Solo

Yunaderis,

The spring I got from "The Great Ace" hardware store was 5 inches long (my earlier post states the exact p/n and specs). Also, I believe Unhappy99's instructions show a picture of the spring he used that was almost exactly the same length as the brake pedal spring. Hope this helps.

yunaderis

great solo

"Here is a quick recap:
Store: The Great Ace Hardware
Part: Handi-Pack Extension Spring - Part #88103 (5 X7/16) w/ .047 wire diameter. There was no #70 spring
Price: $1.99"



i totally missed it...thanks again...I am heading to my local ACe today and grabbing one.....thanks again for your help....


for my tacoma, i only have to remove the connector on the pedal and the clutch assembly itself. I didnt have to remove the lower panel, it must be different on 4runners. I have changed this bushing three times in 100k miles.. Damn crappy design


thanks again

Solo

Not a problem ) ....you will definitely love this fix (I can't believe I put up with that squeking for so long)

Hans

CMD93

Does this procedure apply only to the 3rd generations? If not, and it works for 2nd gen. do I follow the same procedure and buy the same parts.

Solo

According to earlier posts in this thread...I believe it does?

yunaderis

unhappy, you rock..i just got done replacing that ˟˟˟˟ty bushing design with my 2 dollar spring....way better and so much more satisfying to know i wont have to change that ˟˟˟˟e anytime soon. The spring i got was a bit too long and soft for my tastes, so i just shortened up the long end and bent a new hoop, and presto, shifting satisfaction to the Nth degree..... By shortening the spring a bit, it made the return a bit firmer and quicker. Which all in all is much better suited for my tastes, as I have always thought the stock setup was a bit weak.

thanks again for the idea......

Nolan

squeaky clutch be gone!

Today I got around to changing the spring. It went very easy, 1 hour start to finish. I found it pretty easy to pry the spring off. I pried it from the side as show here and it was effortless:



When I looked at the bracket after the torsion spring was off the place where the bushing normally goes was VERY mangled. I really dont think I could have replaced the bushing even if I wanted to because the metal was so messed up.

Mystickal

I live in Ventura County, in Southern California. The nearest True Value Hardware store is about 25 miles away - not really a big deal. There are a couple Ace Hardware stores within 15 miles, and some assorted other hardware stores.

None of them, not a single one, has the correct spring. I gave the guy at one of the Ace Hardware stores the part number, he tells me he doesn't even know how to look it up(!) The other Ace is a little better, but they claim they don't carry the right ones.

The other hardware stores in the neighborhood don't have springs that are 5" long - the closest ones were 6" and 3-1/2".

Tonight, I drove up to the True Value, and went through their spring box - their numbers start at #100 (and it's a TINY spring - they have no #70 spring and say that if they did have one, it would be about the size of a spring on a retractable ink pen).

Acehardware.com has springs for sale, but none that match the part number (or specs) provided. TrueValue.com doesn't even have the springs, period.

Am I in the spring black hole of the US??? Nobody else has posted that they've had any difficulty at all finding a spring, but it seems to me that mountains are going to have to move before I can fix this annoying 'creak' everytime I push the clutch pedal in.

I know that I'm a first time poster - I've had my 4-runner for a very short time, so I haven't had the occasion to make any beneficial comments - basically, I feel that if you don't have any info on something, you keep your mouth shut and try to learn as much as you can. However, despite my n00b status, I was hoping that I might be able to convince someone to pick up a spring for me and send it to me. I can shoot the money back to you through paypal. Please e-mail or PM me.

Thanks,

~Bill

yunaderis

hey mystickal


when i did this i got a spring that was a bit different than the one posted, it was a bit too long. I think as long as you can get a spring thats long enough and has enough force to return the pedal all the way up, you will be fine. So dont worry about the right part number, just get one thats about 5 inches or so long, and just trim it to fit the 4runner and to fit your personal clutch stiffness.
My spring was too long at first, so i just cut down the long straight hooked side, and bent another hook into it , which was real easy. So, just get one that will fit there, or go to the dealer and get the brake pedal return spring that was mentioned earlier in this thread. if you decide to go the hardware store spring route, just remember to get one long enough and then you can tinker with the pedal feel by reducing the length


good luck

Mystickal

Did the spring you used look like the spring in Unhappy99's picture? IE a relatively short coil section and relatively long hooks? After the TrueValue fiasco (I call it a fiasco because driving 25 miles in So Cal during rush hour can't truly be called anything else - and I had called them before hand and they claimed they had a #70 - turns out they thought I wanted a #170) I had thought about getting a longer spring and then just turning the hooks on the end to make it approximately the correct size.

