1999 350 7.3 manual 6spd ZF

I was on the highway for a couple hundred miles without any problems but when I pulled off it downshifted funny as if it didn't want to pull out of gear.

Got it to a stop and then it didn't want to go into any gear.

I checked the fluid level and it was two quarts low. Transmission case wasn't hot at 152 or so. (had a temp gun) I have additional capacity since I run an add-on filter but I added two more quarts.

Jumped back and before starting it, it goes into each gear selection easily. Start the engine and can't select any gear.
Start engine with lever in first and clutch depressed and it's as if I haven't pushed the clutch, truck chugs forward on the starter motor.

Limped it to a shop where I borrowed a pit and started looking things over. No leaks or drips from the master or slave cylinder.
Pulled the slave cylinder and compressed it several times vertically to bleed any air that may have gotten in there and tried again. No clutch release.
Guessed it was a bypassing clutch or master cylinder and it was not putting any force against the arm to release the clutch.

Napa down the block had a replacement master/line/slave assembly.
Popped that in and am still without any clutch.

My only guess is that something has happened with the throwout bearing that isn't allowing it to push on the clutch fingers and release it.
Or the throwout bearing arm.
Or the pivot on the far side.
I'm stumped and won't know anything until I can get into it. Maybe tomorrow.
Since I'm going inside I may as well put some new clutch parts in it.

Now I'm stuck in Barstow until Monday when I can pick up either a ford clutch from San Bernardino (Almost the last one in California apparently)
OR get a LUK replacement from NAPA also on Monday.

So my questions:

Stock ford clutch?
Napa clutch with flywheel LUK design?

(I'm going to grab a Clutch Release Fork Ball Stud too. $10-15.)

Any experience on the board with a problem like this?
I'm kind of stumped until I get in there and see what is going on.
I've had release bearings seize on another car and squeal across the release fingers until I could replace everything. This isn't that. No funny noises, no clunks, just from normal to unable rapidly unable to shift after the last three shifts.
I just hope it's not the fork as those are seemingly unobtanium.

So. Ideas?

 

I went with the Luk clutch and it has performed well. If you know how to drive W/O using the clutch you should be able to continue on. Are you on your way out or heading home?

I feel your pain. Last December I was on my way from Bakersfield to Tulsa and broke down in Deming NM. Had to leave the F350 there and continue on in the box truck. We were moving our belongings from Ca to OK and my wife was driving the F350.hope you get things fixed up.

 

I have a heavy load and starting and stopping is an issue. Will kill the starter or strip teeth on the flywheel starter starting a few times. I'm heading away from home for a week vacation in Moab with a heavy jeep on the flatbed. If I wanted to go back home, there is massive traffic and that would be a mess.

So, Ideas on what I may find when I get in there anyone?

 

The problem sounds like a bent clutch fork to me, rather than the flywheel/pressure plate/friction disc.

 

That's what I don't want. I really hope it isn't.

Anyone on the board have access to available ford parts inventory?

 

If I am not mistaken a bent or broken fork is a known and common issue on the manual trucks and the forks were hard to get for a while being on national back order.

 

I have the part number: YC3Z-7515-BB, lists at about 50 bucks.

 

I remember when my clutch failed on my 83 with a T-19. Somehow I drove it home by revving the motor between gears to try and match the drive train rpms then slipping it into gear. I didn't have to go far though.

 

Outstanding! Thank you. There's 10 on Amazon!

 

Have tracked down more that I may be able to get tomorrow. Thanks lots to one of my fave forums. Will update as I know more and let y'all know how it turns out.

 

I don't have the manual, but I sure do remember all the discussions back in 1999-2002 about a problematic fork in the ZF6. I haven't heard much about it lately, but it was a real big deal back when those trannys were under warranty. Lot's of complaints about a shift fork and throw out bearing.

 

I seem to remember kwikkordead did a thread on his zf6 R&R and talked about the weak pivot point for the clutch fork and how he fixed it.

 

There is a way to check if it is the fork before yanking the transmission. If you remove the slave cylinder from the bell housing you should measure about 2.5-2.75 inches to the face of the bell housing on a non bent clutch fork. If you are more than that then you are pulling the trans. The updated fork has the rolled edges extended along the sides of the fork past the weak point. I have never heard of a newer style failing. When I did my clutch I replaced my fork even though the original was still functional. Your symptoms definitely sounds like a bent fork.
Good luck.

