bmxsteve

Guys, I am losing clutch fluid. One day I came out to start my car and the clutch pedal was "dead", as in floppy, no pressure. So I pop my hood and see that all the clutch fluid has leaked out. I had the car towed to the dealership. The guys tell me that I have a leak in my "clutch actuator" (this is a part??, spelling might be wrong) and it needs to be replaced. They said that since the clutch actuator is bad that the master cylinder needs to be replaced to because its going to be bad. Well the dealership said they would call me when the parts came in( they wanted $350 to fix it) but they never did. So being the poor college student that i am, i just bought clutch fluid and have to fill it up about once every 3 weeks. What i think has happened is that air has gotten into the line and when i shift gears it grinds a tad bit even when the container for clutch fluid is full. So i have no choice. I must fix it. My question is, do I probably just need a new clutch actuator or will i have to replace the master cylinder too?? What is this part's function? Does the clutch actuator serve as the clutch line from the clutch to the tranny?

joaquink

I don't know a lot about the tranny as it's the one area I leave to the mechanics. However, per the FSM for my 97, there is no "clutch actuator". Based on the diagrams, I assume they are referring to the what the FSM calls "operating cylinder". From the exploded diagram I have, I don't see how one would cause the failure of the other but anything is possible. It looks to me like it makes as much sense as saying a worn brake pad means your braking master cylinder must be shot too.

I don't have a part number but maybe if you ask them to show you what part is broken per the FSM diagrams or to at least give you the specific name, you can find less expensive replacements at our .org friendly dealers.

Good luck.

JK

Ramius83

It was probably your "slave cylinder". The slave cylinder is located under the front valve cover behind the "fork" that sticks out of the manual transmission. I kinda looks like a butterfly when viewed from above with a little rubber boot on it. That is what probably went bad. You can get them from any garage for around $50.00. But make sure you get a new one, there is no use replacing it with a junkyard one that will go bad in a matter of months. Replacing it is pretty easy. There are two bolts that hold it onto the tranny. Unbolt them and slide the unit out. Unscrew the clutch line. Install the new slave cylinder in reverse order. Then you have to bleed the clutch system. Fill up the master cylinder with DOT3 Brake Fluid. Have a friend pump up the clutch pedal while you first bleed the air out from the top bleeder valve located on the top of the driver's side strut tower (behind the battery). Pump the pedal up a few times and press/hold the pedal and then open up the bleeder a little until some fluid comes out. Repeat this process a good number of times. Then, do the same on the bleeder screw located ON the slave cylinder that you just replaced. Once finished, good as new....