///Manuel
08-29-2009, 03:10 AM
Resolved: Culprit = Pressure plate! See "EDIT3" down below.
I have recently updated all clutch components and I'm getting an intermittent clutch master cylinder failure. The pedal gets stuck to the floor, I need to pull it back up, pump a few times and eventually it gets firm enough for me to start using it again. If I don't use it for a few seconds then it will fail the first time I use it :nono so I try to keep pumping it until I get home.
It happens when warm and doesn't when cold. I bled lots of fluid out about 1.5 quarts overall through vacuum bleeding, manual bleeding and power bleeding (spent days on everything) and it's still happening. By hand (two-man method), the pedal will get firm and then randomly all of a sudden fail. When it does fail it makes squirting sounds right within the master. I tried pulling the slave out and pushing the rod back in multiple times :help
I'm really puzzled and wonder if there could be any be air still in the system or that maybe I got a defective master cylinder?
EDIT: After another test drive, I was able to reproduce the problem and felt the pedal when it happened again. By feel I could tell that there's still was air in the system, the master felt soft and mushy, pumping got the pedal somewhat firm again.
So I went back home and raised the rear of the car as high as my jack would allow (in hope to have bubbles come up from the slave) and pressure bled once more.
After a few ounces of fluid came out, I disconnected the bleeder, pumped the pedal and finished with the old pump and bleed process. I'm not sure I could tell whether there was any difference in terms of bubbles but I could feel the pedal get a touch firmer.
Finally, I went for a ride and voilą, no more problem, a firm pedal whether warm or not, smooth shifts, I have my car back, what a b*tch... I smoked what I think was a Stratus R/T for good measure even though he had the jump (I wanted to give him a chance :)) as I was entering the highway, it feels great to have my car up and running 100%.
EDIT2: Just when I thought it was sorted out, after a flawless 200-mile drive to Aspen, my clutch went out again! I was able to pull over and bleed it when I ran into the "squirting sound" again. This time I was able to see that fluid was being spitted out back into the reservoir and lead me to think that the lower seal in the master was bad. By using the clutch very slowly, I was able to drive home ok but I'm now pretty sure that the master is defective, I'll be replacing it shortly and update this thread. What a pain :eyecrazy
EDIT3: I got the master replaced at the dealer under warranty, that one never failed but felt mushy as well. So I decided to replace the clutch, throw-out and pilot bearings. That fixed the problem. The pressure plate must have been defective. The clutch pedal now feels nice and firm, it also fixed a gear rattle that the car has developed at idle. I can now feel the car bite between gear changes, so phenomenal!
I have recently updated all clutch components and I'm getting an intermittent clutch master cylinder failure. The pedal gets stuck to the floor, I need to pull it back up, pump a few times and eventually it gets firm enough for me to start using it again. If I don't use it for a few seconds then it will fail the first time I use it :nono so I try to keep pumping it until I get home.
It happens when warm and doesn't when cold. I bled lots of fluid out about 1.5 quarts overall through vacuum bleeding, manual bleeding and power bleeding (spent days on everything) and it's still happening. By hand (two-man method), the pedal will get firm and then randomly all of a sudden fail. When it does fail it makes squirting sounds right within the master. I tried pulling the slave out and pushing the rod back in multiple times :help
I'm really puzzled and wonder if there could be any be air still in the system or that maybe I got a defective master cylinder?
EDIT: After another test drive, I was able to reproduce the problem and felt the pedal when it happened again. By feel I could tell that there's still was air in the system, the master felt soft and mushy, pumping got the pedal somewhat firm again.
So I went back home and raised the rear of the car as high as my jack would allow (in hope to have bubbles come up from the slave) and pressure bled once more.
After a few ounces of fluid came out, I disconnected the bleeder, pumped the pedal and finished with the old pump and bleed process. I'm not sure I could tell whether there was any difference in terms of bubbles but I could feel the pedal get a touch firmer.
Finally, I went for a ride and voilą, no more problem, a firm pedal whether warm or not, smooth shifts, I have my car back, what a b*tch... I smoked what I think was a Stratus R/T for good measure even though he had the jump (I wanted to give him a chance :)) as I was entering the highway, it feels great to have my car up and running 100%.
EDIT2: Just when I thought it was sorted out, after a flawless 200-mile drive to Aspen, my clutch went out again! I was able to pull over and bleed it when I ran into the "squirting sound" again. This time I was able to see that fluid was being spitted out back into the reservoir and lead me to think that the lower seal in the master was bad. By using the clutch very slowly, I was able to drive home ok but I'm now pretty sure that the master is defective, I'll be replacing it shortly and update this thread. What a pain :eyecrazy
EDIT3: I got the master replaced at the dealer under warranty, that one never failed but felt mushy as well. So I decided to replace the clutch, throw-out and pilot bearings. That fixed the problem. The pressure plate must have been defective. The clutch pedal now feels nice and firm, it also fixed a gear rattle that the car has developed at idle. I can now feel the car bite between gear changes, so phenomenal!