Hey gents this one is a pretty random issue that has now appeared in my C5.

Just for a history background on the car I have about 3 months ago replaced my entire clutch system. This includes all the hydraulics and everything else, I purchased a great kit from Tick Performance.

I have since that work put almost 3k miles on the car with no issues and just great driving.

Now to the problem at hand, I was driving back from a weekly long trip with the car that is around 3hrs long.

On that drive about 2hrs in I stopped for coffee and after departing I noticed a very slight skip in the clutch peddle return. It was as if the Tilton master cylinder was getting small spots it was sticking at on return.
I kinda assumed it was possibly due to hot fluid since I was prior on cruise control “going the speed limit” on I75 for around 90 miles.

I drive it back to my place and just decided to wait till the morning to see if after cooling down it would be ok. In the morning sadly it felt exactly the same just a very slight resistance on return that was skippy (hard to describe).

So I inspected the clutch fluid and it was solid black practically and I assumed was because of the miles I put on and new clutch wear. I decided to get a bottle of DOT 4 Prestone (what I’ve been using for the clutch fluid since install). I then bled the system with my remote bleeder.

Short end of the story the peddle felt the same, I drove to work and when leaving the peddle suddenly got worse so I parked the car and pumped it. The pedal in a few pumps became rock solid and now is impossible to use.

I tried bleeding the system again and it bled fine with no air or any resistance. After closing the bleeder off though and trying the pedal it was rock hard again.

I looked for leaks and inspected the MC for leaks and nothing, also I see no kinks in the line.

My only thought is maybe fluid bypassed the MC and is now stopping me from compressing? I can’t really think of what the issue is, hope to hear some good feedback soon!

 

You note Tilton for the master, and with the symptoms you describe I have to wonder if it’s possible that your slave cylinder has been over extended. Have to wonder if there’s a way to get a borescope in position to take a look.

 

Solid black after 3 months indicates a problem.

 

I was concerned that might be the issue but if it was over extending wouldn’t that be felt in the clutch earlier?

I also adjusted the pedal up from the bottom purely for that reason. I just hope it’s a fix that won’t involve taking the torque tube out again or I’ll be paying the bill.

 

Moreover, if the slave were over extended the clutch would be stuck in the disengaged condition. A thought that occurred to me at 4 this morning.
Back in the day with mechanical linkage, the pivot shaft and rod ends could develop binding.

 

I actually got the car towed today, why doing that I found out the clutch was stuck disengaged.

I have a suspicion my MC was wearing away from my DOT 4 or a manufacturer issue and caused this to happen after I tried pumping it up.

Im hoping the shop I took it to brings me some good info tomorrow.

I’ll keep the thread updated for anyone else who gets a problem like this!

 

Unless you used Dot 5 by mistake, Dot 4 is not your problem.

 

Last thought for the day: since you have a remote bleeder, crack the fitting open and see if there is any residual pressure. If the slave is simply extended and stuck that way by a bad master cylinder it will bleed off pressure and the clutch will re-engage. You’ll know to try a OEM master and be very happy.

 

Good point, I’ll have the guy at the shop give that a shot and see if it frees it up.

 

redzg wrote:"If the slave is simply extended and stuck that way by a bad master cylinder it will bleed off pressure and the clutch will re-engage."

Agreed. In addition, if the slave is mechanically stuck, you might try tapping on the bell housing with the bleeder open.

Questions:

Did you run the Tick bleed hose up to the engine compartment or down under the car? [Just curious]

Why did you choose a Tilton master cylinder over an OE? Does the Tilton have the same bore diameter as the OE?

 

Any update?