Clutch Slave Replacement on 245/5

[Slavs]

Those of you who do your own wrenching are probably familiar with the difficulty in accessing and replacing the clutch slave on the 245/5 retrofitted to the 02. I've had mine in for 12 years, and its showing the first signs of going "South". It seems I will have to partially remove the trans to replace the slave. I'm not the biggest fan of this transmission. And, I'm on the fence of removing and replacing it with the stock 4 speed and 3.64 diff. If I have to pull back the trans every time I replace the slave, I'm done with this thing. The previous owner had it installed by a shop,and I spent two days realigning the trans and driveshaft. It entailed removing the trans cross member and slotting the trans mount hole on it.  I also had to shim it about 1/8". This finally solved the vibration and guibo wear issues. And, the previous owner was charged $$$ for the conversion. It's one of the reasons I do my own mechanical work.

 

What have some of you guys done when replacing the slave ? I've noticed that a few of you have cut out a hatch on the transmission tunnel to provide access to the slave cylinder. That's a little too much of a rat rod approach for my taste. 

 

Any tips?

 

And, once replaced, how in the world do you bleed the damn thing ? Why in the world did they mount that slave higher up on the trans? I understand that the 320i tunnel is roomier, but it is still not the most accessible location. 

 

This may be one of the most over rated "Upgrades" to these cars.

 

Slavs

Edited October 31, 2020 by Slavs

[stephers]

Not that hard actually, use a long extension with a flex socket on the end.  I use 1/4 " stuff with an adapter just at the ratchet to bring it up to a 3/8 ratchet so I have more leverage   Once the nuts are off, pull it down and undo the the fluid line to it. I hook up a bleeder hose to the bleeder nipple before putting it back in and have the bleeder slightly loose to do the first bleeding    The slave cyl are designed to have the bleeder on top, the internal passage ways are designed for that 

 

Thanks, Rick 

[Son of Marty]

The slave for the 245 has the bleeder in the bottom position facing down.

[man_mark_7]

[Slavs]

I got to take a 2nd look at mine. There isn't much room in there. The good thing is that it lasted 12 years. I can't say that about the rest of my hydraulics like the clutch master. I'm lucky to get 5 years out of one. Maybe some of these things have been sitting around on the parts shelves too long. It was a pain aligning that driveshaft with the transmission. Some of the kit manufacturers may be changing their jigs slightly or not all 02s are alike. If that driveshaft is off a little, your Guibo won't last very long. The previous owner of the car was changing Guibos frequently before I aligned the driveshaft. With the 5 speed OD and 4.11 diff, I don't think its all worth the effort. I'm almost back where I would be with the stock 4 speed and 3.64 diff, especially with my 205/60 x 13 tires which are 3% shorter vs. stock. That reduces my gearing by an additional 3%. I'm now only 4% taller in 5th than I would be with a 4 speed and stock gearing and tires. I'd probably be better off with a 3.90, which is what most of you guys are using with these overdrive boxes.

 

 

 

Edited October 30, 2020 by Slavs

[Mike Self]

37 minutes ago, Slavs said:

I'd probably be better off with a 3.90, which is what most of you guys are using with these overdrive boxes.

I left my 3.64 diff in when I converted to a 5 speed, to get that 800 rpm drop between 4th and 5th...much more pleasant highway cruising on those trips to Mid America and Vintage.  And I've found that short of pulling some (but not all!) mountain grades on the West Virginia Turnpike, I don't even have to downshift to 4th, particularly if I'm above 2500 rpm or so.

 

Not looking forward to messing with the slave cylinder, though...

 

mike

[Slavs]

Mike, thanks for the input regarding the 3.64 diff and 5 speed overdrive combination. I have a couple of long neck 3.64 diffs laying around. So, doesn't hurt to try. 

 

I don't think there is an easy way to replace the slave, though, short of cutting out a hatch in the tunnel.

