Re: clutch problem

[knut.s.grimsrud@xxxx]

DMCJoe already indicated that you'll need to properly bleed the 
system after refilling, but you might want to first ask yourself 
where the cluch fluid went.

There should be no need to refill the cluch fluid level unless there 
is a leak somewhere. If you have a clean/dry shop floor, you can 
oftentimes discover leaks by taking a look at your floor. This 
approach is not definitive for the cluch, however, since the common 
leaks don't really drop much on the floor. I've had my share of cluch 
hydraulic problems on my cars (in fact I'm in the process or 
replacing my slave cylinder now). Failures are usually either with 
the slave cylinder or the master cylinder. For some cosmic reason, 
the two also seem to fail together (on my daily driver some years 
back I replaced the slave cylinder and the master cylinder failed 2 
weeks later -- I got pretty good at speed shifting, but stop lights 
were a bummer).

When my master failed, I ended up with clutch fluid in the driver's 
footwell under the carpet (the carpet pad soaked the stuff up making 
cleanup a drag). The fluid seeps down along the inside of the 
firewall and soaks the carpet from the underside.

The slave just failed on my garage queen car and I didn't have any 
spots on my garage floor, but the area around the slave cylinder is 
really wet (there is probably some big puddle of fluid sitting ontop 
of the transmission).

As part of refilling and bleeding your clutch system, you might want 
to also diagnose why your fluid got low in the first place.

Knut


--- In dmcnews@xxxx, scottymckenzie@xxxx wrote:
> 
> Somehow I managed to let my cluch fluid container get bone dry, and
> didn't notice it until I got stuck in first gear one day. I've
> tried filling the container up but I still can't get out of gear.
> Do I need to bleed the line? I also tried 
> pumping the clutch petal, it doesn't seem to have the
> pressure to it that it used to have.
> thanks