Manual Trans.
 

Hey guys Eric here again. Quick background of my vehicle. 2013 base c6. Manual trans with about 46k miles on it and it’s daily driving still. Yesterday went out on a cruise with a bunch of buddies and everything was fine. Til this morning hopped in the car to leave for work and my clutch petal is super soft. When I say soft I mean as in it won’t be in neutral til I push it in all the way. Before the pedal was stiff so once I pushed on it the pedal would then do its thing. So not sure if it could be something else or if I’m fucked with the trans. Please excuse my language. If anyone has experienced or heard of this I’m always open to everyone’s opinion and their thoughts thank you guys in advanced and have a great day.


to add though it drove to work fine no weirdness in changing gears or car acting weird just the pedal now has to be pushed in more than before, and like I said before the pedal would do its thing immediately after barely pushing it down

Has the upgraded Master Cylinder changeover been done?
If not, get an upgraded one installed.
Be all good.

Yep, clutch master cylinders in these are a high failure item. Not an expensive part (under $100) but the labor can be a PIA!! Can be done by a DIY'er without any special tools, just patience! Video's on this site and google how to do it. New cylinder comes filled and there is no need to bleed it after install. Or just have a Corvette shop do it for you. Should fix your problem.

I'm surprised every time I read one of these threads that manual C6 owners don't know about the clutch master cylinder issue. It needs to be a sticky in bold at the top of this forum.

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/20...23488-9999.pdf

I have not. I bought the vehicle off a small dealership and have been replacing and fixing things as they go so not sure it has been done. I’m also new to this car thing so I’m not even sure what to look for or where to start looking for. I did see a video where to replace the clutch pedal spring and replacing the fluid in the reservoir

You would know if it was done based on the cap on the master cylinder (and the black reservoir if they didn't change it out for the stock translucent one). Here is the updated one in my 2011 Grand Sport. The new cap has DOT4 on it. :cheers:

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...b1ff47853a.jpg

Yup, replace the master cylinder with the updated part.

The 6-spd manual transmissions on the C6 are extremely reliable.

Quick look at the master cylinder reservoir (where the cap is) will tell you if it's been updated. Clear one is factory, black one is aftermarket (therefore been replaced).

sorry I’m not fully understanding the purpose of this. Yes I read it and everything it makes sense but is this like a recall thing? Or just like an explanation of what’s going on and what to do?

It's not a recall. There was a special coverage adjustment (like the fuel tank issue) that extended the replacement of it to 10 years, but all C6s are outside of that now. You will need to cover the repair out of pocket like I did with my 2011 back when I bought it in 2012. My 2010 ZR1 would have been covered in 2019, but I didn't trust the dealer to touch my car, so I went ahead and paid out of pocket to a trusted mechanic friend (specialized in Corvettes).

oh okay I see now. Thank you for that tip it genuinely does help. I’m going to try the Ranger method today when I get home and hopefully that can help resolve my issues. If not then I’ll just have to buy the part and look for a mechanic to do the labor for me just because I don’t wanna mess up anything myself. Still a newby to everything corvette related.

Not so much a recall as a TSB (Technical Service Bulletin). Closer to the explanation and what to do part. Our technicians here get them as well, something in the industry that the manufacturer thinks the people on the front lines needs to know.

The black one is not aftermarket, it's the updated part from GM.


The clutch mc was a known issue as outlined in the attached TSB. The TSB also provides the updated part numbers for the new mc and labor hours. The part is ~$100 or so & you can gauge the labor hours a shop quotes you compared to what GM says it should take.

Ranger method or not, you still have a part prone to failure.

yea ranger method is just for now til I figure out where to get the actual stuff to get the labor done

with this being said and all these helpful tips. Where could o buy the part I need to be able to start the replace process asap

gmpartsdirect

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...cd285e90f.jpeg

Does it still actually work OK?
Just feel's a little different? Easier?
How many miles have you put on the car?
Since you're a new owner, perhaps the linkage was a little stiff and has now loosened up a bit?
Yes, I would try the Ranger method as many times as it takes. I've done this 5/6? times on the new to me '09 with 53k+ miles I bought in Nov '23, and the fluid is cleaner, but still not clean yet. More to come.
Mine works fine, but the fluid was super dark. Changing may not actually help, but it couldn't hurt.
If it still works ok, I wouldn't change the mc just because it might go out. Not all of the older mc's failed. I've had 2 c6 manuals that worked fine--122k miles ('08), and 53k miles (current car).

I’ve approximately put on 20k miles on it since I’ve had it. And the clutch still works just til it’s fully pushed down and the pedal doesn’t push back up automatically kinda gets stuck there. Yeah imma try today just cause I got home late last night. I’m gonna try it to see if it’ll fix it for the time being but I’ll eventually end up replacing it. Thankfully I have a cousin who works at Chevy in the parts department can give me a discount

Both my C6s had this fail. '12 GS at 5k mi & my current Z06 at 17k mi. Just replace the part and then you don't have to worry about it in the future :thumbs: