Short Shift Kit & Clutch Delay Valve fix

[SammyD]

Thanks Jay, that's great to hear! Now I'm motivated

[Riggodeaux]

Handsone interior rework, RB . . .

[GRBE53]

Hi Guys,

So - I picked up my '05 6 speed back in December but really have not had much opportunity to drive it consistently until recently. The first hing I noticed about it was the funky clutch engagement so I did the UUC CDV delete and a fluid flush including manual cycle/reverse bleed on Slave Cylinder. Having had an opportunity to drive it quite a lot this week - I can honestly say it doesnt seem to have made much of a difference - I still have a tough time getting consistently smooth clutch engagement. I notice a sporadic squeek/groan in the area of the clutch pedal(only on clutch engagement - towards end of pedal travel on the way up) and am starting to wonder if I might have a failing master cylinder.

Any thoughts?

120k miles - no detailed history available.

[Green Dragon]

Originally Posted by GRBE53

Hi Guys,

So - I picked up my '05 6 speed back in December but really have not had much opportunity to drive it consistently until recently. The first hing I noticed about it was the funky clutch engagement so I did the UUC CDV delete and a fluid flush including manual cycle/reverse bleed on Slave Cylinder. Having had an opportunity to drive it quite a lot this week - I can honestly say it doesnt seem to have made much of a difference - I still have a tough time getting consistently smooth clutch engagement. I notice a sporadic squeek/groan in the area of the clutch pedal(only on disengagement) and am starting to wonder if I might have a failing master cylinder.

Any thoughts?

120k miles - no detailed history available.

Short guess? Yes I would look at the master cylinder efficiency. Seems you verified efficient function of the slave unless something is hanging up mechanically/hydraulically with wear of the clutch.

I may not be much help on this, and others can pitch in, but a CDV delete helps quite a bit, but may not be a solve all. If this was on my e36 with no self adjusting clutch, mechanical throttle cable and "normal gear ratios" I might have a better shot at diagnosing the issue when it comes to awkward/funky engagement and disengagement problems. Once you throw in a self adjusting clutch (which adds an unnecessary layer of complexity) cdv's, and lagging, sporadic drive-by-wire throttle control that has a mind of its own, and it gets kinda messy for me. Sounds like your right on track for eliminating the variables. keep us posted and if you can describe the engagement issue with more clarity, I'm willing to bet your not alone.

[GRBE53]

Thanks Green Dragon.

Sorry for being ambiguous in my original post - I should have stated the squeak/groan from the pedal area is only on Clutch Engagement(pedal dis-engagement) towards the upper end of pedal travel.

The more I think about it, the more I am inclined to dig into the master cylinder.

[GRBE53]

I got my SSK in but there was no way the carrier pins were coming out. After several hours of massaging them back and forth about 30 degrees, I decided to give up before I broke the retaining clips off. Not sure who had mentioned it first, but removing the rear carrier mount completely(2 M10 nuts) makes it a piece of cake to raise the carrier enough to get the job done from inside the car.

I pretty much figured out I was in for a tough time when I could see the corrosion on the visible part of the pins - They are so swollen with corrosion, there is no way they are coming out of there unless the transfer case is dropped to be able to press them out from the inside.

I am convinced I need to replace all the bushings in the assembly as there is stll a lot of play in the carrier itself so I will need to try again at some point.

Only advice I can add is to use a rag under the entire work area per below to catch the inevitable dropped M3 screw. Of course, I fugured this out after I dropped/lost one of the screws. I need to go back in there to replace the original inner boot anyway so I will put the 6th screw in then.

[Green Dragon]

Originally Posted by GRBE53

I got my SSK in but there was no way the carrier pins were coming out. After several hours of massaging them back and forth about 30 degrees, I decided to give up before I broke the retaining clips off. Not sure who had mentioned it first, but removing the rear carrier mount completely(2 M10 nuts) makes it a piece of cake to raise the carrier enough to get the job done from inside the car.

I pretty much figured out I was in for a tough time when I could see the corrosion on the visible part of the pins - They are so swollen with corrosion, there is no way they are coming out of there unless the transfer case is dropped to be able to press them out from the inside.

I am convinced I need to replace all the bushings in the assembly as there is stll a lot of play in the carrier itself so I will need to try again at some point.

Only advice I can add is to use a rag under the entire work area per below to catch the inevitable dropped M3 screw. Of course, I fugured this out after I dropped/lost one of the screws. I need to go back in there to replace the original inner boot anyway so I will put the 6th screw in then.

Nice to see another SSK kit going in! Mine is almost done, just no time at the momentDid you ever get to the bottom of your clutch engagement issues?

Yeah, there is some stuff called "Kroil" that I use on corroded, rusted impellers at work that is some good ole nasty stuff, but works very well. It puts PB Blaster to shame. It might be just the ticket for corroded bushings. I've used it on exhaust work that I thought for sure I'd break the stud before the nut broke loose. Nut sure if it would make the bushing swell, but thought I'd put it out there.

[GRBE53]

Thanks for the tip on the Kroil - I will check that out.

Didn't make any progress on the clutch. I am trying to isolate the circumstances where it gets worse.

[mcurcio1989]

I decided I don't really like the sporty feel of a short shifter on my X so I took it off. Plus I bought a sea plane so I'm what you might call "poor" at the moment and I'd rather have the money for this thing. I'm going to put a classified ad on this site.

I'll do $250 shipped for the kit. Thats $100 less than UUC's list price but they always seem to run a deal that puts it closer to 300+shipping. It was used for about 3 months and is good as new. The only thing it won't have is the two bearing pins (I may have one of them though). I really think those things add absolutely no value to the kit anyways because ours don't come with bearing sleeves since they don't wear, in this arrangement. So if your bearing pin comes out easy than you can put it back in no problem and if it comes out hard (I think more often than not that may be the case) than your wasting your time and you should just leave it in and fasten the screws by pulling the shift arm up through the trans tunnel. Anyways shoot me a pm if your interested.

[m j b]

Originally Posted by GRBE53

I still have a tough time getting consistently smooth clutch engagement.

As otherwise noted in this thread, it could be a number of factors including the drive-by-wire, wear, master cylinder, etc. I'll also throw in a comment that it can be difficult to drive BMWs smoothly just due to the way that they are engineered, gear ratios, etc.

As for the squeak, I remember that being a common issue with E36 and maybe E46 cars as well. Just spray some lubricant down in there somewhere where the pedal pivots and see if that helps at all.

FWIW, I'd like to thank the OP for the thread. I actually, embarrassingly did not realize that the E53 was ever available with a manual transmission!