'03 reg cab v6 manual tranny with approx 76xxx miles. had truck 2years w/zero problems. last month or so the clutch pedal has occasionally given me a spongy feel(like the brake pedal when there's air in the system) although usually only on start-up. there's been no 'play' in the clutch pedal up until today and the clutch fluid resovoir has stayed full. today i got 1/2way down my street and for the first time the clutch pedal went all the way to the floor with absolutely no resistance-again like a brake pedal with a LOT of air in the system. i've been told it's probably the clutch slave cylinder-and i know it's a royal pain to change that on our trucks. gonna try and bleed the clutch, although shouldn't i have been leaking clutch fluid if that was the issue? anything else i should be looking at? i would think 76xxx miles is too soon for the clutch itself to go out. i've bled brakes before but not a clutch. what are the steps for bleeding the clutch? thanks for the help.

 

If it isn't leaking externaly then I would try the bleed like you said first. After that my thought would be the master, if it's leaking internaly then it isn't giving the pressure to operate the slave.

What does the fluid color look like in the resivour? If it's black then the master is probably the culprit.

Just my $0.02

 

is that the clutch master cyclinder that the hose coming from the bottom of the clutch fluid resovoir attatches to-which is right up against the firewall? if so, then i don't see any leaking fluid there. i also shined a flashlight up above the pedals inside the truck against the firewall and don't see any leaks inside either. still waiting for a friend, any friend, to answer their dern phone so i can get help to see if bleeding the system helps if i bleed the system and there's no change in my 'lifeless' clutch pedal, is it safe to assume either the clutch master or slave cylinder is the culprit? as i mentioned before, i only have 76xxx miles on my truck so i would think that it's too soon for the clutch itself to be going out. thanks again for the help.

 

With an internal slave cylinder clutch system it will most likely leak on to the ground from the bell housing. It is most likely the clutch master cylinder. It is the one that is on the firewall. you can try bleeding it out, but if it remains spongy ever I would replace the clutch master cylinder first because it will leave you stranded, kind of.

 

on the clutch pedal, it still has no resistance. i did notice when i was under the transmission that there was was quite a bit of fluid soaking the bottom of the section of transmission that nudges up against the oil pan(bell housing?)due to some internal leakage. i guess it's safe to assume the clutch slave cylinder is the culprit then?

 

Yup. Slave cylinder likely leaking.
It's not too difficult to do yourself if you're mechanically inclined, have a hard floor surface, solid jack stands, and a good transmission jack.

If you can, it's a good idea to replace the clutch at the same time but not absolutely necessary. It's also a great time to drain the fluid and fill with fresh fluid.

I think the biggest issue I ran into was the undisclosed fact the slave cylinder assembly I bought came preloaded and filled with fluid so the transmission would not slip fully in and had to be pulled with the mounting bolts. Since I've never liked to pull a transmission into place it drove me nuts trying to figure out what was going on and I finally took an overnight break and got back on the job the next day.

 

i wish i could fix it myself, daklander, but i don't wanna risk screwing things up since this is my only vehicle and i've never dropped a transmission before. i'm hoping the fleet mechanic where i work is correct in that he said that a really good mechanic with the right tools should be able to drop the transmission, replace the slave cylinder and re-install everything in 2hrs or less. something tells me, though, when i check with the ford dealership tomorrow they're gonna say it's at least a 3 or 4hr job-we'll see. anyway, thanks for the input.

 

Book time is probably around 3-3.5 hours, judging by the time it took me to do the job on the floor. While I've done a lot of transmission R&Rs this was my first with this set up. I have about 8 hours in the project, not including reading the manual and could well have shaved a couple of hours off had I been aware of the pressurized slave cylinder assembly. The time includes lifting the unit, placing jack stands, their removal and the lowering of the pickup.

So, yeah, with a clear space lift and a good transmission jack someone who's done these a couple of times could well knock the job out in a couple of hours or so if there aren't any issues such as the fluid feed line being corroded and not removable.

That said, mechanics usually work on a percentage of book time and if they can beat the time you still pay that book time the shop charges and they, the mechanics, make more money because they can complete more jobs in a day. However, they usually also have a large dollar outlay for tools to help them do those repair jobs quickly and efficiently so you get your repaired vehicle back sooner, and often with a better repair.
I don't know if things have changed but the book times were once based on an experience mechanic doing the job on clean vehicles using hand tools.

 

just get a clutch kit that comes with a slave cylinder. What happens is the brake fluid gets on the disc and you will lose a lot of the friction material and the clutch will fail prematurely.

 

I hope your ford dealer is better with the work than mine.They had my truck for a week,just to change the slave cylinder.They also busted the flange on my starter,when putting everything back together,and then had the ***** to charge me for a new starter!!!!! A quick call to corporate fixed that.I've got 145,000 on my 03,and I just changed the slave again....but this time,I did it in a buddies garage with his help.All is good

 

My local dealer did an outstanding job with my clutch last year, and got it out same day. Complete replacement, including a new flywheel and rear main seal, was about $1200.

 

Not necessarily true with a clutch slave cylinder/throw out bearing assembly. Since it is located behind the pressure plate the leakage will usually not contaminate the clutch material itself unless the problem is let go way too long. If the leak is caught early and the mileage on the existing clutch is not too extreme there's a very good chance the slave cylinder is the only piece that needs replacement.

 

Right - and that's about $400 labor to replace a $50 part.