I've got a '95 F150 4x4 with 96,000 miles. I get the sense that the clutch might be slipping, but I can't tell if it's my imagination because I've been wondering how long it will last for years now. The old test I've used in the past is to put it in 4th at a stop and drop the clutch - if it stalls, it's good. If not, it's slipping. It stalls, but I would like a more definative test.I know if I take it shop, they'll just tell me it needs replacing.

Anyone know of a simple way to tell?

How much does it cost to replace a clutch, etc. for a F150?

I've never replaced a clutch myself before. What level of difficulty is it to do myself?

Thanks in advance!

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 07-Jan-01 AT 08:42 PM (EST)[/font][p][font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 07-Jan-01 AT 08:37 PM (EST)[/font]

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 07-Jan-01 AT 08:37 PM (EST)[/font]

Dear ajstephan:

Your 4th gear 'clutch dump" test, while somewhat abusive, seems effective to me. I have changed the clutch, pressure plate, throwout and pilot bearings on my '81 F-100 4.9, and I did it in my driveway--it's not that bad, but it's time consuming.

From what you say, I'd guess your clutch is still fine. Does it "chatter" upon engagement? While you can get a good clutch to chatter occasionally, in my opinion, from bad technique, if the clutch is capable of smooth engagements and doesn't slip, it should be fine. Another sign of a good clutch is having approximately .5 - 1.5 inches of "dead pedal"--the initial pedal stroke where the pressure is lighter than later in the stroke, as the clutch is still "taking up" the play in the clutch fingers, etc... and not actually compressing the pressure plate springs fully. The less dead pedal the greater the wear. On older trucks like the '81, this play is adjustable, and may be on some of the later, hydraulic clutches--I'm not sure about this. Keep in mind that clutches can last a long time. I put 100,000 miles on a 4 spd. Granada, running it up to 170,000+ miles, on what may have been the original clutch!

One more point on your "test"--a slipping clutch is like Supreme Court Justice Stevens's (I believe) test for pornography: The great man said "I know it when I see it." But seriously, turn off the climate control, radio, etc... and LISTEN
when you shift--better yet, look at your tach--you hear/see the spike in the RPMs as the clutch fails to fully "lock up" to the flywheel. And you won't get any of the "bucking" associated w/ a poorly-matched shift, even if you poorly match your RPM's to road speed.

Back to how it's done: I blocked up all four corners of the truck w/ jackstands (with plywood under them, after my floor jack broke through the driveway and almost dropped the truck on the ground--I put plywood under the jack now too, of course.) I got most of the parts in a "LUK" brand kit from Summit (11 inch) and it has worked extremely smoothly. This clutch was slipping badly before I rebuilt it.

Plan on removing the metal "hatch" (approx. 18" by 20") that surrounds the gear shift access plate over the trans, in the cab floor. I removed the seat, floor mat, etc..., for other reasons, and this made it a lot easier. I've heard some trucks don't have the "hatch" and if not, that's gotta suck. With the hatch out, you can sit on a milk crate and reef on the pilot bearing, torque the flywheel, etc....

Some problems: plan on having the flywheel shaved at a machine shop--it gives you a virgin surface for the new friction plate to mate with (and my flywheel was burned blue and cracked, yet resurfaced fine!) The shop knows how much to cut off. I believe it was under $30.00. Hopefully you won't need to remove the trans again to have the bell housing bolts helicoiled, as I did, b/c the previous hack over-torqued the bolts. I believe this was $15.00/hole and after having to bring it back for the second hole, I had them all done.

The pilot bearing was a BEAR--by far the worst of the job, due to poor access and extreme stubborness. I finally borrowed a pilot bearing puller from a Mercedes shop, and had to cut an approx. 3" collar from 2" pipe, to adapt this puller, and crank the puller's expanding "fingers" WAY out to pick up the inner shoulder of the pilot bearing, and it came out HARD!

Centering the clutch plate using the plastic tool supplied in the LUK kit was easy.

The crossmember itself was not that hard, once you resign yourself to beating it out from b/w the framerails by main force. A short, full size sledge hammer, and a 5' crow bar were my friends here. Watch your brake/fuel lines, which lay inside the frame rails, or you'll be making more work for yourself....

This is not a job to rush, but it sure is rewarding to have done it. I hope I feel half as satisfied when I have to remove the trans just to replace the clutch slave cylinder on my '88. Some progress over the old mechanical linkage on the '81, right?

Just do it--you'll be glad you did!

BigSix

 

My experience with Ford clutch R&R jobs is this , the slave valve will die long before the clutch & related parts die . My personal Ford truck clutch was still fine when the slave valve decided to go away , it was 8 yrs old & in the 100K mile range . My advice is stop doing the high gear test , that will only shorten the life of the clutch parts . You can do the replacement of the clutch parts at home providing you have a couple of good trans jacks . You will have to remove the transfer case . And as the previous post indicated , the pilot bearing is very secure in the flywheel . I spent an hour will several removal methods to break mine loose . Id opt for the 11 Inch clutch disc as a replacement . It may increase pedal pressure a little , but its a much stouter assembly .

 

My first clutch to go ('84 F150 at 90,000 miles) did not slip, but caused it to grind going into first gear. My second clutch to go (same truck at 165,000 miles) went the classic way--I could be driving along the freeway and stomp the pedal and th etach would go up about 500 or more rpms without the truck speeding up. My latest clutch to go ('95 F150 at 68,000 miles and who knows how much prev owner abused it) also did not slip, but was causing gear grinding problems. That clutch when removed was found to be somewhat overheated, warped, and had the fingers badly rounded off from wear against the throwout bearing. The first and last clutches really threw me for a loop. In both cases I was sure the tranny was going south.

 

if you have an access panel on the bottom, you can look up and see the disc in between the pressure plate and flywheel. compare the thickness with a new one. if it is low, replace it.

 

Well I've got a little more confidence in my clutch. I don't have a tach so it's hard to tell if there's some high RPM slippage. Also, I just bled my clutch MC and slave cylinder a couple months ago and they still seem strong. (The slave cylinder went out a month or two after I bought it at 50K, so I hope this one lasts longer.)

I'll consider replacing the clutch myself eventually since it doesn't seem terribly difficult - just time consuming. It all depends on my progress with my project cars that now darken the driveway!

Thanks for all the help.