joeljet

so I parked the car in sept before surgery and started it 5 or 6 times this winter and let it warm up, when I go to pull it out of the garage for the first time it wont go into gear, I can force it into maybe 2nd and 3rd but no reverse. it drove just fine last fall. only got 35,000 miles. ever happen to any one else? try what? any ideas? going to put on jackstands, jam it into gear and let the oil circulate in the tranny and hope it frees up, unless someone has a better idea.

SJW

Don't jam or force anything. It sounds as though your clutch isn't releasing. See if it'll go into gear with the engine shut off. If it does, the problem is a lack of clutch release. Most likely, the clutch master cylinder needs some fluid, and there's probably some air in the line now. Fill the reservoir to the full mark, cap it, and pump the clutch pedal up and down for a while. Then see if it'll slip easily into gear with the engine running.

Live well,

SJW

RUU

joeljet

yeh clutch master is way low. will fill and bleed. thanx

SJW

Rather than bleeding in the normal manner, try pumping the pedal as many times as your leg will tolerate, and see if that doesn't set things right. I've always been able to coax air bubbles to return upward and out the top end this way. Bleeding these systems successfully at the slave is a PITA, owing to the placement of the bleeder.

Live well,

SJW

dizwiz24

mickey5

If you fill the reservoir to bleed it by pumping the pedal put the cap on first. Every time you pump it a squirt of fluid comes out the top. Dot 3 or 4 is a good paint remover.

joeljet

filled it, bled it, good to go. thanx guys

SJW

Congrats. Keep an eye on the fluid level. Don't be too surprised if it drops again, and be ready to top it off before you lose clutch action again. If it continues to need frequent refills, it'll be time to find and repair the leak.

Live well,

SJW

-=Jeff=-

I think you have a leak though. the clutch hydraulics should not leak.. my guess is your slave is leaking. I would look into fixing it. my 90 did that last year April, the slave was indeed leaking, I swapped my spare in and sent my old one to Jim Jandik to get rebuilt. now I have a spare on the shelf again. my car sat since August.. all good this year

corvette95

It will leak into the interior too sometimes and you wont see a leak. If you had to fill it, probably time to replace it and check under the driver carpet area and clean up if needed. Just a tip!

joeljet

its empty again. just need to find out where to get good replacements after seeing horror stories from the early 2000's

-=Jeff=-

The horror stories from the 2000s were corrected.. it was a reversed seal on the slave.. do you have OEM now and want to keep them?

turbobuick33

I'm also slowly losing fluid in the clutch master. I want to replace both clutch and slave but don't know what brand to get. Sadly everything is made in china

-=Jeff=-

B17Crew

-=Jeff=-, I attempted to contact Jim Jandik this past winter to purchase a few odds and ends. I received an email back from him stating he has since retired. I was also unable to bring up his website. Has anyone else encountered this?

B17Crew

-=Jeff=-

B17Crew

Thanks, Jeff. That is good news he’s still rebuilding slaves/masters.

B17Crew