I F*&$ing hate standards!

OK, so I have been screwing around with my standard transimission/hydraulic clutch for a long time. It never stays bled, the clutch always disappears after a few months of driving, I get more mileage from an oil change than I do a slave cylinder, the master cylinders don't last, and my clutch pedal wont fully rebound...now the last straw.........after installing a new MOPAR slave (INTERNAL slave that is) and buying a nice 1-man vaccuum bleeder I proceeded to happily bleed my clutch, overjoyed in my accomplishment, thinking that everything was great. I step on the pedal and hear a CRACK! Turns out the bracket connecting the clutch pedal to the master cylinder decided it was done, it broke apart behind the pin and broke the welds that repaired it a few years back.

F*$% standards.

Blue, is that the same car that had an automatic til you put in the manual)

I never had an auto in my MJ, always been a stick. It was born with the AX4 (4spd manual) then got an AX5 (5 spd manual) when it became my DD.

The pedal has been welded before, I broke it years ago, but it didnt break at the welds, it broke on the backside of the pivot hole. It looks like the shop that welded it used a wire weld....sure got my $$s worth outta that.......

I guess I misread AX4 for AW4. I remember thinking at the time that I'd never heard of such a thing.

I learned to drive on a 5 speed many years ago--a brand new 1957 Morris Minor 1000 wagon, & I drove a couple of manuals when I was car-shopping recently; but there are too many stop signs/lights in my town that force stops on rather steep grades that are snowy/icy a good part of the year. I'm too old to worry about killing my engine & rolling down backwards.

I'm surprised to hear that the manual is more trouble-prone than the automatic. I'd always thought the opposite is true.

I'm not easy on my vehicles...and I know that, but the internal slave is a bad design. Such a PITA to service. Plus it's about that time where things like this start breaking anyway, but it all seems to happen in a string when you can't really afford it to..........

The Cherokee clutch master cylinders suck. I got a Howes racing master cylinder with the stainless steel bore. The run about $60 and will be the last one you ever buy. I had to fab the connection to the pedal but it was easy and you end up with an adjustable setup. The stock XJ bore is .75"

i thought i was the only one to have the clutch pedal break at the top where it pivots. surprised to find it had only 2 tack welds holding it in place. i welded it back and have not had a problem since.

mine broke while i was driving. thought the slave broke so i pulled over and turned it off. had to restart in gear. amazing how the starter launched it forward and started. had to shift with no clutch and go through stop signs, not to mention almost going through my garage door when i got home.

89xj said:

i thought i was the only one to have the clutch pedal break at the top where it pivots. surprised to find it had only 2 tack welds holding it in place. i welded it back and have not had a problem since.

mine broke while i was driving. thought the slave broke so i pulled over and turned it off. had to restart in gear. amazing how the starter launched it forward and started. had to shift with no clutch and go through stop signs, not to mention almost going through my garage door when i got home.

Click to expand...

Haha, I know that feeling.....

I AM ALL FIXED!!!! MJ drives like a champ now! Clutch is firm, ,high and holding, shifts beautifully. Got another clutch pedal from the scrap yard, from my MJ's twin ironically.....slapped it in and drove it off the ramps.

My master is a NAPA part, should hold well, I 've had good luck with NAPA stuff, plus it has a "warranty" (NAPA owner is a family friend).

Blue, what kind of ramps do you have?

I dont know what brand exactly. They're nothing special, just a normal department/auto store brand. Been used tons and only one is slightly bent. I have little tires on the MJ though, once I go bigger I don't know if the ramps will work......

On that note the clutch in my '90 XJ, 4.0, AX5 is acting like the pressure plate is warped. I clutched it last summer, and now it trembles (feels like axle hop) violently when I start out from a dead stop, only seems to do it when it gets to operating temperature. This being my first 4x4, could this be a drivetrain issue, or I was thinking I need to bleed the clutch, or turn in the 1 year warrantee on my new (not reman) clutch kit. Thoughts?

Thanks

You could try bleeding the clutch, but normally when that is needed the clutch pedal drops to the floor and has no pressure.

Is the chattering on take off only or can you feel the clutch slip while driving too? That could be your clutch not disengaging completely. Did you have your flywheel resuraced?...You're not supposed to, the tolerance is too small.

I didnt resurface the flywheel, we did take it off to replace the rear-main. I'll have a buddy help me bleed it some time. do you think this might be a master cylinder issue? I rebuilt it prior to replacing the clutch.

Thanks