Suthe245

I have a 1997 civic ex manual and I just replaced the input shaft bearing inside the transmission. I also put in a new exedy clutch, pressure plate, throw out bearing, and pilot bearing. I have all of the bellhousing bolts in and the gap between the engine and tranny is about half an inch everywhere on the bellhousing. The input shaft is in the splines of the clutch but it seems like it gets stuck at about the pilot bearing. I used a clutch alignment tool but im wondering if I need to redo it. I can tighten the bellhousing bolts if I put force into it but I dont want to damage whatever is keeping it from going on.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

bandit67

It would appear to me that your input shaft tip is not fitting thru the pilot bearing. Remove your plate and clutch and see what is misaligning. Just do a dummy fit up and watch the tip go thru the pilot and ensure the motor/tranny fits flush. I have seen many old Muncie four speeds with hacksawed off shaft tips because they were not correctly aligned with pilot bearing. They would then sometimes just start cranking down on the bolts and break off the aluminum ears on the tranny. If it does not line up using hand pressure , DO NOT FOURCE it.

mk378

I never have much luck with those alignment tools. Get your head down there and visually look that the disk is exactly centered over the pilot bearing. Loosen the pressure plate and adjust if necessary.

It's also a good idea to test fit the disk and pilot bearing on the transmission shaft before starting assembly, just to be sure you have the correct parts.