Jeep Enthusiast Forums banner

Clutch Replacement Write up - With Pictures!

92K views 22 replies 9 participants last post by  mark1305 
#1 ·
Hi guys, my throwout bearing recently blew up on me while driving so i decided it was time for a new clutch kit and a trans overhaul. I figured i would do a write up on how to replace a clutch for anyone who wasnt sure how its done. I didnt get pictures while lowering the transmission but thats pretty straight forward.

TOOLS NEEDED

  • Set of standard sockets (1/2 drive, 3/8 drive craftsmen set will work fine)
    Standard wrenches
    Impact gun (if available)
    Breaker bar
    Hammer
    Torque wrenches
    White bread

Start off by supporting your engine under the oil pan using a block of wood.

Remove the transmission by disconnecting driveshafts, starter, wiring, shifter levers, skidplate, etc and drop trans out of the way (sorry didnt take pictures of this)

Now this is what you will be looking at. The outer plate with the fingers and the writing on it is the pressure plate. The heavy metal peice with the teeth on the outside edge behind it is the flywheel and sandwiched between is the clutch itself.



Your new clutch kit will come with a new clutch disc, pressure plate, throwout bearing and pilot bearing.



Start zipping the pressure plate bolts off with the impact, grab the plate before taking the last bolt out because it will fall. the clutch will come with it.

If you do not have an impact, hold the crank pulley with a 3/4 in socket on a breaker bar as you break the bolts loose.



You now are looking at the bare flywheel and in the dead center is the pilot bearing.



Remove the 6 3/4 in bolts connecting the flywheel to the crankshaft.
Dont worry about marking the location, the bolt holes only line up one way.



Remove the flywheel, careful, its heavy! And pack the hole in the pilot bearing
full of white bread. (yes good ole wonder bread)
Take big *** bolt, (3/4in i believe) and press it in the hole in the pilot bearing.
Hit it a few times with the hammer and fill with more bread as needed.
Eventually the bearing will pop out like so

Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content
 
See less See more
6
#2 ·
Remove all the old bread and take the new pilot bearing and lightly lubricate it on the outside and carefully tap it into the crankshaft. Use a socket that fits it perfectly. Make sure the small rubber seal on the inside of the bearing faces the transmission. Pack the inside of the bearing with grease.





Next, install the new flywheel if you bought a new one, torquing each of the 6 bolts to 105 ft-lbs in a criscross pattern.



Slide the clutch disc over the dummy input shaft tool that came with the clutch kit.



Make sure the damper springs face the transmission side and place dummy shaft into pilot bearing.



Carefully set the pressure plate over the clutch disc and hand start all of the bolts to the flywheel.

Torque the bolts EVENLY a little at a time, in two steps, first 20ft lbs for all the bolts in a crisscross pattern, and then a final torque of 38 ft lbs.



This is what your left with..



Remove the dummy plug and thats it! :cheers2:



The throwout bearing is pretty self explainatory, just snaps over the shift fork in the bell housing. :thumbsup:

Hope this helps some people out!
 
#4 ·
Nice! Love the white bread trick. I've done that using grease before, but never with bread!

Good job, and nice pics!

Max
 
#6 ·
Bl4cK_kNiF3 said:
Thanks, it works out much better than the grease. next time you get a chance, give it a shot! :cheers2:
Well, at the shop I have several pilot bearing pullers to choose from, but I may try it anyway just out of curiosity!

Max
 
#9 ·
Quick dumb question - if you replaced the flywheel, why did you need to pull the pilot bearing out? (I have the 2.5, maybe they are different?)

FSM has the flywheel bolts torqued to 50 ft-lb plus 60 degrees more.

Nice writeup. Thanks.
The flywheel has a big hole in the center that goes around the back of the crankshaft. The crankshaft has a little hole in it where the pilot bearing rides.

The flywheel itself does not hold the pilot bearing, the crankshaft does :thumbsup:

This picture might help it make sense more


As far as torque specs, they differ for the 6cyl and the 4 cyl.

