2000 F-150 5 speed Tough to shift from Neutral...transmission or clutch problems

[Chrisinsrq]

2000 Ford F-150 XL Extended Cab with 4.2L V-6 and 5 speed manual transmission and 88,000 miles.

Here's the problem. When the truck idles in neutral (say at a stoplight) and you depress the clutch, it is sometimes extremely tough to shift into any gear including reverse. Pumping the clutch does not help. Sometimes it is easier to go to second or fourth gear first, then into first. However, sometimes you have to really force it into any gear or shut the vehicle off to put in gear then restart. The clutch engages like new (3 inch travel or so) and never slips even when towing a 2500# boat, it just seems like it has trouble disengaging. I should mention that once it is in first gear and the truck moves, it shifts perfectly through the other gears and does not grind or make any strange noises. I bought the truck used and am not sure if it has the original clutch or not.

I have changed the fluid, had the cylinder checked (no leaks and fluid level OK), and had two opinions from different shops. One tells me to "live with it as that is what older Fords are like" and the other wants to replace the clutch but won't guarantee that it will fix the problem. The tell me that it is a start (costing $775) but since the clutch does not act worn, that it may be the transmission itself (such as worn guides, etc) in which case it could be $2000 more for a rebuild.

Anyone had this problem before? I am wondering if there is any other ideas out there? They would be greatly appreciated. I have been chasing this for the last year and 10K miles and it seems to be getting worse.

Thank you very much in advance, Chris.

[Big John Hance]

I have that problem shifting into 1st gear from a stop sometimes. My clutch was really old and just recently died so that may have been the problem though. I noticed that I almost always had trouble shifting into reverse. It grinded quite often unless I had just turned the truck on.

[rhandwor]

Do you have brake fluid in your clutch master cylinder. I think your problem is in this area. You have to pull the transmission to change the slave cylinder.
If you go this far replace the clutch also. How does the clutch pedal feel?

[Big John Hance]

Mine is a cable clutch by the way.

[eti engineer]

I had a Nissan truck once that acted the same way. It was hydraulic, but that was not the problem. The problem occurred right after I replaced the clutch, so I pulled the tranny again, (thank God it is an easy job in the older Nissans!!!) and what I found was that the clutch disc was not moving freely on the splines of the tranny input shaft. As such, I wire brushed the splines, and made sure it could move freely. Then I very lightly lubricated the splines with some lithium grease, taking care to make sure it was a very thin film, and put it back together. It worked fine.

The reasoning behind this is that when one pushes in the clutch, the pressure plate can release, but if the clutch disc is not free to move along the shaft, even though it is just a little bit of movement, it still maintains enough contact with the pressure plate to keep the gears spinning, which makes it very hard to shift. I found myself double-clutching on upshifts as well as downshifts until I figured out what the problem might be. It worked fine for years afterward until I totalled it, but that is another story.

Hope this helps...

Merry Xmas...

eti engineer