The only problem with that was all the springs I saw there had long coil sections (over 90% of the length) and very short hooks. I think I might be able to put it in a vice and unwind a coil on each end, but it'd never be straight.

~Bill

Billrunner

I overheard the guy at the hardware store talking on the phone, he said " Send me more springs!"

yunaderis

the one i have is about 3 inches of coil maybe, and one inch short side and maybe 1,5-2 inches long side..i cut the long side down to where i liked the amount of pedal pressure i have when i push in..i think your best bet is to get the toyota spring posted above..save you time and hassle....

Unhappy99

Lots of springs will do the job, it only has to hold the pedal up the final inch or so. It should be as simple as going to a local hardware store (a real hardware store and not a Lowes or Home Depot), taking off your brake return spring (10 seconds) and looking through their drawers for a similar spring, or something longer which can have the ends cut and bent to fit. Be sure to reattached your brake return spring before leaving the lot.

If you are still having trouble after your next hardware store visit, email me with your shipping address. Nobody, not even those living in the spring black hole, should have to put up the dumb ass PLASTIC Toyota bushing.

Mystickal

Well, it's certainly good to know that the spring doesn't have to be 'exact' - I work in a world of very fine tolerances where things have to be precisely engineered, so please bear with me. Though you know that you're in a friendly place when someone reminds you to put the brake spring back in, lol.

I went over to NAPA and picked up a couple of springs that look like they might do. They both can be sized to fit, so it's basically just a matter of how much tension the pedal needs - 1 spring I can separate with about 10 lbs of force, the other is much more heavy duty and won't really spread by hand - though I'd imagine it wouldn't be difficult when you use your leg (though the second spring has a lot less travel than the first).

So I'll throw one (or both) of these in tonight and see how they work.

Thanks for all the help,

~Bill

Mystickal

Well, popped in the new spring, and it works like a charm! Thanks, Unhappy and yunaderis.

~Bill

BruceTS

Fortunately I haven't had any problems with mine yet, I checked the bushing and it's still fine. but I will go down and get a spring, because sooner or later it will go out.....Nice mod...

yunaderis

thats great to hear...i love this forum every time i drive my truck, that mod is one of the coolest i have ever done

cubuff4runner

IT WORKS AND NO SQUEEKS!! I finally decided to do this mod and it works great. I cut about 3/4" off the spring to make it a little stiffer than stock. I just don't understand why it takes everybody so long to do. I planned on spending a few hours instead I spent 8 mins. and didn't remove a single bolt. The spring is easily visible and is not going to be used so I stuck a screwdriver between the metal plate and the spring and it poped right out. I then hooked the other spring on. I could probably now do it in 3 mins.

Sucellus

Unhappy, you have made yet another of us ecstatic! So, it is my pleasure to report another flawless elimination of a dreaded torsion spring and associated bushing. I used the duplicate brake pedal spring after looking unsuccessfully for the described spring. It took me a while to realize that the hole you attach the spring to is not the same hole that supports those wires. It turns out that there is another unused hole on the left side of that bracket. It is into this hole that the spring will properly fit. Once I realized this fact, it changed the angle of the factory brake return spring and indeed it did not contact the assembly at all, save for the contact with the lever arm on pedal depression. For me the decision to break out the sawsall and hack that little bugger off was easy—the clutch had been squeaking for so long that inspection showed that the arm was damaged, as well as the spring. Thus, to fix it with the original parts would require a new assembly. This way I could keep my old assembly and fix it permanently and reliably.

Upon my test drive, though there is a slight increase in resistance, the clutch action feels much more smooth. As the pressure applied in resistance to clutch depression increases in a linear fashion, the pedal action is smoother and more controlled. Also there is more feedback transmitted through the pedal. Though I have never actually experienced the clutch bushing functioning properly, it appears to me that this mod would indeed be an improvement over the factory set up…..It eliminated 90% of my squeak. I still have a small sound when the pedal is high in its trajectory. I assume there is yet another bushing in there somewhere that is causing this, but the sound is enormously improved!

One interesting note about the factory brake pedal spring is that it has a rubber shock absorber-thing inside of it. As a result it is entirely silent during use. I highly recommend this mod!

Bob_98SR5

Sucellus,

Yeah, I called a number of Ace stores in LA and asked them to find and order the Ace spring pack 88103. However, all of them said that they do not have it in stock as well as the # not being in their catalog.

