Clutch issue with the master/slave cylinders

[vr4gasmtt]

Ok, well I need to replace the master and slave cylinder, the master is leaking under the firewall. I want to do it myself but I'm afraid I might mess up something and end up needing to spend more money to fix it.

I was wondering would any brake fluid work for the master and slave? There are guides on how to switch them out and I have read them over and over, and even though I appreciate the DIY, I just feel that it isn't technical enough.

I'm pretty broke, and I don't want to overdraft, but I just don't want to be stuck in the middle of the road with my hazards on pushing the car to the side of the road. My dad says just pour fluid in the master cylinder and it'll be fine, but I just don't trust what he says.

I have trouble getting into first gear sometimes, and also my clutch pedal just feels very mushy and squishy. I was just wondering are these symptoms of a bad master and slave or is it also clutch related? As of now its leaking about quarter sized drips under the dash.

How much am I going to need to shell out for a master and slave. How are the OE ebay master/slave holding up for everyone? Like I said, I'm on a budget, I'm probably going to overdraft to buy the master/slave, but I really don't want to be stuck in the middle of the road. Engagement is terrible in the car, its right off the floor.

Any help would be very much appreciated.
Thanks

 

[roadrunner2176]

Master cylinder rebuild kits run between 15 and 20 dollors. If you can change your own oil, you can rebuild the master cylinder. Bleed the line and replace with fresh fluid. I use the same as the brake fluid, dot 3; synthetic is up to you. Whole process should take no more than 2 hours, which includes rebuilding the master cylinder. Just make sure your old master cylinder rod and the new one are at equal lengths when attached to the pedal. You shouldnt have to adjust this later if their equal lengths and you did a good job bleeding the line.
Rebuilt slave cylinder is 30.00 at most auto stores give or take 5 dollars. They do have a rebuild kit for that as well, but for 10.00 more, its already done and warranteed.

Just a quick run through.
Slave is 15 minutes to replace, master is all preperation. Unbolt the resevoir from the vehicle(you'll have more space for your hands), remove the line from the cylinder, unbolt the master. Id suggest using a good 1/4 inch ratchet for this, a 2" extension and deep welled metric sockets. I found this to be the fastest and easiest combination to use between switching out extensions vs removing the extension and replacing with the socket, that and its alot easier to fit a 1/4 inch drive in there than a 3/8. Remove the pin connecting the rod to the clutch pedal, remove the interior bolt, remove the master cylinder and rebuild it. read in reverse for installation.
Get a good bleed, or your pedal will feel mushy, and get as much of that old fluid out as you can, doesnt hurt to clean the junk out of the resevoir either.

 

[prplhz96]

There are some things I can see being frugal on, but braking and clutch are 2 that should not have corners cut. Both are fairly esay swaps that just about anyone can do, just get your self a repair manual and take your time. Before you install the new/rebuilt master, do yourself a huge favor and bench bleed it first, it will save a ton of headaches. Once you replace the master it would be wise to flush all of your lines, shouldnt take longer than 15 minutes to do all four corners. This is where a vacuum pump comes in handy, makes bleeding of brakes/slave 100 times easier.

 

[vr4gasmtt]

There are some things I can see being frugal on, but braking and clutch are 2 that should not have corners cut. Both are fairly esay swaps that just about anyone can do, just get your self a repair manual and take your time. Before you install the new/rebuilt master, do yourself a huge favor and bench bleed it first, it will save a ton of headaches. Once you replace the master it would be wise to flush all of your lines, shouldnt take longer than 15 minutes to do all four corners. This is where a vacuum pump comes in handy, makes bleeding of brakes/slave 100 times easier.

Thats why I asked how are the OE master and slave are doing for everyone, I searched and I came up with a post saying after 4 months the OE went bad, but nobody else chimed in, so it could have been from some abusive driving.

When you say bench bleed, do you mean just bleed it without switching out the master? Theres a DIY technical on how to bleed properly, but I still don't understand it that well. I definitely need a manual, but like I stated above, I'm on a tight budget, and want to keep cost down.

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated, I'm planning on doing this this weekend.

 

[roadrunner2176]

Bench bleeding is just that, as you new or rebuilt master cylinder is ready to be installed, place it in a vice with the resevoir attached and pump it a few times until you dont see any more air bubbles, and a few more times after that just to make sure. Than bolt it up and go. You can do the same with the slave, just attach a tube to both ends and push the rod in and slowly release it, but personally I think its easier to just bleed it on the car.

The oe master and slave cylinders are tough parts. I would stick with them they can take abuse as long as their rebuilt or built correctly. If your doing a rebuild, just make sure there is no debris inside the cylinder before replacing the o-rings. It doesnt take much to mar an o-ring especially one under pressure.

Theres no need to bleed your brakes, just bleed the clutch line and be done with it. One job at a time.

Vacuume bleeders are great, but not needed for this, unless you have one. If not, just find a small cup and dont worry about putting anything in it just yet, and a piece of tubing. Pump the master 2 times, refill it, 2 more times, refill and so on. Once you see that the fluid coming out of the line doesnt look like its from a liquid glue stick, connect the line to the slave, place your tubing on the bleed valve, dump the jar and put about an inch of fresh fluid in there. Pump the master a few more times making sure the resevoir doesnt pump dry, checking for airbubbles. Dont unscrew the slave more than a half turn otherwise it will suck air in through the threads. If you have a good seal around the bleed valve and a clear piece of hose about 2 feet long, you can do this by yourself. Once you see that there are no air bubbles in the tubing your lines are blead, tighten the valve, and check for pedal play, there shouldnt be any. If there is, the bleed isnt good enough, or the rod from the pedal to the master cylinder needs to be adjusted.

 

[No_Skillz]

In my experience I've found the ebay/pep boys/autozone cylinders to be unreliable. The last one I used lasted about 4 months before it started leaking.
Expect to spend about $100 on a new OEM master and $50 on slave.

Expect to take a few hours your first time around but you should be able to do it. Take your time and make sure it's done right. Follow the instructions in the technical articles here and on v-faq, they're detailed enough to get you through.

 

[IslandTSI]

www.plymouthlaser.com has a really well done vfaq on replacing the master on a 2g. Check it out