Well, that certainly is a keen price. Given that the system has 17 years and 134,000 miles on it, (I think, I need to check the receipts that I have) I can well imagine that it is funky. But I do wonder if it could all be cured by adjusting the pedal. I was looking for someone who has done that and found improvement in his shifting to perhaps throw me a tip or two.Originally Posted by kung fu jesus
Yes, as I wrote above, I know that. What I am asking for is someone with similar symptoms as mine finding the solution in adjusting the clutch, and hopefully, some comments on how to do so.
Kevin, in 17 years of ownership, 4 Miatas, the issue you describe, it is more often failing clutch hydraulics. Usually the clutch slave, but it is cheap enough and easy enough (and highly advisable) to replace both the slave and master at this point. It will eliminate two failure points at the same time and reset that system in terms of maintenance.
Many people try to fix the issue with fresh transmission fluid, bleeding the hydraulics, messing with the clutch pedal adjustment, or rebuilding the shifter. My experience has been the hydraulics are likely the resolution.
Because you describe the pedal needing to be held deep and longer, that is a key sign to the hydraulic components weakening.
The braided line in those kits is worth every penny. It makes replacing the slave considerably easier and eliminates the failure of an aging, OE rubber line. My 10ae, a California car its entire life, had the rubber clutch line rupture after 13 year and 160k miles of use.
The other possibilities to crashing gears are worn synchos, bad engine mounts, or broken shifter bushings.
Good luck.
Agent☣Orange (11-21-2017),tsingson (11-20-2017)
I knew I had seen something about the clutch in the PO's records: The switch has been replaced. That must be a pig to get at.
Thanks. I know the shifter bushing is still tight, and that makes me happy. Not as happy as finding no rust when the car went up on the grease rack, but happy.
OK, I'll read the repair manual on replacing the clutch system. I'm not wild about replacing the whole pipe system with one braided hose, just because I like a original looking engine bay (but I will be polishing the valve cover in time!).
If you think the symptoms say replace the clutch hydraulics, I suppose I will.
Last edited by kevinharrop; 11-20-2017 at 10:41 PM.
There are lines that just replace the rubber, but the only people who see you removed the lower pipe will have to be under the car.
They made a lot of these cars. An NB with 13x k miles and stock engine bay impresses no one, especially Mazda.
Wasn't trying to impress anyone. I just like a tidy engine bay. And damned right they made a lot of them. I rarely noticed them until I bought one, now they seem to be all over the place.
Well, it has been about 6 weeks and the oil DID improve the shift somewhat. The tranny can now be said to snick rather than crash, and that is an improvement. I am learning to shift slowly (which is unsatisfactory) and can feel the stress whenever I can hear it. About half the time there is no negative indication. That is an improvement.
I bought from Goodwin the cylinder replacement kit and installed them yesterday. One thing that was a nuisance was that I could not separate the flex line from the top of the lower hard line. I could not even remove the spring clip that holds that junction to the chassis. So at this moment both the original flex line and the lower hard line are still on the car, the hydraulics by pass them with the stainless flex line that came with the kit.
The sorry news is that I discern no improvement.
I really don't want to wrestle with adjusting the clutch pedal. Does anyone have any actual experience in making that adjustment that they would like to share?
Meanwhile I'll be saving for a transmission rebuild. Drat.
Are you sure the transmission fluid level is correct?
A low fluid level will allow the transmission main-shaft gears to spin excessively making shifting slower for synchronization.
Next give us some feedback on the clutch engagement point.
Do this procedure on a flat surface in a safe location.
1. Push the clutch pedal to the floor.
2. Shift the transmission into 1st gear. Did it engage easily or do you need to slightly force it?
3. While paying attention to the clutch pedal location, VERY slowly start to release the clutch pedal.
4. At what point does the car start to move? Clutch pedal near the floor, midway, or near the top?
5. At what point does the clutch pedal become fully engaged with no slippage? Near the floor, midway, or near the top?
I can walk you though how I adjust the clutch next if we think adjusting the clutch engagement point is needed. To adjust the clutch is actually pretty easy even for my 62 year old body.
If the clutch adjustment/engagement point is good, it could also be the clutch pilot bearing causing the shifting problem. It can give similar symptoms as being low on fluid.
Last edited by MiataQuest; 12-24-2017 at 09:59 AM.
Return of the Manticore build: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....-4-engine-swap
I need to assume that the trans is full. I had the fluids replaced with the Motorcraft synthetic by my shop. I'm pretty confident that they filled it up.
I'll run that test on the clutch soon and report back.
Possibly we will see if my 58 year old body can do what your 62 year old body can.
If you can, find another 6 sp Miata owner and ask to drive their car and vice versa. It may help give you a baseline or least comparison to how it should feel.
Good idea. I attended my local enthusiasts' meet for the first time Friday. Not a large turnout due to the cold and Christmas. The vast majority of cars were NAs. There was a very crisp NB2 that I would have been afraid to drive, it was so nice. I could have asked him (assuming it was a 6 sp) to drive mine and tell me what he thought.
I'll hope there is a 6 sp the next time I attend.
I have to reiterate, the 6 has never felt as fluid as the 5. Just my opinion.
If the crashing is more pronounced at higher RPMs, try to observe how the engine rocks in the bay, perhaps side by side with another Miata with known fresher engine mounts. Worn engine mounts will pull the engine and transmission over, making the shift action chunky.
I dont know I would recommend a trans rebuild. A known low-mileage donor would be a lot cheaper.
My ‘02 had a 6-speed while I was living in the Pacific Northwest. I initially had the grind on winter mornings. It’s just the nature of a mechanical beast when everything is cold. Motorcraft (German) was expensive but did help tremendously, especially over the years.
Now I look back on it nostalgically because we no longer have pull-out chokes and pumping the gas pedal but I did need to give my Miata a while to warm up and settle down. Six-speed was admittedly notchier than the 5-speed but supposedly stronger, a whole other debate. I did like being able to fill my 6-speed from the turret though.
No todo que es oro brilla.
The start of that filling process is to remove the window switches. Which I tried to do and got nothing but damaged plastic. 17 year old plastic seems a bit brittle. I could not get my switches out.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote