1G AWD Clutch install

Disconnect the battery terminals and remove battery and battery box.

Disconnect:

1. The mass air sensor (MAF) plug.
2. Boost Solenoid Control (BSC) from aircan.
3. Remove the BSC hose from the aircan (circled).
4. Move the BSC out of the way towards the rear of the car.
5. Unbolt the aircan from the body (3 bolts on 90-94 to body, 1 to IC pipe 90, 2 to IC 91-up).

Disconnect the MAF hose from the turbo inlet and...

...remove the air canister/MAF/MAF hose from the car.

Remove the cotter pins (circled in red) on both the shift cable and select cable. There is a washer on either side of each cable connection (4 total). Remove the two bolts from the shift cable bracket on top of the transaxle (circled in pink). Move the cables toward the back of the engine compartment and tie them up out of the way.

Remove the clutch slave cylinder hydraulic line bracket on top of the transaxle. Remove the tranny ground wire (circled).

Remove the speedometer cable from the transaxle (between the intake and firewall).

Remove the reverse light switch connector from the transaxle (under the upper IC pipe on the transaxle).

Remove the transaxle bolts that can easily be accessed from the engine compartment, except leave one of the top ones in to retain the tranny at this time (you can loosen it, but don't remove it). Remove the two starter mount bolts (circled). Pull the starter to the driver's side away from the tranny bellhousing.
NOTE that the starter power wires do not have to be disconnected.

Loosen the front wheel lugnuts.
If you are doing this clutch swap alone and plan on working on the axles, do the following:

1. Jack the car up
2. Remove the front wheels
3. Remove the center caps from the wheels
4. Remove the cotterpin from the axle nut
5. Bolt the wheels back on
6. Lower the car
7. Crack the axle nuts loose
You might want to check the Axle Removal Section to see if you need to do this.

NOTE The cruise control or ABS hydraulic units (if you have ABS) are located between the battery and airbox. They should not have to be removed unless you remove the transaxle mount (recommended, however, see below). The ABS is in the driver's fenderwell on GVR4s, so it will not be in the way.

Raise the entire vehicle high enough to allow the transaxle to be lowered onto a floor jack and pulled from under the car while still on the floor jack. NOTE - Do not put jack stands under any part of frame forward of the steering rack. Some of the frame members under the engine/transaxle must be removed. Remove the wheels.

Remove front wheels and fenderwell covers (Covers are located on inner side of wheelwells, they are plastic and covers the side of the engine compartment).

Drain the transaxle and transfer case. The transfer case fluid can be left in if it was recently changed. The fluid will leak out at the rear driveshaft once the driveshaft is disconnected. To avoid this always keep the back end of transfer case higher than the front. Note the screwdriver wedged between the fender cover and the transaxle in this pic - this is unnecessary in this case, as the fender cover should already be removed. The screwdriver is useful when draining the tranny when the cover is not removed, as it keeps fluid from splashing off of the cover. (The drain plug is circled in pink, 24mm; the fill plug is circled in red, 17mm).

Remove the bolt holding the clamp near the front/top of exhaust downpipe (circled, 14 or 15mm). Remove the 2 large nuts (19mm) holding the downpipe to the O2 housing. Unbolt the downpipe from the catalytic converter (17 or 19mm).

Remove the ground strap from the downpipe heatshield (already removed, circled in red, 10mm). Remove the sidemount bolt from the rear downpipe hanger bracket (circled in pink, 12mm) and remove the downpipe.

Straighten a coat hanger, and wrap it around the passenger suspension (circled), under the driveshaft, and attach it to the rear downpipe hanger bracket (circled) to support the driveshaft while the transfer case is out (already removed in this pic, obviously). This is to protect the front driveshaft lobro joint from damage from being pushed to too severe an angle.

Remove the 5 transfer case mounting bolts (Marked here in white, 17mm. The fill plug is marked in red, 17mm; the drain plug in pink, 24mm). Push the transfer case towards the driver's side until the tranny splined shaft going into the transfer clears the transfer case. Drop the transfer case front end down, and pull the transfer case off of the driveshaft, keeping the front lower than the back if you left the fluid in the transfer case. Set the case aside with the rear facing up to avoid losing fluid. Now would be a good time to replace the rear transfer case seal if you haven't had the transfer case recall done (which is supposed to replace that seal and the yoke).

Remove the "Right member" (long structural member running front to back on the passenger's side, circled), two bolts rear (14mm), three bolts front (17mm).

Remove the "Gusset"(small triangular structural member on passenger side), three bolts front (14mm), two bolts rear (14mm).

Remove the small bolt from the bottom of the flywheel inspection cover on the bottom of the bellhousing. The cover can stay bolted to the engine block.

Axle Removal

NOTE - Usually Japanese-based vehicle platforms allow the lower balljoints to unbolt from the lower control arm allowing the strut/hub/drive axle assembly to swing away from the lower control arm. On DSMs the lower ball joint does not unbolt from the lower control arm, it has to be pressed out. The axles can gotten out of the way one of three ways without removing the balljoints.

