Can a bad clutch job disalign the wheels?

[Sypher0725]

I went to align my car (97 subaru outback) yesterday. The guy told me that the disalignment was caused from inside, so i told him i had a clutch job done 2 weeks ago. According to him, i got a bad clutch job and he cant do anything until the clutch is put in properly. Can this be true? I also noticed that after the clutch job theres like a cricket sound on the transmition. Someone plz help.

[Sypher0725]

bump

[Sypher0725]

anyone?

[GreyGoose006]

dude, chill out. its only been a few hours.
truthfully, i think that the mechanic is practicing the art of BS-ing.
he wants your money.

which wheels are "out of alignment" front, back, all?
the car is AWD right?

i really dont see how its possible, but hey, i guess anything is possible.
you may have another garage check out your clutch tho. just to be safe.


oh yeah, no more bumping...

[Sypher0725]

thanx for the reply and sorry for the bumps. yeah...ill go somewhere else. Thanx for the input.

[Moppie]

Wheel alignment is determined by suspension and steering parts.
These are ridgid and fixed to the wheel hub and chassis.

The Clutch is located inside the gearbox bell housing, between the gearbox and the engine.
While a mis aligned clutch will make it hard to get the gear box back on, the car will not run, unless it is all lined up correctly.
The only thing connecting the gear box to your wheels are the axles. These are flexable in two locations, and have no effect on wheel alignment.
The engine and gear box are mounted indepentantly to the chassis from any suspension parts.

While its possible a less than competant mechanic removed some suspension parts they didn't need to, in order to replace the clutch, the chances of them mis-aligning something in the process are very, very slim.


It sounds to me like you are being spun a very pile of BS by someone who wants to rip you off, or you are mis-understading something they are telling you, which maybe that a poor quality job was done on the clutch replacment.

[UncleBob]

its possible, that the mechanic that did the clutch, did it in a completely backwards manner and dropped the K member, but only a complete moron would waste his time doing it that way. Even if they did it that way, its pretty hard to bolt it on in any manner other than how it came out.

You will have to get us more details. What exactly were the alignment numbers, or at least, what part of the alignment was in question? Caster? Camber? Toe? Front or rear?

and what "cricket" sound is coming from the transmission? Is it a squeaking sound when the clutch is out? That is very common for subaru's

[2turboimports]

Having done a fair share of clutch replacements on my suby, I only 1 time actually removed the front axles and dropped the tranny. This is what he may have done, if that was the case then he had to unbolt the front struts and you may indeed need to check alignment, if that was the case. I only dropped the transmission b/c I had to replace an oil seal behind the flywheel.

However, if the clutch was put in 'disligned' then you wouldnt be able to drive the car. More than likely the person who told you the alignment was from a 'disaligned clutch' is a jackass. Which happens quite a bit, especially in florida where it's hard to find good mechanics who are willing to work on suby's.

[UncleBob]

you do not need to unbolt the struts to remove the axles. Only need to pop out the lower ball joint.

Pulling the tranny is by far the easiest way to do it....with a car lift. Honestly, you don't have to pull the axles, although it is less effort to just pull the axles.

Popping the lower ball joints will most definitely not affect the alignement.

I can have a subbie tranny out of the car in under 30 minutes. They are very easy to do....but then, I do it for a living

[2turboimports]

oooh yah, that's right. THat's how I did it last time w/ a lift. The first time I was on my back and the camber plates needed changing as well, so that's why I did it that way. whoops.

[2.2 Straight six]

you sure he wasn't talking about clutch alignment in relation to the flywheel?

[Moppie]

Originally Posted by 2.2 Straight six

you sure he wasn't talking about clutch alignment in relation to the flywheel?

Ever tried to get a wheel alignment machine onto a flywheel?

Better yet, ever tried to get a gearbox into a car with a mis-aligned clutch plate?

[UncleBob]

Originally Posted by Moppie

Better yet, ever tried to get a gearbox into a car with a mis-aligned clutch plate?

many a cuss words are said when that happens

I've always believed that a car that isn't cussed at will feel neglected and show its anger in very unattractive ways, but then, I've never experimented enough with this....I cuss the heck out of all the vehicles I own or work on. Some definitely like it more than others. Bastards

I think I mentioned this already, but a subaru with a warped flywheel/pressure plate is quite common. Causing the clutch peddle to pulse. But that definitely won't cause a suspension alignment problem

[2.2 Straight six]

Originally Posted by Moppie

Ever tried to get a wheel alignment machine onto a flywheel?

Better yet, ever tried to get a gearbox into a car with a mis-aligned clutch plate?

whoa, calm down. just trying to think of other possibilities for what the guy meant