I have the manual, but wanted your input on how to get the steering column disconnected to get the front craddle off. I have taken the steering wheel out and the clock spring and am ready to unbolt the front craddle and pull it down after I disconnect all of the power steering lines that go to the power steering pump.

It really sucks that you have to do this much work to get the front craddle off of the car. I was going to change the front sway bar about 2 months ago, but looked at the manual and noticed that the front craddle had to be dropped so I waited to do it at the same time as the clutch.\

How long did it take you to bleed the power steering and is it as straight forward as the manual tells you?

 

I dint have the manual unfortunatly but It is exactly the same as a Honda setup. I left the steering wheel in place but locked it so it wouldnt move. I marked the shaft so it would go back on in the exact same place. (not recommended if you have never worked with SRS systems before) Then simply unbolt the lower flex joint and loosen teh clamp on the sliding shaft to slide it up off of the rack inrut shaft. Pictures would make this better so Ill be sure to take some on the next jobbie.

THere is only one power steering hose to remove off the pump with a 17mm socket, and one return hose to remove off the beam, with a clamp. Bleeding is simple, I found out that the red fluid they sell you at the dealer is the wrong stuff and will make the pump whine, make sure you get the stuff for vane style pumps, its light brown like engine oil. when running the system will bleed itself. just let it run and slowly turn the wheels back and forth while checking the fluid level.

Removing the cradle (or beam) is as simple as two nuts, four bolts and the balljoints and tie rods at this point, very easy in comparison to other vehicles.

 

HONDA GHANDI, I sent you a PM.

 

Do you need to take the radiator out to get the tranny out when doing the clutch removal? Also, the center shaft that you may need to use a slide hammer on, is it held in place by a snap ring? It shows a snapring (circlip) in the service manual? I am a little unclear on how to accomplish the removal of this center shaft. Please can someone experienced with this shed some light on the subject?

BTW, anyone know how much the driver side tie rod end costs. I damaged mine with a tie rod seperator tool. It worked better just to tap it with a hammer.

Thanks,

Brian

 

The radiator does not have to come out. The Center shaft goes through the diff and connects the two inner joints. After you remove the axles, it will be sticking out of the transmission and is held in with spring tension snap rings. To remove the shaft with a slide hammer you must have the correct adapter that screws into the threaded hole inthe end of hte shaft on teh drivers side. Screw it in as deep as you can to prevent the threads from pulling out. Gently but firmly "tap" the axle out of its home.

 

The spring tension snap rings, are they removed with snap ring pliers? If you are removing the axle towards the driver side, then you would only need to remove the passenger side snap ring, correct? What did you use to support the engine when you removed the driver side engine mount? Did you jack it up from underneath?

Brian

 

damn dood, you tore that apart, all that needed to put in my clutch was dropped the center diff, remove the cross members, and then drop the tranny, didn't need to remove the downpipe, and front strut! you just need to a little jimmying to get the tranny out

 

Superz has got the whole clutch swap down to under 3 hrs without removing the cross member and all that goes along with it... PM him...

 

The snap ring is not accessible, That is why you need the slide hammer, to release the shaft iwth the snap ring on it.

I did this one the way teh service manual says to do it, using an engine support tool on top, It still only took me 5hrs on the very first one I did. The next one was only 3.5 and I did it the same way. It is very easy once you learn them, and have the right tools.

 

Where can you buy the slide hammer that you need with the M8 x 1.25 thread?

Brian

 

about 50 bucks from Mitsu. I know your pain, but make sure when you take the tie rod end off that you mark the threads so that you put the new tie rod end on at the same length. You are wanting your toe in and out to be the same when you are done.

 

A slide hammer is a universal tool that you might be able to buy from the local auto parts store or maybe rent one. I got mine from a Matco dealer. What you need is a bolt with a M8 x 1.25 thread, I think I used a bolt that held the top radiator brackets in place (same thread pitch for the inside of the output shaft).

 

I alreay had a Snap on slider and adapter so Im not sure how muchthey are.

 

bringing the sub-frame down is crazy. No need to touch that or the steering rack. Same goes for the strut. I can have the tranny sitting on my bench in an hour, so trust me that you dont need to remove any subframes. You can use ANY slide hammer and just put a 8mm bolt through it, just try and buy a cheap slide hammer because the shaft comes out surprizingly easy. No engine support is needed either. You may need to support the bottom of the engine to bring it back up when you're done. lots of luck!

 

My clutch just recently went out on my evo, so i was wondering if you can send me some pictures of the install you did on the evo. Also, I live near Denver, so how much would you charge to install the clutch and the flywheel, if I decide not to install it myself?