Hi all, I have a few question for you...

I have an '02 Blazer with the 5-speed. It seems to me that there's some freeplay in the drivetrain. Meaning that when you let out the clutch (durring normal daily driving), it feels like there's slack between the transmission and rearend. Even when going through the gears, usually only noticable between 1st thru 3rd. 4th and 5th generally seem to be fine, but I think that might be because I'm already moving at a good rate of speed by then. I don't know, maybe I'm just used to driving a super tight Mazda Miata for the past 3 years.

1) Is this kind of normal for these trucks to have this kind of "slop" so to speak?

2) Are there any kind of upgraded bushing or anything that can help?


And slightly off topic...

3) In trying to get a little more economy out of the 4.3L as well as a little added performance, would it be a good idea to look into a lightweight flywheel and possibly a new clutch? Or maybe even skip on the clutch and just get the flywheel?

It has just over 62k miles on it but the clutch is still very responsive and grippy, I imagine still like new by the way it feels. Also, the truck is completely stock other than a cheapie e-Bay CAI.

Any thoughts, ideas, etc, etc would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

There really is no comparison between a car and a truck when it comes to drivetrains. A car can be setup a LOT tighter than a truck due to the difference in weights and intended use. Tighter means more heat when loaded which can lead to failure. I would guess that what you are feeling is just the slack in all of the drivetrain components (axles, ring/pinion, driveshaft, lash on the gears in the transmission, etc). If you have excessive backlash on the ring/pinion, it can exaggerate things a bit, but you should also have some noise problems associated...

I don't think you will be happy with a lightweight flywheel in a truck application. In a light vehicle, you don't need the flywheel momentum to help when releasing from a stop or changing gears, but I think you would not like the difference if you were to go to a lightweight flywheel. I also don't think it would improve the economy by much. A new clutch, if the original is still functioning well, won't really change things either.

 

Thanks for the reply. Well, at least that saves mea lot ofmoney on uneeded upgrades! LOL

Seriously though, my first vehicle was a '91 Ford Ranger XLT Extended Cabwith the 3.0L V6 and 5-speed. I do remember it having some slop, but I don't think this much. That was well over 12+ years ago and I was still basically a kid (17-20), so who knows. If what I described sounds normal to you, then I'm not going to worry about it. I am still getting the feel for the clutch, so maybe that's all it is. Sometimes I can shift without any slop, but sometimes it's there.

Speaking of ring/pinion gears, do these Blazers use open or LS rearends? Or does it matter on the model and packages?

Again, thanks!

 

This link will help you decode the RPO codes on the sticker inside your glovebox door. One of them will tell you what rear you have.

http://www.s10forum.com/rpo/index.php