Clutch Slave Cylinder..WTF? *Update*
 

I'm doing my first TB/Wp replacement on my '85 5 spd. Everything has gone pretty good so far, per the Pirtle instuctions. Accessory belts a little tough, but manageable. My problem right now is pulling the clutch slave cylinder out. I can't find anything in the archive indicating that there may be issues with doing this. I removed clamp holding the line so it can move freely, but cannot move it far enough to clear the plunger from the housing. I'm guessing there should be enough room between the starter and the oil pan for the line to slide between the two. Can anyone confirm this? I seem to have very little space, in fact not enough for that little hydraulic line to slide between the two. Any thoughts? Thanks!
Glenn
:cheers:

Push it in Glenn :D

IIRC I had my starter out the times I was messing with the slave cylinder. Both times I was dropping the lower bellhousing anyway to inspect the clutch, so I never tried just pulling the slave. If it's that tight you might be able to just loosen the starter bolts a half dozen turns and rock the starter down out of the way without removing it completely or fooling with the wires(batt. already disconnected, right?).

Good Morning H!
The thought occurred to me, just not how. :confused:
Glenn

Thanks Dave!
I guess that is looking like my best option.
Glenn
:cheers:

Depends. YMMV, but if you push the piston in, it should give you just enough to get it out. Removing the starter is the option I would pick. I, too, was afraid of kinking the metal tubing, which is pinned/restricted by the starter, and ended up disconnecting it from the slave, means you have to bleed the slave and that is usu a PIA. Inspect the flexible hose that connects to the metal tube. YMMV, but that hose is a problem and is a weak link. If that hasn't been replaced, you may want to do that which means you are going to bleed it anyway and there's no point in removing the starter.

Good morning Glenn :cheers: ... Dude, it was pretty easy for me, I just loosened the clamp (pull one pan bolt) and pushed the rod in all the way, then when it cleared it fell out on its lonesome ....
All the best ... say ... when are we seeing you again?

I've tried it the way Heinrich suggests, and that might actually work on an S4, but didn't on my 86.5.
Chris told me to pull out the plunger rod!?!? I have yet to try that but should work fine. I didn't before because I thought I'd loose all the fluid out. When we adjusted my clutch at SF05 we pulled the lower bell housing. So not to bad that time either, but it was sitting on Mark Andersons lift so things were a little bit more accessable.

Laying on my back with about 6" of clearance, I did have a feeble try at pushing the plunger in, but it seemed way to stiff by hand (no smartass comments, please!) and couldn't really see an obvious way to lever it back. As Shane said about pulling it out, I figured the same that I would lose my fluid and maybe destroy the boot. I didn't want to rush there! :D
Glenn

No fluids will be lost Brother. Pull it.

Glenn,
You can crack the bleed valve on the slave and then push the plunger back..mucho easier to push .....(just watch out for the fluid)....

Later,
Tom
89GT

Pull plunger...Push plunger. Both sound like good options. Thanks guys! I'll let you know tonite how it worked out.
Glenn
:cheers:

just push the plunger in. dont touch the starter. its easy stuff. you usually can just push the entire assembly toward its mounting, as that pushes the plunger back in (pushing fluid to the res.) anyway, then , just remove!

Mk

Like Mark says, with the two bolts out the plunger will "ooze" out and not leave enough room. Push the slave cyllinder back as if you're going to replace the bolts. That will push the plunger in, then just pull the whole assembly away and let it hang.

It's done! A few comments. First, thanks to those who offered their suggestions. It turned out, loosening the starter would not have worked, my motor mounts have collapsed (new Porsche about 6-7 years ago, so another project on the" list"), so the starter is very close to touching my sway bar and wouldn't have given any extra clearance to get the hydraulic line past it. Pushing the "plunger in". That was my preferred choice, but no effing way could I get it to recede into the slave cylinder any where near enough to clear the housing. I could only ever pull the cylinder back about 2"-3" from the mounting flange and could not compress the plunger enough to even clear the flywheel (even using Tom's suggestion to crack the bleeder. Did get some air out though. :D ). So I went to the "pull it out" option. Not enough room to get my fingers in for a good grip and pull. By now I'm a little pissed about the whole thing, so I grab some pliers and manage to reef the b*st*rd out! No fluid spillage either! From there it was all downhill, water pump bolts even felt loose compared to every other one so far.
Glenn

*Update* Any Opinions?
 

Hi All!
Okay, so I've finally come full circle on the TB/WP and now its time for the "difficult" slave cylinder to go back in from wenst it came. As I try to wash the apparent grime off the detached plunger rod before reassembly, it becomes apparent that under the grime is a lot of rust and thick corrosion. Could this be why I had such grief trying to push it into the cylinder for removal initially? If the rod is this bad, what does that say about the inside of the cylinder itself? Could this explain why my clutch pedal would hang near the top of its travel when released cold? I'm thinking I need a new one. :banghead:
Glenn

Sounds like I'd give Bob or Intl a call :)

Pull the retainer and rubber boot on the front of the slave and clean out any crap - also, a steel wool rub down for the rod will not hurt. Put a dab of grease in the two cups the rod contacts and reassemble ( release arm and slave )piston .... and assure that it settles into these cups on reassembly.
If your slave were bad, odds are that it would leak brake fluid - otherwise, it should be OK.

It's Alive!!
 

Hi All!
Well finally managed to get her all buttoned up yesterday. I was so excited to get it fired up, I had forgotten to put the trickle charge on the day before. After 3 months of inactivity I wasn't expecting much charge. I hooked up the battery and decided to try anyhow. Ignition on, warning lights and radio on, hit the "start" position....nothing! Not even a hint of turning, like the starter was totally dsiconnected. Again...nothing. Again....nothing! Crap! Think dammit, think! DUH! Forgot about the immobilizer! Try again. BWAAAH! (with noisy lifters). :D
Thanks again to those of you who held my hand and offered help on this!
Glenn
:cheers: