2005 Tacoma V6 clutch slave cylinder rebuild

I'm posting this as my way of paying back all the useful information I've gathered from various posts over the years. When deciding to rebuild my clutch slave cylinder, I noticed various postings with photos for the 1st gen trucks, but nothing specific to mine. The idea is the same, but hopefully the photos I've posted will give someone who's on the fence about doing this repair the confidence to undertake this project.

First, a little about my truck and what prompted the fix.

The truck is a 2005 sr5 off road 4x4 short bed double cab with a 6 speed. It currently has 99,000 miles. Over the past year or so, I noticed the clutch pedal beginning to squeak when I pressed down on the clutch pedal. I looked all over the forum looking for a solution. Needless to say, I didn't bother with anything involving messing with any of the clutch pedal components inside the cab. I did however come across a posting which discussed how the spring within the clutch slave cylinder was too weak and recommended replacing it with one from a mid 90's Ford F-150 master brake cylinder. Here is the link.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/fix-for-squeaking-clutch.272427/

I decided to just go with the oem rebuild kit since I went almost 100k with the current setup without any major issues.

The tools I used were a 12mm socket and ratchet wrench, a 10mm wrench for the fluid line, a flat head screw driver to help pull the cylinder and spring and DOT 3 brake fluid.

A little disclaimer. I'm not a mechanic and working on vehicles is far from my day job. With help from this forum, I conduct routine maintenance and the occasional intermediate project.

Step 1) Disconnect the negative battery cable and make sure the emergency brake is engaged and vehicle is in gear. Next, locate the clutch slave cylinder on the passenger side of the transmission. It's covered by a small plate which when removed, will expose a small opening into the transmission bell housing allowing view of the shaft bearing and clutch plate. The cover is held by three bolts. The third bolt is not shown in this photo but is easily found.





Step 2) Once the plate is removed, the clutch slave cylinder is easily seen.


It is held to the transmission by two bolts (shown together at the bottom of the photo). There is a third bolt holding the brake/clutch fluid line and a final fitting that attached the fluid line to the cylinder (shown at the right side of the photo). I did not have any problems removing the bolts but a penetrating oil may be beneficial to help loosen stuck bolts. Make sure to have a drain pan available to catch the fluid once the fluid line is removed. The fitting seen at the top right of the slave cylinder is a bleeding valve.

Step 3) Once the slave cylinder is removed, begin by removing the rubber boot from the shaft (don't know the technical terms so bare with me).





Once the boot is removed, you'll need to remove the piston from the cylinder which holds the spring. I began by tapping the cylinder on a flat surface to move the piston to the end of the shaft, then I used a flat head screw driver to help it out.



Step 4) Once the old piston and spring is removed, you can assemble and install the new piston and spring. The inside of my cylinder looked fine so I didn't do anything to prep the new pieces. I've seen where other recommend honing the cylinder. This is up to you the reader. I choose not to.



Here are the new pieces and part number.



And a side by side comparison of the new and old.



The piston and spring on the left is the new and old on the right. The new spring on the left is longer and the rubber fins on the new assembly look fuller and not flattened like the old assembly. I've also read that the Toyota fix for this item is a stronger and longer spring. My 2005 was built with the shorter weaker spring. There are plenty threads that explain the intricacies of the spring and clutch slave cylinder and how they interact with the clutch but that is beyond my pay grade. All I know is my squeak is gone and my clutch pedal feels like it did when the truck was new.

Install the spring assembly into the cylinder and install the boot. Once it's all together, reinstall the clutch slave cylinder in the reverse order taken to remove.



Step 5) Once the clutch slave cylinder is installed, you'll need to bleed the clutch to remove any air in the line.

First, remove the brake fluid reservoir cap. My truck has the clutch fluid reservoir inside the brake fluid reservoir.

Second, have someone press down on the clutch pedal. The pedal will go directly to the floor without any resistance.

Third, slowly open the bleeder valve on the clutch slave cylinder to release any air. Once fluid begans to leak out, tighten the valve.

