Did my driving habits cause early clutch slave/TO failure? 2003 FX4 4.0

spoolin01 · May 18, 2010

I got this truck 3 years ago with 17K miles at 5yrs old, now 42K. For most of the time I've had it I've taken to coasting downhill either in neutral or with the clutch depressed, for fuel economy, when the hill is steep enough to maintain speed. I wouldn't say that's something that happens a lot, but a few times a week. I was told the truck was a weekend mountain toy for the first owner, and the scratches in the paint led me to accept that, though there was no body or undercarriage damage. I don't drive it hard otherwise that I'm aware of, though I tow a <1000lb boat now and then and towed a 2000lb trailer from Seattle to San Francisco when I first got it.

The clutch started going out two weeks ago - incomplete disengage with fluid loss from inside the transmission bell. Topping the reservoir helped once briefly, bleeding the system helped for a few days - no reservoir drop at all for 3 days, then lost all overnight while it sat. Finally, I just now filled and bled the system again (gravity feed, and the push pedal, release valve method) and despite good pedal feel, the clutch is barely disengaging. Just as when the lines were empty, I can't shift from neutral into any gear with the engine running, even double clutching, and the truck creeps strongly in first with the clutch in.

This is the third used 4x4 manual Ranger I've owned and only one of the others required any drivetrain work (clutch) out to 150K miles or so. That's makes me wonder why this one went already.

Just bad luck or do you think the coasting trick could be a problem?

I've got a Sachs kit on order and will be pulling things apart this weekend.

pcollins · May 19, 2010

its not the clutch. Its the slave cylinder. weakest part on these rangers. The original one in my truck, lasted 130k, the replacement didn't last a year. I'm on my third slave now. Don't go tearing the clutch kit open to far, because chances are at 42k, the disc and everything is fine, and all you have to do is change the slave. its comes with a T/O bearing on it.

EDIT: a 2003? hmmm. the slave is still the issue but its more rare on your truck i think. they supposedly redesigned them.

Coasting down the hill, or sitting with the clutch in for more than 30 seconds generally isn't good practice. When the clutch pedal is in, the T/O bearing is spinning, and theres pressure on the slave. if you have to sit for more than 20 seconds i'd say, just put it in neutral.

spoolin01 · May 19, 2010

3rd slave? That's some bad luck, hope this one lasts for you.

After this happened, I started thinking that coasting with the pedal down might be wearing the TO mechanism. I'll get a better look at where the leak is shortly.

I figured as long as I'm going to the trouble to drop the transmission, I might as well replace the clutch disc and reface the flywheel.

pcollins · May 19, 2010

spoolin01 said:
3rd slave? That's some bad luck, hope this one lasts for you.

After this happened, I started thinking that coasting with the pedal down might be wearing the TO mechanism. I'll get a better look at where the leak is shortly.

I figured as long as I'm going to the trouble to drop the transmission, I might as well replace the clutch disc and reface the flywheel.

I hope it does to lol. but i got a return warranty on the bad one so now i have a spare sitting here, ready to go in (god forbid :annoyed:

) some people go through more than that though. yea it probably would be sensible to do it all while your in there. I don't think the flywheel/pilot bearing will be necessary though. they normally last the life of the vehicle. all depends on what you see when you get in there.

Yellowsplash · May 19, 2010

....and your wasting fuel by letting it "idle" while crusing down a hill. As long as your above say 1500rpm and you dont touch the gas, the ecu will go in decel mode and the fuel injectors will shut off and you'll feel engine braking. Good for fuel milage and brake pad life. You have a standard, use your gears..

spoolin01 · May 27, 2010

Does the fuel really shut off when decelerating? I guess I still have the carburetor mindset. I have a Scan-something hooked into the ODB II port and it shows much better instant mileage when coasting in neutral than when decelerating - maybe I'm using a little throttle to keep speed up after all. I'll check it again next time I'm on a steep hill. On the whole, the fuel usage estimates coming out of the computer have been a close match to the fills.

Anyway, after looking at the clutch disc, I had the flywheel refaced, but am re-using the disc and pressure plate after scuffing up the glaze with a disc sander. The depth to the rivets on the original disc was 0.080 vs 0.100 on the new disc. I only put around 8K miles on it each year.

The original disc and clutch are Luk (same as those in the Sachs kit I bought), but the only markings I can find on the slave are AP (the cross-bar on the A runs over to the P), and IMC 2. Anyone know if this is OEM?

I bought a Perfection slave from NAPA - hope this one doesn't blow out too soon.

AllanD · May 27, 2010

spoolin01 said:
I got this truck 3 years ago with 17K miles at 5yrs old, now 42K. For most of the time I've had it I've taken to coasting downhill either in neutral or with the clutch depressed, for fuel economy, when the hill is steep enough to maintain speed. I wouldn't say that's something that happens a lot, but a few times a week. I was told the truck was a weekend mountain toy for the first owner, and the scratches in the paint led me to accept that, though there was no body or undercarriage damage. I don't drive it hard otherwise that I'm aware of, though I tow a <1000lb boat now and then and towed a 2000lb trailer from Seattle to San Francisco when I first got it.

The clutch started going out two weeks ago - incomplete disengage with fluid loss from inside the transmission bell. Topping the reservoir helped once briefly, bleeding the system helped for a few days - no reservoir drop at all for 3 days, then lost all overnight while it sat. Finally, I just now filled and bled the system again (gravity feed, and the push pedal, release valve method) and despite good pedal feel, the clutch is barely disengaging. Just as when the lines were empty, I can't shift from neutral into any gear with the engine running, even double clutching, and the truck creeps strongly in first with the clutch in.

This is the third used 4x4 manual Ranger I've owned and only one of the others required any drivetrain work (clutch) out to 150K miles or so. That's makes me wonder why this one went already.

Just bad luck or do you think the coasting trick could be a problem?

I've got a Sachs kit on order and will be pulling things apart this weekend.

Coasting downhill in neutral actually burns more gas than leaving the truck in 5th gear and letting it coast down the hill.

Why is that? because first most rangers don't engine brake worth a shit in 5th gear, and second when engine braking in gear if your engine rpm is about 1500rpm or so the PCM turns the injectors OFF.

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spoolin01 · May 27, 2010

I believe you guys, just saying that overall economy includes the hills where you have to maintain some throttle if you stay in gear, and the stretch at the bottom where you have to put the throttle back on, but could still be coasting in neutral. So I guess it's a question of what contributes more over a whole stretch of downhill - idle consumption, or engine braking followed by throttle application.

Did my driving habits cause early clutch slave/TO failure? 2003 FX4 4.0

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