So I have not done a clutch in 40 years or so. I will have to do this without a lift. How tough a job is it? It doesn't look bad and I have my 17 year old son to lift and hold on to things. The car has a jackson racing supercharger, so I'd rather upgrade what I can.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
Big Joe
Happy meal. Jack stands. 17yr old understands adult language, I assume. Penetration fluid for the PPF BOLTS. FRONT AND REAR.
the flying miata kit is the easy button and I like the clutch feel...
I have had the trans out of mine three times on jack stands on the ground. I wouldn't call it fun, but its doable. Worst trouble I've had has been that the stupid plastic clutch alignment tool has so much slop to the point where the tool will go in and out of the pilot bearing and disc but the input shaft will never go into the pilot bearing. After fighting for 2 hours trying to get the input shaft to engage the pilot bearing last winter, I ended up torching the input shaft out of an old junk 5-speed and using that as an alignment tool. Slammed the transmission home in under 5 minutes after that.
Thanks Guys. I just called my mechanic for a price on him doing it. I'm not sure at the moment if I have the time to do it. If the cost is reasonable, I will just have him do it. He has always been fair and quick. Right now I have two fords in need of repair and one has the spot in the garage, my wife dd has the other.
Thanks
I'm reading all over the internet! This clutch only has 110K plus miles on it. I don't know if they rode it before or what.
I've done a bunch of miata trans r&r. It's actually fairly easy as these things go. The PPF is only hard if you don't understand how the rear end bolts and fittings work, but the 2nd time and every time thereafter it'll be easy! Which is of no help if you never plan to do it again.
The last time i removed a Miata transmission, it was because i asked a guy helping me to remove the fill plug and he removed the 'jesus bolt' instead. Out comes the trans.. and apart.. And actually now that i think about it that wasn't the last time because I had gone to the restroom while he 'resealed' the input shaft seal housing. Maybe re-bolted is a better word because no new sealant was applied and I had to drop the trans again and reseal that.
You know, i came in here planning to be encouraging but now I've left you with a tale of how taking a miata transmission out once turns into taking it out 3 times. Don't let your helper do any 'helping' unless you're watching him like a hawk. 
Please elaborate on the "Jesus bolt". I own a Miata and have done a drain/fill. Everything still runs. But I need to know this jeebus bolt location so I don't repeat history here.
edit: you're talking about the six speed. Does the 5spd have this too?
In reply to Vigo :
No worries whatsoever. I'm just looking at if $400 bucks in labor is even worth the down time with all I have going on right now. This car is about to be my winter beater so I'm going to need it done. There as a point in my life where I rented three bays for next to nothing and I could walk away from car projects, or go nuts as time allowed. I don't have time or space right now. If this job went smoothly, it would be one thing. I'll let you guys know what I end up with.
Again, thanks for the input
In reply to thedoc :
For your sake or the mechanics sake, I would heavily marinate those PPF bolts now. Right now. It will save whoever does the job a lot of potential head ache.
OK, I just got off the phone with my wife. She reamed me for wanting to do it myself. She said all I will do is lay on a cold concrete floor and my son will abandon me. She also hates me working underneath a car on jack stands.
I'll let you know how it plays out. She is being great about paying for it, so I guess I should not complain.
thedoc said:She said all I will do is lay on a cold concrete floor and my son will abandon me.
well that turned dark.
You guys are saying get the happy meal kit, no questions? Any other decent options?
In reply to Fueled by Caffeine :
She has seen this happen before...
Depends on what the car is used for. DD, go to Rock Auto and order factory type parts. If you are doing motorsports with it, then yes, FM is the way to go.
thedoc said:You guys are saying get the happy meal kit, no questions? Any other decent options?
FM kit is a great choice and includes all the clutch-related parts you'll need.