Method 1

This method is the fastest way to do it, if you don't plan on doing any work to the axles. It does not require removing the axles from the spindles. However, if your CV boots are really dried out, this may cause them to crack, due to the extreme angle the outer CV joint is at while the axle is out. If your boots are that dried out and old, though, you should use Method 2 and follow the CV Boot VFAQ to replace the boots.
Passenger side:

1. Remove the tie rod cotter pin and disconnect the tie rod end
2. Remove the brakeline bracket from the strut
3. Remove the lower strut bolts (17mm)
4. Pull the hub down and pull the passenger axle from the transaxle. A pry bar must be used inbetween the CV joint and the transaxle to release the retaining clip on the axle end.
5. Pull the axle out and rotate it into the wheelwell, and wire it up to the spring/strut out of the way.

Driver side:

1. Remove the tie rod cotter pin and disconnect the tie rod end
2. Remove the brakeline bracket from the strut
3. Remove the lower strut bolts (17mm)
4. Remove the axle carrier bearing from the block
5. Pull the hub down and pull the driver axle out of the transaxle. This will pull the axle far enough away from the transaxle to allow removing it without the axle getting in the way.
If this works for you, use it. If you plan on replacing any of the CV joint boots, use Method 2 or 3. If you use Method 1 skip over the Method 2 and 3 sections.

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Method 2

Turn the steering wheel all the way to the side you are working on (this will pull the tie rod towards the center of the car). Remove the drive axle cotter pins and nuts (this will require someone to step on the brakes while you use a long breaker bar to loosen the nuts, disregard if you loosened the nuts earlier), brakeline bracket from the strut, and lower strut bolts. Then slide the hubs away from the outer axle spline leaving the axle shaft still connected to the transaxle. Then remove the whole axle shaft. For the passenger side, there is a metal ring clip on the end of the axle. To pull the axle, put a large screwdriver or prybar between the axle end and tranny, and give it a quick jerk. It should pop the clip loose and then you slide it out of the tranny.

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Method 3

Disconnect the lower control arm from the subframe (2 large bolts andtwo small nuts at the rear, 1 long bolt and nut at the front). Start with the passenger side. The control arm has one thick and one thin rubber washer at thefront attachment point.

CAUTION Be careful of the rubber washer orientation and do not lose them.

Disconnect the bracket that holds the brake line to the strut (IMPORTANT - DO NOT disconnect the brake hoses, just the bracket holding the hose to the strut).

Support the brake/hub assembly and remove the 2 lower strut bolts. The whole assembly (lower control arm/brakes/hub/drive axle) can be pulled out, disconnecting the inner CV joint from the transaxle. Turn the steering wheel so the tie rod is fully extended towards the side you are working on. A pry bar must be used inbetween the CV joint and the transaxle on the passenger side. Use some wire to hang the suspension assembly from the spring, making sure that the brake line is not stretched tight.

On the driver side everything is the same except an intermediate bearing assembly (half way down the drive axle) must be unbolted from the back of the engine block (2 bolts, 14mm). Pull the axle out of the spindle first, then unbolt this bearing assembly and pull the axle out of the transaxle.

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Method 4 - not recommended

Unbolt the lower control arm balljoint from the hub, and either strike the hub right next to the balljoint until it pops loose from the hub, or use a balljoint fork to pop it loose.

This is not recommended because you can damage the balljoint boot. If you DO use a balljoint fork and tear the balljoint boot, though, you can order a boot from the dealer, it's part number MB176047 - don't let the dealer convince you that you can't order just the boot, because you can.

Remove the two bolts holding the clutch slave cylinder to the bellhousing. Move the slave cylinder towards the front of vehicle and out of the way. It is best to tie a plastic bag around the slave cylinder to keep the pushrod and piston from coming out of the cylinder body (which will require a total bleeding of the clutch system).

IMPORTANT - The slave cylinder hydraulic lines DO NOT have to be disconnected. Do not push the clutch pedal in with the slave cylinder unmounted.

NOTE that the tranny reinstall will be easier if you totally remove the upper tranny mount. Pull the four plugs from the passenger wheelwell, and remove the four bolts behind them...

...then remove the 2 bolts that hold the mount to the tranny and the bolt connecting the mount to the cruise control bracket (on vehicles so equipped).

Remove any remaining transaxle bolts (including the top one you left in before). NOTE that there is a bolt under the starter on the engine block that goes into the bellhousing. You need to remove this from under the car (note a better view of the speedometer cable from here too).

IMPORTANT - Don't forget this little bolt at the front of the block near the front lower engine mount, or you will bend up the clutch/block plate a lot. It takes a 10mm openend wrench to get it out, it is a pain with the turbo still in place. Dave Diller notes that removing the wastegate actuator can make removing this bolt easier if you have problems getting to it. Once you have it out, throw it away - most dealers never replace it, and I never have, and have never had a problem with it being gone.

