so, nervous as hell to do my own clutch...some questions I cant find an answer too...

Do i need to remove the transmission completely form the car? seems lots of videos have people just moving it over, like i said, never done this so unsure as this also leads to other questions i have

How much do i need to take off trans? like i am guessing i need to undo the shift cables? What about the hydraulic clutch assembly?

Seems that for sure the driver side CV joint needs to come out, debate on passenger side? Do I just pop the CV joint out of steering knuckle? Ideas/help here?

Anything I should be keeping my eye out for in particular?
Edit: Not my first wrench job. Ive replaced passenger side CV joint, struts, control arms and tie rods/ends. This one is just more wrenching than i am used to or comfortable with

99 SL 325k miles.

 

I have replaced the clutch in an S-series by moving the transmission over as you have seen in the videos. I removed everything from the transmission including the axles, shift cables and the slave cylinder. I disconnected the ball joints and tie rod ends to get the axle shafts free of the knuckle. Perhaps I took apart more than was needed but I didn't want to risk damage by trying to leave the axles in place. I am thinking now that just the intermediate shaft could probably be removed.

 

i was wondering about the slave cylinder, i am not sure how to get that out.

Currently i am stuck on one of the 15mm bolts holding the trans in. the one nearest the firewall, its tucked up next to the exhaust( had to remove) it isnt stripped or rounded over, but i am not sure if i can bust this thing loose, due to its location, I can not quite get the leverage I did on the other bolts. they required quite a bit to bust loose.

 

After removing the two nuts, rotate the slavecylinder and it will just pull out. I assume the battery, battery tray and ducting has been removed. I used an impact with a 6 pt socket to remove the bell housing bolts.

 

ok, i didnt know about the twist, came right out. the push rod almost came out, i am assuming its ok to just reuse that assembly?

the nut DID bust loose, I just needed a better breaker bar.

How heavy is this trans gonna be? Can I lift this thing around myself, I am of decent strength

My clutch kit came with " high performance grease" where the heck does that go?

 

It should be fine to reuse the slave, just tie it up out of the way below the master cylinder to minimize the risk of air getting in. The transmission didn't seem too heavy and maybe 75lbs. The grease is probably intended for the splines. Good luck.

 

this sounds obvious, but interior of bellhousing should be nice and dry, right? it appears I have a leak. I can only assume from the transmission. do they make new seals for these? i think i read somewhere they are long gone.

Edit, i should point out, i am sure this leak is quite old.

 

If the disc is oil soaked it is probably the front seal leaking. The seal is part of the input shaft bearing and apparently unavailable. Plus the transmission needs to be opened up to replace it.

 

none of it seemed oil soaked, so i cleaned up it pretty good and slapped it all back together, took a while but its in there. the old disc was quite worn down, the flywheel was pretty glazed over and smooth. i figure those were the issues with the slipping.
.. went to go reinstall the old slave cylinder and i snapped a tube!! grrrrr. oh well, new one ordered, after 325k miles, isnt going to hurt.

i have to slap the CV joints back in, do the suspension, wiring and put back all the air cleaner etc, just a few more hours work. all in all, not bad looking back but was quite daunting while doing it. I just tried to go slow and not freak out about anything. saved myself about 2k. none of the shops around me were cheap, nor did they want to let me use the parts I already had laying around.

 

Please post a video of you pulling away from a stop into the distance... And shifting...

This thread is going to become a sticky on basic clutch replacement. I love that it is from the hands on perspective of someone who has never done it before. Much more relatable to the average DIY person who has like you never performed this task.