i have a 1982 z28 with 350v8 and standard 5speed t5. last week i was at a red light and had gear in first and clutch in but the car still SLOWLY was moving forward. as i keeped driving i started to notice my clutch pedal started getting tougher and tougher every time id shift gears. Then i get downtown and my clutch wont go more than half way down and i could barely get my shifter to go into any gear.

i limped my car home and decided to mash the clutch as hard as i could to see if it whould go past half way. when i did i heared a pop and the clutch went to the floor with no pressure. i broke the slave cyl on the bell housing.

being that it was plastic, i ordered a metal one new. put it on. bleed the air out and pumped the clutch. The clutch pressured up but then whouldnt get more than half way. in fear that i whould break my bell housing this time, i have not yet tryed mashing it to the floor again lol

i decided to replace the master clutch cyl as well. so now both master and slave cyl's are new. but i still have the same problem. Clutch pedal will not go more than half way, the little bit it does move i can hear the clutch springs screaking as the clutch fork moves back and forth. car will not go in any gear, just grinds.

My Clutch is new, just had it all put in around 3 months ago. ive been told i could have a spring broke or loose inside the clutch, or thro out baring is out. but all that is new and was fine just till randomly at a red light.

anyone know wat could of happened? what may be wrong? im debating takeing the tranny out myself and tinkering. but idk much about trannys. may end up loading it and taking it to a shop anyways. any thoughts?

 

I was under the impression the 82 F-bodies still had mechanical linkage. Is your hyd. clutch set-up stock or aftermarket?

 

When i called autozone for new master and slave cyl's they told me my year model car did not come with hydro, but mechanical. my car SEEMS to have come factory for hydraulic. but im not sure. Id actually prefer to go mechanical but its set up already with new cylinders that id hate to back track now. Im just not sure as to why i have clutch pedal pressure, but only can go half way before it stops/gets stuck. i hear the springs releasing in my tranny, i can even see the fork moving back and forth a little bit. just wont go in any gear.

the car will go in gear fine with the car not running tho. so it doesnt seem locked or anything. my tranny is supposed to be a Non world class t5 from a 1984 trans am. im thinking about raising the butt end of my car off the ground. starting the car with gear in first and not mashing in the clutch. and maybe play around with it a bit like that on jack stands.

somebody told me to raise the driver side of the car up, with the car not runing, remove the slave cyl and get a long rod and force the clutch back and forth with the rod. im not sure wat that whould prove or even do any good or damage.

i dont really have any way of taking the tranny out myself. all i have is a concrete floor and a hydraulic jack and 2 jack stands. lol cant get high enuff to remove tranny. but i dont wana pay this dang shop the labor of 400$ just to do it, when technically its just 4 bolts to remove tranny from the bell housing. seems so simple, if only i had my dang lift. or dug-out.

but is it possiable: 1) my shift fork bent? 2) thro baring bad even tho its new? 3) shift for sliped off throout baring? 4) maybe springs come loose in clutch? 5) maybe its time to upgrade to WC T5 lol!

surely there isnt anything major wrong with my tranny itself? it was rebuilt less than a year ago and it was driving the car just fine till it SEEMED a clutch issue. but as i said, as i mash the clutch i can hear the springs giving way and pressuring back up as i press and let off the pedal. its working it seems. but then again its not...

 

I had the same problem the other day and it was my pivot ball that was backing out of the bell housing. The clutch fork pivots on the pivot ball and if it's backing out grab a allen head socket and screw it all the way in until your clutch moves free again. I blew out my original slave cylinder thursday morning smashing my pedal to the floor. The pedal would not go all the way down to depress my neutral safety switch and i lost all patience lol Than I saw brake fluid all over the floor, good luck with your Z!!! By the way a T5 is not original on a 82 camaro, you should have the 4 speed T10.

 

I am guessing that something happened to the clutch causing the throwout bearing to be unable to push the fingers on the pressure plate any further. What actually happened I could not even venture to guess.
The parts store is right about an 82 being mechanical linkage and not hydraulic. However they did not tell you that in 82 it would have been a 4 spd tranny.
As you said the tranny came from a 84. When it was put in they either swapped every thing out from mechanical to hydraulic or it might have been an original automatic tranny car. No problem and it does not matter but to just order tranny parts for a 84.

 

THIS IS WHY I LOVE THIS FORUM! Thank you third gen.org and thank you Lozantius82!!! You just saved my butt about 300bux or more. Ant no telling what a shop whould have screwed me over about, prolly whould of told me i needed a new tranny and recommend they rebuild it or sum BS! lol

It was the damn pivot ball! it was backed out of the bell housing just a few threads. at first i thouhgt... naww no way. its only backed out a few threads, should still be able to work the fork fine. But sure enuff when i got it tightend back down it was actually about 6 threads out! i got in my car and pressed the clutch to the floor no problem. and i thought to myself... (dumb@$$) lol one dang threaded pivot ball, after 2 slave cylinders and one master cylinder later...

so again thank you very much! finally got to take my car out with ttops off around town today. first time in a lil while. was happy to drive and shift my car so smoothly again! ^_^ now time to go eat a few ricers and stangs >)

 

No problem man!!! I try my best to help out other fellow third gen members! I try but there are many stubborn mules in this forum who don't bother listening to experienced members. Happy hunting with the imports and fagstangs!

 

Hey!!! I resemble that comment. I was that stubborn until a long time later I realized how much of a fool I was and what everyone was telling me was right.
Though I did not help in solving this I am glad it is fixed and will check this (not exactly the same) item on the T56 I am wanting to swap into my car when I get a motor ready. (I have heard similar stories with the T56).
Thanks for letting us know what the problem was.

 

+1

I had the same problem. Glad I got mine figured out before I did any damage... It almost felt like a 2-stage clutch (easy pressure, then firm the 2nd half of the travel). Still worked, but felt REALLY weird.

I'm pretty sure it's a 10mm internal hex, but one of the fins was in my way and I couldn't get a straight shot. Even a ball-end would make it. I wound up with a 3/8 hex on the slight angle due to the fin, and got it with only a few knuckles busted.

A little green lock-tite (it wicks into installed fasteners) will help prevent the issue in the future.

 

I had that same problem too. on the side of the trans just before the threaded hex stud is a "fin" or "lip" with a 1/4 size eye/hole. i had trouble getting to tighten the hex bolt but i did like you, just barely, but i used a star head insted of hex, got a few more teeth into it. but after a few turns, it tightened up and got it working. idk wat that fined/lipped eye is for tho...