2009 tacoma 6 speed not going into gear

a little bit of history.

recently ive noticed that my truck didnt want to go into first gear when cold and that i had to pump the clutch pedal a number of times to get pressure to build up to dissengage the clutch. when the weather was warmer it seemed to work better however this morning i went out and cant get it to engage at all even when trying to build up pressure or when the truck is warm. im thinking is a hyraulic issue as the clutch always shifted smoothly before. the fluid level in the master cylinder is between min and max. it does look a little darker than id like so it could have mositure in it to. any help would be appreciated. i bought it at 175 000 kilometers and ive just im just over 350 000 km at the moment

 

Take a look under the truck at the slave cylinder its located on the driver side of the transmission. Is it leaking? might have to pull the boot off the end of it to see if its leaking. I would also take a look at the master cylinder, its located under the dash on the pedal, check for leaks on it.

 

i didnt see any leaks on the master cylinder. ill have to take to shroud off the slave and check it tommorrow. overall im quite happy with the truck.

 

crawled under the truck and got the slave cylinder inspection cover off. had someone push the clutch and the cylinder moves and push the fork and doesnt changed postion. im still thinking its a hydraulic issue as it was getting worse over time and then failed. i bought a mightvac vaccum kit and was starting to bleed the system and got dark fluid coming out and not nice clean as it should be. i got tired of laying in a puddle and decided to call it for a break. the tubing sure is a pain to keep on the bleeder screw. have many people used these vaccum bleeders?

 

So when the pedal was pushed the slave cylinder pushed the fork (like it should) or when pushed it didnt move the fork?

 

Bleeding the system would have been my first suggestion. See if that helps.
I recently sucked the fluid out of my clutch reservoir and bled the slave cylinder. It was pretty dirty. It sounds like a clutch disengagement issue based on your symptoms description.
Please let us know what you find.

 

the clutch fork moved.

 

Did it move it enough to disengage the clutch is the question at hand.

Can you put it in gear with the engine not running?

With it in gear and the clutch depressed can you push the truck easy?

 

Unless something is failing there’s no reason air would or could get into the system. If the fluid was low it is going somewhere. Pop the boot on the slave cylinder and see if it’s dry inside. It could be moving the fork slightly but not enough.

 

it did not move enough to disengage the clutch. i can shift gears with the engine not running .

 

You have either a leak or air in the hydraulics.

 

perfect thats right along the lines i was thinking. good to know im not barking up the wrong tree

 

changed the slave cylinder and still wouldnt shift. i had to get it towed to my mechanic and the throw out bearing was tight and the clutch fork had cracked. i had to get a new clutch assemebly , bearing assemby and flywheel. while he was doing the work he mentioned that there was a small leak on the passenger side head gasket. when i got the truck home i put it up on stand and at the back of the head by the exhaust manifold there is a small orange redish calcified stain. is this normal for the gaskets to leak there? just wondering if it would affect it internally as well. i change the engine oil every 5000 km and have never seen any signs of coolant in the oil.