[DML] clutch cable/clutch master cylinder

["King, Bob" <BKing@xxxx>]

Hi there-

I was wondering if I could get an opinion on my situation regarding the
clutch in my '81 DMC.

I had my DeLorean for about a week, and I noticed that the gears were
starting to grind a bit. Before I knew it, 2nd gear wasn't accessible. I
pulled over and checked the clutch fluid reservoir. It was bone dry, so I
filled it with Dot 40 clutch fluid. This worked great... for a week. Then,
the problems came back with a vengeance. I couldn't hit 2nd or reverse, and
1st gear was grinding badly. 3rd 4th and 5th were fine, however.

At this point, I noticed a few things. First, I could hit all gears when
the engine was off, so I figured it probably wasn't the transmission. (is
this a safe bet?) And second, the gears seemed to take much less of a
beating (they even worked most of the time) if I repeatedly pumped the
clutch before using it. Also, I gave my new car a day off, and the clutch
worked really well for the first 20 miles of it's next trip, then the gears
started to grind a bit again, but did not become non-functioning.

I took My DeLorean to a clutch/transmission shop, where they diagnosed bad
clutch hydraulics and figured that the master and slave cylinders would need
replacing. I had heard that when one goes, the other isn't far behind, so
this seemed to make sense. Then, I got a call later in the day from the
shop saying that they had found some seepage around the clutch line and that
the problem may be the cable itself, which would be a much cheaper (happier)
fix. I am waiting to see if the changing the clutch line is the answer.

Does this sound like a master/slave cylinder problem or a clutch cable
problem, or is this a problem that has to be witnessed to diagnose?

Thanks.