About a week ago, my clutch started making a low screeching noise and the pedal would vibrate when depressed. As of today, the vibration has stopped, and the screeching has become very high pitched. Again, this only happens when the pedal is depressed. Any ideas as to what's wrong?

It could be the throw out bearing is going bad. The tranny and clutch have to come out to fix this.

I'd also bet on a bad throwout bearing.

To make sure that this is indeed the problem, follow the instructions in your shop manual to properly adjust the clutch cable. This is to make sure that it's not hanging and dragging a bit (and thus causing the noise when it is engaged). It's absolutely critical to have a tiny bit of freeplay (as spec'd in the book), otherwise the clutch can slip and either glaze over or wear itself down.

If the situation has not improved after adjusting the clutch cable, I would advise performing a complete clutch kit change. FCP Groton sells a very affordable Clutch Kit and I just installed one of these earlier this summer in a friends vehicle. The kit includes a pressure plate, clutch disc, and throwout bearing. The only thing they don't include is a Pilot Bearing, and it's worth the extra $5 to get this part and change it while you're doing the rest of the kit. You'll also want to get one of the plastic Clutch Alignment Tools for about $7 and it will save you a lot of headaches when you put the kit together. They can be ordered from IPD using part number WST0036.

You should probably start checking with your friends and find out who can pull your engine and transmission out of your car for a day to perform this job. -or start shopping around and find a mechanic who will do the job and let you bring in your own parts. FYI, Sachs is the original equipment supplier to Volvo for clutch kits and a variety of other parts. You won't find a better clutch kit without spending more money than what your car is worth.

God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.
--
'87 Blue 240 Wagon, 246k miles.
'88 Black 780, PRV-6, 145k miles.

Did you really mean to tell him to yank the engine?

You certainly don't have to yank the engine.

Doing a clutch is a labor and time intensive job, but is not rocket science.

You need minimum of two jackstands to hold up the front end... two more in the back will give you better clearance to get under the car. Besides, jackstands are cheap. A transmission jack is nice, but not essential... depends on your strength and patience. You can raise-lower the tranny using blocks of wood and a regular car jack. I found a decent tranny jack at harbor freight for $50. Makes life easier.

Definitely go with fcpgroton for the parts. They have become my full time volvo parts specialists.

Again, the task may seem daunting, but it is really doable by the average home mechanic.

Besides, you've got almost semi-real time advice here at the brickboard if you need it.

Mike

I was wondering about that myself. I knew I had to lower the transmission, but didn't know anything about pulling the whole engine out! =)

Anyone know how much a shop will charge to rebuild my clutch? And will shops let me bring in my own parts since FCPGroton is far cheaper than any parts I can buy in town?

I got several quotes from full service shops to R&R the clutch in my '86 240. They wanted $650 to $700. I had the job done by a place called "Clutch Doctors" for about $350. They used the OE Sachs clutch and pressure plate, resurfaced the flywheel, and put in new throwout bearing, and rear main seal. I asked on this board why they were so much cheaper and was told that, because they limited themselves to clutch and brake work, their overhead was much lower. They use a former gas station. They also have a two year warranty. I believe this is a chain or francise so you may have one nearby.

Most shops won't let you supply your own parts. And, if there happens to be anything wrong with the parts you supply, they won't warranty the work, nor should they. But, if there's something wrong with the parts they install, they have to warranty the work. It's a bit of a bit price wise, but if you don't want to do it yourself, well, you just have to bite the bullet and let them supply the parts.
Richard
--
86 740T/87 745GLE/96 960 Wagon

A good shop should probably take no more than 4 hours to do the job. So, you can estimate it based on what your shop charges for labor.

you can also just call a bunch of shops and get estimates and be honest with them on what you want to do.

Mike

Sorry about the suggestion of pulling the engine for a clutch change. When I dive into a car, I go head first. Having the engine out makes it incredibly easy to do the clutch (but it's not necessary), and it also makes it extreamly easy to take care of all the other items on the service schedule and whatever else that needs to be done.

Here's what I typically service or replace if I pull the engine:
1. Clutch (if it's a manual transmission).
2. Rear main seal. (Since you have access to it while changing the clutch, replace it now for $6 and save the headache and $500 later. It must be put in your freezer before installing to get the ring to shrink down to proper size, and then expands as it warms up to lock itself in place.)
3. New/Replacement wiring harness if the vehicle is an '80-'87 and hasn't had a harness upgrade done yet.
4. Water pump.
5. Timing belt.
6. Front oil seals.
7. Remove and clean the breather box below the flame trap (they're usually clogged).
8. Accessory bushings.
9. Engine mounts and tranny mount.
10. New intake manifold gasket, sometimes exhaust manifold gaskets if needed.
11. Clean throttle body and IAC Valve.
12. Cooling system flush and new thermostat and coolant.
13. And put the partridge in the pear tree.

After a tuneup like this, the engine is almost as good as new. -and ready to roll on for another 100,000 to 250,000 miles (aside from the scheduled services and the occasional water pump).

I've pulled transmissions before, while leaving the engine in the car and using a set of jackstands. Sorry for not mentioning this in my previous post, I was having flashbacks to a project in June where I had the engine and M47 out of the car.

God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.
--
'87 Blue 240 Wagon, 247k miles.
'88 Black 780, PRV-6, 145k miles.