SKooT1027

I'm trying to get the clutch lever shaft out so i can get the bellhousing off .. however it isnt moving -- at all! I tried screwing soething in and pulling, no luck, one screw actually broke while we were ding it so we drilled it out, and rethreaded the shaft. Any ideas how to get it off? It seems no matter how hard we pull it doesnt budge.

Mike Murcia

I attached the bolt to a slide hammer on my '84 when the pin wouldn't budge. I few good tugs and it was out in no time.

PorscheDoc

Yup, you need to thread in a long bolt, attach a visegrip under the head, and hit downward with a big hammer. It will not budge trying to pull on it.

tomc_85.5_944

Stupid ? maybe, but did you pull the retaining bolt out first? I soaked mine in PB blaster for about half an hour, and used the 6" bolt. Anything shorter and it wouldn't have worked. Actually, another way to break it free is to tap it in just a bit farther first, and then remove. Easy to pound it in, tough to pound out.

SKooT1027

We rented a slide hammer.. but one end of the hammer is threaded and its much thinker than the hole we have in the clutch lever

Ive been hammering for hours.. still hasnt budged

KuHL 951

I pulled my original rubber centered clutch today at 161K. The lever shaft came out with no problem using the bolt and the right sized socket to clear the bolt. Someone posted this last week, a great tip! It can help if you tighten the pulling bolt all the way down an try to break it free first by turning the bolt with a wrench clockwise, then do the pull. I'm sure cars from the Rust Belt must present a special challenge.

Now if I can just get that freaking main seal out I can finish my clutch job. I think they put sealant or glue on it. I've never had a seal that was so hard to remove...maybe tomorrow will be better!

SKooT1027

we tried twisting it free and thats how the screw broke in the first place .. what would a shop or something do if this happened? maybe an idea will arise from there

Mike Murcia

Another time when I didn't have a slide hammer, I made one by getting a very long bolt and placing a large 37mm socket through the ratchet hole. I then threaded the bolt into the pin and yanked away.

robinhood

A shop would heat things up a little, carefully, with a blow torch, or a propane torch. Also, you could squirt some penetrating liquid (PB blaster at Schu...s) actually into (and around inside) the viewing hole for the clutch slave cylinder push rod on the side, adequately to really get all the areas where the shaft slides through the aluminum housing. It's not going to hurt anything in there. And it really doesn't matter if you pour a whole cup full inside and slosh it around with your finger. And if you give it an hour to work into the metal, it will make a difference. Personally, I used the long bolt (about 5 or 6 inches long, with a needle nose vise grip, and hammered down on the vise grip. Also, as in the post above, make sure the small bolt that locks the shaft in place is out. Mine broke once, but this was when I was putting it back in, so I got a new bolt from Tacoma Screw and had to fabricate it a little with a grinder.

dualblade

would an electric heat gun work as well? i'm hesitant to use a propane torch around all the pb blaster i've sprayed in to try to loosen things up. that stuff's gotta be flammable....

Red1

I'm sure you did this, but Tom asked a very good question. A lot of people overlook removing that little retaining bolt. It makes all the difference.

dualblade

lol, it certainly does make all the difference and it would be nice if it was something that easy. i've done this job before and i knew to take that bolt out first before going at the shaft. on my car, the shaft came out pretty easily. this car is a whole nother matter. just to make sure, you are talking about the 10mm bolt with the nut against the bellhousing, right?

Red1

Yep.

I figured you had it out, but it doesn't hurt to ask. You know.

When we did Kevin Baker's car, his rubber clutch kind of melted around that pin. It was a huge PITA to get out. We resorted to pulling it out through a bronze bushing we bought at Sears Hardware. The bushing didn't fug up the aluminum bellhousing since it was bronze. Worked pretty slick.

dualblade

i saw that posted elsewhere, but i'm not sure i understand what it works. can you post a picture of a bushing or link me to one? did your fix involve twisting out the shaft, or just pulling it straight out?

Red1

Ok, bear with me, it's easier to do than explain it.

The bronze bushings were too shallow to get away with one, so we got two bushings, two flat washers, and a long bolt. Pass the bolt through one washer, add a bushing, add second washer, add second bushing, then thread bolt into threaded pin to remove it. It's ungainly, but when you're desperate (we were) it will work. As you tighten the bolt, it'll draw the pin down into the bushing. It's the same concept as the guys are saying they do with an oversized socket.