93 F350 Crewcab, 351W + ZF 5sp. Hydraulic Clutch of course.

Driving along today and apparently the clutch res. was nearly empty and it sucked in air and "flooomph" to the floor when I clutched and that was that.

Managed to get it home without having to stop and refilled the res., opened the bleeder, and pumped the clutch repeatedly, stopping every so often to refill the res. tank.

Closed the bleeder, and the clutch pedal was still VERY mushy, so I opened it again and pumped it a few more times, then with the pedal lying on the floor I closed the bleeder and pulled the pedal up, topped up the res. tank and put the cap back on.

It's by far better, but it's still fairly mushy.

So apparently I don't remember the correct procedure to bleed this thing, and was hoping someone might enlighten me.

Tighten bleed screw with the pedal up didn't work.
Tighten bleed screw with the pedal down worked somewhat.

Considering how many times I pumped the pedal, I can't believe there's any air left in the system... I pumped just about a quart through.

Thanks in advance. I feel like a schmuck since I should know this, but then again I don't need to do this very often. I typically get 100K+ out of a clutch. I'm assuming something is leaking only because I did the clutch last year, about 25K ago. New clutch, throwout bearing, slave, flywheel was machined, new hose. The only thing that is not new is the master cylidner, but that was replaced about 80K ago.

 

I used the two person method. Close the bleeder off, have someone pump the clutch at least 15 to 20 times, hold the clutch to the floor while the other person opens the bleeder and closes it really fast. Continue with method until no air bubbles appear in a clear plastic line after opening bleeder. It isnt a one man operation like brakes, but I wish it was sometimes.

 

the best way i have found it to start bleeding it like you would with brakes pump the pedal and then open the bleeder. then after a couple times of doing that push the rod of the slave in and out to push the air up and out of the system through the master cylinder then pump the pedal and bleed it the regular way maybe twice and you should be good to go. the way i figured this out was through trial and error on my friends GMC S15 with a 305 swap and a t-5 trans. we were bleeding the system for about 4 hours in our school parking lot, we even tried using a vacuum bleeder but this was the only way we got it to bleed

 

The vacuum bleeder worked for me.

 

I just bought a truck with the clutch pedal laying on the floor where is the bleeder?

 

On my truck, which has the ZF transmission, the bleeder is about 2" above the line feeding the slave cylinder inside the bell housing.

 

Use a vacume bleeder, it will save you trouble.

The clutch will suck air back in like the brakes.

I woudln't do the pump for pressure method though.

I'd open, push the pedal almost to the floor, then close.

When you are done, make sure to check your clutch for proper ... whatever its called
travel before it engages, its 1-2 inches.

 

proper freeplay.

 

thanks quick. =)

 

Rapidly and forceably pulling the pedal up from the floor a few times will cure your problem.
Phillip

 

On mine I just gravity bled it, that was the procedure in the 1991 Ford service manual (genuine Ford BTW). You just open the bleeder and let it run until no air comes out anymore. Be sure to check the reservoir every now and again.

 

get this one, Yesterday I filled the clutch reservoir anticipating a struggle to bleed it and get my pedal back. I pushed the pedal to the floor (about 1 inch) and the pedal came back fully and I drove the truck away, no bleeding necessary.

 

You should gravity bleed it baybiker. It will help.

The pedal will eventually compress the air in the line if its there, then it will function wierd. I've had that issue before i replaced my slave cylinder.

Phillip, That technique will not work unless the air is right close to the master cylinder.

If your going to gravity bleed, Make sure your master is full for more pressure in the line. Air can be stuborn if its not an all downhill race. My line from my master goes up a little before it goes back down, and that would be a troublesom spot.