Clutches and Flywheels

Some people "power shift" but I don't trust it. I always pull in the clutch when shifting just to be safe.

You might want to be specific in what you mean by machine eg, lawn mower, car engine, motorcyle engine, steam engine etc. However, generally flywheels are there to create rotating inertia. In a car engine, energy is used from its rotating inertia to move all the strokes apart from the bang or power stroke. Energy is the then put back into it when another power stroke happens.

From this you can see that it also helps to keep a constant rpm in an engine. If not the engine will hop all over the place especially at low rotation speeds. According to my own theory, it develops gyroscopic properties above a certain rotational speed; this will steady the engine (basically reduces resonance dramatically). In a motorcyle with a very heavy flywheel, there might be problems cornering it due the gyroscopic effect. Again this is my theory.

The flywheel might have some functional surfaces. For example gears that mate with that of starters (either manual or motor) to kick start fast enough power strokes from no rotation. Also, it can house magnets that rotate with the flywheel around coils to induce emf for power generation. Some manufacturers use keys to lock the flywheel and the crank shaft because the flywheel might be involved in the spark system.

Be specific next time, I could probably go on if there were specifics. You can do some research on inertia and newtons first law. Excuse my English as well...

You remove the transmission from the vehicle. The throw out bearing is the bearing around the shaft that goes through the flywheel when the transmission is installed. The bearing clips in easily and is held in place because it goes around the shaft, and the clutch release arm can only move in and out, so the bearing will never be displaced during typical use. Removing the transmission is a big job, and you might as well replace the clutch while you're in there, unless it's already new.

The 1998 AX4S transaxle has a total of five (5) solenoids located in different locations

within the transaxle itself. There are three shift solenoids, 1st , 2nd, 3rd. Also there

is a torque converter clutch (tcc) solenoid and an electronic pressure control (epc) solenoid.

All of these solenoids are output devices, placed in an on-off position by the vehicles powertrain control module (computer) at different times.

The powertrain control module (pcm) also receives input from four (4) sensors, the transmission range (tr) sensor, the turbine shaft speed (tss) sensor, vehicle speed (vss) sensor, and the transmission fluid temprature (tft) sensor.

From the information received from these sensors, (input devices),the computer actually controls every thing the transmission does by the solenoids, (output devices).

As far as the actual placement of the solenoids, I would highly recommend a manual!

On my 96 Windstar I removed the air cleaner and tube to the fuel injectors and the Battery and the case..you can then see the valve cover pan on the end of the Transaxle..this cover has to be removed to access the 'shift' solenoids. there are three. the pan can be removed only after you remove the the bar suporting the back of the transmission and it's rubber mount..this will give you enough room to remove pan-cover over the valve body..the three shift solenoids are stacked in a row, white in color,brown if burnt or bad..disconnect wire to each and twist to the left to remove, best to replace all three..p.s. you will need a jack to support the back of transaxle to remove the rear support.....

You need to tell us what vehicle- year make and model. Cannot give a real answer with no information.

In my 20 plus years of working professionally on cars, and for Ford Motor Company, I have never heard of a "clutch gasket." I have absolutely no idea what you are asking about. But if you want to see some funny blank stares, you could go to the parts dept of your nearest Ford dealership and ask for a clutch gasket. Are you talking about a seal in the hydraulic clutch system? If so, then you don't need to worry about finding a seal, since hydraulic clutch componets are serviced as assemblies. In other words, if you have a leaking master cylinder, replace the master cylinder. If you have a leaking slave cylinder, replace that.

If you are referring to adjusting the height of the pedal, I might be able to help you get started. If you can squeeze under your dash to where your pedal is, there is a stopper bar behind the pedal that can be adjusted by first loosening the washer that holds it in place and then turning the bolt until you get the pedal where you wish it to be. This is what i did for my 95 maxima, and I assume it is the same. If you are referring to adjusting the height of the pedal, I might be able to help you get started. If you can squeeze under your dash to where your pedal is, there is a stopper bar behind the pedal that can be adjusted by first loosening the washer that holds it in place and then turning the bolt until you get the pedal where you wish it to be. This is what i did for my 95 maxima, and I assume it is the same.

Yes is can if your clutch becomes on fire. make sure to replace your clutch every other day.

When you attempt to take off and raise the clutch pedal, the car is noticably slower to move off. To the point where you're foot may be all the way off the clutch yet the engine is still revving higher than normal and the car is not moving forward at the normal rate for your first gear.

According to www.ehow.com this problem can be caused by your clutch reservoir being empty of brake fluid. The whole article is here: http://www.ehow.com/how_7677_check-fluid-hydraulic.html Hope this helps It may also be a symptom of a bad clutch master cylinder or clutch slave cylinder-- or perhaps a leaking hose or connection. Whatever the case, the primary cause is the fact that the hydraulic pressure is not building enough to disengage the clutch fully. I always start with the simple solutions first-- check the fluid levels and check thoroughly for any leaks--then bleed the clutch hydraulic system-- if that doesn't improve performance then I'd replace the master AND the slave cylinder and rebleed the system. That should get you shifting smoothly again.

