santacruz

The other day I am trying to get out of parking spot and I cannot get from reverse into first. I barely push the shifter into 2nd and limp over to a service station to look at tranny fluids, etc. When I play with the clutch with my hands, I notice that it pops all the way back out--it had been stuck more than halfway down. After this adjustment all shifting seems smooth and normal.

Fast forward a few days and my wife is driving. She pushes the clutch pedal down and it gets stuck again. While on the highway, she is freaking out trying to get it into gear after briefly downshifting in traffic. I instruct her to pull the pedal fully up with her toe, which gets it unstuck and working again. I have had to do this once or twice since then. She won't drive it until it's fixed. From what I've read this could be the return spring. Sound about right for this kind of problem?

Thanks in advance.

bike

Not to hijack but I have the same problem on my 97. I find mine sticks after I park the truck. Has happened both after sitting in neutral with the parking brake on or in gear. A quick pull with the toe and all goes back to normal. Not sure what the problem or cause is.

santacruz

Well the issue got progressively worse to the point that I was driving and the clutch pedal would stick to the floor. I had to pull over just to get the car out of 2nd and into 1st, pulling the pedal out with my hand. This would buy me a shift back into 1st, but the pedal would stick again. Not the best driving scenario in rush hour.

I don't have the tools or setup to dx or repair, but my Toyota indie shop just replaced the clutch master cylinder and claims to have fixed the problem. I had suggested the clutch pedal bushing but that seemed not to be the problem. No external fluid leak was apparent, but the shop suspected an internal leak across the seals. $315 later (coastal CA labor), and we'll see how it goes. Looks like I got 135K on the original part.

fishingorwishing

my first check would be the return spring, mine squeaked and I replaced it with a stiffer spring. fixed the problem. Not if this would cause your problem but I'm guessing it could

Breakin More n Fixin

CLUTCH STICKING
I'm having the same problem. The pedal will occasionally start returning (maybe an inch up) and then go back down to the floor and stick. Usually have to just grab it with my hand and hope there's no cars close to me. It has become progressively worse since a week ago when first noticed. I've narrowed it down to most likely being a master cylinder (at least thats the first one I plan on attempting) from reading these forums. Can't find any leaks. Fluids aren't dropping. Checked the return spring and two bushings appear worn to nothing.

I really don't want to risk driving it until i have fixed something.
So my question is could the bushings be the sole problem for it sticking? And if it's the master cylinder, could the bushings be the cause of it going bad?

Any advice or thoughts is appreciated in advance.

97 runner

Breakin More n Fixin

After looking at it some more, it looks more like the return spring is actually holding it down due to bad bushings. I would like to try driving without the spring at all but don't want to hurt the truck. Is the spring there for more of a luxury and convenience? Or will I not be able to clutch without it?

02SE

Here's a thread which deals with the clutch pedal bushing, spring, and methods used to bypass the stock set-up.

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f2/f...bushing-19137/

Breakin More n Fixin

Thanks 02SE. Much simpler than putting cheap bushings on every few months.

I used the linear spring set up correctly (awesome idea) and problem still there. Pressure just disappears every few times. I really thought my spring was getting stuck because it dug a bit into medal.

Tomorrow I am going to bleed the line. I hope it may be a temporary fix but know that will not be the final solution. And from what I know, I will turn to replacing the master next. And if needed, slave and possibly look into pressure plate. I will probably have a old mechanic friend look at it if the master doesn't work. This is my first 5speed and I don't want to keep it parked because I caused more problems trying to fix something simple.

If any other ideas, thoughts, advice, etc., I would greatly appreciate them.

Sal

I have to dissagree a bit about the spring. If you get stuck in gear when the clutch sticks, then I dont think it could be the spring, more hydralic related. Like the slave does not have enough fluid pressure to hold back the forks on the clutch. Can anyone help with this who may have replaced the slave or the master and it fixed this? Thanks.

robcfox

I recently had this same problem, I replaced the master and slave cylinder, bled the system and adjusted the pedal height. The problem is fixed and has not returned for about a month now.

The master cylinder was about $45 and the slave was $18. If I could have gotten the hydraulic hose section, I would have replaced it too. If it gets old and swells up under pressure, you would lose hydraulic effort.

What is happening is the hydraulic pressure developed when you push in the clutch pedal is leaking past the internal seals. If you pump the pedal after pulling it up off the floor you may find that it will work for a while.

The pressure plate should not be the problem as long as the you can actually disengage the clutch, then something would have to be broken, which would cause bigger problems, remember the pressure plate is what holds the clutch against the flywheel to drive the vehicle.

Replaceing the master and slave is relatively easy, only 2 nuts for the master and 2 bolts for the slave, then the pushrod pins at the pedal. Bleed and adjust the pushrod with the locknut and your good. You will need a new bottle of DOT 3 brake fluid, make sure you keep the master full during bleeding.

tony_4runner

same here, had the same problem. I just replaced the master cylinder and got it fixed - quick and easy. It is either the master or the slave, but it is hard to know which one is the culprit.