[Frogger]

On the way home from a ski trip in Colorado a few days ago, after driving with the cruise control at ~75 for hours, I got into town, had to downshift, and the clutch pedal went straight to the floor and stayed there. After shifting, I managed to re-engage the clutch by slipping my toes underneath and pulling it up. The couple of stoplights on between the interstate and home were tricky at first, having to put one foot on top of the clutch and one foot below in order to keep it from popping up and stalling. As the minutes went by, though, the clutch pedal lost its tendency to stick to the floor and regained normal movement, except that now the friction point is almost all the way to the floor rather than more than halfway out as it has always been.

This normal function with the new friction point has not changed in a couple of subsequent test drives. Initially I thought the clutch was gone, but it's as grabby as ever and holds very tightly at full boost in all gears. So, the clutch itself is in good shape but it seems that something has gone amiss with the hydraulic linkage, if only in adjustment. I've never had any trouble with it, after 40k+ miles of ownership, and it's driven pretty lightly from a clutch standpoint because it's primarily my travel car.

Any guesses as to what went wrong and/or how to fix it?

 

[T5 for Life]

Re: Clutch - Hydraulics Spontaniously Out Of Shape (Frogger)

Have you checked the linkage underneath the air box? It's known to pop out of the crappy bracket that holds it, that could be a start to diagnosing what this could be.

I don't think a bad clutch or pressure plate would cause the pedal to stick to the floor.

 

[HCSoccer]

Re: Clutch - Hydraulics Spontaniously Out Of Shape (Frogger)

Same thing happened to me with about 16k miles on the car. Was driving on the highway, got off an exit and when I downshifted, the clutch pedal stuck to the floor. Pulled off and into a gas station via coasting, tried to engage the clutch and drive it around the parking lot which I was able to do but it was very rough. Finally called the flatbed after realizing it wasn't going to be reliable and to the dealer it went. They charged me for a new clutch and all the labor associated with replacing it. They said the clutch looked like it had exploded and material was all over the place but two dealers and the regional service manager claimed it was a wear item and it was not covered. They maintained that I must have done something wrong to have this kind of result.

 

[Frogger]

HCSoccer, thankfully, that is not the same thing that happened to me; the clutch itself it in good working condition in this case.

T5 for Life, thanks, I'll check that out today, fingers crossed.

 

[Needsdecaf]

Re: (Frogger)

Another slave cylinder victim.

 

[rogersampson]

Re: Clutch - Hydraulics Spontaniously Out Of Shape (Frogger)

May be signs of slave cylinder failure. Watch for fluid leaks under bell housing area. Check fluid level at brake/clutch fluid resevoir. This is a known failure point, and is a $2K plus repair.

There is no adjustment to be made. There are adjustments on the shift linkage, (cables), but none on the clutch.

 

[SHIFT_S60R]

The linkage beneath the airbox is for the actual shift assembly. Sounds more like a slave cylinder, but I have to say my pedal has gone to the floor before, but only after being really hard on the transmission.

 

[Frogger]

If it was a slave cylinder failure, would I still be able to actuate the clutch as I am right now? It seems that a slave cylinder failure would leave me stranded with the clutch fully engaged at all times.

If it is a slave cylinder failure, $2k sounds like an awful lot of money. How much is parts and how much is labor? Other than an exploded diagram and basic tools and knowledge, what would be involved if I were to try to replace it myself? I've got other things to drive, especially in the summer, so I don't mind if it sits around broken for a bit as I try to fix it.

 

[rogersampson]

Re: (Frogger)

It is an integrated slave cylinder, and throwout bearing. The entire assembly is inside the bellhousing. The big cost is labor, since the transmission must be removed. When they leak they also tend to contaminate the clutch disc.

You are correct in that if there were a total failure of the slave, you would not be able to depress(disengage) the clutch. They seem to leak a little, perhaps some air gets into the system, pedal goes to the floor, but can be pumped back up until they fail completely.

 

[racecarcolin]

Thats what happened to mine, the clutch pedal went to the floor and i got it back up but then it did it again the next day and poof no more clutch pedal. I would be willing to bet it is your slave cylinder.

the part is like 100-250 dollars depending on where you get it from, make sure you get the R specific part.

It requires ALOT of time and effort to replace, including an engine hoist because you have to drop the subframe and take off the transmission.

I just recently did this and ended up getting a warranty during it because I never want to have to do that poop again!

-Colin

 

[AthruC]

Re: (racecarcolin)

I'm on my 3rd slave cyl. at just over 23K miles.

 

[rogersampson]

Re: (AthruC)

Quote, originally posted by AthruC »

I'm on my 3rd slave cyl. at just over 23K miles.

Wow! You must hold the record! You have the last year of production, so I have to think you would have the most "improved" version.

At that rate, you would get to spend over $2K every 8K miles or so. Certainly doesn't inspire one to say, "this one's a keeper", or recommend Volvo to your friends.

How has the dealer responded? Have they taken care of it and apoligized for the repeat inconvience, or have they tried to say "you must be doing something wrong", and try to duck the warranty?

 

[AthruC]

Re: (rogersampson)

The car has been in for other issues as well anyway (no comment) and I didn't even know they were doing it this time!

They are very accommodating(Keystone Berwyn) and aware of the issue...

 

[atacamaR]

Re: (rogersampson)

Quote, originally posted by rogersampson »

Wow! You must hold the record! You have the last year of production, so I have to think you would have the most "improved" version.

translation, hey lets try this to see if we can cut costs...

/seriously though, it goes both ways. later models can cut costs as parts rise over the years, think ote pipe, but get improvements as well. late model gt with better sleeve and pre-charge awd, trim bits on the turn stocks for example.

Modified by atacamaR at 11:55 AM 4-29-2009

 

[Frogger]

Re: (racecarcolin)

Thanks for all the good info so far.

Quote, originally posted by rogersampson »

It is an integrated slave cylinder, and throwout bearing. The entire assembly is inside the bellhousing. The big cost is labor, since the transmission must be removed. When they leak they also tend to contaminate the clutch disc. You are correct in that if there were a total failure of the slave, you would not be able to depress(disengage) the clutch. They seem to leak a little, perhaps some air gets into the system, pedal goes to the floor, but can be pumped back up until they fail completely.

What is involved with pumping it back up for a temporary fix?

Quote, originally posted by racecarcolin »

Thats what happened to mine, the clutch pedal went to the floor and i got it back up but then it did it again the next day and poof no more clutch pedal. I would be willing to bet it is your slave cylinder. the part is like 100-250 dollars depending on where you get it from, make sure you get the R specific part. It requires ALOT of time and effort to replace, including an engine hoist because you have to drop the subframe and take off the transmission. I just recently did this and ended up getting a warranty during it because I never want to have to do that poop again! -Colin

Since you've done it before and live in MN, on the rare chance that you would be interested in going through it again with a helping hand, let me know. I'd pay you for the help, of course.

 

[D-man9000]

My clutch just get's really really stiff if I rev the engine up high

Makes shifting smooth rather difficult as the clutch pedal is really forcing my foot up. Good times.