Hydraulic Clutch Problems
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Tuned
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 335
Likes: 5
From: Las Vegas
Hydraulic Clutch Problems
Hi –
I just replaced the throw-out bearing & slave cylinder in my 1990 F250 with 460 and ZF 5 speed, now I can not get any clutch pedal action. I have tried bleeding it by pumping the pedal and having an assistant open the valve just like you can with brakes etc... After what seems like a million pumps the clutch still won’t build any pressure. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
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I just replaced the throw-out bearing & slave cylinder in my 1990 F250 with 460 and ZF 5 speed, now I can not get any clutch pedal action. I have tried bleeding it by pumping the pedal and having an assistant open the valve just like you can with brakes etc... After what seems like a million pumps the clutch still won’t build any pressure. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
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Posting Guru
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 1,187
Likes: 0
From: CT
open up the cap on the master cylinder and pull out the rubber "boot" thing. Make sure the cylinder is full. Place drain pan under bleeder and crack open the bleeder screw. Allow the fluid to gravity bleed, make sure the master NEVER becomes empty, when you do, you have to start all over. Do this for a minute till you have a nice stream. Close the bleeder, top off the master and reinstall the boot and screw on the cap. Get a hammer or a piece of a 2x2, something to put under the pedal so that it will not go all the way to the floor. Pump the pedal a few times like you have before, hold the pedal down and open and close the bleeder, leave it open for only a second or so. Keep doing this till you get good pedal pressure. Drive it for a bit, there are most likely air bubbles trapped in the master, the driving will help shake them free. Repeat the pumping process.
Ford also reccomends to open the master and remove the boot and slowly pump the clutch pedal 50 times. Repeat a few times.
Ford also reccomends to open the master and remove the boot and slowly pump the clutch pedal 50 times. Repeat a few times.
Post Fiend
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 14,947
Likes: 6
From: Topsfield, MA
What I did...
Gravity bleed like he said, then close the bleeder. Top off the master cylinder, and pump the clutch. Now when you do that, push it in fairly quickly to the floor and hold it for a few seconds. Then pull back on the pedal and release it as quickly as possible. Hold for a few seconds, then push back in. Repeat that 10 times. Check the fluid level, and repeat the entire process 5 times for a total of 50 pumps. Make sure the cylinder stays full but don't overfill it, that rubber blatter has to go back into the master cylinder and you don't want to overflow it. Next, you want to put the cap back on the master cylinder. Then, have a buddy push the clutch down until pressure is felt, at that point, hold it. Crack the bleeder open just a smidge to let any extra air out (while the clutch pedal is still depressed slightly) and then close the bleeder. Now you want to communicate with the pedal guy and have him push the pedal down slowly and follow it down while you have the bleeder open. Make sure the bleeder is closed before the pedal reaches the floor, or the clutch pedal comes back up. It's important to only crack the bleeder slightly, you don't want to open it too far and have fluid spray out (remember it's under pressure now).
Bleeding these clutches isn't like bleeding the brakes, and sometimes it takes a couple bleeding processes to get it perfect. It took 1 experimental and 2 actual bleeds to get mine to driveable status....still going to take 1-2 more for it to be perfect.
Gravity bleed like he said, then close the bleeder. Top off the master cylinder, and pump the clutch. Now when you do that, push it in fairly quickly to the floor and hold it for a few seconds. Then pull back on the pedal and release it as quickly as possible. Hold for a few seconds, then push back in. Repeat that 10 times. Check the fluid level, and repeat the entire process 5 times for a total of 50 pumps. Make sure the cylinder stays full but don't overfill it, that rubber blatter has to go back into the master cylinder and you don't want to overflow it. Next, you want to put the cap back on the master cylinder. Then, have a buddy push the clutch down until pressure is felt, at that point, hold it. Crack the bleeder open just a smidge to let any extra air out (while the clutch pedal is still depressed slightly) and then close the bleeder. Now you want to communicate with the pedal guy and have him push the pedal down slowly and follow it down while you have the bleeder open. Make sure the bleeder is closed before the pedal reaches the floor, or the clutch pedal comes back up. It's important to only crack the bleeder slightly, you don't want to open it too far and have fluid spray out (remember it's under pressure now).
Bleeding these clutches isn't like bleeding the brakes, and sometimes it takes a couple bleeding processes to get it perfect. It took 1 experimental and 2 actual bleeds to get mine to driveable status....still going to take 1-2 more for it to be perfect.
