legacycentral bbs

Today, as I was inventorying all the hardware I removed when pulling my tranny, I removed the throwout bearing from the pressure plate. I was surprised to find that the little ring in the middle of the pressure plate -- the one that the throwout bearing clips to -- was very mobile fore-and-aft. I could easily move it in and out by almost a centimeter:



When the throwout bearing is clipped in, the entire throwout bearing can be moved just as much:



(Click on any image to enlarge)

Here's a video of me moving it:

http://www.thawa.net/gallery/albums/ppring/tob_move.avi

I don't remember whether there was this much play, or if I even would have checked, when I installed this clutch. It's a stock WRX post-judder-fix clutch.

It's conceivable that it's supposed to be like this, since perhaps that little spring attached to the top of the fork (visible in this diagram) is meant to take up that slack.

So is my pressure plate normal, or did I somehow damage it while muscling my transmission out?

My TO bearing does the same thing...I think it's normal...as my whole clutch setup has 20,000 miles at most on it...

Thanks, Nick... that's reassuring... I've only got a couple of oil changes on mine.

Yeah...she'll be right!

yup, it's normal for that clip to move fore and aft a little.

Yay. That's a relief. I was not looking forward to finding the money and a source for a pressure plate and clutch alignment tool.

When you reinstall the tranny, pull that ring out as far as it'll freely slide. Attach the throwout bearing to the fork and slide the fork pin through the case and cap it.

Get the Tranny on the studs and slide it forward and you'll here the TOB click into the Pressure plate.

Thanks, Phil. I remember the basic idea from my two clutch jobs last summer. Does it help to pull it out though? I don't remember doing that. I guess I did have to push on the fork to make the bearing snap into the pressure plate though.

Anyway... thanks, each of you, for relieving my concerns.