Here's a video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ_X2ip0yRM

And all this time I thought it was in the cabin...
There's no sound while the clutch is engaged, there's no sound once the clutch is released.
It's purely in the pedal action.

I drove one of Rollguy's 240Ds a couple months ago and couldn't believe how easy his clutch pedal was to depress. Very, very little resistance... reminded me of a euro rental. Mine on the other hand has always been firm, though (subjectively) it feels like it's getting a little stiffer. It's certainly noisier.

I've read a bit in the archives and I have my suspicions, but curious what the clutch gurus think.

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1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

I know there are a few of you in here who have rebuilt these things.

What does the slave cylinder push rod connect to?
It's seems like whatever that is, needs lubrication.

__________________
1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

Sounds familiar. My 240d had this. There were a bunch of squeaks in the pedal and master cylinder pivots inside the car.

Your squeak sounds like the pivot on the fork is dry. Pull the slave cylinder. It isn’t connected to anything in there. It comes right out when you remove the two retaining bolts. Use some heavy bearing grease on the tip of the actuator and put it back. See what that does. I never had my trans out so I don’t know. I swapped a slave cylinder once and I know it just pops out once the two bolts are out. It’s not connected to anything.

ETA - you may want to bleed your slave if you haven’t before while you’re down there. Just have somebody push down the clutch to the floor and crack the bleeder. You might want fresh fluid down there.

Good luck.

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79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles

I had the same thought regarding the slave cylinder -actually replaced it about six months ago. I pulled it out and lubed the ball thinking that would be the move… didn’t really do much.

I think it’s the other side of the fork. I don’t know if that’s on a hinge or what. I’d like to spray some lithium grease in there (blind) but I have no idea whether that’s a terrible idea.

__________________
1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

Sounds like you got those bases covered. Bleeding and lubricating the ball tip.

This is not sounding like a quick fix.

If lazy I would get a USB borescope and tape a piece of ice maker line to it. You may be able to find a way to sneak in there and spray some lithium grease right where you want it. But I recall the 240 trans being closed up well. Isn’t there a cutout to inspect plate thickness?

It may be worth a look in there. My clutch was serviced when my 240 wouldn’t go into gear. Turned out the plate still had meat on it but the mechanic said the throwout bearing had failed. Pretty amazing I drove the car till I killed the bearing before the clutch. The coil springs in the plate were loose rattling in the bell housing.

How do you know it isn’t the throwout bearing binding on the shaft?

Your car is worth a clutch job. Mine was and I took it in to have it gone over. A couple of years after the clutch job the evaporator popped. But it was a great two years more for a total of 10 years daily driving that 240d.

__________________
79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles

Hey Shern,

I’m actually struggling with a squeaking at idle with my clutch disengaged on my truck. It has a 3 speed manual but the idea is similar. The fork mechanism has some points where it needs some grease. Mine may be rusty and dirty. Also a bit worn at the pivots.

Not quite the same as an MB but the idea is similar. It would be really cool if there is a way to sneak in there without dropping the trans and squirt some grease at the correct points.

Check out this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhoEL693G4A

__________________
79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles

A noise that comes from the bell housing at idle could indicate a worn throw out bearing. A hard peddle could also be a pressure plate going out. You can check the wear on the clutch by checking the shaft position of the slave cylinder. The gasket has an area to slide in a gauge that is a go no go approach. The shaft of the slave cylinder has a reduced bore section. If the gauge does not go in, the clutch is worn. Of course i have no idea on the dimensions of the gauge or the MBZ part number. I don't believe any stiffness could come from the fork lack of lube. My guess would be it is time for a complete clutch job. Pressure plates are weird. There is no real way to tell that they are worn unless a finger is broken. I remeber having the tranny out of my w115 220d in 45min from when i drove my car into the garage. Granted that was over 35 years ago and i was young and energetic. Good luck

Thank for that Carl, it's actually very helpful watching these generic clutch videos. Gives me a good sense of how things move.


In my video the engine is off. I'm not sure we're talking about the same issue. The sound is friction from the fork area. I can't see how the throwout bearing is even being utilized with the car off.

There are only three points of lubrication I can imagine... the point where the slave piston hits the fork, the place on the other side of the fork where it connects to the bell housing, and the shaft that the TO bearing slides along. That, I suspect, is what needs the lube.

Now I'm wondering if I was to simply spray some grease in there if it wouldn't be mostly contained by the fork. Possibly some would deflect onto that shaft.
Not a big deal dropping the transmission but the former I can do in my driveway without lifting the car.

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1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

I should have watched the video. To me that sounds like the pressure plate. I have heard that before. Stiff clutch peddle would confirm pressure plate. There must be about 18 to 20 fingers on the pressure plate. Each one pivots.

That makes a lot of sense.

Any dabs of grease put on the pivots would be long gone after a few years and probably don’t make much difference.

__________________
79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles

Different transmission, same sound, proposed solution:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qA17tYrkcok

Difference is I’d be doing this blind…

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1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

I think you already know the risks of spraying lube blindly into the bell housing.

It may be time to rebuild the clutch, pressure plate, fork and pivots.

The 240D is so forgiving at clutch engagement that I believe the clutch friction material can outlive the rest of the guts in there. The mechanic who changed my clutch said my throwout was bad. He was vague. It may have been diaphragm springs. It failed suddenly and wouldn’t disengage. I changed a slave cylinder and it didn’t help. I was stunned because I knew the clutch didn’t slip and it was grabbing just fine as I started the car in 1st. It just wouldn’t go into gear when it was running which suggested the clutch wasn’t disengaging.

Just saying you may want to replace everything in there even though your clutch plate still grabs.

__________________
79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles

You’re right of course.

Is it nonsensical to simply replace the Throwout bearing?
I’m otherwise having zero issues with the clutch.

__________________
1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White.

Removing the tranny is not difficult. Bell housing bolts are easily accesable. The minimum items to be done are; throw out bearing, clutch disc, pressure plate and pilot bearing. Resurfacing the fly wheel is a call when you see it. Everything else can be done when it is needed.

I don’t know. It depends what is causing the noise. If it is a creaky clutch spring you’ll be kicking yourself when you just replace the throwout bearing. Since you hear the groaning when the engine is off I doubt it is the throwout unless it is binding to the shaft.

My clutch worked great up till the night I jumped into my car to commute home and it wouldn’t go into gear. My mechanic said he found some of the coil springs from the clutch plate rattling around in there as well. Not sure what those do. What I’m getting at is everything seemed fine but it was tired in there. The clutch parts were old even tough there was plenty of friction material. I think this is the nature of the 240d. It is so forgiving at engagement that the friction material can outlast the springs with the right driver.

It would be great if there were some magic fix like a drop of oil in the right spot.

I’ve tried greasing the squeaky fork on my F100. Same issue as the Toyota truck video. It goes away a couple of weeks then comes back. I need to tear it down someday. I think too many PO’s had just swapped clutch, pressure plate and throwout bearing and reused the fork. It’s likely toast. Not quite your issue but it influences my sentiment that once you’re in there might as well redo it all.

Sadly I’d be woefully wrong if a spritz of lithium grease is all that’s needed. Maybe it’s worth a try before tearing it all apart? Can you snake in a long tube attached to your spray grease can?

__________________
79 300TD “Old Smokey” AKA “The Mistake” (SOLD)
82 240D stick shift 335k miles (SOLD)
82 300SD 300k miles
85 300D Turbodiesel 170k miles