Leaking clutch fluid like Crazy!

[Misterio]

Ok here is my problem.. My clutch is not engaging and I am leaking clutch fluid like crazy. I have to re-fill the hydraulic fluid resevoir every morning and wait for it to circulate or whatever ... but i can look in the cabin (under the dash/clutch pedal) and you can see the fluid leaking drip after drip. It has always leaked but really slowly and it would last like a month. Now it all leaks out in one day..
What do i have to do? i dont want to take it straight to a mechanic because he will screw me over. i want to know exactly what i have to change. I uploaded a picture of where it is leaking. I dont really know what the clutch master and slave cylinder is so I dont know if that is what is wrong with it, ive just heard about them causing this before i beleive.. please help i want to fix this so i can go home for thanksgiving!!!

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[Pj97GST]

Change the clutch master cylinder. They're cheap, and not to hard to swap out. 2 12mm bolts, one small brake line, (edited; I goofed...) and a pin that holds the rod to the pedal.

I strongly recommend that you use a brake line wrench when you pull the line off the master under the hood, because it will strip out very easily if you try and use an open end.

Bleed your clutch after the swap and you're golden.

 

[Misterio]

Alright, thanks man. So when I go to the autoparts store, do i need to ask for 2 small brake lines and the master cylinder or can I reuse the brake lines I already have? Is there any tutorials online one how to change your clutch master cylinder? Thanks a lot... and just to be sure... its about $90 at an autoparts store right?

Thank you so much, looks like i might be going home for thanksgiving after all.

 

[TimG]

All you need to change in your clutch master cylinder. The two (?) hydraulic line(s) coming off the master cylinder you just re-use.

The reason I say "two?" is because I was totally under the impression there is only one hydraulic line. I've done one on my 1G before but maybe 2Gs are slightly different but I'll doubt that.

 

[Pj97GST]

The line that I'm talking about is the one that go to the master itself under the hood. You will disconnect this from the master when you swap it out.

Depending on what parts store you go to, you should'nt pay more than $65 for a Master cylinder. I've bought a couple at $45 from this store: Eastern Imports

Look under the hood and take a look at what is there.. It's pretty straight forward.. One bolt will be accessed from under the hood and the other (nut) will be accessed from under the dash, where the master comes thru the firewall.

There is a 'U' looking clamp that connects to the rod that is attached the the pedal under the dash.

My best advice would be to find any DSM'rs in the local area, if you don't think that you can tackle the job by yourself. You shouldn't have any problems though. It's a fairly easy task.

I looked on the VFAQ, but I didn't see anything about the master, just the slave. Now is the time that you may want to buy the Back-up Manual on CD. There is a link here on Toonerz for it.

Sorry about the brake line confusion.. I just replaced a brake master this weekend and I had brake lines on the brain...

 

[Ryan95tsiAWD]

i don't know if money is tight, but while your doing it go ahead and replace the slave. They tend to fail around the same time, especially if you have had a slow leaking master that has "occasionally" run dry.

 

[red_gsx]

http://www.plymouthlaser.com/masterc.htm
they could not have made any more simple directions. after you're done installing it go to the roadrace web site and read up on how to adjust the thing. hope this helps.

 

[Pj97GST]

http://www.plymouthlaser.com/masterc.htm
they could not have made any more simple directions. after you're done installing it go to the roadrace web site and read up on how to adjust the thing. hope this helps.

That's a great VFAQ. He really should talk to Stangl about getting it added or linked to thru Vfaq.

Here's the link to RRE and TRE's clutch adjustment info:

RRE's Clutch info page- scroll to bottom

-or-
TRE's Clutch adjustment vfaq.