Dad's got a 1995 short bed with the inline six and a manual transmission. All of 68k miles on it. The thing is, its SECOND clutch has just gone out. He had to replace the original when he bought it with 36k miles on it.

So I am going to replace it again, and also replace the flywheel with a new one, and the slave cylinder because I am there.

Anything else going on that would make it eat clutches like that? Both the original owner and Dad are senior citizen 'gentleman farmers', no abusing going on, just general dirt and mulch and lawn equipment hauling on an irregular basis (thus the low miles).

Thanks!

 

Define "gone out". Did the clutch material flake off & fall out of the bellhousing? Did it wear away evenly? Did it wear away UNevenly? Did it scorch & varnish? Is it contaminated with engine oil or coolant? Did it fail progressively, or suddenly? WHICH manual trans does it have? If you don't know the model, read this caption & follow the links in it:

 

What's with this homework crap to get the details! How about a quick one sentence answer to my problem, isn't that how internet forums work?

"Gone out" means right now it does not engage the transmission initially. If you rev the engine and wait slightly, after about five seconds there is enough friction to move the truck (I got it up the ramps onto the trailer) but the clutch still slips, no brisk engagement. That's the extent of what I know right now, I'll put it up on the lift in the next day or two and get a better look at what's going on.

Trans Code M: Mazda M50D-R2

Thanks for the reply!

BTW, wicked good stuff you've got there on the Supermotors site. I bet once I get this clutch nut cracked, you can help me with the problems I'm having with the New Process in this toy I picked up last fall:

 

The wear issue could be the Old Guy is resting his foot on the pedal when he drives.

When you get it fixed go for a ride with him and observe.

 

Don't forget a new pilot bearing too, and check the master cylinder for leakage. Reverse or pressure bleed the system.

 

When the 1st clutch was replaced, was any of the hydraulic system replaced? If so, was the clutch pedal lever replaced & reset correctly? Read this caption:

 

Not sure about any system changes with the first clutch, but probably not given the price Dad remembers for the job. I will check the alignments per the TSB.

Hopefully I can pull the truck apart today, been waiting for a '76 Vette to get off the lift (pre-paint sanding stage, I could be waiting a long time!).

 

Okay, so life finally gave me a break and I took things apart today. Looks like oil contamination was the culprit: oil on the flywheel, even (but excessive) wear on both sides of the clutch. So I am replacing the rear main seal, plus everything clutch related because I am there: Master, slave, flywheel, clutch, even the line between cylinders since the last replacement job made the 'quick disconnect' not so quick, worth the extra $40 just to get the job moving. Tomorrow morning's truck from NAPA should have all I need.

 

If you are that deep into it you should do the input seal on the trans too.

 

All's well that ends well. New clutch, flywheel, slave, hose, master. Bled real well and clutch pedal checked per TSB. New rear main, trans front seal was bone dry, decided to skip it. Oil pan gasket had blown out one section (likely contributor to clutch problems, eh?) so that got replaced. Noticed one rear drum cylinder leaking, figured I should replace both since I gotta bleed the rear anyway, and they only cost seven bucks.

Starter will not turn ('click' only) occasionally ("oh yeah, meant to mention that," says Dad). It had a good bit of oil from the pan gasket blowout, so I flushed it and baked it, we'll see how that goes for a couple days. If it keeps up, I'll replace it before giving the truck back.

All in all a good project. But I think I'll wait a bit before pulling the transmission off the International.

Thanks for all the help!