clutch only slips when very cold out?

[snatiep]

Hello Everyone,

A few weeks ago when it was -25F outside, after driving about 10 miles my clutch started slipping badly. I limped it home and let it sit in the driveway until the weather warmed up.

I have a 1996 Ranger, 2.3L, 2 wheel drive.

A few day later after it warmed up a bit I went out to look things over. The master cylinder reservoir had plenty of fluid in it so I thought maybe the fluid had enough moisture in it to freeze So between having someone push and hold the clutch pedal down, I bled about a half a bottle of new brake fluid through the clutch system hoping that would solve the problem.

It worked for a while, but this morning it was -15F again and it is still slipping. I don't know where to go from here.

Tomorrow it is going to warm up to +30 so i'll go check things over again.

How can I test the clutch master cylinder? If I disconnect the line from the slave cylinder and push on the clutch pedal, I should not be able to push down on the pedal should I? If I am able to, maybe the master cylinder seals are bad?

I don't know. I have a second vehicle I can drive in the meantime, so maybe I'll just have to gather the parts together and drop the transmission and replace the clutch, slave cylinder, and the master when the weather warms up?

I've never dropped a transmission before but have done the timing belt, ball joints, brakes, etc. So I think I could do it.

I thank you very much for your thoughts and comments!

Nate

 

[RonD]

The master has a check valve that can fail.

I would have some one pump the clutch pedal a few times when cold, then take their foot off the pedal, and then you open the bleeder.
There should be no squirt of fluid out the bleeder without pressure on the pedal, just a drip.
If check valve in master is sticking then slave still has pressure(squirt of fluid) so clutch disk never gets fully engaged, and you get slipping.