DIY - Swap clutch slave cylinder and hydraulic line for improved feel and control

[xsl27x]

Originally Posted by Captain Curt

What's the difference between the two? Does one just return it and the other assists?

Edit: It's late. It just re-read your comment and it answered my question.
Edit 2: Do you need to dial-in/verify the clutch after the slave swap or the assist spring?

You should check engagement after the cylinder swap. I believe it was covered several pages back, but I remember the reason being that the pedal will sit closer to the floor after swapping to the smaller cylinder. If you've adjusted the clutch pedal to the bare minimum before the swap, you may run into the clutch not fully disengaging after the swap, so you would need to adjust pedal height a little higher.

I didn't have any issues after swapping mine, but I had initially adjusted it level to the brake pedal beforehand.

Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Captain Curt

What's the difference between the two? Does one just return it and the other assists?

Edit: It's late. It just re-read your comment and it answered my question.
Edit 2: Do you need to dial-in/verify the clutch after the slave swap or the assist spring?

No worries. There isn't a "need" for adjustment if only the spring has been removed however, once it's out, the pedal may feel sloppy at the top. Some people find it annoying. It helps to adjust the cruise cancel switch to take up the play in the clevis pin. Just make sure the pushrod is able to fully extend from the master cylinder. The ball will rest against the washer/retaining clip.

If you haven't already adjusted the pedal travel, get in there and play with that. IMO, it's important to get comfortable with clutch adjustment and what it can do for driveability.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by xsl27x

You should check engagement after the cylinder swap. I believe it was covered several pages back, but I remember the reason being that the pedal will sit closer to the floor after swapping to the smaller cylinder. If you've adjusted the clutch pedal to the bare minimum before the swap, you may run into the clutch not fully disengaging after the swap, so you would need to adjust pedal height a little higher.

I didn't have any issues after swapping mine, but I had initially adjusted it level to the brake pedal beforehand.

It's actually the opposite of this. All other things being equal, the narrower bore in the slave results in greater travel at the output. Having it adjusted even with the brake pedal is "close enough"

The slave cylinder has no effect on the pedal travel; self-adjusting hydraulic system.

[angadam]

Originally Posted by xsl27x

I understand if you've never worked on a car before, but it's seriously easier than changing oil. Cleaner, faster, cheaper, and no jacking up the car!

Hell, I'll drive to anyone in MD and do it for em for a beer, haha.

Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk

Im in NW Ohio and I plan on doing this mod tomorrow. As a mechanic I second or third or whatever number I am saying its a simple job and I would be willing to help anyone in the Ohio, Michigan, Indiana region....I just like road trips.

[tobin]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

It's actually the opposite of this. All other things being equal, the narrower bore in the slave results in greater travel at the output. Having it adjusted even with the brake pedal is "close enough"

The slave cylinder has no effect on the pedal travel; self-adjusting hydraulic system.

Sorry to ask a question that was probably already covered, but why does the pedal height need to be lowered before doing the slave swap? What would happen if the pedal height was not adjusted at any point in this procedure?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by tobin

Sorry to ask a question that was probably already covered, but why does the pedal height need to be lowered before doing the slave swap? What would happen if the pedal height was not adjusted at any point in this procedure?

If the pedal is set really high, like the way the 13s were delivered, I worry that the extra travel might damage the pressure plate. I have zero evidence to confirm this but want to err on the cautious side.

Either way, the touch/catch point will rise, not dramatically but it's noticeable.

[jonboy99]

So, anyone else f*cked this up yet? Everything seemed to go well but I have a pedal that just stays stuck to the floor and needs pulling up. I've bled brakes before after fitting new hoses but obviously cocked something up here. How much of a hassle is a bench bleed?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by jonboy99

So, anyone else f*cked this up yet? Everything seemed to go well but I have a pedal that just stays stuck to the floor and needs pulling up. I've bled brakes before after fitting new hoses but obviously cocked something up here. How much of a hassle is a bench bleed?

Did you run the reservoir dry? Don't panic.

[jonboy99]

Nope. See if you can guess what I did?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by jonboy99

Nope. See if you can guess what I did?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Jeez! I was all worried about you last night!

I'll guess you forgot to use both bolts in the slave so it swung sideways.

[jonboy99]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Jeez! I was all worried about you last night!

I'll guess you forgot to use both bolts in the slave so it swung sideways.

Even worse - didn't ensure the piston was located in the clutch case lever thing - so when the pedal was pressed, the piston just poked out into free air. I'm lucky the piston didn't explode out from the cylinder and spray brake fluid all over the firewall! Stupid, although to be fair there's a couple of pipes which hide things from view a little. Clutch working fine now. Need to adjust the pedal height down a lot, but already feeling much more natural. Thanks for the great guide!

*edit - now got the clutch height sorted, feels awesome, the way it should have been stock. Best mod so far without a doubt.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by jonboy99

Even worse - didn't ensure the piston was located in the clutch case lever thing - so when the pedal was pressed, the piston just poked out into free air. I'm lucky the piston didn't explode out from the cylinder and spray brake fluid all over the firewall! Stupid, although to be fair there's a couple of pipes which hide things from view a little. Clutch working fine now. Need to adjust the pedal height down a lot, but already feeling much more natural. Thanks for the great guide!

*edit - now got the clutch height sorted, feels awesome, the way it should have been stock. Best mod so far without a doubt.

I've done exactly what you did. Man, it gets everywhere. Did you get all the fluid cleaned out from underneath the boot?

[jonboy99]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

I've done exactly what you did. Man, it gets everywhere. Did you get all the fluid cleaned out from underneath the boot?

No, didn't bother. Maybe I should sometime, but the boot definitely didn't feel under any pressure - easy to squash so not full of fluid. I'll do it next time i'm in a maintenance mood.

[tobin]

Originally Posted by ck-GT86

Bleeding the Clutch Fluid

Note: You definitely need another body for this process

1. The 8mm drain plug on the new slave cylinder should be sealed, tighten if not.


2. Remove master cylinder cap and refill with brake fluid


3. Seal the cap


4. Loosen the 8mm drain plug on slave cylinder


5. Have assistant press clutch to the floor, DO NOT bring clutch pedal back up


6. Tighten drain plug, then have assistant manually bring pedal up


7. Loosen drain plug, repeat process until bubbles have escaped.

Can someone please verify the bleeding instructions? The ones listed above are different than the original post.

OP: Pedal down, loosen valve, tighten valve, pedal up

ck-GT86: loosen valve, pedal down, tighten valve, pedal up