How-To: Clutch Line (Stainless Steel)

[charles]

Yes, you absolutely need to

 

[KyRaceFan]

Bump: MOVE THIS TO THE HOW TO SECTION!

 

[Black Majik MSP]

Open the hood and real low in the front of the engine bay is the small little bleeder valve. It's mounted directly on the transmission, and is just above the front motor mount. It has a small black protector cap on it, remove this, and put it in a safe place before you get started.

Now, open the brake resevoir that is mounted on the firewall.

You will want to have a extra bottle of DOT 3 brake fluid to refill the resevoir back up with.

Connect a small aquarium hose or similar clear plastic hose to the tip of the bleeder, and run the end of the hose into a jar or bucket. Make sure to keep the tip of the hose submerged under fluid, to keep air out.

Now open the bleeder valve about 1/2-3/4 turn, with a small open end wrench, maybe 10mm?

Have your friend pump the clutch pedal, and as they do watch the fluid come out the bleeder valve. Pump it about 10 times, hold in the pedal for about 10 seconds, then close the valve off, fill up the resevoir with some more brake fluid.

NEVER LET THE RESEVOIR GO EMPTY, otherwise air will get back into the system.

Just keep pumping, and filling up the resevoir until you use all of your bottle, it would be a good idea to catch all this fluid in the bucket as it comes out the bleeder btw. If you know what the air coming out looks like, you wont have to use your whole bottle, just until no more air comes out.

To make the process more accurate, I took the bleeder valve off entirely and wrapped teflon tape on it to seal it, THEN put it back on and bled it that way.

I need to install my SS clutch line & change out my tranny fluid for the MT-90 I bought. I understand the clutch line install & having to possibly grind the nut to get it to fit. However, I have no Fing clue what bleeding the clutch line has to do with brake fluid, why I'd need to add more, why any brake fluid would even be coming out in the 1st place, & why the "aquarium hose" has to be submerged in a jar of brake fluid. Maybe I read something wrong, but if you're bleeding the clutch line, shouldn't you only be adding tranny fluid back in & why can't you submerge the hose in water or something normal? Someone please help me out here.

 

[Black Majik MSP]

BUMP...I need to get this done by tomorrow.

 

[Equinox]

BUMP...I need to get this done by tomorrow.

the clutch and brakes both run off the brake fluid resevoir, ie, you actually only have brake fluid, the clutch uses it.

 

[Notorious]

can someone move this to the howto section?

 

[Dimitrios]

Bump to move to the "How-To" section..

 

[jdwk]

I put in the SS line, and eventually found that little pain in the ass bleeder valve. Could they make it harder to get to? And 8mm! I had to go buy an 8mm wrench. Every set I have only goes down to 10mm.

Well, I opened the bleeder valve, got my tube and my jar of fluid, and had my sister pump the clutch pedal. Which lasted maybe 3 or 4 pumps before the clutch pedal stopped returning on its own and stopped pushing fluid. If you pull the clutch pedal back out and push it again there is no resistance whatsoever, and only a few bubbles will come out of the bleeder valve.

So I have no clutch at all now. Mazda said my slave cylinder was going which was why I was having trouble with the car getting the car in gear. I figured the SS line would help while I am waiting on the slave to come in. Should be in Thurs.

Is it possible the bleeding caused the slave to just completely die on me?

I bought a self bleeder and tried bleeding it that way which works fine, I can go through a whole bottle of brake fluid in a couple minutes. However, there is always air coming out of the bleeder valve with the fluid, and the clutch pedal is still completely dead.

Anything else it could be besides the slave?

 

[Action Jackson]

Jdwk, I had a similar situation to you. It turns out that air was entering the system through the threads and I had a very difficult time bleeding the clutch. I went through a lot of bottles before I realized what was going on.

I know some people have said not to use Teflon tape on the bleeder valve threads (I can't remember why...) but that may be a solution.

FYI, I ended up using the stock bleeder valve for the clutch b/c the threads sealed better so I haven't used Teflon tape yet.

 

[Dpwhitehead1]

i'm gonna do this soon. i need it. heh.

 

[Equinox]

Well, I opened the bleeder valve, got my tube and my jar of fluid, and had my sister pump the clutch pedal. Which lasted maybe 3 or 4 pumps before the clutch pedal stopped returning on its own and stopped pushing fluid. If you pull the clutch pedal back out and push it again there is no resistance whatsoever, and only a few bubbles will come out of the bleeder valve.



Anything else it could be besides the slave?

when I did mine;

I completely removed the bleeder nozzle, put teflon tape on it, tightening it back on, then used a self bleeder kit from a local aut parts store for about 8 bucks. If memory serves, you just put the self bleeder kit on it, pump enough to create a vacuum while the bleeder is closed, then slowly losen the bleeder valve until it releases pressure on the hand pump kit.

Pump about 1 bottle of brake fluid through, watching for bubbles. The self bleeder kit has a little resevoir built in that has a line to tell you when to stop sucking fluid.

Key is, make sure the clutch/brake resevoir doesn't run out of fluid, otherwise you'll just suck air INTO the system.

NOTICE: Most people get confused thinking there is air in the clutch when they see tiny bubbles. If the only bubbles you are removing are only a touch bigger than the ball of a ball point pin, ignore these. These air bubbles are created when sucking air through the threads of the bleeder valve and are not actually in the system. REAL air in the system is more along the size of slingshot ammo. I'm from the South, leave my analogies alone.

Trust me JD, try it this way, and your clutch will stop sticking to the floor. It did this to me when I bled the system wrong, that's when I started using teflon.

 

[mazdaspeed777]

subbing to do later

 

[Dpwhitehead1]

i did it!!!