When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Patience, patience, patience,,,,, a little grease in the pilot bearing (not to much to push the soft plug out of the crank), and a little anti-seize on the input splines will help. I also like to use studs as mentioned by others and no more torque on the pull bolts then you can do with a very very short ¼ ratchet. If it doesn’t go easy, backup and regroup. Good luck and keep us posted.
I'm no Corvette expert but have done this recently but with two people and no drawing things together. Putting the whole drivetrain back in in one piece. A good quality plastic clutch alignment tool works just fine.
One person monitoring the bellhousing area and one person running the jack out back and pushing when requested.
I know it can be done with one person but this is a job I would not do by myself.
Good luck with repairs. I know it's frustrating when stuff goes wrong and all of us have effed something up in our day but the good news is its all fixable.
I am sorry to see these issues. I have heard the horror stories but this is the first time I have seen what can happen during this difficult job. I appreciate you being honest, some people's pride would not let them share their mistakes. You got this!
So bad news guys. I have damaged some parts during the install / removal. Ultimately I bent the input shaft and cracked the slave.
I thought the input shaft looked straight and didn't see any visible wobble. So I bought another GM slave, I also installed a new pilot bearing. The slave came in recently and I realized that I've really messed up. Here are some shots of the new slave attached. Notice the gap between the top and bottom of the input shaft.
I pulled the prop shaft out and don't see any major problems. The couplers look ok, the front bearing spins without noise and is not loose, the torque tube channels look ok.
So I guess I'm looking for some advice at this point. It's clear the damage occurred when lowering the entire torque tube. I don't see any cracks in the tube itself. Should I start with a new input shaft and front bearing? Is there a shop in that you all would recommend I send it to for rebuild?
You have to determine what (if anything) is bent. With the torque tube reassembled, can you see any runout (wobble) in the shaft?
Thanks guys. Yeah it's not one of my finer moments and I'm swallowing my pride with this post but I think it may help some others in the future. I'm normally pretty careful with this stuff but it bit me.
There was some very subtle wobble with the tube reassembled and the input shaft was scraping / contacting the lower part of the new slave at 6 o'clock (see pic above). There was a scraping sound in that area as well, but no noises noted from the middle or rear of the tube.
I also put a straight edge on the front of the tube, wondering if I bent it, but it looked good.
I spoke with Rick at RKT and may start with a new input shaft and bearing. Hopefully that is the extent of the damage.
I tried to reinstall the tube / rear end together as one piece but it didn't go in all the way into the bellhousing, short about 1/2" (ended up being a misaligned clutch since I used a plastic alignment tool). So I was taking it back out. One jack under the trans/diff, one jack under the torque tube, and one under the motor. I was lowering the rear jack and tube jack, but forgot that the motor jack was still up. I only lowered it a small amount but since the motor was supported, it couldn't pivot down and that's when I heard a pop. I was no where near the GM reference line for the tube which is why it caught me off guard. If I had just removed the jack under the motor, this wouldn't have happened.
Just ordered the new input shaft / bearing from Rick at RKT. Hopefully will have an update once I get everything reinstalled.
The input shaft has 1 bearing and a rubber coupler supporting it when it's out so there is nothing to hold it straight inline. The pilot bearing is the second bearing support that keeps the input shaft straight once installed.
I constantly hear about input shaft runout when the torque tube is removed and it always makes me shake my head at how silly that is.
I tried to reinstall the tube / rear end together as one piece but it didn't go in all the way into the bellhousing, short about 1/2" (ended up being a misaligned clutch since I used a plastic alignment tool). So I was taking it back out. One jack under the trans/diff, one jack under the torque tube, and one under the motor. I was lowering the rear jack and tube jack, but forgot that the motor jack was still up. I only lowered it a small amount but since the motor was supported, it couldn't pivot down and that's when I heard a pop. I was no where near the GM reference line for the tube which is why it caught me off guard. If I had just removed the jack under the motor, this wouldn't have happened.
Just ordered the new input shaft / bearing from Rick at RKT. Hopefully will have an update once I get everything reinstalled.
I figured something like that must have happened....
just a note, you can drop the front subframe a good inch or 2 without unbolting it completely - gives a lot more room to work around the bellhousing, all those wiring harnesses etc.
