Clutch Fluid Leak [Merged 4-9] leaking master slave

[jesterbot]

Hey guys, I just bought my first DSM and have a little problem...

I drove it back from Denver to Houston this weekend and at the end of our trip, we noticed the clutch was sticking. You could pull it back up manually and it would work, but it would stick again soon after.

We checked the clutch/tranny fluid and found the reservoir empty. We filled it up, pumped the clutch and the reservoir level did not drop. Noticed a slow leak on the underbody. After driving it for a few minutes, the same thing happened again... clutch stuck, checked levels, and found the reservoir low (but not empty). Refilled. Same thing again.

I am a total novice here, and a good friend who races DSM's offered to work on it with me this weekend, but I was curious if there was something I could do to it myself with only standard tools and a minimal of work (not because I'm lazy, but I want to avoid breaking things).

Any ideas, help?

Thanks!!

 

[Thunderskull]

You need to check your clutch master cylinder and your clutch slave cylinder. Where on the underbody is your leak coming from? The master cylinder is attached to your clutch resevoir and goes through the firewall and under the dash. It's connected to your clutch pedal. Check the part of the master cylinder that's inside your car. It is way up under the dash. Just follow the clutch pedal linkage and you will find it. The slave cylinder is under the hood just under and left of the exhaust manifold. It is a little cylinder with a rubber boot that kinda looks like an accordian. http://www.vfaq.com/index-main.html This is a link for a clutch slave cylinder replacement. There are plenty of pictures. I would bet that you have a leak in one or both of your cylinders. If you are losing fluid, bleeding your clutch will not help you. You have a leak somewhere. The link I just gave you also tells you how to bleed your clutch fluid. Check the fluid lines from your clutch to see if one of your clutch lines is bad. The good thing is that if it's one of your cylinders, then you can either replace or rebuild them for less than $100.00. Doing the work yourself is pretty darn easy. It was the first thing I ever did to my Talon, and it was cake. It take about 2 hours to do them both. That's including beer breaks. When you finish repairing the clutch hydraulics, you will need to bleed your clutch and refill with DOT-3 brake fluid. I hope this helps. I've done this repair before, so if you need any help or advice feel free to contact me.

 

[newports01]

min dosent do all that.... but my master cyl leaks/drips every so often into the floorboard... 1 day i was pulling out my driveway and the clutch jsut felt funny as hell.. soi pulled back in and checked my resiv.. and bone dry.... filled it up and got my girl to pump the clutch.... dint move at all... so i jumped in it and drvoe around the block.. came back and the res. moved a little but now the clutch was fine... whats this mean??

 

[Thunderskull]

You have a leak somewhere in your clutch hydraulic system. If you are seeing clutch fluid on your floor, then your master cylinder is leaking. You probably had a slow leak. When your resevoir went bone dry, you pulled some air in the system. This would still result in a mushy clutch even after filling the resevoir. The reason your pedal pressure went back to normal is because the air was pushed out through the leak in your master cylinder. Mine leaked and had almost no pedal pressure. None of the clutch fluid had leaked on the floor. It was just coating the master cylinder and the clutch pedal linkage. If yours is actually leaking on the floor, then it's probably gotten to a point where you need to consider doing a master cylinder replacement or rebuild. Considering that yours is a 96, then you can probably get by with just doing a rebuild. It's going to get worse. A replacement will run you about $90 for the part. A rebuild kit can be had for less than $30. I hope this helps, and good luck!

 

[newports01]

thanks... btw its not much at all it just makes my petal splipery evey so often but i will do... Im not to good with do it yourself projects from a reck i had a while back... what does this procedure run at say o..... mitsubishi ?

 

[Thunderskull]

I just checked, the rebuild kit will run you around $10.00. Pretty cheap. Mine was nearly $30 for my 1g. It should only take you around an hour or so to do it. It's very simple to do. Good luck.

 

[newports01]

thing is i dont know if i can get to it... i cant really get down on my knees from my wreck :/

 

[jaders]

I bought my car a few months ago.I never noticed until recently my carpet is badly stained by the dead pedal and have noticed there is a trail leading up to the clutch.So I have a leaky clutch.Judging by the stains on the floor I would say it has leaked for some time.Can i still rebuild or should I replace it.Where would you buy a rebuild kit?

 

[Thunderskull]

Well, I have a 1g and rebuilt mine without any problems. Some say that the piston can wear out the inside shaft of the clutch master cylinder over time, and that it's just better to replace the whole thing. However, I'm not aware of anyone doing a rebuild and having it fail for that reason. I'd say go for the rebuild. It'll be a lot cheaper, and it is very easy.

 

[jaders]

Originally posted by Thunderskull
Well, I have a 1g and rebuilt mine without any problems. Some say that the piston can wear out the inside shaft of the clutch master cylinder over time, and that it's just better to replace the whole thing. However, I'm not aware of anyone doing a rebuild and having it fail for that reason. I'd say go for the rebuild. It'll be a lot cheaper, and it is very easy.

Where do you buy rebuild kits and does the chiltons show how this is done??

 

[Thunderskull]

Try your local auto parts store. They make them for ALL models of DSM. I'm not sure if the chiltons shows how this is done. Is there a vfaq?

