I have lost my clutch on my 82 magna . I replaced the seals in the slave cylinder and replaced the complete piston system in the master cylinder. still no pressure resistance in the handle. I've bled and bled and bled to no avail. what is going on????? Thank you for your time!!!!!

Jamie, are you losing any fluid from the clutch master cylinder? By small resistance I presume you mean the pedal feels soft?

If you're losing fluid from the master cylinder you have an obvious leak somewhere and air is getting into the system.

Most leaks occur from the clutch SLAVE cylinder as it does all the work .. If there's no leak from the clutch slave cylinder, suspect the seals inside. It's like a bicycle pump ..the seal inside wears and it won't pump..

You may be able to get an overhaul kit. I'm in the UK .. but here's an Ebay link for a slave cylinder overhaul kit just to show you what it looks like:
FORD CORTINA MK2 CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER REPAIR KIT SP2085
Here's a link to show you what the slave cylinder itself may look like (it may NOT be for your vehicle..)
CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER FORD FIESTA ESCORT
It's easier and quicker to fit a new slave cylinder than it is to strip down and replace seals with a kit. Be aware, after overhauling or replacing a slave cylinder you have to bleed it - remove the air.

The easiest way of doing this is to make sure the reservoir is fill of fluid, crawl underneath the car with a spanner/wrench, place a rag over the bleed point and get somebody to pump the pedal a couple of times while you undo then tighten the bleed nut.

If it's not the slave cylinder at fault- then it's the master cylinder. Master cylinders also have a 'piston' and rubber seals which wear/perish.
However, it's more than likely that it's the slave cylinder at fault

The Clutch Master Cylinder or the Clutch Slave Cylinder has a leak. From under the dashboard, located the Clutch Master Cyliner Boot and pry one side open. If hydraulic fluid drips out, the piston seal(s) in the cylinder are worn. You'll need to replace the cylinder.

I am assuming that you have a hydraulic clutch. You may have a fluid leak in the clutch system. Leaks often develop at either the master cylinder end at your foot, or the slave cylinder end at the gearbox. Once any piston seals have been replaced or master/slave cylinders have been replaced then the system will need to be bled and this should then rectify the issue.

I was looking in the service information for G.M.and they do not say anything about using a power bleeder.They just manually bleed the system.Maybe this is what you need to try.I am a G.M. technician and I never remember using a power bleeder when replacing and bleeding a slave cylinder.The bleeding is not the same as bleeding a brake system.I also remember being able to get the complete the complete master cylinder and slave as an assembly and it was already bleed.All you had to do was install it.I`m not sure if it is still available as a complete assembly.But I believe your right in saying there is still air in the system.Hope this helps.Let me know what you find out.Good luck.

Hello Patrick.
Check the fluid level in the reservoir for your clutch.
The clutch in your vehicle is operated by a hydraulic piston in the master cylinder that pushes fluid through a line to another piston (slave cylinder) which pushes on the clutch release.
If you have a fluid leak in the system it will allow the fluid level to drop and there won't be enough to push the slave cylinder.
You could also have a worn clutch disc.
When filling the master cylinder use brake fluid only. Anything else will destroy the rubber seals inside and all will need to be replaced.
I hope this leads you to a good repair.

Thank you for using FixYa.

KL

one way to bleed it is by pulling the piston like slave cylinder with the rod out of the transmission and by pushing the rod into the slave cylinder several times, make sure you have plenty of dot3 brake fluid in the clutch master slave before you do this. by pushing the rod into the slave cylinder it acts like doing a brake job it bleeds the air out into the clutch master slave cylinder and sucks in the break fluid getting rid of all air in the system. thats the only way to bleed those systems seeing as they are sealed systems

Did you take apart and clean the master cylinder. There is a large hole in the reservoir that feeds the fluid to the piston. But there is also a tiny pin hole that allows the dot fluid to return to the reservoir. If this is plugged on brakes it will lock the front wheel. On a clutch it might be what is locking the slave cylinder.If you pull the lever and the clutch does not engage you have air in the line. If you pull the lever and the clutch engages but does not disengage till you open the bleeder screw on the slave cylinder , the pin hole (fluid return hole) in the master cylinder is plugged. Take the master apart and clean it. You can pull the rubber cap that protects the piston out of the master and remove the piston with a circlip pliers. Honda sells a master cylinder rebuild kit and clutch slave o-ring seals if you need them.

Either has a bad clutch master cylinder, or a bad slave cylinder. If you can line lock the clutch, does it have good pressure? If not, you need a clutch master, if so, it is slave cylinder, or a bad clutch.

If you are leaking fluid from the clutch master cylinder then you have air in the system. You could try and bleed the air out of the clutch slave cylinder to get the gears but it would not last. The only way is to replace the defective master cylinder, replace all of the fluid and bleed out the air through the slave cylinder.

Replace master cylinder