CLUTCH - Master, Slave, Fluid Res. ????

[davidwatsonok 0]

The clutch on my 'Rado went last night :cry: The pedal stuck halfway down and I couldn't select any gears. Managed to get it moving and balanced revs to tease it into 1st-3rd gears just to limp home. I read in another thread on here that it is probably the slave cylinder, which my old man (retired mechanic) concurs. We've had a go at bleeding it but it still isn't right, so I'll pop down and get one tomorrow, presuming the shops are open.

 

A few questions :-

 

Is the master cylinder under the dashboard ?

 

Is the fluid for the clutch system the same as the brake fluid, and from the same reservoir, as I can't find another res ?

 

Is there any point in buying the expensive master cylinder, as both places list an OEM and a budget part...

 

Europarts -

ATE - 137440040 - CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER GO/JE/VE/PA/T4/SH - £44.63

GUTTMANN - 137440041 - CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER GO/JE/VE/PA/T4/SH - £31.49

 

GSF -

71689 - CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER-FAG CO 9/88 - 36.50

71689A - CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER CO 9/88 - 29.00

 

Any other hints, tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Supercharged 2]

Yep, they share the same reservior with a pipe to the clutch MC about half way down...

 

The MC is the the bit the pedal pushes onto - mounted next to the brake servo....

 

The slave is the most likely culprit and the new ones are plastic inside rather than metal like the originals that rot away... look for fluid leaking underneath it (it's mounted on top of the gearbox)

 

ATE make the OE ones for VW and it will probably be cheaper from VAG the Euro if you get discount... (mine was £28 plus vat I think but that was a couple of years ago)

[davidwatsonok 0]

Thanks, I'll ring the local VAG dealer in the morning to get a price. Although, whenever I've wanted anything from a dealer it's always been out of stock, available in 2-10 days. GSF and EP always seem to have what you need.

[Supercharged 2]

They usually keep these as it's a standard part for a mk3 Golf etc but if not just get one from GSF...

 

It could also be the master but you'll want to change the slave anyways if so, so start with the cheaper part first...

 

You may also want to check the condition of the flexi pipe that leads to the slave... (these are another £30 or so..)

[davidwatsonok 0]

Thanks, the pipe looks OK. I'm hoping it's not the master as it will probably be a biatch to remove.

[davidwatsonok 0]

And true to form, the (s)dealer don't keep them. GSF it is then.

[davidwatsonok 0]

Well, started to fit the slave and the nut holding the flexi-pipe wouldn't come off :mad: Tried and tried being very careful not to round the nut which felt as soft as putty, but there was no way it was gonna budge and it ended up round :x Main dealer part only, and they said they could get me one for 8.30 the next morning Did a little more investigating whilst everything was in bits and found that with the flexi-pipe crimped off that I could still depress the clutch, suggesting the master cylinder may also be on its way out Europarts could get me one the next morning so I downed tools for the night. Went out this morning in

-5º icy conditions :shock: and was back by 9.30am with all the bits. Had the job done by 11am. Still too late for me to join my Scooby mates on a blast around the Yorkshire Dales though :(

 

Many thanks to Supercharged for the help.

[Supercharged 2]

No probs - all feels ok I take it?

[davidwatsonok 0]

No probs - all feels ok I take it?

Well, the g/f used it today for her work (mobile hairdresser) and she hasn't reported any problems to me yet :roll: Glad I got it all done though, as otherwise she'd have wanted to use my Scoob to go hairdressing on the snowiest, iciest day of the year, leaving it parked on some council estates during a school holiday :shock: