Can't select gears

I have a 97 defender csw 300 tdi
A few years ago i replaced clutch due to clutch arm wearing through on pivot bolt.
This time pedal moves up and down and i can ram it into first then nothing else!
I have tried adjusting it at master cylinder to no avail.
Pedal moves up and down so is it likely to be clutch arm again?

Can you get it into gears with the engine off? I.e. can you put it in 3rd, deck the clutch start it and then slip it and get it to start to creep forward in 3rd, or any gear for that matter.

Yep i can select gears with engine off. Then start and move with no clutch slip. Bite point on the floor.

Got enough clutch fluid?

When you say peddle moves up and down, you mean with a lot less resistance? Coz mine goes up and down, and works fine! Haha.
Check fluids first, and then I'd start looking for leaks.
Did it go all of a sudden? When driving?
Or was it a gradual increase of symptoms?

If the clutch is on the floor then either the hydraulics are not working or the clutch system has failed in the bell-housing.

Right first thing first, check your hydraulics. Make sure they work. Basic stuff first which I reckon you have done, check the fluid, make sure there is fluid down at the slave too.

I'd then pull the slave out, don't disconnect it from the lines though. Have a look in the bell-housing with a torch and see what you can see. If you stick something in and prod the fork gently (watch the rod doesn't fall off - pest to refit in there) you should be able to tell if the fork is just flapping in the wind. If all APPEARS OK in there have an apprentice push the clutch a bit while you push something into the slave to stop the piston popping out - it should obviously exert a fair bit of force when the pedal is pressed, you should have to fight with it. This will only go so far to check for a leaking seal mind you but it would need to be pretty bad if you cannot build any pressure at all so should be able to test by hand.

I did this on my own once and rigged up a contraption with a piece of rod or something, cable ties and something over the rod that had give but wouldn't let the piston pop out.

If the hydraulics check out then it could be that the clutch cover has failed, there is a wire band that goes round under the diaphragm spring, if this breaks the clutch cover spring fingers won't pivot and therefore move much, giving you exactly what your describing with bite point on the floor and unable to change gears.

With any luck this will be hydraulics- fluid leak/seal...

Thanks for all the replies

Any update?

Yep im getting there im on nights and looking after my toddler in the day so it takes time i am ready to drop the gearbox back tomorrow and look inside clutch. I am almost certain it will be the clutch arm again will let you know when im in.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/8s6ci99ax6zuj9b/20141215_131201.jpg?dl=0

Reason why i couldnt operate clutch!
Clutch arm cracked and release bearing chewed!
I wonder if bearing disengaged from arm first?

I suspect there may be a bearing mismatch there, there are a couple of different versions. For the fork to crack there is odd, they usually go, as you know on the pivot point. The fork is exerting a fair force but not so much I'd expect it to crack there.

What setup do you have?

OR was it Britpart stuff?

Its taken a long time to mismatch its been in at least 6 years lol. R380 gearbox and 300 tdi.
I wonder if the staple securing bearing failed first or if arm cracked first.

nicholiath said:

Its taken a long time to mismatch its been in at least 6 years lol. R380 gearbox and 300 tdi.
I wonder if the staple securing bearing failed first or if arm cracked first.

Click to expand...

staple is just there to help install, it's not needed, hence being plastic

bearing got jammed/siezed/melted and the metal got fatigued via the hydraulics?

Bearing not seized its a mystery

nothing like some randomly long slave rod or the slave you have needs a shim?

just wondering it it's being pushed too far?

anyway get a hd fork or weld a plate to the back of the cup

trax said:

staple is just there to help install, it's not needed, hence being plastic

bearing got jammed/siezed/melted and the metal got fatigued via the hydraulics?

Click to expand...

+1, first box I did I didn't even realise their was meant to be a staple.

aaronmorris said:

+1, first box I did I didn't even realise their was meant to be a staple.

Click to expand...

Haha... snap :crazy:

Landyfox said:

Haha... snap :crazy:

Click to expand...

Well it worked and that's the main thing

nicholiath said:

Its taken a long time to mismatch its been in at least 6 years lol. R380 gearbox and 300 tdi.
I wonder if the staple securing bearing failed first or if arm cracked first.

Click to expand...

You originally said you changed your clutch a few years ago so it sounded like it was recent-ish and assumed not many miles, 6 years now failure is a bit more believable - could still be a mismatch in lengths and sizes though. I'd expect 100,000 from a good clutch.

It is possible for some setups to cause the slave to push the fork in too far. They do make slave shims which you can use to shim the slave out a little so that the fork doesn't get pushed quiet as far, also, as the clutch wears the cover springs push the bearing back further and if the clutch isn't setup with enough slack it can come back a little and start to push the bearing hard against the fork, essentially like riding the clutch all the time. Bearing heats up, melts the plastic... just one of many scenarios.

It's when you see this you start to see all the possible events that led up to it's failure.