New Clutch Won't Go Into Gear! Help!!

So I recently converted my 1999 Prerunner to manual 4x4 (I have a post about that too and will soon be posting videos of the whole conversion on YouTube) and I've finished everything but there's one problem. IT WONT SHIFT INTO GEAR WHEN THE ENGINE TURNS ON!!

It shifts through the gears fine with the engine off but as soon as I turn it on it I can't get out of neutral. There was however some give when I tried to shift into reverse but it was super gritty.

I also held the clutch in and shifted into 1st and then turned the truck on and it lurched forward a little bit, which I read means there's a disengagement problem I think.

I have a few things I'm going to try before I drop the tranny again to make sure I installed the clutch right..

1) I need to rebleed the clutch line as it is fairly soft right now and might just not be providing enough pressure to engage the new pressure plate

2)I already have a new master cylinder so the next thing would be replacing the slave cylinder.

3) I can mess with the slave cylinder and clutch pedal adjustment nuts.

If none of this changes anything then I'm going to drop the tranny again and make sure the pressure plate was installed right (the side that protrudes more should be facing the tranny) which I'm 99% sure I installed right.

Also I'm going check to make sure nothing got over tightened during instillation which could have bent the pressure plate, or that something got bent/damaged during the tranny installation.

I'm no expert on cars and clutches, so if anyone has any advice or tips, or have had this problem before any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Does the slave move the fork the proper distance? If not, you have a hydraulic problem.

You're starting off right; bleed the system. Clutch hydraulics can be tougher than brakes to get right.

And in your case of this massive conversion, and a new master, I'd be doing the slave 'just because', then bleeding the system.

 

I'm not sure what the proper distance is I'll have to find that out and check it.

And yeah that's probably better to replace the slave and then bleed everything with all new components.
Thanks!

 

Yeah, you need to do a thorough bleed on the system. Get a MityVac to pull a vacuum on the bleed screw to get all the air bubbles out.

 

Just bleed the clutch like a brake system

 

A new clutch master cylinder needs to be bench bled before install .
Gravity bleeding may help . Crack the bleeder on the slave cylinder and let it slowly drip for at least an hour .
For stubborn bleeding , jack up the truck in the rear and let it sit and slowly bleed for an hour , then pump and bleed . This procedure puts the master cylinder reservoir higher at the front of the truck allowing the brake fluid to drain to the slave cylinder .
What we do know ....You replaced the clutch .
Did you match up all the old parts with the new parts you installed ?
Did you machine the flywheel ? did you replace the pilot bushing ?
Did you add shims to compensate for the metal removed from the flywheel ?
There is a diagnostic manual within this thread at the bottom of the page that will assist you determining your problem
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...on-your-5-speed-transmission-write-up.338836/

 

All of the clutch components I bought brand new so I don't think shims or anything of that sort would be an issue but I definitely need to do a good bleeding.

 

Bench bleed the slave as stated or buy a vacuum bleeder and attach to your compressor. If your components weren't shot prior to there's s a good chance they aren't now. Bleed, bleed again n see if it works.

 

I'm ashamed to say I had to take my truck into the shop because I couldn't for the life of me figure out what the issue was.

I got a new slave and master, bench bled the master, got good pressure/slave extension but it just wouldn't work.

I took the tranny back out and that was a pain in itsself as the pilot bearing was too small for the input shaft and me being me I didn't test fit it before hand so I ended up pressing the shaft into the bearing and it took me about two days to get the tranny out because of that.

I machined a new bearing to fit, put the tranny back in and what do ya know, same problem as before, couldn't shift into gear still. At this point I'm so done with it so I called AAA and had them tow it to a mechanic.

I get a call the next day saying my truck is ready...you'll never guess the problem...
I didn't screw in the six f**king pressure plate bolts enough so the forks weren't sticking out enough so they couldn't be pressed by the throw out bearing enough to disengage....F**k me

I guess learning the hard way costs you $525 sometimes, it's whatever though, I'm just glad to have a running truck again.

 

Dude, I'll tell you my clutch story from this week and it'll make you feel a lot better.....

I bought a Competition Stage 2 clutch ($600) and took it to a local transmission shop for install since Toyota wanted an arm and a leg. Local shop charged me $700.

Picked up my truck, clutch felt and sounded weird but I was "assured" by the shop that this was normal for a performance clutch and that it just needed to break-in. LONG story short, after a week of the sounds and feelings getting worse, it one day just felt like the clutch was going out completely. Wouldn't go into gear without being forced, no reverse, etc. Classic signs of a worn-out clutch and this one was only a week old.

So, Toyota happened to be pretty close to me so I limped my truck over there. They pull the trans out and the clutch apart and find out that the shop INSTALLED THE CLUTCH PLATE BACKWARDS! Yes, that's right. Toyota puts a factory clutch in and has to send my flywheel out to be resurfaced at a machine shop since it was 'effed up by the other shop.

$2100 bill from Toyota to do all that, plus the $1300 I spent getting the other clutch installed that was just tossed in the trash. Actually, it wasn't tossed in the trash...I picked it up from Toyota because I'm going to take the transmission shop to small claims court because they are denying that they installed it wrong, even though I have it in writing from Toyota and they are willing to back me if I have to take them to court.

Massive headache.....

 

You're right, that does make me feel a lot better lol. But that totally blows man. That's why I'm trying to do all my repairs myself, ya can't always trust shops and everything is a rip off. Hopefully you can get your money back from that shitty clutch install and your ruined clutch...

When I went to Toyota to see if they knew why I couldn't pass smog they wanted to charge me $700 to replace my two O2 sensors!! Cost me $200 and an hour to do it myself.

 

eon_blue As much as I hate to say it in an unfortunate circumstance such as yours .
Your truck is the proof that the clutch disc can be installed backwards and actually function for a short period of time .
There are other members here that have had the same issue and never had a problem for " many miles "
What is completely sickening is that a transmission shop did the job and destroyed your new clutch and flywheel .
Was this stage 2 clutch of the diaphragm style or semi centrifugal ?

 

Dam clutch thought i was the only one whit real strugleée