94 K1500 5.0 NV4500 clutch pedal stiff and noise

[mrmontebuilder]

My 94 RCSS 4x4 has the NV4500 5 speed and ocassionally it is hard to get in first say, if I stop at a long light or stuck in traffic and shift to neutral I need to shift to a different gear and back to first. Also this is the stiffest clutch I ever had, had vehicles with hydraulic, cable and linkage clutches some with aftermarket clutches and none were as stiff as this one.

When you push the clutch in as it reaches the bottom of it's travel there is a noise like a spring being extended as well. I am thinking slave is starting to get bound up and possibly also the bushing where the master is attached to the pedal is worn out or broken/missing.

Any suggestions ? I like the truck but most of my driving on a day to day basis is in traffic and the clutch is killing my leg.

[mrmontebuilder]

I did notice a lot of free play in the pedal when disengaged and looked under the dash to find the bushing for the clutch pedal is pretty well gone. I pushed it back in place and clutch felt somewhat better but it popped partially apart again as I expected it to. Will order a new one from local dealer Monday and install and see how it feels after that.

[LynnJr]

If its a spring sound its under the dash.There is a master cylinder a slave cylinder a throwout bearing pressure plate and clutch.No return spring on a clutch fork on these trucks.
Get the bushing fixed first and see how it feels.Also check your fluid.If its all black its probably full of rubber from the O-rings on the piston inside of the master or slave.
When they wear out they leak slowly and you lose pedal sitting at a light.If you have to pump the pedal to get it in gear replace them both at the same time.
I say that because it takes over 3500 pushes on the pedal to bleed the system.

[mrmontebuilder]

Pedal bushing solved the squeak and clutch effort was reduced somewhat as well. I need to drive it to see how it really is though. My pushrod for the master has a plastic end where it attaches to the pedal and from the bushing being work it is slightly egged out so one way or the other it is getting done soon along with a slave too. Most likely the Dorman pre assembled and bled setup to make it easy.

[mrmontebuilder]

Well pedal bushing made it better for a about 20 pushes of the clutch then it popped again. Clip is not broken but it keeps popping off the pedal and back to squeaking and stiff pedal. Assuming the slave and or master is going and getting too much for the clip to handle pushing?

[mrmontebuilder]

Ordered Dorman pre-bled clutch hydraulic setup today. Will post about how it all works out in a few days.

[mrmontebuilder]

Ok first a confession- apparently I did not take my smart pills when I looked at this truck I don't know how many times on the lift. I have an NV3500 trans not a 4500. But, I did pull the clutch master and slave off and the line tonight and replace with pre-bled Dorman setup.

The old fluid was like a milk chocolate color with lots of crud in the reservoir and master looked like it had Jello on the backside where it was leaking. Slave wasn't much better either. New hydraulics seemed to have stopped the squeak and eased pedal effort a good bit. Need a test drive to see how it really is but things appear promising!!