Pressure Plate Bolts (crisscross pattern)
4 cyl----------------23 ft lbs
6 cyl----------------38 ft lbs
Flywheel Bolts (crisscross pattern)
4 cyl----------------50 ft lbs plus additional 60 degrees
6 cyl----------------105 ft lbs
 
#10 ·
Matt The Hammer said:
Quick dumb question - if you replaced the flywheel, why did you need to pull the pilot bearing out? (I have the 2.5, maybe they are different?)

FSM has the flywheel bolts torqued to 50 ft-lb plus 60 degrees more.

Nice writeup. Thanks.
Yes Matt, the 2.5L is different. The pilot bearing mounts in the flywheel on a 2.5 and in the crankshaft for 4.2 & 4.0 applications.

Max
 
#11 ·
Amazing how many things are different between the 2.5 and the 4.0. You'd think that Jeep would have the two motors more similar. Wonder why on the 2.5 the pilot is in the flywheel and on the 4.0 it's in the crankshaft? Is there an advantage to one over the other?

Before I decided to replace the flywheel, I tried all the tricks to get the pilot bearing out (grease, bread, etc) with no luck. The cavity at the end of the 2.5 crankshaft is quite large. So if you're trying any of these tricks to push the pilot out of the 2.5 flywheel, make sure you have enough.

That said, impact wrench to the flywheel bolts on the 2.5 is pretty easy. Then you can remove and replace the pilot on the bench without wasting any wonder bread.

Sorry for the confusion Black Knife, I just assumed the two motors were the same. ha ha.
 
#12 ·
Amazing how many things are different between the 2.5 and the 4.0. You'd think that Jeep would have the two motors more similar. Wonder why on the 2.5 the pilot is in the flywheel and on the 4.0 it's in the crankshaft? Is there an advantage to one over the other?

Before I decided to replace the flywheel, I tried all the tricks to get the pilot bearing out (grease, bread, etc) with no luck. The cavity at the end of the 2.5 crankshaft is quite large. So if you're trying any of these tricks to push the pilot out of the 2.5 flywheel, make sure you have enough.

That said, impact wrench to the flywheel bolts on the 2.5 is pretty easy. Then you can remove and replace the pilot on the bench without wasting any wonder bread.

Sorry for the confusion Black Knife, I just assumed the two motors were the same. ha ha.
No problem! i was totally unaware that the pilot was in the flywheel on the 2.5! I had no idea. In your case, if the pilot is one of those huge ones, youre better off using wood or steel dowel that fits inside it damn perfectly, otherwise it wont work. I tried a buncha things until i found a bolt that was the right size, then it came out like nothing! :thumbsup:
 
#13 ·
Bl4cK_kNiF3 said:
No problem! i was totally unaware that the pilot was in the flywheel on the 2.5! I had no idea. In your case, if the pilot is one of those huge ones, youre better off using wood or steel dowel that fits inside it damn perfectly, otherwise it wont work. I tried a buncha things until i found a bolt that was the right size, then it came out like nothing! :thumbsup:
On a 2.5 the easiest way to replace the pilot bearing is to remove the flywheel & use a socket to pound the bearing all the way through the flywheel & out the backside.

Max
 
#15 ·
Is there any issue in re-using the Flywheel bolts? I thought I heard that they should be replaced? (I may have heard wrong?) Getting ready to put mine back together and was wondering. Thanks
 
#17 ·
Thank you for the great writeup! this gives me courage to tackle my next clutch job! Only problem for me would be finding that clutch alignment tool, not available where I live, I may just order one and keep it for later.
 
#18 ·
I thought I saw that somewhere, but almost every wright up I see appears to re-use the old one's? Does anyone know where to get replacements? Dealer?

Fernando: The Alignment tool typically comes with a new Clutch kit.

Thanks
 
#20 ·
I'm reusing old bolts. Should I put a drop of red loc tight on them???

The 2005 2.4 liter pilot bearing is in the crank. There is a flange that the bearing backs up to thus preventing me from using a puller or the grease/bread trick. Trust me, I tried all of them. finally after two broken pullers I used a dremel tool to cut slices in the bearing and then pulled it out. Major pain, lesson learned, dremel tool worked nicely.
 
#22 ·
great write-up. I just got my engine rebuilt and will be tackling the clutch replacement when reinstalling everything..

pretty sure i got all the life out of this clutch..


 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top