AFter reading someone's post that the brake pedal spring should not be used, i didnt pursue this option. However after seeing your response, now I have confidence to order this spring tomorrow. I'm doin' it, baby!

'cuse my laziness, but whats the part # for the brake pedal spring?

Bob

Sucellus

Hey, good to hear Bob. I don't think you'll be disappointed. The clutch works much better, and the fact that I'm still using toyota factory parts puts my mind at ease. The clearance on the brake return sping is small but it is litterally perfect in that it does not make any contact.

The part # I got was 90507-17002.

Good luck and enjoy!

Bob_98SR5

Sucellus,

Thanks for the part number.


Bob

Mystickal

Bob,

If you haven't ordered the new spring from the factory yet, you can take the route I ended up taking. I too tried to find the spring at Ace and Truevalue, but didn't have much luck with either. I ended up going to a NAPA and, in their 'help' series (you know - all the misc stuff that comes in the red packaging - replacement radiator caps, gas caps, plastic pieces, etc etc) there was a 'clutch replacement spring'. It was in a 2 pack. One side come pre-bent, the other side you must bend to fit the vehicle.

Worked like a charm. Wasn't too much, either - I think about $5 or so. Better price then the dealerships.

~Bill

Bob_98SR5

Another satisfied member of the Unhappy spring club!

I bought the stock Toyota brake spring listed in this thread and installed it tonite. Getting the two gas and hood release levers and the bottom panel was a cinch (done it so many times).

Getting the spring off was also easily accomplished by using a "wonder bar" (looks like a mini-cat's paw). Definitely wrap the spring up with a towel by inserting one end through the clutch pedal bracket, keep feeding it through and pull once there is enough to pull down. I tied the end to the clutch pedal itself.

Once off, i took off the crappy plastic u-bushing. It was cracked in half. POS!!!

Admittedly, I had a difficult time finding the L-shaped hole. The one picture that Unhappy posted w/ the spring attached is somewhat visually misleading. It looks like the spring is located directly above the end of the roller pin/cotter pin. However, the L-shaped bracket (and hole) is located *towards* the driver's seat. So if you can imagine, the spring is attached and a 45 degree downwards angle.

Went for a drive and its a joy to hear no squeaking! However, I think i need a little more hydraulic clutch fluid.

One thing I also noticed immediately is that the clutch action is a little stiffer. It's no big deal. In fact, it feels more like a truck! Quite possibly in a year, my left calf will be abnormally huge! just kidding, its not that bad but definitely more spring tension than the former torsion spring/crappy bushing.

THANKS UNHAPPY. YOU'RE THE KING!

Bob

keisur

Bob, or you could have two bad knees from playing soccer that get swollen from stiff clutches. my 4runner isn't bad but when my wife had her tacoma, about 30 minutes of wheeling or traffic in that thing we'd have to do the "chinese redlight drill" so she could take over. I may try this though, maybe it won't bother it too bad. my u-bushing is still holding up after about 30k though and I have a spare sitting in the garage. I guess I could try it and if the swell then I could switch it back. gotta get these things operated on but I'm waiting, just had my shoulder scoped so I gotta recoup from that money dump!

Sucellus

Congrats, Bob!

What did you do with the lever arm?

I don't really notice the difference anymore. I don't know whether this is due to getting used to it, or whether the spring losened up a bit with use. I certainly notice it much more seldom then when it was squeeking. It did feel more like a truck or the clutch of an older sportscar when I first did mine. I still love the feedback and engagement control.

Bob_98SR5

Sucellus,

I'm not sure what part you're talking about (lever arm), but if youre talking about the part that the u-bushing sits in, I took the dremel to it and cut 1/2 of it off. I needed to use a right angle attachment and it worked perfectly. I then grinded down the edges cuz I'm anal.

Bob

Bob_98SR5

Guys,

Ok, the brake pedal return spring was a little too much for me.

Having read that the 2nd gen 4runners use clutch springs like Unhappy has suggested, I bought one from a 95 4runner today. The spring tension is about 40% less than the brake return spring. Its definitely easier to work the clutch now. I'm much happier.

Part # 90507-14030

Looks very similar to the #70 spring but there are fewer coils and they are slightly fatter.

Bob

SLC Punk

So are you happy with this setup? Or are you still testing it out?

keisur

thanks for posting before I bought that spring. definately would have trashed my knee then. keep us posted on how this new one does so maybe I'll get one of those instead.