Clutch problems on a Balero from 97

[mackansglt]

Hello there,

I have jused bought my first Suzuki ever. It is a Suzuki Baleno GLX 1997 with
the 1,6 engine. It is a estate(kombi as we say in sweden). The car has run for appr. 125000 km. It was very cheap and it will be the seccond car in the
family. So it will take some time before I can use it.

I started yesterday to search for some information for this car on the webb. As you can understand, I live in Sweden and here we don`t have any information at all for this kind of car. Then I found this site and hope that you
experts can give me some help.

I have two problems:
1. Clutch. The car has a manuel gearbox and the cluch is struggeling a little bit. When I start the engine and relase the cluch pedal there is a big noice in the cluchhouse!! If I press the cluch down to the floor then the noise disaperes but when I relase it the noice is there again. I think it is the cluch realese bearing.
Is that the name, my english is not so good on these technical terms. The only thing that worries me a bit is the removal of the drive shafts. You need to remove the both drive shafts, is that correct?
Does anyone have some pictures or can tell me how to remove the drive shafts then it would be very nice.
2. Timing belt. It has never been changed. I found a exellent guide here how to change the belt. I cross my fingers and hope that it will work without any
problems.

Are there any other Swedes wisiting this site.

Regards, Mackan

[jim_naisium]

My website has the procedure for the 1999 1.6 liter to change the timing belt http://home.comcast.net/~lj_robins/99suzuki/

I have not pulled the axles on mine yet, and mine is the automatic transmission but that is what you need to do to remove the transmission, basically it should go like this:

- Disconnect the NEG terminal on the battery.
- Remove the tires.
- Remove the brakes.
- Remove the outer drive axles nuts.
- Disconnect the steering linkage.
- Remove the struts.
- Axles should come out.
- Support the bottom of the engine.
- Disconnect everything from the transmission.
- Support the bottom of the transmission.
- Unbolt the transmission and remove it.
- Fix whatever is wrong.

But I've never done the manual transmission on one of these so there might be something I have missed.

While you have it all apart (when you have it all apart) it would be a good time to replace the CV-joint boots and the struts and springs as well.

[mackansglt]

Hello Jim,
Many thanks for your answer.

This afternoon I started to brake my car into pieces. I started on the left side where the gearbox is.

First of all i removed the outer driveshaft nuts while the car still was standing on its wheels. It is much easier to do it at this time, no problems at all. Then I removed the left strut, removed the brake caliper, removed the nut of the
steering rod. Then I had some problems to getting out the steering rod from the bushing. Finaly I managed to get it loose.
I bent a little bit and the driveshaft came out from the gearbox but it is stucked in the wheel hub where the wheel bearingand brake disk are. I can`t get i loose from the hub. Now I realy don´t know what to do. Is it possible that the splines in the end of the driveshaft have been glued with "Locktite" or something simular in the hub? I have not decided yet if I will continue with
right side driveshaft tomorrow and after that start to disconnect the gearbox.
I think I have to make a visit to a garage and see if they can help me.

Many thanks in adwance for your support.

Mackan

[jim_naisium]

It looks like on the back side of the CV joint hub there is a place where you can pound the axle out with a hammer, use a plastic or "Dead Blow" hammer to pound it out with.

[mackansglt]

Now, I have also removed the right driveshaft. This one was much easier to remove than the left driveshaft.
You have to disconect the follwing items and after that you can pull out the driveshaft out from the gearbox.
1) Disconect the steering rod.
2) Disconect the stabilizer link.
3) Remove the stud ball bolt and nut and press down the lower arm.
4 Remove the 3 center bering bolts support and now you can pull out the driveshaft from the gearbox.

No need to remove brakes, strutts, outer driveshaft nut or so.
Next week I will start to remove the gearbox. We will see what problems I will find then.


mackan