Need help with manual transmision

Hi. Thank you for the forum. I recently bought my van. I have a transmission issue. Had a slight leak at the accordion looking dust cover and at the slave cylinder and also at the front near the oil pan. I went to have the fluids changed. I was told the recommended tranny oil was MT 90. So they drained and filled back up. The old oil was pretty bad. Its now leaking really bad at same spots, and shifting into first gear the van violently shakes as I let out clutch. It's getting worse and starting the shake as I shift into 2nd as well. Could this be because the new fluid put in?

It almost sounds like your leaking from your transmission input shaft seal. when you say it's leaking from the slave cylinder, is it leaking hydraulic fluid from the slave cylinder or gear oil from around the slave cylinder? My guess would be the tranny was low before and now that it's fuel more oil is leaking out and coating your clutch which would cause the shudder especially under highest load conditions which is 1st gear standing starts.

It's leaking tranny oil out from where the dust cover goes, no hydrualic fluid from slave. It leaked there before oil change, and I was told its been that way for a while. slave looks dry and van shifts in and out of gears ok. Just when letting clutch out and going to accelerate it really shakes bad. When fluids were done the guy said the transmission wasn't too low, just really dirty.

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It sure sounds like you've got oil on your clutch. All the places you said it's dripping from would have to be from an input shaft seal or worst case a crack in the tranny case. If it was even a 1/4 inch low on the oil level that could be enough to bring it up to the level of the bottom portion of the seal lip allowing it to spill more readily into the bell housing. Of course this is all speculation without being hands on or at least some photos. I suspect though that you may be pulling a tranny in the near future. If the oil is on the clutch and allowed to soak in you need to replace it. Of course while the tranny is out it would be the opportune time to find the oil leak and repair it. By the way, MT-90 appears to be a trade name for Red Line Oil and is the correct GL-4 or 5 75w-90 weight oil.

when you say pull tranny..what exactly does that mean? I'm worried I just got this van and i'm in trouble. Will I need to replace the entire transmission? I'm not at all mechanic. but can ask a friend who works on cars.

You won't need to replace the transmission but if it is the input seal leaking the transmission will need to be removed to repair it. It will also need to come out in order to clean and/or replace the clutch. The seal itself is likely less than $20 but it's a fair amount of labor, especially if paying by the hour for it, to remove and repair it. If you're "not at all mechanical" you better just take it to a mechanic that is competent and willing to work on our weird vans. Several people have commented that mechanics have refused to work on them, charged ridiculous prices seemingly to discourage bringing it to them, and even told people they should get rid of them. I don't mean to scare you away from owning your van as I'm sure for one reason or another you fell in love with these and "Just had to have one." like many of the rest of us but it is a 27 year old vehicle. If you can't fix it yourself you need to be prepared to pay someone else to do it for you.

My mechanic will work on these vans. He is busy, and you may need to wait for an APPT, but his prices are reasonable. He is located near Roseville, CA.

Yes I knew there would be repairs needed I would like to keep the van going. I have a friend who works on cars and is willing to work on it. We somewhat trade work as I hunt and will be stocking his freezer with some game ha. Looking at parts through toyota the van will need to do the clutch work, I'm told the pressure plate is no longer available. Would anyone have a good recommendation for aftermarket brand plate ?

through more searching. plz tell me if im wrong, but van be leaking from the "rear main seal" as well? I gather I may need to replace the "input shaft seal" as you mentioned, and the "rear main seal" to fix the leak. And then replace the clutch assembly. I'm confused when I look for the the clutch parts, I see I need 3 parts, the disc, the pressure plate, and the cover. But when searching the sites I find only disc and cover. I think toyota has everything then. thank you

If you are going to do the clutch then yes, it would be a good idea to do the rear main seal while you're in there. I was focusing on your transmission leak and didn't think to mention that. The rear main seal is for the engine crankshaft and is between the engine and the flywheel. Although it can be a common source for an engine oil leak, since your issue started after having the tranny filled I think it's a safe assumption that the issue lies there. For clutch replacement the pressure plate and clutch cover are the same part. There are three main components, the disc, pressure plate/cover, and the throwout bearing. You can usually get a clutch kit that contains all three of these as well as an alignment tool. Other things to consider are the rear main as you mentioned and a pilot bearing/bushing. This goes in the end of the crankshaft and supports the transmission input shaft. You also want to make sure you get the flywheel resurfaced. As far as aftermarket clutches just don't buy the cheepest one you can find and you'll probably be fine or maybe someone else can chime in on that subject. Good luck! I hope it all gets fixed up for you and you're back on the road.

thank you for clarify that originalkwyjibo. that helped me make sense of it. buying parts this week and handing them over to my "mechanic". ha