Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Clutch issue- NEED HELP

A few months back I posted about my wifes 2000 SVT. The shifter would bind coming out of or going into first and reverse.. the dealership said drive it till it breaks, we can't find anything...So Saturday it finally breaks, but I can't tell what broke.. First the clutch decided it didn't like disengaging when the pedal was all the way in, as you slow down, the rpm's just kept dropping until the engine died, and then the "BRAKE" light came on and the clutch has ZERO resistance, like a cable broke. Is there a cable? I think the slave cylinder, died a nasty death, and since it uses the master cylinder as a resevoir, when it died, the brake fluid filled the cavity on the "other side" of the slave.. Sound feasible? Anyone have a diagram of the slave?

Confirm low brake fluid and then check for leaks should be your first step.

Diag. of hydraulic circuit quite simple:
Reservoir > tube > clutch pedal master cyl. > tube > slave cyl. inside mtx housing(c/w bleed valve accessible externally).

If leak at slave mtx has to be removed.

Presumably vehicle still under warranty and you will have to get tow to dealer.

yep- already at the dealer... Is there a clutch cable to activate?

No clutch cable; wires only to electric switches re clutch pedal position.
Shifter has cable/rods depending on model year; refer to FAQ - Model descriptions, on home page for details.

1st /rev shifting difficulties are not uncommon.

Most people who had this occur ended up replacing the clutch assembly. I think it had to do with the throwout bearing not releasing preoperly (but I may be mistaken).

Loss of pressure sure sign of leak, possibly too much pressure on the line somewhere.

check the Troubleshooting Archives for this issue.

Good Luck,
David

I have this problem since I bought my car in 1999 and the dealer still can't figure it out.

The good news is Its under warranty. But I had to twist the dealerships arm to make them disassemble the thing to prove it.. the tell tale was the brake fluid level dropping (the brake light came on) right before the clutch became a useless appendage.. so the dealer calls and says "You were right" I should have recorded it- anyway, also pushing for a new throwout bearing too.. they inspected the clutch and said it was A OK...

I thought the slave cylinder and trhowout bearing were intergrated on these cars.

While the tranny's off, see if you can cut a deal to go ahead and replace the the plate and linings.

If the slave cylinder went, how can they 100% verify that the disc didn't recieve some contamination?

I guess the throwout is attached to the slave, but removable.. I asked about the clutch getting a bath and said it was ok.. so as soon as I pick it up.. a few on ramp runs to verify that it isn't slipping and all's well..If it isn't, they get to buy a new clutch.. I asked about me buying a clutch while it was apart.. but he wasn't very receptive to putting it in for free even if I bought the plate and disc..