Start out by checking the freon levels and if that is okay then check the pressure switches and the wire harness to the clutch....

On the opposite side of the trans from where the clutch line enters, a fitting with a bleed valve on the end.

You can get a great view if you remove the access panel around the shifter, you will be able to see them both from there, loosen the end to bleed.

Yes it can. It's not only purpose to start the vehical but it does connect the trans to the engine. Tarns to the flywheel to the torque converter then the engine. They all lock together

In your engine compartment , mounted on the drivers side inner fender , by your power distribution box ( takes DOT 3 brake fluid for your hydraulic clutch )

Most Nissan trucks with manual transmissions, since the early 1980s, have hydraulic clutches which are auto adjusting. If the slave cylinder goes bad it may seem that the clutch needs to be adjusted. The only resolution is to rebuild or replace the slave cylinder. If it is not bad the only resolution is to replace the clutch. It is always best to replace the the clutch plate, the pressure plate, the throwout bearing and the pilot bearing at the same time. If the transmission has much over 50k to 60k miles on it the flywheel should be taken to a machine shop and resurfaced (turned). Some flywheels, by design, cannot be resurfaced. If this is the case the flywheel will need to be replaced at the same time as the clutch, etc. No matter how many miles the transmission has on it, if the flywheel appears to have what looks like different color patches that means that it has be subjected to uneven heat, usually caused by the clutch, etc not being replaced in time or having been put under excessive load. If this is the case the flywheel should be resurfaced or replaced regardless of the milage.

== == To do it yourself: Around $43 This is how: For an area that large you would want to use a spray paint. i recently visited paintscratch.com. you enter your year/make and VIN number, as well as the paint code usually found inside of the driver door, and they'll send paint that matches perfectly. you want to get both basecoat and clearcoat cans. if you have any rust, get a can of primer as well. Here is the printer-friendly version of their spray painting instructions: http://www.paintscratch.com/spraycanpf.htm

Bad hydraulic cylinders.

This should be mounted with 2 bolts on the top edge of the gearbox next to the engine where part of the flywheel should be exposed I believe

Cluth bite is about 1/3 up from the floor of the full travel of the pedal and is the same in every gear. To find the bite point, with hand/emergency brake on, depress the pedal fully, put the vehicle in gear and set the gas to about 1000 - 1100 rpm. Raise the clutch pedal until the bonnet/hood (forward gear) starts to rise and the revs start to dip. That is the bite point.

Alternatively, go to FLAT area and RELEASE all brakes (hand/e-brake and foot brake) and make sure your car does not roll. Depress the clutch petal all the way and put it into first gear. SLOWLY start to raise the clutch off the floor (do this very very slowly). and once it starts to roll, that is your biting point. You should do it a couple times just to make sure.

Check this first if the pedal seems to have some slack, there is a bushing on the pedal where the arm for the clutch master cylinder attaches, this gets worn out and you will have to push the clutch all the way to the floor to disengage, replace this bushing and you will have full pedal again, its a simple operation so anyone can do it. Note, ask for the bushing for the 2004 model, Jeep has its diagrams messed up and will give you the wrong one if you go earlier than that, it looks like a little black cage, pop it into the arm, then onto the stud on the pedal, it will lock into place and viola.

There is no real adjustment as far as I know. You can bleed it off with the bleeder screw but if there are any real problems then its probably time for a new clutch

The flywheel has a machined surface for the clutch to mate to. A flexplate is used for automatics and only needs to provide a connection between the engine and transmission.

front pump, direct clutch, try a can of liquid berrymans B-12 (chemtool) Pour in the whole can, and bring the engine up to temp, and shift through all gears...then drain and refill with a new filter...if its a stickey valve body, this should unstick it... let me know what happens and good luck :) Dave tradertaippan@yahoo.com I forgot to include the fact that the car originally had an Inline 6 Cylinder and with that engine the transmission worked fine. We have since then switched to the V8 289 and are having problems with the transmission engaging. We have replaced/switched torque convertors and bell housings for the 289 to bolt up to the transmission correctly.. do you have any idea what would cause it not to engage after the engine swap?

First you have to remove the cap off of the clutch master cylinder it is located on the drivers side very close to the power distrubution box make sure it is full. Then have a helper pump the clucth pedal down then back up pausing for a moment do this about 15 to 20 times then on the last pump have the helper hold the pedal to the floor as you get under and bleed the bleeder on the slave cylinder it is usually a 8mm socket that will release any air in the system then tighten it back up and repeat the process again do this a couple of times it should fix your problem.

It is in the transmission, and is controlled by the engine computer.

Schigerd is on the major companies that specialize in producing clutch cables. There are also various companies mostly from Chine that specialize in producing clutch cables.