All of a sudden my clutch went from totally normal to very hard to press down. It’s now been this way for quite a long time. It’s a hydraulic clutch (clutch was replaced by a shop a few months prior to the issue, but me and the shop…did not get along.) in an 06 tribute with a 4 cylinder motor.
Looking for what I’ll need done in order to not have to break my leg to shift the thing. Thanks.
I figure it’s something the shop didn’t do correctly, as it was supposed to have new flywheel, pressure plate, clutch disc, pilot bearing and throw-out bearing but there’s no way to verify they replaced it all or did it correctly and the problem started suddenly about 3 months later.
It is theoretically possible for a collapsed or restricted line to also cause the clutch not to fully engage (or at least not as quickly as you’d like) due to not being able to release the hydraulic backpressure through the blocked line.
You typically see this sort of thing with brakes, which work via the same/similar types of lines. A collapsed brake line can cause the brake caliper to appear “stuck on,” causing drag and pad wear, etc., and people may drive themselves nuts replacing the pads and calipers over and over again without suspecting the line. In brakes this is reversed, since applying pressure causes the clamping force to engage rather than disengage.
A worn or otherwise janky throwout bearing is unlikely to cause clutch slip. Worn, broken, or incorrectly installed clutch springs might. Worn clutch friction plates, definitely. Contamination from leaked brake fluid, also sure to cause slippage. There’s something else to check.
Well I don’t figure it would be contamination on the plates, since it was working for a couple months or so after the job, and I remember the issue going straight from not existing, to immediately existing.
If it were a line or cylinder partly plugged up, the constant tension pushing the bearing back to the plates would eventually cause whatever great it was in to stop slipping as the clutch fluid would slowly move back past, wouldn’t it? The ease of slipping didn’t seem to change based on how long it was in the gear for.
