VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - GENERAL Mechanical - Engine, Trans, etc Locked Up? rear end, transmission, torque tube

After taking my truck off of the dolleys, I was planning on rolling it on to a trailer and have new exhaust installed, but it wouldn't move.

The truck seemed to be "locked up" and would not roll.
I checked the emergency break and backed it off some.
Transmission was in neutral, checked again and even tried with a grandson pushing in the clutch.
Engine has not be started since rebuild.

Could this be a problem tied to torque tube?
What am I missing here, seems like it should be simple?

Thanks

You might check the rear brake drums to see if the shoes are frozen to the drum, if it was sitting long time with the e brake on.

Dave

It helps us if you let us know more details about the vehicle such as year and model.

I agree with Dave to check the rear brakes. Even if the drive shaft is somehow locked up you should be able to rotate the rear wheels if both are of the ground.

There are 4 other items to check.

Is the transmission really in neutral? The lever might be in the neutral position but the actual shift mechanism might be in gear or maybe even 2 gears.

Can you turn the engine over by hand? If the truck has been sitting quite a while the disc could be stuck to the flywheel. And if the transmission is not really in neutral you will not be able to turn the engine over.

Is the clutch linkage really moving the fingers on the pressure plate to release the clutch? Your grandson might be pushing in on the clutch but is it really working?

I do mean to embarrass anyone but are you sure your grandson is pushing in completely on the clutch and not the brake? I do not know his age or experience with cars so please forgive me.

Rear wheels spin, so brakes are not locked up. They spin opposite direction when lifted by differential. When set on the floor they slide on concrete floor instead of turn.

Truck is a 1946 Chevy DP truck.

I will check the linkage and see what i find. If clutch is stuck to flywheel, is there any way to free it without pulling the transmission?

Thanks for the thoughts, don't worry about "embarrassing" questions/statements, Rusty. You would be forgiven anyway. It's more important to get it running that my feelings.

Consider this approach if you determine the disc is stuck to the flywheel.

Remove the lower stamped flywheel and clutch cover. This should give you access to the bolts that attach the clutch cover to the flywheel. Obviously you need to be able to rotate the engine to get to all of them.

This is the tricky part. In a crisscross pattern carefully work your way around the clutch cover and loosen each bolt about 1/2 turn at a time. The spring load on the pressure plate should make the clutch cover move to the rear. That should expose the edge of the clutch disc where it presses against the flywheel.

Typically those bolts are about 1" long so make sure you do not go too far. In some clutch systems you can go far enough without things coming apart that it completely relieves the load of the pressure plate on the disc and flywheel.

If it does not completely remove that load then fit some washers tightly as spacers between the clutch cover and the flywheel in 3 or 4 locations around the cover.. Have your grandson push on the clutch pedal. That should take the remaining pressure plate load off the disc.

Using a thin scarper blade or putty knife try to insert it between the front face of the disc and the flywheel. Try this at multiple locations around the flywheel. It might break the disc loose.

Remember to make sure the clutch cover fits on any dowel pins when you go back together.

I know that others on this forum have tried various methods to break the disc loose, some more violent than others. They require that you be able to drive the car as well as put it into neutral..

Just take off the cover as Rusty suggests. Take a length of 2x4 and lodge it between the clutch pedal and the front edge of the seat.

Crawl back under with a light hammer and a putty knife. Tap the putty knife between the flywheel or pressure plate (I can't remember which) and the clutch disc. May have to rotate the engine a little but pretty soon it will pop loose. Will too!

Much more simpler than Rusty's all day job. Rusty is like the farmer and his pig being held up to eat apples off the limb. What's time to a pig?

Good luck,

Charlie

I agree that Charlie's approach is easier and quicker. However, it is based on a key assumption that the full face of the clutch cover is not flat against the flywheel. Or that the edge of the disc is not hidden by a flange at the outer edge of the flywheel. You need space to insert the putty knife.

I'm not an expert in all the clutches over all the years of Chevy's. The cover I just looked at in my shop does not have enough space to insert a putty knife. I have also encountered that situation in other brands of vehicles. As Charlie noted, that makes it a much longer job.

My money is on the transmission being stuck in 2 gears. If the transmission is really in neutral a stuck disc is irrelevant. If he can turn the engine over by hand with the transmission in gear and the clutch pedal pushed to the floor then the disc is not stuck.

I have had limited success by trans in top gear, clutch and brake depressed and operate the starter. You could also try holding the clutch down, lift 1 rear wheel off the ground and rock the wheel as far as it will turn and back again several times as hard as you can. If you have another driver available you could always tow the car in gear with the clutch depressed.

It often doesnt take much of a shake to release the rust grip, sometimes the clutch will be a little different for the 1st few gear changes after it is freed up but isnt going to be a problem for long.

Tony

You say the truck has not been started since rebuild. I had the same issue on my brother's truck. He installed the disc backwards, and forced the bolts on the pressure plate. This jammed up everything. When we pulled the cover it was very obvious something was wrong.

You say the truck has not been started since rebuild. I had the same issue on my brother's truck. He installed the disc backwards, and forced the bolts on the pressure plate. This jammed up everything. When we pulled the cover it was very obvious something was wrong.

I thought about BDS (backwards disc syndrome). I ruled it out because even if the disc was installed backwards he should be able to move the truck with the transmission in neutral.

The clutch plate was the problem, it took less than 30 minutes to slide the putty knife in between, and did not have to loosen any bolts due to the way the pressure plate is made. I just had to do one section and then hand turn the flywheel to access the next section.

You guys are all great, I really do appreciate the replies and suggestions.

THANKS SO MUCH!!

Mark
VCCA # 56709

Hopefully new exhaust next week, I am hoping the shop I am using is open (during this Carona-virus).

Hi Mark,

Glad you got things sorted out. It is a real pain if you cannot get to the disc between the cover and the flywheel.

And thanks for letting us know. We often do not hear the final results.

One point still confuses me. Maybe you or someone else can explain it.

In you original post you stated that you could not move the truck even when the transmission was in neutral. My thinking at the time was that even if the clutch disc was stuck to the flywheel the drive shaft and the rear output shaft of the transmission should be able to rotate with the transmission in neutral. My experience is that I can roll a car around without pushing in the clutch as long as the transmission is in neutral.

What am I missing?

Rusty,
I'm with you , I would expect the vehicle to be able to move with it in neutral but it would not.
All the linkage is in the transmission so I cannot see it, but it was in neutral. The truck would not move until I loosened the clutch off the flywheel.

so I am still a little confused as well.

Mark