 

Slavs

Edited October 30, 2020 by Slavs

[kbmb02]

14 hours ago, stephers said:

Not that hard actually, use a long extension with a flex socket on the end.  I use 1/4 " stuff with an adapter just at the ratchet to bring it up to a 3/8 ratchet so I have more leverage   Once the nuts are off, pull it down and undo the the fluid line to it. I hook up a bleeder hose to the bleeder nipple before putting it back in and have the bleeder slightly loose to do the first bleeding    The slave cyl are designed to have the bleeder on top, the internal passage ways are designed for that 

 

I use a worn jet nut (10 mm head) for the upper attachment for ease of access/service, and - (like @stephers ) - 1/4” socket, extensions and swivel. It’s a 15 minute job.

 

The bleeder locates on the bottom on the late style clutch remote cylinder. -KB

['76mintgrün'02]

Once again, it's all about having the proper tools on hand.  This one comes in handy for those realllly hard to reach fasteners.   

 

Tom

[Mike Self]

9 hours ago, Slavs said:

I don't think there is an easy way to replace the slave, though, short of cutting out a hatch in the tunnel.

Nothing wrong with the hatch idea--unless you have A/C, which makes reaching around the tranny a bit easier than removing the A/C console! 

 

I have the same access problem with the master cylinder on my Renault 4CV--it's under the floor and the very devil to access.  When the Dauphine came out as a follow-on to the 4CV, those clever French engineers must have listened to the line mechanics at Renault dealerships worldwide, and created an access panel in the floorboards to make M/C access easy.  I used a Dauphine cover panel to close up the hole I put in several of my 4CV's floorboards when I changed master cylinders--no one will either see it or know it!

 

Mike

[Slavs]

I have collected a complete 5 speed conversion kit, tranny, shortened and balanced driveshaft, linkage, brackets etc. in anticipation of installing it on my other car, a 69 1600. But, I have become disappointed with the 5 speed conversion in my 67. For me, it's over rated. The 2002 loves to cruise at 75mph-80mph in the 4,000rpm-4,500rpm range with the stock 4 speed and 3.64 gears. It's both, in the power band and quite comfortable. So, I don't really see the need for a 5 speed overdrive and the complications associated with it. It's a lot easier for me to pull a 4 speed and re-install it vs. the same procedure on the 5 speed which is heavier and impossible for me  alone to manhandle while working alone under the car. Doing the work at a shop is a lot easier, but I've been doing all my own mechanical work all these years, and I can't afford BMW specialists. I'm my own "Specialist". In addition, I don't trust most of them and / or the people they hire to do the work. I've seen enough of their sloppy handiwork and short cuts. There are probably just a handful of shops out there who do the work properly, but they are too expensive for me.

 

That's my venting for the day.

 

Slavs

Edited October 30, 2020 by Slavs

[Tdh]

Slavs,

 

I didn't do my recent swap using one of these, but... you could rent a small floor style transmission jack and that would alleviate you having to lift move around the gearbox to do the swap.  You would of course be lying on your back with the car on jack stands, but it sounds like that's your usual routine anyway.  

 

I hear you on the 5 speed with the 3.64 for the way you use the car.  In my case, I did it solely to get me lower RPM's at a higher speed for a long term cruise at speed during a rally I do every year.  If it weren't for that specific application I probably wouldn't have done the swap, or I'd of done it and found another diff in a higher ratio (preferably something in a LS flavor).  And yes, I get that many here won't approve of speeding on public roads.  Sorry, as my wife will tell you...I'm basically just a big teenager...

[TobyB]

It's not hard to swap the slave, usually-

 

loosen the exhaust at the downpipe, then put a jack under the back of the trans

and take the trans mount crossbar off.

 

That gives enough wiggle to make it pretty easy,

if you use the abovementioned long extensions and one wobbler.

 

...in my experience...

 

t

 

[rcf925]

I really like the 5 speed on freeway, 3.90 gears , cruises at 80 3500 rpm, 1st gear is a stump puller, most the time I just take off in 2nd if I'm rolling at all

[stephers]

Thanks for catching that with the bleed nipple on the bottom,    Must have of had an old man moment      Of course it is at the bottom, it is the internal passage ways that can allow this as shown in the diagram        This is  what happens when you are looking at the forum way too late at night 

 

Thanks Rick