If you were missing any of the bolts holding the tranny to the block, this diagram will help you get replacements if you want to order new ones from the dealer, or hit your local hardware store for 8.8 Grade bolts.

From the rear of the engine, near the firewall:

1. small bolt, 12mm head, above the xfer case, running from the engine block side, through a non-tapped hole, into a tapped hole in the tranny
2. starter bolt, 14mm head, sandwiching the bellhousing plate between the bellhousing and starter
3. starter bolt, 14mm head, sandwiching the bellhousing plate between the bellhousing and starter
4. top rear tranny bolt, 14mm head, holds the coolant pipe bracket to the bellhousing, threads into block
5. top front tranny bolt, 14mm head, threads into block
6. bellhousing plate bolt, 10mm head, holds bellhousing plate to the bellhousing
7. front tranny bolt, 14mm head. Down near the slave cyl. MUST be in place, or you'll break things.
8. bottom - 12mm head, flywheel inspection plate cover bolt

The transaxle can now be removed towards the passenger side of vehicle. The transaxle does not have to come away from the engine block very far before lowering it down. Actually the subframe does not allow the transaxle to be moved very far away from the engine block. The back of the transaxle can be pointed slightly down after it is a few inches away from the engine block. The transaxle will come out by yourself, but putting it back is easier with two people, though one can do it if you put it in place using your legs while lying under the car.

Remove the throwout bearing from the transaxle and install a new one.

NOTE - The throwout bearing has a small steel spring clip holding it in place. Note its' orientation and make sure you reinstall in the same position. Grease the inner hole of the throwout bearing lightly, and pull the clutch fork from its' pivot ball, grease the socket in the fork, and reinstall the fork.

Note if you are putting in an aftermarket clutch, it might be a good idea to remove the pivot ball and put a single lockwasher on it. There has always been a big debate on whether this does anything or not, but anyone that actually does notices a difference. It basically helps move the clutch pedal engagement point up off of the floor a bit. I do it on every clutch job I do now.

Disconnect the six bolts holding the pressure plate to the flywheel. Remove the pressure plate and clutch disk. If you are going to be reusing this pressure plate for some reason, make sure to crack all 6 bolts loose, then loosen them a little at a time in a star pattern, so the PP doesn't warp.

Remove the six bolts (7 for 93-94) holding the flywheel to the crank. This is made much easier if you get some strap steel and drill two holes in it. Bolt one end to one of the pressure plate mounting pads, and one to the block. You will have to bend the strap to get it to fit right. Shown is the tool I made out of 3/16" strap steel, which is overkill for a single clutch install, but I use it for many installs (I have since made a much smaller tool for my toolbag - it's simply a short piece of flat stock with 2 holes drilled in it, welded to a piece of tubing). Remove the flywheel.

IMPORTANT - The flywheel should be resurfaced to ensure correct seating of the new clutch assembly. The flywheel is stepped (the height of the pressure plate mounting pads over the clutch pad surface) and should be cut on the clutch seating surface and pressure plate mounting surface the exact same amount if using a stock clutch. This will insure pressure plate finger travel will remain at the original level. If using an aftermarket clutch, use the step height recommended by the manufacturer. This is extremely important with CenterForce Dual Friction units.

Most aftermarket clutches these days are set up for the factory step, which is 0.610", +/- 0.002".

While the flywheel is off, now would be a good time to check the crankshaft end seal for leakage, and to see if it is dried out and stiff. If it is stiff, you might want to change it, though that will require removing the oilpan. Better to change it now than maybe have it leak all over your new clutch.

Reassemble in reverse order. Torquing all bolts is important, but flywheel and clutch assembly bolts MUST be torqued properly and Loc-Tite applied to them.

When installing the flywheel, use the tool you created when removing it, or put a 1/2" ratchet or breaker bar in the crankshaft sprocket. Then use LocTite on the flywheel bolts, snug them all down, then torque them in steps, alternating every other one, until you reach the specified torque (90 6bolt flywheel shown).

When installing the clutch disc and pressure plate, buy the $5-10 plastic clutch pilot tool, hold the disc against the pressure plate lightly, slip the tool through the pressure plate into the clutch disc, then place the assembly against the flywheel. Slide the pilot tool into the hole in the crankshaft to align the clutch disc. The rotate the pressure plate until the holes for the mounting bolts and locating dowels all line up, and press the pressure plate onto the locating dowels. Then hand tighten the pressure plate bolts. When torquing the pressure plate to the flywheel, make sure to tighten it down in steps, alternating bolts in a star pattern (just like the flywheel, but much lower torque) to avoid warping the pressure plate. Tighten down in multiple steps until the bolts pull the pressure plate down to the mounting pads, then torque the bolts in a star pattern also.