Clutch won't bleed - Fixed

[Jutzi420]

Ok. I was having some problems with my clutch. Seemed like air in the lines. I'd have to pump the pedal occasionaly to get the clutch tp release. So I tried bleeding it. I seemed to get all the air out, but I lost all tension in the pedal.

So I removed both the master and slave cylinders and check the seals. They seemed fine, and would squirt fluid when I manually actuated them. So I put everything back together and start bleeding the system again. I get a lot of foamy fluid to start then the closer I get to having no air in the lines the slower the fluid moves, to the point that it doesn't seem to be moving at all. The resevoir drained a little over a quarter inch and that was as far down as it went.

The fork moves while the clutch pedal is pumped, but it looks like it might be able to go further. It only seems move about 1/2 to 5/8. Is that normal, or should it move further?

Anyone had an issue like this? I've tried bleeding it too many times to count and I can't get any tension on the pedal.

[Ryan]

It always takes forever to bleed. Lots of guys let it gravity bleed while they take a beer break.

If you drive it and it feels good, its good. It doesn't matter how far the fork moves.

[Jutzi420]

I guess if I got some time tomorrow I'll try letting gravity do the work. But as it stands right now I spent close to an hour trying to bleed it and I still can't put it in gear.

[Sleeper6]

Ya to give you an idea I let mine gravity bleed for about 2hrs and still spent about 45mins bleeding it out while pumping it. Takes forever man.

[Jutzi420]

That seems to be the way it's going. But it really doesn't make any sense to me. I've had both cylinders apart. I know the id of all the lines. If I pull out 8oz of fluid bleeding it that should be more than the sysyem holds. I also know that after I pulled that much fluid through it still didn't work. So thanks Sleep6 I was looking for a perspective from someone who's done this to dispell some of my doubts.

I'm still not sure how I eneded up with air in my lines in the first place. All my lines were dry. No signs of leaks between the master and slave. Ah well. Lets see what happens tomorrow.

[wohpony]

Just had this problem and had to pick up a mityvac hand vacuum pump. Use in conjunction with the pedal pump bleed method and you will be good to go in no time.

[Mooneggs]

are you 100% sure the cylinders are working correctly? I had a similar mystery issue (bleeding it forever) and it ended up being a bad master cylinder that wasn't pushing the fluid...

Also more recently, my shifter fork cracked and I couldn't tell from the outside as it was still moving the fork but I couldn't engage the gears at all (tried bleeding, and replacing slave/master with spares I had)... hopefully this is not the issue...

[Jutzi420]

I've got a phoenix injector v-12. When I used it to try pulling the fluid though the bleed screw it'd work fine for a bit, then it'd seem to pull more and more air through, to the point of air locking the tool. While pumping the clutch didn't seem to produce nearly as much air, when it actually moved fluid that is. I didn't try a combo of the tool and pumping though...

As far as the function of the cylinders goes, I'm not 100% sure. I know they both pushed fluid when I actuated them manually. The slave seemed to have more power though, I shot myself in the face with brake fluid. I'll tell ya right now, that's not fun. The slave would fire a meter or more and the master only like a foot. Maybe the master is bad...

[Jutzi420]

Well. I ordered a seal kit for the master this morning. I'm going to give the rebuild a whirl the next time it's mild out. I had to yank the car out of our washbay and 50 meters across the parking lot to get it outa the way. I don't really wanna try to move it back if I don't have to.

Hopefully the new seals get the old girl back on her feet.

[Daninski]

Inspect the inner cylinder and make sure the walls aren't corroded first. If they are it's new master cylinder time. Good luck.

[wytbishop]

Air gets trapped in the slave cylinder. It helps if you raise the side of the car to elevate the bleeder valve. Lets the air rise to the top and bleed out.

[mazdags94]

I did an atx to mtx swap so as you could imagine, there was absolutely nothing but air in my lines, cmc, and slave. I tried to bleed the line for two days straight, at which point, I got frustrated and left the car in my garage (and forgot to fully close the slave valve). I had a clear tube hooked up to a reservoir so no fluid had spilled but I uknowingly did a lengthy gravity bleed. Mine sat for about 8 hours before I realized it was still open, so I closed the valve and tried to bleed again. Sure enough, she started to build pressure!

Horray for my frustration that led to carelessness, which fixed my problem. It's not very often you have a problem that fixes itself. Usually when you get impatient and make mistakes, it leads to a negative outcome...

[Jutzi420]

The inner cylinder looked just fine on both. So it shouldn't be an issue. I'll have to try raising the car. didn't think of that. I've got the new seals, but it's been pretty damn cold around here. Maybe if I get a chance tomorrow before then sun goes down I might try swapping them out.

[Jutzi420]

And we're done.
Replaced all the guts of the master clutch cylinder and it bled in no time. After all the hassle I had before I wasn't convinced so I left it to gravity bleed over night, maybe a 1/4 of the reservoir drained at the most. Bled it some more so be safe and away we go.

That's gotta be the cheapest thing I've ever had to fix on this car.

[Daninski]

So I guess this means we'll see you at the first MX-3 meet.