 

[jaders]

Originally posted by Thunderskull
Try your local auto parts store. They make them for ALL models of DSM. I'm not sure if the chiltons shows how this is done. Is there a vfaq?

I have a problem getting anything for a 95 at our lacal stores.They seem to not carry anything above 94.But I will keep looking.As for the vfaq the only one I have seen is for the slave cylinder and that is for a 1g.But thanks for your help if you can think of anything else let me know.Thanks again.

 

[Thunderskull]

Try Napa online. You should be able to find what you're looking for there. I've read that some of the 2g guys have a hard time finding the rebuild kits. The website's www.napaonline.com .

 

[TalonESi]

I had a couple leaks in my clutch hydraulics, one was a very slight leak in the clutch master cylinder, where it basically just stained the floor (a few drops every week). I thought when my resivor suddenly ran out (and my clutch could not be dissengaged) that it was all leaking from the master cylinder. So I rebuilt it, fixed the leak there. 10 Minutes after test driving it the cylinder was empty again. I had a helper press the clutch down as hard and fast as they could (after putting more fluid in the resivoir) and I discovered the clutch line (not either cylinder) was leaking heavily going into the eye bolt on the slave cylinder. I took the line out and it's flange was crushed from being over torqued at the transmission shop. So I went and bought a 12" metric 10 brake line and replaced it (I also removed the slave cylinder restrictor why I had that out.), bleed the line and now my CM stage I clutch is golden.

 

[16GSX]

I got my slave cylinder and master cylinder from www.ctcmotorsports.com. It was like $104 for both of them.

 

[jaders]

I checked out napas web site and for around 15.00 you can get a rebuild kit.(90.00 will get u a new one)as for ctcmotorsports it was like 150.00 for a new one and for the both(slave & master)200.00.The price has sure gone up.I guess this happens a lot and someone is trying to capitolize.I did find a new one on nopi.com for around 40.00.And the slave was about the same.Thanks for all your help.

 

[dayberry]

Originally posted by jesterbot
Hey guys, I just bought my first DSM and have a little problem...

I drove it back from Denver to Houston this weekend and at the end of our trip, we noticed the clutch was sticking. You could pull it back up manually and it would work, but it would stick again soon after.

We checked the clutch/tranny fluid and found the reservoir empty. We filled it up, pumped the clutch and the reservoir level did not drop. Noticed a slow leak on the underbody. After driving it for a few minutes, the same thing happened again... clutch stuck, checked levels, and found the reservoir low (but not empty). Refilled. Same thing again.

I am a total novice here, and a good friend who races DSM's offered to work on it with me this weekend, but I was curious if there was something I could do to it myself with only standard tools and a minimal of work (not because I'm lazy, but I want to avoid breaking things).

Any ideas, help?

Thanks!!

If the leak is underneath..I would say u need to replace the slave clynder and make sure you bleed it too.

 

[16GSX]

as for ctcmotorsports it was like 150.00 for a new one and for the both(slave & master)200.00.

Umm? I think you better look again. It says it clearly in red, "Sale Price: $109" for both the slave cylinder and master cylinder.

http://shopctc.site.yahoo.net/clmaslcypa.html

 

[GSTeve]

i have a leak on my clutch line on the place that it screws onto the slave cylinder. i replaced the line and the slave cylinder about 6 months ago. and now that leak is back. ive tried everything to fix it. this is really annoying i know the problem but i cant fix it. someone please help me!!
thanks in advance.

 

[SportinWood]

Dude, I JUST had that problem with mine. Does your clutch ever fade on the highway at all too?
Anyways check your master cylinder for leaks(inside the cab ect..) there is air getting in there somehow. Make sure you use a thread sealer too and dont tighten it too much. I just took mine to a shop after going through 2 lines/slaves and payed out the ass(bout $600) for everything to be replaced. They said the master cylinder was leaking inside the cab..... and that caused it. To replace everything... if it comes down to it should only be 185 in parts... two new hardlines, center cylinder, master and slave..... but check your master first....

 

[forcedfedgsx]

i spliced mine with a compression fitting and some line

 

[GSTeve]

its not the master cylinder because i just replaced that the same time i replaced my slave cylinder and the line that goes into the slave cylinder. i can see the leak. its at the point where the clutch line screws onto the slave cylinder. i just need to know how to seel it. ive tried teflon, nothing works. help!!

 

[Defiant]

It's probably a cracked hard line, right at the flare nut. Mine did it twice, the second time on a month-old line. Replace it with stainless, and lose that bizarre accumulator in the bargain. $20:

http://www.roadraceengineering.com/instructions/2gclutchlineinstructions.htm

 

[Defiant]

Originally posted by SportinWood
Make sure you use a thread sealer too and dont tighten it too much.

It's a compression fitting. The threads don't go near the fluid. They'll think you're an Oakie farmer.

 

[SportinWood]

Actually if tightened too much it warps or cracks the flange and/or the brass fitting inside(I've already done that). The thread sealer is more or less to ensure that it doesnt loosen being how it's attatched to the tranny. It's more of a safe bet than anything else.
Oh yeah... I AM an oakie farmer!