A year ago our corvette club was in a parade, and I started having the dreaded clutch stuck to the floor syndrom. It seemed like everytime it got hot, the clutch went to the floor. (I'll never do another parade in a 6m again)

Removed clutch pedal spring - helped, but problem remained
Replaced fluid every few weeks - helped in the beginning, but went away

The dealerships and tuners said to replace all of the hydraulics. Since you have to drop the drivetrain to replace the slave, should replace the clutch at the same time $1400.

I figured since my clutch didn't slip. It would engage and disengage like it should. The only problem I had was it would not hold the clutch. The pressure just went away. When I had the clutch spring on the pedal, it would stick to the floor. Once I removed the spring, the pedal would return. (I tried bleeding the master cylinder from the top and I could extract air all day long. I had no visible leaks)

So I replaced the master cylinder. I bled the master cylinder from the top through the reservoir with a mity vac (which worked awesome). 2 hours taking my time, and my clutch is perfect now.

So my point is, most people say to replace the entire hydraulics. Depending on your issue, you may need to. Mine was a m/c issue, and I fixed it myself for $43. I can't believe I put this off for a year! Bleeding the m/c from top works.

Thanks to see5, chuckster, & boob for helping to diagnose and convince me bleeding from the top will work.

 

How long has the repair been in place and would mind giving us periodic updates?

Whose master did you use (43 dollars) and how long was the installation?

Did you heat shield any of the hoses etc?

Thanks in advance

 

Same questions as above really.
I am going to try to do the install from above by removing the washer fluid resevoir. Anyone know if this is possible? i know there is a point that the line splits and this is as far down as i would need to go.

 

The new clutch m/c is an AC Delco. New part.

All you do is remove the washer fluid reservoir, remove clutch fluid from reservoir. Remove clutch reservoir. Un-hook clutch from pedal inside. Disconnect clutch line running to slave, twist m/c and pull out. (it will make a lot more sense once you remove the washer fluid reservoir and can see the m/c.)

Hardest part is getting the clutch line from slave disconnected from m/c. There is a cotter pin to remove. Then a pin is pressed in. I used a nail and ratchet and easily hammered it out. Careful not to damage the pin. Once the pin is removed, the m/c will come out.

Be careful not to leak fluid on the paint.

There is a seal that goes on the end of the clutch/slave line. Mine stayed in the old m/c. You'll need to pull this out and put back on the slave line before reattaching to the m/c (don't ask how I figured that out).

Once you have everything re-installed, add new clutch/brake fluid. You'll see air bubbles start coming up. I used my mity-vac and pulled a vac to 10 and it pulled all the air out of the system.

Pedal is firm, just like new. So far it's been a week and about 300 miles. Cruises and daily driving to work. I've also been replacing the fluid in the reservoir every other day until I can get all of the old fluid replaced.

 

I'll be glad to give updates. Also, I did not heat shield any lines. I actually never crawled underneath the car or anything. It's relatively easy to replace the m/c all from the top.

 

I hope it stays that way, I really do. I too had issues like this when the clutch got hot. The slave cylinder actually died (leaked fluid) and wouldnt release the clutch at all. I replaced all the hydraulics and put in a LUK pro gold. Now, I had to put in a new clutch I went with a Spec stage 2 (daily driver, no mods). Also replaced the slave but not the master this time. And the pedal going to the floor syndrome happens from time to time, particularly in bumper to bumper traffic. I don't go road racing so I can't say for sure if its gonna stick to the floor.

 

I hope my slave doesn't die. That's one reason I'm replacing fluid in hopes everything will live longer.

 

I'm a bit confused on the $43 master cyl., I've been paying north of $100 for these

 

Thanks, glad to see you are up and running.. and did not blow a bunch of dough to get there....

 

I'm a little **** when it comes to researching part prices. I probably searched for 2 days on all the available clutch m/c and prices. That's where I ran across this company oehq.com that has really nice prices for AC Delco parts. ABC auto parts could get me the same AC Delco part for $64. I called and spoke with oehq to try and find out why/how they're selling the parts so cheap. They're comment back to me was, we didn't realize it was so cheap. They were very helpful, and the majority of the business comes from Internet searches from Google.

I compared this same part to Rockauto, ABC, and several other places. OEHQ beat everyone by $20+.

I also called a dealership in Chicago with a buddy deal/referral. The dealership price was $110.

I would hope that if other brands cost more, they're better. However, I was skeptical this would solve my problems. For $43 I thought it's a no brainer. If it works great! If not, I'm only out $43. Plus it's AC Delco, not a rebuilt autozone special.

 

did you have problems with the transmission going into gear when you had this problem?

I recently replaced my clutch, slave, and it worked fine for a week, then I started getting the pedal to the floor syndrome. Now it won't go into gear. Should I look into a new m/c?

 

Where did you disconnect the hydraulic line? It sounds like you removed it from the slave but I can't imagine you had access to it.

 

you can replace the master on it's own, I've done this with Kooks installed, there's room

 

I assume you did this by disconnecting the quick connect between the master cylinder and the hose that goes to the slave. I am confused on the removal of the pin that is discussed in a prior post, which to me indicates the hose is removed from the slave itself.

 

Good job of tackling the problem and fixing it at a much more reasonable cost.

 

I disconnected the line at the quick disconnected part where it meets the slave. Any ideas why it wont go into gear, after a week of no problems?

 

Air in the system?

 

I am going to check the slave, maybe I left the bleeder screw slightly open. Yesterday I bleed the system from the top, and a lot of bubbles and dirt came up.

 

Yes, it is possible and much easier to do with the washer fluid tank out.

You'll have to access the line that runs to the slave cylinder from beneath the car to unhook it.

Glad we're all finally getting some of these clutch system issues solved.

 

Since you replaced the clutch and slave, you should replace the clutch master cylinder. Most tuners recommend replacing the m/c at the same time as the slave. Good insurance.

Since you're having the stuck to the floor problem, I'll bet this will solve it.