( so engine not worth a lot ) and the clutch may also be knackered.

If I break it on my drive at home ... I'd have to leave it at a point where it can be dragged on a low loader so I get some money for what's left.

Col

Might be worth talking to Jamesmartin,he seems to have some bits and pieces for landy's and a stack of knowledge-he might chime in soon

Cheers mate

Col, it definitely sounds to me like you have case of stuck or sticking slave cylinder, if as you say, you have absolutely no drive, can select gears, have the engine running and the clutch pedal floppy (no cluch engagement). The clutch pedal relies on the clutch diaphram spring to push it back up. In the case that the clutch fork has gone through the diaphram release fingers, or the fork fulcrum ball has popped through the fork as some have suggested, you would have had a lot of crunching and munching noises with engine running, and I suspect, that the opposite problem of no disengagement of the clutch would then occur i.e. put on the brake and stall the engine (unable to disengage clutch at all).
It is possible that the diaphram springs of the clutch pressure plate has completely collapsed but the fact that it first lost the pedal then came good again then went away again makes me think a slave or master cylinder jammed/seized could be the problem. I wish you luck for a simple fix mate.

Cheers Gazbo.

I hope you are right mate.

Col

reverse switch is 19mm spanner size rear lh side just under top gear stick housing ,its allways the switch remove washer and try it or fit new,theres nothing that wears or breaks for switch operation,does sound like clutch hydraulic circuit sticking ,wheres your fuel pump leak from ,if you have got crank damper right now ,locktie it on

Hi James

Thanks fof reply

Thankyou re reverse switch.

Fuel pump leaks from accelerator shaft. I'm not too worried about that. I've read all about that on the net and the local diesel injection specialist ... Dales of Burlsem ... said that the O rings are only 80p. However they said that to do it right it needs a new shaft and bush. They said all the parts will come to about 40 quid and they will fit the new bush if I just take the top of pump in to them.

Crank pulley ... I repaired it 1st time and it failed ... basically because the toothed pulley that runs the timing belt that the damper pulley pushes up to had worn by about 2mm. I wanted to replace that with the updated lipped one but it just wont budge. I've busted two puller kits trying to get it off so I just fitted a new timing belt and tension and idler pulleys. So it failed on first attempt because the bolt was tightening up against the end of c/s and not damper pulley. So a friend turned me a made to measure spacer to make up the worn 2mm ( he made it 3mm so that the front of damper pulley sits proud of c/s end ). So I repaired it for a second time. When I did it that time I couldn't get the torque on the bolt. It just tightened up real easy. I'd done 80Nm and then 90 degrees but you could keep tightening it with just one hand and a small breaker bar. I knew then that that wouldn't last as I suspected thread knackered on old bolt. Sure enough within a few days that bolt was all loose again ( I'd used 243 loctite on bolt ). So I did it again and used a brand new bolt. I am happy that the keyway repair is solid. I used loctite 243 all around the shaft and again on the new bolt. The threads on the old bolt were totally gone. This time when I tightened up the new bolt it was much better. I got the 80Nm on and then after about 40 degrees it was really hard to tighten. I used a 4 foot scaffold bar and got it to 90 degrees. So that bolt is now loctited and really really tight and tightening up against the damper pulley so hopefully that will be ok this time. I only used 243 as it's a med strength and I wanted the option of getting to timing belt if need be.

Col

loctite can be removed by applying a bit of heat