TDickey

Hello:
I need anyone's advise. First I am NOT mechanical and am trying to deal with mechanics that are talking every which way but straight, so need anyone's mechanical insight. My husband put a new Ford clutch, flywheel, throw out bearing (and whatever else you do when you put in a new clutch) in my son's 2002 V6 Mustang in June of 2013. Ford stands behind the parts for 12 months/12,000 miles. The clutch has been working beautifully until we had a rebuilt motor put in 3 weeks ago. The mechanic that put in the motor warranties his work for 6 months. Within a few days of taking the car home, the clutch starting making a noise when not pushed down to the floorboard. Took the car back to the guys who put in the engine and they dx it as throw out bearing and unrelated to their installation of the motor. They said they took the transmission out with the engine so they were not responsible for this seeming throw out bearing issue. When they had the old motor pulled, they did call me and say the clutch and flywheel looked good and they could tell it was new.

So, is truly coincidental that the clutch was absolutely perfect prior to the installation of the rebuilt motor and now suddenly we have a throw out bearing problem? Do they not have to disengage some part of the transmission when putting in a new motor? I just cannot accept that they didn't jar something or not align something just right. I have been trying to study this issue so I can make a meaningful argument when I call them back this week to "discuss" this issue.

Any Mustang mechanic people that can help me?

Thanks.

LilRoush

Define "rebuilt the motor" for me. To me 'rebuilt' means full job, engine fully apart for fresh everything top to bottom.
If that is what they did, then they had the motor off the trans to rebuild it. So regardless if they removed it all from the car at once or not, those were apart. You can confirm that because they told you about the clutch and flywheel conditions.

Was it them or just a bad throw out bearing (TOB)? It could be a 50/50 shot. The other thing would be to confirm it really is the TOB that has gone bad.

TDickey

We bought a rebuilt motor; 100,000 mile warranty/3 year. My son's motor was removed and they company that rebuilds engines took it. So... it is a "new" rebuilt engine. Hope that makes sense.

So would there be room for error when they re-attached the transmission to the "new" motor? If so, could that cause a clutch noise/problem?

Lastly... how do I get a throw out bearing diagnosed? The mechanic that put in the engine said that was what it sounded like to him when he listened to the noise. He also has a vested interest in it not being his responsibility.

Quite a dilemma...

sonicblue2002

I would diagnose the throw out bearing by taking off the bell housing dust cover, detaching the clutch cable from the clutch fork, and then pulling the clutch fork back so that the throw out bearing no longer makes contact with the clutch pressure plate fingers, if this makes the noise stop it is almost certainly the throw out bearing.

When I put a new clutch and throw out bearing in my car there was a noise from the throw out bearing when the clutch was not depressed, it ended up being that the clutch cable had a bit too much slack and was allowing the throw out bearing to slip against the clutch pressure plate fingers.

So you might try adjusting your clutch. If your car still has the stock clutch quadrant this can be done by lifting up on the clutch pedal with your foot when the car is turned off.

When they installed the new engine they may have neglected to properly grease the throw out bearing and the retainer it rides on, they could have also incorrectly installed the throw out bearing on the clutch fork causing it to make noise. Of course it could just be the throw out bearing went bad, or something else like the transmission input shaft bearing.

I have inserted a picture of the dust cover and clutch fork that I mentioned, this is on the drivers side towards the front of the car.

Good luck, and welcome to the forums.

TDickey

Thanks to both for your advice. Going to discuss with the mechanic that did the motor installation this week. IF they are willing to go back in and check out the issue... can their actual installation cause damage to the throw out bearing? IF the throw out bearing is really damaged or a faulty part.... when I take it back to Ford for my warranted part... do you think they will be able to determine if the part was "faulty" vs. damaged by the mechanic's installation of the motor? As you can see... I am in the middle of a mess.... likely a costly mess. Guessing installation mechanic will point finger at "faulty" part and Ford will point finger at "faulty" installation causing damage to the part.

Thanks for the input and any other input you all have or anyone else. I am in foreign territory here.
Tracey

LilRoush

Yeah, without being there, it's hard to say. You're right that they will probably point the finger at each other. That being said, the motor rebuild team would have had it off, so Ford can wash their hands of it. And yes, it can be put back together wrong by the motor rebuilder when they put the motor into the car and mated it to the trans again.