damnit got the squeaky clutch!

damnit so yesterday afternoon my clutch started squeaking and creaking. I was hoping to avoid this. 2022 with 19k miles. I am aware of the TSB and will be contacting dealership. I believe there is a REV.1 that includes 2020-2023.

 

Welcome to the club....got mine fixed with the TSB and have been good ever since (3 months, 7k miles).

 

What was the fix?

 

On a 2020 or newer, all the TSB does is throw a bunch of the same parts the truck already has at it, other than the very latest 2023 revision that includes a new master cylinder part number ending in 60033 instead of 60032. The master cylinder never was and still isn’t the problem, so that isn’t going to fix or change anything.

Depending on how much grease the dealer uses when they replace all those parts determines whether or not the problem will come back. It’s a grease issue, new parts doesn’t change anything. The grease the dealer uses is thin and probably will wear away in time. How long, no one knows because it depends on how they apply it.

Use disc brake grease to grease where the MC clevis butts up into the back of the existing pedal. If you do it right the noise will not come back for a very long time, if ever. Disc brake grease is the right choice because it’s tacky and stays around a long time.

Bottom line is the new parts besides the MC aren’t different. So going to the dealer and getting a bunch of new parts really isn’t beneficial or necessary. It’s the grease they apply during the process that fixes the issue. Without any grease the brand new parts would all make noise still.

 

@BLtheP is correct, grease it with something really sticky. Disc brake grease or moly-impregnated whee bearing grease etc.

Don’t waste your time on this at the dealer. It’ll take 5 appointments about the TSB before they finally ask the foreman his opinion then he’ll tell you what BLtheP said. Ask me how I know…

 

Mine was squeaking when the truck had like 5k miles. Got the TSB done.

Now it might start squeaking a bit in winter for a week or so but then goes away. It doesn’t bother me at all, it’s very minor.

 

I've seen quite a few cases of people on here and/or Facebook getting the TSB done and the dealers happy to do it, but it just makes no sense to go that route when the parts are the same parts you already have. This is such a common occurrence and grease solves the problem 100% of the time, that it definitely makes sense to go the grease route.

I'll preface that with I do think the TSB is worth it on 2019 and older trucks with the older pedal that didn't have the spot for the spring bushing. I think it's worth at least upgrading to that, but otherwise I don't think the TSB is worth it.

 

On a 2018 there actually was a difference in parts - the pedal from the TSB was updated to fit the bushing that the spring sits into so that the spring was no longer riding on the pedal itself and wearing a groove into the channel. That could be beneficial. 2020+ all have the updated pedal though which has not changed since.

The MC got a part number update but nobody knows what the change was. Since the MC had no problems prior, I still suggest folks just do the greasing and leave the dealer alone. But, I'm one who thinks the dealer is a complete hassle that isn't worth dealing with 99% of the time and so that helps make the decision for me. Some aren't bothered by dropping a vehicle off, so I guess it's personal preference. But for them to just install mostly the same parts already on there, to me that makes no sense. On a 2018 it would make sense because of the different pedal.

 

Been 6 years and I haven’t applied any grease. I should do so this spring

Along with coolant, PS fluid and probably brake fluid. Oh and the transfer case.

 

Ah interesting. I did not know that.

Yeah I feel same way about dealerships. Absolute last place that I would bring my truck in.

Sadly, majority of drivers still believe that a dealership is the “best” place to take your car in.

 

Yeah, I mean the dealer is supposed to apply grease during the TSB install. So if they do that and the grease happens to stay where it's supposed to, then there is a strong chance of success of no noise after the fact. If they don't do the grease right (similar how to the factory often does not, resulting in the noise to begin with), then eventually the dealer job will make noise as well and you're back to square one.

I had the noise come up I believe at 14K miles and after I greased it there was no noise whatsoever up until 35K or whenever it was that I swapped to the metal pedal. No noise from that one either once I greased the pivot points. I did have one small squeak a few days in because I forgot to grease where the metal clevis meets the pivot bushing on the pedal. Otherwise, that has been a great setup.

 

Yep...only going there if absolutely necessary. They can have a lot of great techs, but the shenanigans with service writers is what keeps me away. Someone who hasn't the slightest clue about how vehicles work shouldn't be sitting behind the counter and incorrectly writing up quotes for me about what needs to be done on my vehicle.

As for the TSB info, Jeff Lange detailed it out very nicely years ago and showed the difference in the newer pedal. He has also made the comment a few times that folks with newer than 2019 trucks getting the TSB done are getting the same parts they had before. That is, until the latest 2023 revision which updated the MC part number but we still don't know that anything changed there (and nothing needed to change - no iteration of the MC contributed to the noise).

 

I will try the grease first. Where exactly do I grease?

 

Find where the master cylinder clevis butts into the back of the clutch pedal. Pack disc brake grease into the void there. Take a healthy glob of it and jam it in there and then do that another time or two. Work the pedal a few times.



Then reach up to the top of the pedal assembly, find where the spring hooks into the white clip on the pivot rod, and slather grease on that. Work the pedal a few times to work it in. Maybe slather some more after that.



For what it's worth, I didn't have any noise coming from the upper portion at the spring connection, but I greased it anyways. All my noise came from the back of the pedal location, because the clevis on the MC has a pecker looking piece on it that is metal and presses into the back of the pedal. When that runs dry the metal clevis tip on the plastic pedal makes a groan sound, which is what my noise came from. Working grease into there solved the problem fully.

 

awesome, thank you, will do this weekend.

 

I had this done awhile ago .. noise came back the tsb does nothing but give u some extra time . Best thing is get some lithium grease and be prepared to lube it every time it comes back .

 

Beautiful. This answers the exact question I asked in an older thread earlier today. Fantastic pictures too. I need to get in there and grease up that pecker

 

Greased the 2 locations suggested. So far no creaking. My family thought I was farting a lot...

 

3 days later, still no squeak!