Clutch and Input Shaft Issues

[ZakStr]

Hello,

I have a 2002 Mustang GT, mostly stock, about 130,000 miles. At about 110,000 miles the throwout bearing completely disintegrated. I had hardly any money at the time and shop I was working at would not allow me to work on my own car in the shop. With few options, I had to replace the throwout bearing on the floor of my garage, laying on my back. I also replaced the pilot bearing, flywheel, pressure plate, and clutch. When I went to put the transmission back in, I had to use the transmission to tilt the engine back so I could slide the input shaft in. Ultimately, I had to pull it up the rest of the way with the bell housing bolts. I know this could damage the pilot bearing, but I did not have a lot of options. When I was done, there was a slight squeak when the clutch was out.

Fast forward to now, the squeak has steadily gotten worse. I got the car up on a lift today and observed the inside of the bell housing while the engine was running. With the clutch out, it was obvious the input shaft was not staying in place on the engine side, lots of movement from the shaft.

Is this the pilot bearing? If so, is the input shaft shot, are there any other parts that might have also been damaged?

Thank you.
Zak

 

[01yellercobra]

Sounds like you killed your pilot bearing. Why didn't you use an alignment tool. Most of us do this work on our backs in the garage. Still have to take the right steps.

 

[ZakStr]

I know I blew it. So is the input shaft likely toast at this point or does it probably just need a new pilot bearing?

 

[ZakStr]

Sounds like you killed your pilot bearing. Why didn't you use an alignment tool. Most of us do this work on our backs in the garage. Still have to take the right steps.

I know I blew it. So is the input shaft likely toast at this point or does it probably just need a new pilot bearing?

 

[01yellercobra]

Only way to know is to pull it apart. You might get lucky and only need a new pilot bearing.

 

[CobraEd]

Definitely need to pull it apart again to inspect for damage. Hopefully only the pilot bearing is damaged. Be sure to inspect the input shaft & the sleeve as well.

Tip: To get the back of the engine to angle down so you can more easily & properly install the trans, loosen the engine mounts both were they bolt to the engine block & where they bolt to the mount pads of the kmember. This will allow the engine to tip down more easily. You could carefully Jack up on the front of the engine with a block of wood for protection, or have someone pull down on back of engine & wedge a piece of wood between the bellhousing & trans tunnel to hold it down.

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