I tried to reinstall the tube / rear end together as one piece but it didn't go in all the way into the bellhousing, short about 1/2" (ended up being a misaligned clutch since I used a plastic alignment tool). So I was taking it back out. One jack under the trans/diff, one jack under the torque tube, and one under the motor. I was lowering the rear jack and tube jack, but forgot that the motor jack was still up. I only lowered it a small amount but since the motor was supported, it couldn't pivot down and that's when I heard a pop. I was no where near the GM reference line for the tube which is why it caught me off guard. If I had just removed the jack under the motor, this wouldn't have happened.
Just ordered the new input shaft / bearing from Rick at RKT. Hopefully will have an update once I get everything reinstalled.
Good luck getting your car back together I'm pretty surprised that the input shaft is bent, I thought they were tougher than that.
Never ever use a c clamp! If everything is lined up correctly, it will all slide together. Are you sure the pilot bearing is the right one and has the correct inner diameter? Sounds like you're not aligned with the pilot bearing. I have my 03 apart again because the pilot bearing that came with the new LUK clutch was bad, not sure who they used as a vendor. when I pulled it apart, the bearing was pushed back into the crank and not flush with the surface like it supposed to be, Ordered a new GM bearing and used a micrometer to find the outer diameter on the one from LUK was .005 too small, allowing it to move. It actually looks like it started spinning inside the crank. Sure hope that's what was causing the vibration I developed. The GM bearing is nice and snug.
Now I'm waiting for the heli coil kit to repair the threads in the bell housing because the guy before me used the bolts to pull the torque tube up to the housing...
Never ever use a c clamp! If everything is lined up correctly, it will all slide together. Are you sure the pilot bearing is the right one and has the correct inner diameter? Sounds like you're not aligned with the pilot bearing. I have my 03 apart again because the pilot bearing that came with the new LUK clutch was bad, not sure who they used as a vendor. when I pulled it apart, the bearing was pushed back into the crank and not flush with the surface like it supposed to be, Ordered a new GM bearing and used a micrometer to find the outer diameter on the one from LUK was .005 too small, allowing it to move. It actually looks like it started spinning inside the crank. Sure hope that's what was causing the vibration I developed. The GM bearing is nice and snug.
Now I'm waiting for the heli coil kit to repair the threads in the bell housing because the guy before me used the bolts to pull the torque tube up to the housing...
Good info on the pilot bearing
I'd prefer a time sert in the bellhousing. Been there joys of used cars and techs who were working to beat book time....
Update. I received the new input shaft with the bearing already pressed. Shoutout to Rick at RKT Performance. It arrived to the house in 2 days. Tonight I was able to remove the old input shaft from the coupler. I still didn't see any damage or cracks, so I was skeptical that it would fix the issue...but everything is back and is straight. It fit perfectly back into the torque tube and the new slave fits like a glove. No binding or rubbing at all.
Tomorrow I will try and get the tube back in the car after work.
A few pics along the way:
Also if anyone is wondering, the giant snap ring in the back of the tube - you need this 12" internal straight snap ring plier by Icon from Harbor Freight. They worked perfectly and I had the ring out in less than 5 minutes
Question. Is there any issue with the longer splines on this new input shaft? There is no binding or rubbing whatsoever with the new input shaft, but the splines do extend into the slave more so than the original. Here are a few pics.
The info I came across suggested that these "C5" aftermarket input shafts are actually a C6 version that gets modified to suit the C5. Apparently that's why the spline section is a bit longer, but it's supposed to be a non-issue.
The info I came across suggested that these "C5" aftermarket input shafts are actually a C6 version that gets modified to suit the C5. Apparently that's why the spline section is a bit longer, but it's supposed to be a non-issue.
Thanks for the info, good to know.
Originally Posted by FOGeologist
Wow, this is a tough thread! I feel for the shade-trees that are learning on the job for this complicated drivetrain.
Yeah the struggle is real lol. Even with several forums and youtube at my disposal, I still managed to cause a problem. Not my finest post but I thought it may help others in the future with their projects.
Honestly I'm ready to be done with this part of my project and move on to installing the AA kit, fuel system and cam.
Another thing to consider pianoman, and you may already know this, the moment you get the torque tube stabbed back in and bolted up it is highly recommended to bleed the system immediately.
It would truly suck to put your whole car back together and then have a leak that requires you to take the whole entire car back apart. It's rare but it does happen.
It looks like you have the tick speed bleeder. That fitting has been known to leak on people so make sure the washer is right and it's TIGHT.
If you were planning all this anyhow disregard.
Happy to hear you got all your new parts and are getting back after it.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
I figured something like that must have happened....
