Freelander 1 New Clutch slippage when cold 1.8K

Took the plunge and replaced the clutch myself over the weekend. Had work working on your back for so long and theres always a stubborn bolt.

However everything went in fine, cars runs fine and gear changes are really smooth now. However when the engine/car is cold the clutch will slip (when booting it), once the engine is warm there is no slipping at all.

Is this normal for a new clutch while it beds in? I'm dreading having to take everything apart again.

You may have got oil or grease on the plate, it could well burn off and be ok after a bit of use- happened to me once.

Did you clean and lubricate the clutch actuating arm where it goes through gearbox housing? It’s probably very stiff when cold and moves freer when it warms up .

freelance said:

Did you clean and lubricate the clutch actuating arm where it goes through gearbox housing? It’s probably very stiff when cold and moves freer when it warms up .

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I did clean all in around the bearing and removed some gunk, is there a way to clean the arm and fork where it goes thru the gearbox without taking it off?

RHILL1983 said:

I did clean all in around the bearing and removed some gunk, is there a way to clean the arm and fork where it goes thru the gearbox without taking it off?

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When doing the 1.8 clutch, it's important to remove the release lever from the bell housing completely and give it and all contact surfaces a good clean, and lube with a moly lube on assembly. Otherwise the actuation can be slow and or sticky, which is the often the reason the clutch failed in the first place.

Nodge68 said:

When doing the 1.8 clutch, it's important to remove the release lever from the bell housing completely and give it and all contact surfaces a good clean, and lube with a moly lube on assembly. Otherwise the actuation can be slow and or sticky, which is the often the reason the clutch failed in the first place.

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does that mean I have to remove the gearbox again to dismantle the clutch part?

RHILL1983 said:

does that mean I have to remove the gearbox again to dismantle the clutch part?

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It depends on what you cleaned and lubricated before it was reassembled?

Did you replace the release bearing? Did you clean and suitably lubricate the release bearing slide surface on the input tube?

Did you clean the input shaft splines carefully, and sparingly lubricate with a suitable lubricant?

Did you remove the whole release lever from the bell housing, so you could clean off any corrosion and suitably lubricate it's bushings when it went back in?

Did you lubricate the two contact points where the release fork presses on the release bearing?

All of this is part of a clutch change, so really should be done to avoid further problems in the lifetime of the replacement clutch.

I Did all of that except remove the release lever.

RHILL1983 said:

I Did all of that except remove the release lever.

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Try lubricant at the top where the release lever enters the top of the bell housing. It might just be the top bushing that's gone stiff

Thanks for all your input nodge. WD40 on the shaft has freed it up. At least I now know what the cause is. Fingers crossed that's all I need to do.

RHILL1983 said:

Thanks for all your input nodge. WD40 on the shaft has freed it up. At least I now know what the cause is. Fingers crossed that's all I need to do.

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Don't think WD40 has much in the way of lasting effect - you'll want to drip a couple of drops of engine oil onto it and do that at each service to keep it free. Its a 'standard' type maintenance recommendation for K & L Series Freelanders with the PG1 box.

Thats a good point I look at trying to get some oil in there too..

RHILL1983 said:

Thats a good point I look at trying to get some oil in there too..

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A couple of drops of ordinary engine oil every 12 months should keep the top bushing free.

Glad you didn't need to take the box off again. It's not a job I'd do twice, if it can be avoided.