 

I read that too about the allowable distance from housing face to the fork. Mine was ok, not pushed in...

So, the clutch master and slave cylinder replacement was also a bust.
Spent the night in delightful Barstow. Was exhausted by the time I got to sleep at midnight but only slept 4 hours, I don't know why.
In the morning called the guy who was loaning me the bay and convinced him to open the shop to me on a Saturday at 1pm.
9:30 had the rental car and bombed down to Santa Clarita Competition transmission and O'Riley tool rentals to get every possible thing I could need:
NEW FORK ARM!
Fork pivot
Flywheel
Pressure plate and friction disk (LUK)
Input shaft repair kit
input shaft collar one inset style, one protruding style.
Slide hammer
pilot bearing removal tool.

I raced back to Barstow and just made it in time to get the bay back open at 1:30.

I figured I would be able to get this out, fixed and back together in a couple hours. Nope, was far more of a pain than I had thought. Partially because everything is coated in greasy soot. That seems to make things go slower. Also, I am dead tired. Then the transmission filter assembly I added gets in the way of removing the crossmember. Thought at first I could just slide it back without removing the crossmember. Nope. I did find that I am missing one nut on the transmission mount to crossmember attachment and the other was about to fall off the threads. Then found that the pinch seam was hanging it up from coming back easily without fiddling with tipping and tilting the engine. Finally got it out and got access to the fork. Pulled it out and found this.............






















New parts are on the left, old on right. The fork is fine. Also, it's the upgraded fork! The "upgraded" fork I bought is old stock of the old design somehow. Looks like I'm cleaning up the old reinforced fork and putting it back in.

I took a closer look at the throwout bearing to see if something had happened there that didn't allow it to push the pressure plate enough to disengage. I did find something:



The rocker portion on the old one has lost it's steel protection and worn the plastic nearly flat. Could this small difference lead to not being able to disengage? I guess it has to be...

I figure since I have all new parts I'll put it in and start fresh with everything. I pull the pressure plate and disc and find that the flywheel isn't stock, it's a solid flywheel, not dual mass, and it's in fantastic shape:



Yes, I noticed that my up-pipes are sooting:



This would be a great time to replace them with the bellowed up pipes that are sitting on the shelf in my garage back home. Oh well. Also a good time to install the new downpipe and exhaust, also at home.

It looks to be a Valeo clutch:



I flip it over and there's something amiss:



Well, THERE'S your problem!



Looks like the loose bits probably wedged under the fingers and was what wasn't allowing the clutch to release. Interestingly, the pressure plate surface was as perfect as the flywheel. The clutch disc itself had plenty of time left on it too. With all this going on, it didn't make a peep. Went from working normally to not being able to disengage clutch in a moment. Parts probably broke off and immediately wedged tightly in place.

The pilot bearing was also thrashed with some of the rollers only being half there.

This is where I discovered the pilot bearing is installed in the pressure plate, not the crank and I didn't need the pilot bearing puller.

The input shaft was also scored and hourglassed:



The input shaft saver installed:



Using the shaft kit makes it necessary to use the oversized bearing included in the kit. (the LUK kit came with a bearing too. Standard sized) No bushing for me.

It took way too long to line it up and get it snugged down. While I'm putting the driveline, cross members and such together I'm way tired and dropping and losing fasteners and it's taking ages for me to find them. It doesn't help that the pit is dark, filthy and full of debris. I'm checking things 3 and 4 times at this point to be sure I don't miss something.

Finally am able to start it and get a good result. Took me 6 hours total.

I load up and head up 15 north somewhere between 8-9PM. I make it to within 200 miles of Moab before I start hallucinating with fatigue and lack of sleep when just a moment before, I was sure I was going to be good all the way. I pull off the highway and park behind a dark building and grab an hour of sleep. Make it into Moab at 9amL just as the rest of my group are getting their rigs ready to head to a couple of easy trails. I unload and we do SteelBender and Behind the Rocks. Back to the condos, I get something to eat, catch a second wind, or maybe it's a third or fourth and write this. It's been an adventure GETTING to my vacation.
Now, to sleep.

Thanks for all the help trying to figure this one out.

 

Oh, and the tools I borrowed at the O'Rileys in Santa Clarita CA I returned this morning to the O'Rileys in Moab Utah. I asked and they said, "No, you don't have to return them to the same branch you signed them out of" This worked in my favor hugely!