# Purging clutch hydraulic line



## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

The clutch on my 95 Ford Ranger is still acting up.

It works perfect except when it doesn't. I've driven it twice in the past couple of months and it worked great until I parked it in the woods to cut some poles. When I hopped back in the pedal wouldn't go down. I worked the pedal until it would go down and started the truck but when I let up on the pedal the clutch wouldn't engage. 

It was parked on a slight incline so I pushed it forward to a more level spot and tried some more but gave up and walked 8 miles home.

The next day I drove my car to the truck and the clutch worked great. I drove it home with several stops and starts along the way it kept working great.

That leads me to think and hope that it's just an air bubble in the line.

How do I purge the line of air and while I'm at it I should probably replace the fluid?


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## Cannon_Farms (Aug 28, 2008)

sounds like a clog in the master cylinder weep hole, or the plunger is binding against the inner walls.


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## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

It usually takes two people or a brake bleeding kit to get all the air out of the line. I suspect that something else may be wrong if the peddle wont go down. 

Pump up the clutch pedal about 5 times and holding the pedal down open the bleeder screw on the slave cylinder and then close it and pump up the clutch again and holding it down open the bleeder screw. And then retighten it, do this for about 4 or 5 times and in-between make sure there is break fluid in the clutch reservoir. the fluid will be replaces as you bleed the line.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Where is the bleeder screw?

I forgot to mention that in the past sometimes when I pushed the pedal down it would disengage easily but when I released the pedal nothing would happen until it would suddenly grab with a jerk.

It has also forced the pedal up so hard I couldn't stop it.

All of those symptoms can come and go quickly.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I don't have any experience with Ford clutches. I had to cope with bleeding a Chevy which has an exernal slave mounted to the bellhousing. I think your slave cylinder is internal. The bleeder should be on the slave cylinder unless Ford provided for remote bleeding. Air in the line should give you no pedal meaning it takes no effort to depress the pedal. 

Air is compressible. A fluid isn't compressible. I'm wondering if you have a problem with the clutch itself.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

Fishhead,

When my 96 Bronco gets air in the clutch line, the clutch catches right off the floor. If it gets worse the clutch won't disengage at all.

The slave is inside the bell housing and the bleeder screw sticks out the side of the bell housing. The bleeder is an 8 or 10 mm wrench. 

To bleed, (1)make sure the master cylinder is full, (2)have someone sit in the drivers seat, (3)attach a piece of tubing to the bleed hose barb, (4)run the hose into a jar to catch the fluid, (5)open the bleed screw, (6)have the person depress the clutch pedal, (7)close the bleed screw, (8)release the clutch pedal, and repeat 5 thru 8 untill no air comes out. Check the fluid level in the master cylinder after every 3 or 4 pedal pumps to be sure it doesn't run dry and let more air into the system.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I don't think your problem is air. If you have air in the system, you won't have an intermittent problem nor will you have a hard pedal. You won't be able to disengage the clutch. The pedal will be noticeably soft.


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## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

Darren said:


> I don't think your problem is air. If you have air in the system, you won't have an intermittent problem nor will you have a hard pedal. You won't be able to disengage the clutch. The pedal will be noticeably soft.


I agree I think you may need a clutch replace.


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## bikehealer1 (Oct 8, 2009)

the problem is not air, but in the master or slave cylinder. something is binding or a weep hole is becoming clogged, not allowing fluid to return to the reservoir. if the fluid pushed into the slave to disengage the clutch isnt allowed to return, the clutch wont reengage. your post yesterday at 3:03 p.m. said you can push in the pedal to disengage the clutch, yet when you release the pedal, the clutch is slow to reengage. that is a symptom of a bad slave or master cylinder.


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

Unless you have tiny hands you will find getting to the bleeder screws is near on impossible. These internal slaves are spawn of the devil and once they give problems, most likely bleeding wont help until replaced. And yes GM went same way in mid 90s. Ford was just first. If you replace the internal slave look for the highest quality one you can find. $$$$$ but lot less trouble. The super high quality aftermarket ones do exist for the V8s, both GM and Ford, I dont know if they have them for smaller stuff.


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

I am probably only person crazy enough to do it, but if I had to replace clutch on any vehicle with internal slave, I would spend time to convert it to external. I was planning on doing it on my Ranger but then ended up swapping to non-original engine/transmission/transfercase when bellhousing became damaged and started eating starters. The replacement engine/transmission already set up with clutch arm. The Wilwood aftermarket universal external hydraulic clutch linkage setup I use now on my Ranger is better than ANY OEM hydraulic clutch linkage setup I ever run across before. I can easily bleed it in few minutes by myself. Parts now super easy to replace. Never seen a clutch linkage before that was even close. I would use the Wilwood on any vehicle that required hydraulic clutch linkage. The adapting is well worth it. Its a pull type slave rather than push type slave.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Is there anything that could be added to the line that would clean out the weep hole?

Also, would a clogged weep hole cause a clutch to act intermitently like this one? 

It can literally go from working fine to having a stiff clutch pedal or a soft pedal that will disengage the clutch easily but then it seems to hang up and back to working fine the next time I push the pedal down.