Have your assistant press on the clutch a few times while you refill the brake/clutch reservoir with fluid.

Next, open the bleeder valve to let out any air until fluid begins to leak. Tighten and have your assistant press the clutch a few more times. Continue this process a few more times until all the air is purged from the line.

Once you feel confident the air has been removed, top off the fluid and close the cap.

Reinstall the cover over the clutch slave cylinder and connect your negative battery cable. Job well done.

 

Nice work, does it feel better afterward?

 

Yes. Before the fix the pedal felt loose and there was a slight resistance when first depressed. This would usually be around the time when the squeak would come out. I drove it around town after competing the rebuild and there wasn't a single squeak and the pedal had a smoother feel to it. Time will tell how well this fix will do but first impressions are positive and the cost and time invested were well worth the effort.

Another thing that prompted this that I forgot to mention in the original post is that I heard the squeal which has been described in other threads as the release bearing. The squeal happened once that I am aware of and went away when I pressed the clutch pedal. I don't think I have any issues with the release bearing and I hope this fix will prolong the life of the bearing and clutch plate.

 

My 2014 with 30K is already squeaking...where is the reservoir located? Want to ensure I have adequate fluid.

 

If memory serves me, the Brake Master Cylinder Reservoir also supplies the Clutch.

 

Common problem with manual tacomas. I tried greasing it regularly and it seems to help.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/tsb-for-clutch-pedal-squeak-creak-2005-14.345647/

 

Baldy77, good write up. The difference in the new kit appears like Toyota's admission that the original design was flawed. It's sad that so many owners have had to spend thousands of dollars taking transmissions out and making repairs because they didn't know early about this cheap and easy fix. The sadder part is that the problem still exists in many Tacomas today and those owners will eventually pay dearly. For me, I'm happy but it's taken over three years, and lots of abuse, to eventually be proven right.

P.S. We have to remember there are two problems here. Replacing the slave cylinder spring fixes the continuous squeal that goes away when you lightly step on the clutch pedal. The squeak that happens when you push the pedal down is a different issue.

 

Thanks hladun, I'm glad I came across your posting. Hopefully this conversation gets more exposure and is of use to many who are having these issues. You're right, this doesn't apply to the inside pedal squeak. I was hearing a squeak from underneath the truck. Would the clutch slave cylinder spring be the culprit for the sound down below or is that something else? I never went under the truck to pinpoint the squeak under the truck before swapping out the spring.

 

My theory about the squeak: it comes from the contact points between the actuator rod and the clutch release fork or the piston itself. These points become dry over time and then the squeaking/creaking starts.

 

Any more info on bleeding the clutch to get the air out of the line? At the end of this video the mechanic makes it seem as it can't be done? https://youtu.be/kJBXW65Q2FU

 

When I fixed mine I removed the slave cylinder. Used the two person open-push-close-release process and had no problem at all bleeding the clutch. (You've got to be able to bleed the clutch no matter what the guy says in the video.) He of course fixed everything except the problem that causes the TOB to fail. You can actually see and hear the new bearing vibrating when he shows its operation at the end of the video (14.33+). Go figure!

 

Thanks for the response! . I noticed that toyotas tsb for this fix includes a new pedal and clutch hose. What's all that about

 

What TSB are you talking about?

 

This steak you are talking about. Does it sound like a squishy, screechy, squeak.

If so this is something I need to do. It started about a month ago.

 

T-SB-0186-12 . Is this something different?

 

Yes. It's not what I'm talking about. Read the red section in my previous post.

 

Thanks OP!

So 04313-34011 is the only part # needed for this? (aside from brake fluid) No gasket or anything between the SC and bell housing or anything?

 

Correct. No gasket between SC and bell housing.

 

Thanks!
Parts ordered. Going to tackle this next weekend. Seems pretty easy though. (knocking on wood)

 

I think the hardest part is removing the cover. You'll probably have to bend the fluid line up and out of the way a tad bit. Just gentle. But it is an easy job.