Transmission bell housing clutch Fork Noise. Help

I know that this is a common topic on this site and problem for Tacoma owners in general. I too have an annoying clutch noise but I think my noise is different than what most people experience. I have diagnosed my noise to be coming from the clutch bell housing area, where the slave cylinder contacts the clutch fork. I hear the noise coming from the transmission bell housing when the clutch pedal is depressed for 80% of the pedal travel. Last weekend I sprayed white lithium grease into the square boot coming out of the transmission and the noise went away for a few days. I have searched multiple times and cannot find a solid answer on this. I called my dealer today and they told me "ALL clutch related components are wear items only covered by the BASE warranty", which I am beyond. I work on cars and can fix this myself, basically I am posting this to see if anyone else has had this specific problem with a 5 speed manual transmission and has fixed the problem. Any information will be appreciated, thank you in advance.
Truck:
2010 Tacoma 4x4 4cly 5spd 39,000 miles

 

First suggestion, do not spray any grease into the bell housing area at all. That grease can get caught up in your clutch plate. Not that is always will, but it is a risk.

I have seen a lot of these over the past year where the ball socket for the clutch fork gets dry, and begins to runs. Unfortunately once it starts to get rusty, lubrication of that spot is short lived. Unfortunately the only way to be sure to get rid of that noise (Assuming of course that the noise is 100% the fork pivot point) is to remove the transmission, pull the clutch fork, and unbolt the pivot ball, then clean it or replace it (Not sure if the 2010 has a removable ball or not) and then apply a generous amount of wheel bearing grease to the ball and fork contact point. I really think Toyota, as well as many others that I have seen over the years, dropped the ball on this one. A teflon ball socket cover is very inexpensive, and should have been included on every manual transmission out there. Short of throw out bearing noise, this is the most common noise complaint I have ever had come into any shop I have ever been in, as far as a manual transmission.

 

Based on the noise I am hearing and the fact that I sprayed grease in the area and it went away I think you are correct. If it was the throw out bearing I would expect it to make noise when the truck is running and go away when the clutch pedal is pushed down. I am capable of performing the repair to fix the problem, it just doesn't seem right. Anything that requires me to remove my transmission should be covered under the drive train warranty. Also me removing my transmission should void my drive train warranty (assuming Toyota call tell I removed it). Anyway, thank you for the info, I'm going to research this and tackle the project when the snow melts and I can get the truck on my buddy's lift.

 

A bad TOB is not necessarily only found when the clutch is pushed down. Many TOBs actually make the noise when the pedal is pressed down, due to that is when the TOB bearings are under the most stress. I feel for you on the warranty issue. Just because you remove your own transmission though, will not void your warranty. They cannot void your warranty for repairing your own vehicle. Also they cannot void your warranty due to someone else working on it, unless the part replaced by said shop is what failed. If you removed your transmission and replaced the pivot piece, or repaired it, and then say a gear went out in the transmission, or a short fork, they can't void your warranty. The dealership can CLAIM that they can, but they cant. I believe it falls under the Moss-Ferguson Act.

 

I was getting a squeaking noise from the pivot ball exactly like Bama said, every time I disengaged the clutch. Using a mirror and bamboo skewer with a dab of teflon grease on the end, I was able to pull the fork forward enough to get some grease in the area. Afterward I pumped the clutch pedal several times, and repeated the procedure. I haven't heard any more squeaking since then, about 9 months ago.

Keep in mind that I had to remove the slave cylinder from the bell housing. I just let it hang as it only needed to be moved about a quarter of an inch to pull the fork forward.

Hope this helps.

 

I came across this thread because I was having the same problem. A groaning squeek coming from the clutch fork. What I just tried, and it seems to have worked atleast in the immediate sense, is applying a little bit of Fluid Film to the ball pivot that's inside the bell housing. I pulled the boot off the housing and holding a flashlight so I could see the area I wanted to reach, I put the straw of the FF can in this area and 'lightly' pressed the spray nozzle to drizzle the FF only in this area. Pumped pedal, reapplied. Totally silent now. I also put a tiny amount where the slave pivots the fork as well.

I figure this wont last too long, but wasn't too difficult so I'll do it again if needed. I figured FF was a good idea because it's somewhat tenacious and wouldn't necessarily drip.

 

Any updates on this? I just bought a bottle of FF and its sitting behind my seat. I used lithium spray lube a few times and it doesn't last very long. I'm tired of the squeak an the feeling of the two parts getting so much friction but I'm also tired of spraying stuff into my trans lol. If there were upgraded parts available I'd seriously consider them and a clutch job since it wouldn't be much more work at that point. Thoughts?

 

This thread really helped me out so I thought it would only be fair to leave my input.
My clutch had a horrible squeak and had a strong resistance when pushing the pedal.
Finally I followed through with this threads "fix". I took the two bolts loose holding the slave cylinder in place creating a little more room to fit a bamboo skewer with grease on the end to the clutch fork ball pivot area. The metal pin / ball-end fell out of the slave cylinder while it was dangling there. I noticed the ball-end of the pin was another friction area so I greased it as well and slapped it back into place. Afterwards I pumped the clutch and it still made a light squeak noise. However, the next morning it was completely silent and smooth as butter when pressing the pedal. I cannot believe how much better the clutch performs and sounds now. It's like a new truck. I would recommend doing this to every clutch that is stiff and noisy. Below is the grease I used.