Just got to work, clutch pedal not returning all the way

[autojack]

I arrived at work this morning after a normal 1h:15m drive, and when I was a couple of blocks from the office I noticed that my clutch pedal was not returning all the way when I released it. When pulling away from a stop, the car wanted to stall unless I let the clutch out very gently, but otherwise it seemed to shift normally and I was able to get it into a parking spot. After shutting off, I took a look at the pedal. It is normally level with my brake pedal, but now was a good 1-2" lower. I pulled the pedal back up with my hand and it stayed in position. With the car off I pumped it a couple of times and it felt normal and returned as normal. Something is definitely up, but what?

Of course this stuff happens 50 miles from home, when I'm looking at a 90 minute return trip in traffic. This is a 1988 car, G50 gearbox, clutch has around 10k miles on it. I'll see if I can get at the pedal box and check it for issues. Otherwise I would have to guess that the master or slave cylinder is going. Any other suggestions?

[aston@ultrasw.c]

It could certainly be related to something hydraulic. Bleeding the system is a bit of a PITA and not something to do in the office parking lot!

It could also be something in the pedal box. Pull up the carpets and such and grab a flashlight. First pull on the pedal to make sure it is all the way back. Then press down on the clutch with your hand and look closely at the clutch actuating mechanism. It could be that the pedal moves but the mechanism does not.

Pay close attention to the first inch of pedal travel. If the two halves of the mechanism are not locked together from the very first movement of the pedal, then it is likely that one of the two pins, that lock various parts to the cross shaft, have broken.

Over the last few years, I have had 2 broken pins and 2 cases of air in the system. IIRC.

[blpetry]

Different transmission and cable vs. hydraulic, but my clutch pedal would do exactly as you're describing. My symptoms were caused by the pedal cluster bushings being shot and a pedal cluster rebuild resolved the issue. In my case, the clutch was totally disengaged at the point where it "stuck" so no long term problems, but your situation may be different. Other than the sticking, the clutch operated as usual.

[Roswell]

5 to 1 your slave cylinder is going out.

[autojack]

What are your thoughts on trying to drive it home, if I can avoid stop and go traffic? For the brief period that I was driving it with the problem, it seemed to shift and drive OK, other than needing to release the clutch more carefully than usual to avoid a stall.

[aston@ultrasw.c]

I would give it a try, but that's just me.

When stopped, select neutral and release the clutch.

[DRACO A5OG]

+1 slave cylinder's oring are shot :-(

Remove your shoe and drive bare footed and use your toes to bring arm back up. That is what my 87 buddy has to do, he is stubborn, tried everything to bring the pedal back up and refuses to replace the slave cylinder.

[autojack]

OK. I'm not afraid to give it a try, the closer I get to home the cheaper a tow truck will be if I end up needing one! I just don't want to damage anything. A friend said that if I have to just pull the pedal up with my toe occasionally, that's OK.

[autojack]

Made it home with no drama, I left work early and took a more scenic route to avoid heavy traffic. At home I inspected the pedal box and the dowel pins and such look fine. I don't see any fluid coming from the master cylinder. Is the slave cylinder really that terrible to replace? The Bentley makes it look easy enough, but I can imagine that access under the car without a lift isn't so simple.

[Roswell]

It's a very nasty job. I would go ahead and replace the master cylinder also.

[autojack]

Originally Posted by Roswell

It's a very nasty job. I would go ahead and replace the master cylinder also.

Can you elaborate? What's so nasty about it?

[Roswell]

If you have access to a lift, go for it. If not, I suggest jacking the car up, crawling under it and locating the slave cylinder. Actually find the bolts you will need to take out in order to remove the slave. The job is challenging at best while on your back on a garage floor.

Search the forum, there are several discussions on replacing the slave.

Best of Luck!

[DRACO A5OG]

Nasty because of dirt and brake fluid will go ever where. and most likely on you, please wear eye protection.

Get a new bleeder valve, the old will undoubtedly round out so be prepared, hate for you to be stalled by a $8.00 part 928-351-945-03-OEM

[aston@ultrasw.c]

As we have established, bleeding the slave cylinder is a real PITA.

I purchased an extreme check valve/bleed screw from ebay for something like $20

I know, i know......

BUT it works like a champ, one person bleeding and no air enters through the threads.

(for some unknown reason my pressure bleeder did not seem to expel all the air)

[gwmac]

Check for a foreign object jammed in the pedal cluster, it happedned to me.

[autojack]

In this case I would be replacing the whole cylinder, so I wouldn't be worried about rounding the brand new bleeder valve. Also, I have a Motive bleeder, so that would help the bleeding process. But I take the point that access to the cylinder is a real bear without a lift. I may just let my local shop do this one

[porschenut]

I'm not 100% sure off the top of my head, but I think replacing the slave (or bleeding it) is easy if you drop the engine just a couple of inches. Dropping it that much shouldn't require you to disconnect anything.

[autojack]

Took the car in to my mechanic. The master cylinder was bad, turns out. They replaced both. Surprisingly, the clutch feels much lighter now, I wouldn't have thought this would make a difference. I'm glad I didn't try to tackle this job myself, I've got too many irons in the fire already.