what would make a clutch pedal harder to press as you repeatedly press it, then let the pressure go after sitting for a bit? got a Ranger but when i got back around my house the clutch was impossible to press. after turning it off and letting it sit for like 30 seconds it was fine. now it basically builds pressure, then releases it after it sits. is this the master cylinder? how can i rule out other parts?i'm not seeing any leaking, none of the lines are kinked, and now that the car has cooled off the pedal seems to be working fine.
>>28116592could be one of those bullshit pressure regulators. dunno how ford does it, but on toyotas you might see a big circular thing on the master cylinder like pic related
>>28116604there isn't one of these. the reservoir connects to the master cylinder, the master cylinder connects to the slave cylinder. and the ms is controlled by a plunger attached to the pedal.
>>28116592old brake fluid / overheated brake fluid? I’ve experienced this with brakes when you overheat them, and they both possibly share the same reservoir & fluid (not sure on your particular model).
>>28116621they have separate reservoirs. and the current fluid looks pretty raunchy. i'm still kinda confused about why it's locking up when the car is hot, and why letting it set for a bit allows the pressure to release. this is a very odd situation.
>>28116592Normally if it's a slave or master cylinder it'll be consistently wonky no matter how much you use it or don't. I'm wondering if your release bearing might be toasted. If it's broken it could stick intermittently, particularly when it heats up and expands. I'm assuming you've already checked levels and ensured you have the correct clutch fluid level and fluid type?
>>28116617>>28116630only other thing i can think of would be to check all the lines. do they sit near the exhaust pipes? the rubber could be absorbing heat.The other thing would be the seals may be starting to go - they may shrivel up ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) when cold, allowing fluid to go past, then as things start heating up they expand to seal
>>28116639yeah when my brake ms went bad in a different car they consistently worked less effectively until i pumped them up. and it isn't making any noise or grinding, so idk about the release bearing. the fluid reservoir had fluid but it looked dark as hell.>>28116640i think the lines and the exhaust are on opposite sides of the tranny. what seals are you referring to?
>>28116640this, or possible debris inside the lines is moving around. as you pump the clutch pedal the debris might start to jam up and block the flow of fluid, but over time the pressure releases and the debris stops binding up.shitty old rubber lines will deteriorate inside and outside, something to watch out for as it can fuck your cylinders too.
>>28116649Change the fluid and put the correct fresh stuff in. That'd be the easiest first step to diagnosing it. If that doesn't work at least you've knocked that off the list of possible problems. If you want to go all-in you could drain the lines and then take out the cylinders to inspect them for damage while they're empty.
>>28116653i've never bled clutch fluid before. is there an easy way to bleed it, like how each brake has a little bleed nipple? i didn't see anything when i checked under it and found the ms. i saw a youtube tutorial where a dude was using a vacuum pump, but it looked like a way to get air bubbles out rather than completely change the fluid.
>>28116650how would i put fluid in a new line to make sure i don't get air in the system?
>>28116654>>28116655There should be a bleeder valve somewhere down low. These things are best done with two people; one to deal with the bleeder valve and reservoir, and another to pump the pedal and force all the fluid/air out. I don't know enough about Rangers specifically to say what your arrangement is, and it might vary on model years, but this is generally how you'd do it with any hydraulic clutch. Here's something that will help:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6cVYgzCU18When you've used your first crusty water bottle full of fluid you've ascended wrenchlet status and are a true shadetree mechanic.
>>28116649>what seals are you referring to?the master and slave will have pistons that have cup seals on them to prevent fluid getting past. on the right side of the pic, they are the black rubber seals on the green pistons.
>>28116654>>28116655don't worry too much about getting air in the cylinder, you'll bleed the system anyway just like how brakes are bled.I think pic related is for a 2000s ford ranger, dunno what year model you have since you never mentioned it, but the diagram looks very similar, if not exactly identical, to how it's done on toyotas, which is extremely easy - you might not even need a helper. I bled my clutch myself by simply pumping the pedal and having a hose on the bleeder nipple into a bottle. just kept pumping until the line filled up (can take a surprisingly long time) and checked to make sure no bubbles were coming out the bleeder. Close valve and done, just like that.
>>28116781mine is a '97 4 banger and it looks identical to this. i feel more confident. changed the oil and trans fluid today. i think i'm going to crack the bleed nipple tomorrow and pour some fresh fluid in.
>>28117075it should be very straightforward. but just keep an eye on the fluid level in the reservoir. i forgot to top up with fluid and it sucked a bit of air in so i had to keep pumping for about a minute non stop again lol. Gravity alone drains the reservoir surprisingly quick.
drove around last night and the problem never happened again. bled the clutch fluid this morning and it was fucking disgusting. also made a huge mess letting it drip down the transmission but still the job is done. thanks for the help dudes, hopefully it doesn't happen again.
>>28117676nice. if it still happens, try another flush, then if it still happens again then we can at least rule out the fluid
I had something similar happening and it turned out to be a pinhole leak in the hard line to the slave cylinder. I just ripped it out and replaced it with a hydraulic hose and it's much easier to work with and around and will never rust or bend and break.
