Clutch/Pressure Plate Change Question.

[82 Silverado 4X]

When I put my new engine in 3 years ago I went with a cheap Advance Auto Parts clutch, pressure plate and throwout bearing. Today without any prior notice I think something in the pressure plate went bad because it's not releasing the clutch when I push down on the pedal. In the morning I plan to start tearing it down.

My question is:

Can I remove the tranny and transfer case as one unit or do they need to be split? I borrowed a very big tranny jack from a freind to support them so the combined weight should not be an issue.

[ZOOMY]

I always pull the engine to replace a clutch on a 4x4, but then I don't have a transmission jack either. If I did have one, I'd take them out separately to make sure the coupler would be OK. Maybe somebody else can shed more light on the coupler issue.

[4x4Poet]

I'm going to chance stepping on your mechanical know-how. Before tearing it down, I would remove the inspection cover first and watch what happens when the clutch pedal is pressed/cycled. Linkage and throwout bearing problems cause the majority of sudden clutch abnormalities. I expect you'll be doing this, but I decided to post anyway based solely on your post. Godspeed with the task.

[82 Silverado 4X]

I pulled the inspection cover first. All I could see is the engine side of the flywheel. I even tried to look in the slot beside the clutch fork but there wasn't enough room. All the clutch linkage is in good condition and appears to be doing it's job correctly. I even tried extending my clutch rod to it's longest length but it still wouldn't release the pressure plate enough to get it to go into gear without grinding. I beleive it's either something wrong with the forks on the pressure plate or the pressure plate itself has come apart from the housing. This wasn't a gradual thing. One stop sign it worked perfectly, the next stop sign I couldn't get it into 2nd without a whole lot of grinding.
Time (or the lack of it) is why I decided to pull the tranny/transfer instead of pulling the engine to tackle the job. There's a whole lot less to disconnect by pulling the tranny/transfer instead of the engine. This is my daily "winter" driver and I need to do the entire job in 1 day which will also include getting the flywheel resurfaced.
Thanks for the replies. I'll let you know what it was and how it went when I'm done.

[4x4Poet]

OK. You've got a handle on it. When you pull the tranny/xfer combo, watch out for the angled xfer case. It makes things go in non-orderly directions. If you have an engine hoist, it's a good idea to run a strap or chain thru the hump opening (assuming you have one) and around the tranny to support it as you pull rearward. Otherwise two jacks with chains securing the tranny and xfer case work fairly well. Best wishes on your one day effort.

[82 Silverado 4X]

Turned out to be the cheap Chinese pressure plate that I put in 3 years ago. Nothing was broke, but the P/P fingers actually lost their strength and it wouldn't release the pressure plate. I installed a new clutch/pressure plate kit that was made in the good old USA by LUK. Works perfect now.

I borrowed an extra heavy duty tranny jack from a buddy. This monster measured 4ft long x 32" wide and weighs at least 250lbs. Very very heavy duty. Once the tranny and transfer case were chained down to it, I was able to move, lower and adjust the angles that I needed very easily. It held it where I wanted it very nicely. My biggest pain was removing the pilot shaft bushing. Because no one around here sells a removal tool, I filled the hole with grease and hammered in a pin that was the same size as the bushing hole. It hydrauliced the bushing right out. A guy at the auto parts told me about this method and it actually worked to my amazement.

Now that I have actually done it myself (all by myself) I can honestly say that pulling the tranny and transfer as one unit isn't something anyone would want to try unless you have a very very heavy duty tranny jack. Those heavy duty units they sell at Farbor Freight would bend like a pretzel under the weight of the tranny and transfer case.

Thanks to all that replied to my question.

[4x4Poet]

Good news! I can't believe the P/P fingers just lost their spring. I've heard good things about Luk clutches.

I've also heard of hydraulic-ing out pilot bearings with grease. Haven't had to try it yet. When I pulled the engine out of my K10 last month, the pilot came out with my fingers. No doubt that would not have happened had I wrestled with it under the truck for only a clutch change. Anyway, congrats on the sure fix.