When you find out about unusual noises on your Opel Zafira you usually tend to be concerned. Especially when you experience a noise coming from the release bearing of your Opel Zafira. It is directly assimilated to an engine trouble and can therefore be serious. As we know that you do not take these trouble lightly, we have decided to make this article to help you locate the causes and free yourself from this matter as quickly as possible. To do this, we will first concentrate on the purpose and operation of the release bearing of your clutch, and in a second step we will look in detail at the different release bearing noises on Opel Zafira and their origins.release-bearing-noise-opel-zafira

What is the function and operation of the release bearing on Opel Zafira?

Task of the release bearing on Opel Zafira

The release bearing of your Opel Zafira has a essential purpose in the operation of your entire gearbox system. In fact, its task is to liberate the gearbox from the rotation of the engine block via its action. This will allow you to shift gears. It is operated by the clutch pedal and then by the release fork, which, when it is activated, will press on the clutch and release the gearbox from engine rotation for you allow you to shift gears on your Opel Zafira.

Action of release bearing Opel Zafira

Let’s now look at the technical side, the release bearing is composed of two units, a first fixed part that slides only when the stop is pulled, or pushed (based on its type) and finally a rotating part that is composed of a bearing that will allow it to stay in contact with the mechanism and follow its rotation.
There are two different kind of release bearing Opel Zafira :

  • Pulled release bearing
  • It is the most unconventional of the two kind of release bearing . This one, in contrast to the hydraulic style, is operated by a mechanical pulling system that will release the clutch disc. In this case, the release bearing must be mechanically fixed to the mechanism.

  • Hydraulic release bearing
  • The hydraulic release bearing, although more complex, is the version most used in contemporary cars. It is however more complex than the pulled release bearing. In fact, it will be composed of a hydraulic tube that will receive the pressure immediately from the clutch pedal.
    More conventional clutch stop

Release bearing noises Opel Zafira and their origins

I experience a release bearing noise on Opel Zafira in cases where I drive and it stops when I release my clutch pedal

If you experience a noise from your gearbox, release bearing or clutch itself when your engine is running, but it ceases when you press your clutch pedal, this noise often sounds like a bell noise, it is highly plausible that your release bearing is the cause. Make sure that this noise stops when you disengage, in which circumstance it is time to change the release bearing of your Opel Zafira.

I experience a release bearing noise when my pedal is up and I experience jolts in my foot

If you experience too much or too little resistance when you press your clutch pedal, and it is associated with jolts that you can experience in your clutch pedal, then the stop/fork release/blades grouping is degraded. In fact, this noise often comes from the broken fork that no longer allows the device to run normally.

I experience a grinding noise coming from the release bearing of my Opel Zafira when I try to shift gears and they do not shift

This matter appears most often on models equipped with hydraulic release bearing. It is often connected to a clutch pedal that has little or no resistance. If you are in this situation and you feel a grinding or cracking noise coming from the release bearing of your Opel Zafira, then you probably have a leak coming from your release bearing. It must therefore be changed promptly or risk damaging your gearbox in addition to the clutch. If you have a noise coming from the gearbox of your Opel Zafira and it’s not from your release bearing, check this article to have more informations.