Van is a mk5 smiley transit 2.5di 75ps(?) year98/99 5speed manual clutch job on a short wheelbase semi hi-top camper. This has power steering and independent front suspension.
Symptoms:
-Hard to engage 1st gear and reverse with the engine running wheels stopped, easier but still hard with the engine warm.
-Easy to engage 1st gear and reverse with the engine stopped.
-with respect to the above 2points, the clutch was definitely disengaging and adjusting the clutch cable had no effect.
-Easier to engage 1st gear with the wheels turning.
-This showed the spigot bearing was transmitting more torque than it should have been between crankshaft and gearbox so the gearbox was struggling.
Parts:
-Clutch kit including thrust bearing, friction plate and pressure plate was bought from my local factors (forget which brand it was) but it was ~£95incVAT in year2017. Cheaper can be had on ebay but I figure my local factors has a reputation to uphold so quality is less risky.
-Factor could not do the spigot/pilot bearing. After some internet searching I found the pilot bearing is a pretty standard 6202-2RS deep groove ball bearing rubber sealed ID15xOD35xdepth11mm , I opted for the 6202-2RSC3, the C3 specification meaning it has extra clearance for the balls to cope with high temperature environments, this might not be necessary because engines don't get all that hot but I figured giving your hot balls room to move rarely does much harm and can feel good
. Bought from simplybearings.co.uk, SKF branded for ~£5. Unbranded bearings are available but from my experience in heavy industry I can tell you unbranded bearings are not worth it, ever.-Shaft oil seal was bought from local factor for ~£11.
-Shaft oil seal carrier flat gasket could only be bought as a massive gasket engine rebuild kit from the factor so I called Ford, who couldn't do it at all. So 1mm gasket paper was used to make my own.
Need for all bits?
-This is a big job so it is worth replacing most of the low cost bits while you are in about it.
-My van had done 138k miles. It appears to have maybe had an engine swap at some point in its life so I dont know how much of this stuff was original and how much was newer.
-My pressure plate could have been refitted as it was.
-My thrust bearing probably would have been fine but it wasn't perfect.
-My shaft seal was a bit wet.
My friction plate was pretty close to the end of its life.
Haynes book of lies
-Haynes stated "if you have gearbox XYZ1234(???) then step 1) disconnect all steering and drop the front suspension, using spring compressors"...on mine I did not have to do this and I was quite glad because that would double the amount of work and my car spring compressors wouldnt look at the van springs. Maybe I didn't have the stated gearbox series where you do have to do this?
-Haynes also stated to drain the gearbox oil...not necessary on my 'box.
Special tools
-clutch alignment tool kit.
-socket set with several long extensions and U/J wobbler to reach some of the trickier bolts.
-torx key set for a few fasteners.
-Diameter14.9mm drift/punch/socket/bar to extract the spigot bearing from the crankshaft.
Work tips
-I did this over a full size pit with a transmission jack and an assistant(Dad). This made everything pretty easy, but I work slow, a bit of a perfectionist and chat to my dad while working so it still took most of an afternoon and most of an evening even though everything went quite well.
-Spigot bearing removal. This is tricky because the bearing lives in the end of the crankshaft in a blind hole with a hole too small for most bearing pullers to pull it. I had heard about the trick where you fill the space behind the spigot bearing with grease, then put something that fits snug in the hole and hit it, the pressure of the grease then forces the bearing out from behind. I have done this professionally on machines before and it is messy. The cleaner way is to fill the space behind the bearing with chunks of bread...yes really...and use something that fits snug in the hole to drive the bearing out: no grease squirting everywhere and your "snug" fitting thing does not have to be all that good a fit.
-Spigot bearing fitting. Put it in the freezer for a long time, then when ready to fit take it out and carry it to the van FAST in a plastic box so it doesnt warm up much. Freezing it will cause it to shrink making it easier to fit. Make sure to drive it square on with a suitable socket that does not touch the inner race of the bearing.
-Shaft oil seal is easier to fit if warmed in a bucket of hot water or using a hot air gun to make it more malleable.
-Other than that the job was pretty easy and obvious and straight forward. The engine was left on its mounts with a jack to support it and adjust the angle a bit. Propshaft and exhaust were unbolted and tied out the way with wire.
I now have a spare pressure plate in decent condition, PM me if you want it (November 2017 at time of writing) for the cost of postage or you can collect from near Edinburgh for a packet of biscuits.