The truck has 250,000+ miles on it but starts great down to -20F and doesn't use oil but if this is a major $$$$ repair it's not worth doing since I won't tackle it. It took me three weeks to replace a brake line and to pull the tranny and put it back could be a lifetime job for me.


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## Evons hubby (Oct 3, 2005)

I seldom make wagers.... but from the way you describe your symptoms I would be willing to put up 50 bucks that says the problem is not in your hydraulics. You have something catching and binding somewhere else. Either in the linkage from the pedal to the master cylinder.. or more likely at the throwout bearing or the arm that operates it.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I'm not sure about a closed system like a hydraulic clutch having a weep hole. The fluid isn't supposed to leave the system. Over time some may escape past the seals. That is why you have a reservoir with extra fluid on hydraulic clutches and brake systems. If fluid is bypassing the seals, you'll see the fluid level drop in the reservoir. It may not be enough to be noticeable. When the slave died on the Chevy, there wasn't a noticeable drop in the reservoir.

Depending on how the master cylinder is located on the firewall, you may see some signs of seepage. If you can get to the bleeder on the transmission take a length of tygon tubing, force one end on the bleeder screw after you've placed a flare nut (line) wrench on the hex of the bleeder. Put the other end into a clear jar with enough brake fluid in the jar to cover the end of tube. 

Then you can start the bleeding process except in this case you're trying to figure out whether it's the master or slave that's bad. I use a concrete block to bleed stuff by myself. Open the bleeder after you get the tubing in place. Use the concrete block to push the brake pedal down and hold it. Close the bleeder. Then pull the block off the pedal to allow it to return. 

Repeat the process while making sure you refill the reservoir as needed. If the master cylinder is working, it should force fluid through the system, through the bleeder, through the tubing and into the jar. If that happens, there's a chance the master is working and the slave is bad. It would help if someone pushes the brake pedal so that you can watch the fluid going into the jar. If it's forceful, the master should be good. That tells you the slave is bad or going bad.

The thing that's stumping me is the hard pedal you've seen. That suggests the hydraulic circuit made up of the two cylinders and connecting tubing is up against something that requires more force to overcome than the hydraulic actuation system can normally produce.


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## plowjockey (Aug 18, 2008)

Agree with YH.

Air in the line, won't cause the pedal to freeze, but a stuck throwout bearing, or something in the clutch mechanism itself, will cause the pedal not to move, or the the clutch to not engage properly.

If it's worked good for 12 years, it's probably time to bite the bullet. My 98' Pathfinder with 140k miles, is finally ready for major clutch surgury.

Ironic, in the old days, you were very lucky, to get 40-50k miles on a clutch.

Now we want them to last forever.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

At stoplights and other situations when traffic stops, do you put the transmission in neutral and let the clutch pedal up or do you just hold the pedal down to disengage the clutch while you wait?


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

Cause stupid people with automatics park right against my rear bumper when everybody is piling up at stoplight, I hold clutch in. Its hard enough doing the heel/toe and not rolling back foot or so without adding more hassle to the procedure. Used to people were taught to not ride bumper cause you dont know if guy in front has manual tranny. Now manual trannies are so rare and nobody is taught anything about driving a manual tranny.....

I've yet to see a clutch go significantly beyond 80k unless its all interstate miles. You sure dont go that far with stop and go town driving. Now if you have some fancy ceramic clutch disk, maybe that would up lifespan, dont know, never had one.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

I used to just hold the pedal down at stoplights but I live in the country and most of my miles are highway miles. I had the clutch and slave replaced maybe 100,000 miles ago or less.

The clutch itself seems fine. I don't sense any slipping.

Would a bad throw out cause the pedal to force it's way up against my attempt to hold it down? It's only done it a couple of times but I couldn't stop it and my legs are pretty strong. I just had to yank it out of gear and after a couple of seconds the pedal went right down easily again.

I don't drive the truck much and it first started after the truck sat all winter.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

When air gets in the system I have had the clutch pedal refuse to come back up off the floor. I had to reach down and pull it up. If the throwout bearing is going bad it usually squeals and you know it's going.

I would bleed the slave cylinder and see what happens. I always try the simple/cheap stuff first and see if it fixes the problem.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

It could be squealing but I wouldn't necessarily hear it if it's high pitched.


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## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

I suspect the springs and cam levers on the pressure plate are gone. Worn out not missing


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Why would it work perfectly most of the time and then suddenly not?


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

Air in the system would not be an intermittent problem. With air in the system, you should have a consistent problem.

Check out this thread on a automobile repair site. You can do a search for other clutch threads. This one involves a 2000 Ford Ranger with the internal slave setup.

2000 Ford Ranger with clutch problem


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## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

Here is what happens when a person changes a clutch. If the pressure plate isnât tightened evenly to the flywheel it wonât work properly. When I say tightened evenly I mean a half a turn on each bolt and keep going around until they are torqued properly. If a bolt is tightened down and then the next bolt is tightened it causes the pressure plate to warp and the cams wonât engage properly. This is a secret I learned a long time ago. Most people donât know about this. And on some there is a balance mark on the flywheel and it must be aligned too an arrow on the pressure plate. Also the clutch disk can be installed facing the wrong way and this can cause problems. If the transmission has been pulled then this may be a problem. I donât know if this applies to your situation but if you do decide to pull the transmission then this information may help.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

I had a friend do the clutch a long time ago and it worked great up until about 2 years ago. It had sat unmoved all winter and I drove it across the yard and when I restarted it to move it the clutch started acting up. It's done it intermittently ever since but went all last summer without a problem.