Think about other stuff you'll need and/or want for the job. New exhaust gaskets and transmission oil are pretty much required. You might also want to consider replacing the shifter boolts (they are likely to be torn) and clutch hydraulics (master & slave are a weak point and replacements are cheap). Depending on the amount of corrosion underneath you might also want new exhaust fasteners -- if you have new ones in a box then it's much easier to just go straight to cutting the old ones off. Rear main seal & installer tool?
The Happy Meal (stage 2 with the 10.1 lb flywheel) is absolutely the way to go. Excellent feel and taking 9 lbs off the rotating assembly makes the car much more "lively".
_ said:Please elaborate on the "Jesus bolt". I own a Miata and have done a drain/fill. Everything still runs. But I need to know this jeebus bolt location so I don't repeat history here.
edit: you're talking about the six speed. Does the 5spd have this too?
Jesus bolt is on the passenger side and is really easy to access. Once you unbolt it the transmission has to be disassembled to put it back.
Fill plug is on the driver's side and the exhaust pipe is right in the way. 6-speed for sure.
I am not sure if the 5 speed has a Jesus bolt or which side the fill plug resides.
First time I've heard of that, but I can see how it could happen if you just start undoing things randomly.
Tip for anyone who now has Internet Fear of this job: the fill plug has a square head.
I dont think the 5 spd has a 'jesus bolt' so to speak. Even on the 6spd it's real damn easy to NOT take out the wrong thing. But, my experience as a teacher has shown me that when people start from the bottom you can't take anything for granted and the hardest part is trying to remember what it was like to not know anything so you can tell people not to do things that seem painfully obvious to you with the privilege of experience. I enjoy hilarious stories of mishap and failure so I'm fairly confident I've chosen the right profession at this point.
If you're pressed for time on projects, I'd go ahead and let a pro handle it for you.
No point in adding more stress to life if you don't have too.
In reply to z31maniac :
I have done 95 % of the work on my 2006 mustang. It is my auto cross car. I installed the kenne bell supercharger with minimal help. I had some help with the suspension, mostly bc I was tired and busy. On my other cars I have had work done and it has been nice just to drop the car and pick it up. This is too late in the season for me to tear the car apart and have to screw with it over multiple days. As you all know, if these projects go well, it's a snap. If not, well you know how it goes. The snags with the kenne bell were just stupid, not being able to find fastners or having the wrong torque wrench, etc. It might just be easier to not stress about this. I am shocked bc this thing only has 110 K plus on it.
Anyway, thanks for your input and support.
Was curious about this "Jesus Bolt" and found this:
thedoc said:In reply to z31maniac :
I have done 95 % of the work on my 2006 mustang. It is my auto cross car. I installed the kenne bell supercharger with minimal help. I had some help with the suspension, mostly bc I was tired and busy. On my other cars I have had work done and it has been nice just to drop the car and pick it up. This is too late in the season for me to tear the car apart and have to screw with it over multiple days. As you all know, if these projects go well, it's a snap. If not, well you know how it goes. The snags with the kenne bell were just stupid, not being able to find fastners or having the wrong torque wrench, etc. It might just be easier to not stress about this. I am shocked bc this thing only has 110 K plus on it.
Anyway, thanks for your input and support.
I've gotten to the point I let the shop (not some random quick lube place) even do oil changes. I can hook up to their WiFi while I work, and I don't have to spend an evening or Saturday morning crawling around on the garage floor, or dealing with disposing of used oil, etc.
I even bought a battery-powered mower and trimmer so I didn't have to deal with having the oil and gas in the garage.
NoviceClass said:Was curious about this "Jesus Bolt" and found this:
The glossing over of 'take trans apart, fix it, put it back together' is a little funny. Also, even though you have to remove the fill plug to get the correct fluid level, i actually fill the transmission through the shifter turret.
But for a clutch job you don't even have to mess with the fluid if you don't want to.
I have never worked on a rusty miata, i guess. I honestly spend more time futzing with not breaking the clips that hold the wiring to the side of the PPF than i spend on the bolts that hold it to the rear diff.
Do not attempt to fill a 5-speed through the shifter turret. It's separate from the body of the trans.
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