It almost seems like there's rust on a shaft.


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

One winter shouldnt cause clutch to seriously rust up. I've seen it on old vehicles parked for decade or so where clutch is rusted together and only way to start it is with tranny in neutral and then once started, since clutch is locked, no way to shift it into gear. Sometimes you can tow it around the field and break it loose, or you disassemble it.

But you are saying it works sometimes and others it doesnt. Its in the hydraulic linkage. Its borderline where sometimes it gives good shot fluid, other times some of fluid leaks back and clutch doesnt fully engage. The other posters may not seen it, but I have. Doesnt help that the Ranger hydraulic linkage is a PITA plastic garbage. Anytime you replace slave, its stupid not to replace the master and the line. It could be master, could be slave, could be system just needs proper bleeding. Though bleeding one of these is a PITA so then you groan when it only lasts short time. I suggest either the master or slave is leaking internally so you dont get full stroke when you push the pedal. At this point since its been years since anybody did a clutch job, is to pull apart the whole thing and replace everything, especially slave/throwoutbearing assembly. And use the best quality slave you can find!!!!!!! I mean you have to pull it apart anyway to do the slave so just do complete clutch job unless you are super low on cash and have hours and hours spare time to redo stuff like this over and over. I dont enjoy clutch jobs much so personally I do complete clutch replacement anytime I have engine pulled away from transmission. Disk/pressureplate/throwoutbearing not that expensive. Doing this over and over cause you are super cheap is priceless.... Especially if you arent a spring chicken anymore and it hurts to get up and down off the ground repeatedly.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

I've had quotes of $700 to replace the clutch. The truck is probably worth $500 IF the clutch is working properly. There's no way that I'm going to pull the transmission. The face of the clutch is fine.

How do I check the master cylinder? Can a person put a pressure gauge on it or something?


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

Is any part of the line rubber or rubber lined? It could be deteriorating on the inside and plugging up the line on the return stroke. I've had brakes lockup from that happening.

WWW


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

wy_white_wolf said:


> Is any part of the line rubber or rubber lined? It could be deteriorating on the inside and plugging up the line on the return stroke. I've had brakes lockup from that happening.
> 
> WWW


I haven't looked at the lines so I can't answer that one.


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

The line is hard plastic of some type


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

fishhead said:


> I've had quotes of $700 to replace the clutch. The truck is probably worth $500 IF the clutch is working properly. There's no way that I'm going to pull the transmission. The face of the clutch is fine.
> 
> How do I check the master cylinder? Can a person put a pressure gauge on it or something?


Master cylinders leak when they go bad. See any blistered paint on the firewall underneath where it mounts? Not easy to see since its black plastic and mounted at an angle down low with whole lot stuff in line of sight. And whole lot easier to see if you unbolt master and pull it away from firewall, do that and then pull back the rubber dust shield. If its wet its bad.

You dont remove tranny entirely from truck, you disconnect/remove the driveshaft, unbolt tranny from engine and pull tranny back. You could build a wood box or platform to support transmission, maybe leave cross member in place that supports transmission and unbolt crossmember from frame and slide it. Depends on how far you can slide it with built in bellhousing. I did this on a 4cyl '91 Ranger for friend and out alongside a county road no less, but too long ago now to remember details. yes he waited too long and got stranded. The transmission isnt super heavy and I was lot younger then, I may have just heave ho'd it into place. Probably used some wood blocks and hydraulic bottle jack. Nope, only vaguely remember details. Only took me half day. Its not rocket science. But for somebody thats never done it, guess day or even two. Whats your time worth? Even couple days and renting a transmission jack should still make it worth doing yourself. I did buy a HF transmission cradle cheap for my own use that fits on a common floor jack. Thats probably about same cost as renting a tranny jack for couple days. And if you use floor jack or tranny jack, you need to be on concrete or at least a heavy sheet plywood shoved under. They dont move well sunk into the dirt.


Or you can scrap the pickup and buy you another clunker that will need a new clutch in six months. Believe me they have you by the ying yangs and squeeze hard if you arent willing to get dirty and skin up your knuckles. $700 is too much for this job, should find small shop that is hungry enough and would do it for $400. Course they may cut corners and they arent going to hunt down any super high quality parts. 

Ok price check. Kit that includes disk, pressure plate, throw out bearing but not the slave or master, starts at $81 and up from there, depending on brand, etc.

pre-bled slave and master assembly is crazy, around $166. But hey it eliminates the hassle of bleeding.

1993-1995 Ford Ranger Clutch Kit - Clutch - LUK 93-95 Ranger Clutch Kit - 5524-07083858 - PartsGeek

1995 FORD RANGER Transmission-Manual Parts

Just slave around $50 and up. Master around $50 and up.


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