Leaking fluid, trouble with clutch pedal

[rs1971]

Hi,

I'm having a bit of trouble with the clutch on my Ford Ranger and was hoping to get some input before I schlep it off to a mechanic as, unfortunately, I am completely clueless.

First the specs: 2003 Ford Ranger, 4L V6 4X4 manual transmission (M50D-R1HD, I believe), 60,000 miles.

Now the problem: Several weeks ago as I was leaving the house one morning, the clutch pedal sort of popped out when I disengaged it. This happened only a handful of times over the next week or so and I was optimistically hoping that it might have simply been getting stuck on the floor mat on it's way out.

Then one day a few weeks ago after having just parked at a grocery store, I happened to notice a small bit of black fluid leaking on the drivers side, very near the front of the vehicle. It occurred to me that this was probably related to the problem with the clutch but I sort of forgot about as I really wasn't having much trouble with it. Until yesterday that was when things all of the sudden got much worse.

As things stand now, the pedal doesn't really engage until about the last 1/2 or 1/3 of its range. Beyond that, it's essentially just loose and after I engage it, it only comes out part way. As I mentioned, I know next to nothing about any of this but having done a bit of reading this morning, the two possibilities for what I saw leaking are (1) transmission fluid or (2) hydraulic clutch fluid. Based on the symptoms and the location, is it possible to say which one? I'm assuming transmission fluid, only because that seems to be more common. Assuming it's transmission fluid, then I likely need to have either the master or slave cylinder replaced. Is that right? And if so, can anyone give me just a ballpark figure about what to expect on price?

Thanks in advance.

-rs1971

 

[ati190]

Sounds like your slave went. You say it got a whole lot worse? Are you able to shift, get it in gear? If it's the slave you could be looking at 500$ depending on mechanics in your area. The job isn't all so hard to replace the slave. Just basic tools needed, and a torque wrench. Replacing slave requires transmission removal, as it sits inside the bellhouse.

If indeed your master went, mechanics here charge about 150-200 to replace.

ati190

 

[exbass94]

Sounds like it's most likely clutch fluid. Check the clutch fluid reservior, located on the firewall near the brake booster. If it is leaking clutch fluid, it's most likely the clutch slave cylinder.

I highly doubt it's transmission fluid, but you should check the trans fluid level every once in a while anyway. There are 2 plugs on the side of the trans, either driver or passenger side, can't remember. Remove the upper plug. If fluid starts dribbling out, it's full. If not, add until it does start dribbling. Use Mercon ATF fluid.

 

[rs1971]

Thanks ati190 and xbass94. So, I just checked my clutch fluid and (assuming I was checking the right reservoir) it looks like the reservoir is empty. I guess that it would be reasonable to add fluid while I'm looking for a mechanic right? One interesting thing is that I did see the leak that day in the parking lot, there are really no stains/puddles in the garage worth mentioning, so if it's leaking it must not be leaking very quickly. Also, though the pedal is behaving strangely I haven't really had any trouble shifting into gear.

-rs1971

 

[srteach]

If the fluid reservoir was between the fuse box under the hood and the fender, then you have the correct place. If it was empty when you filled it, check it more often ... it will bleed dry again. Also, if you let air into the master cylinder, you will have soft clutch release for quite a while.

 

[rs1971]

Hi again,

I topped off the reservoir and it seemed to help though obviously I need to get the situation solved sooner rather than later. I described the situation over the phone to a mechanic I found on craigslist who suggested that though the problem was probably the slave cylinder given that the truck has 65k miles on all the original parts it would be silly to drop the transmission and not replace the clutch. He quoted me 6hrs labor at $60/hour, $30 to do something to the flywheel plus parts. Two questions: is his advice to replace the clutch reasonable? What about 6hrs?

Thanks in advance and I really appreciate the responses so far.

-rs1971

 

[exbass94]

I'd say replacing the clutch is a good recommendation. To replace the slave cylinder, you have to remove the transmission from the truck, which is kind of a big job. While the trans is out, the clutch is right there and it makes sense to replace it while he already has everything apart. In other words, if the clutch went bad in the future, he would have to pull the trans out all over again and charge you again for all that labor.

So yes, I also recommend replacing the clutch at this time.

The $30 is to re-surface the flywheel, I'm assuming. That's a reasonable price and something that should be done whenever you replace a clutch.
As for the 6 hours labor, well, I don't really know how long it takes to replace a clutch. I'd say that 6 hours is probably about right though.

 

[rs1971]

That sounds good. What he said seemed reasonable to me I just wanted a bit of a reality check before I shelled out the dough.

The situation has actually taken on a bit more urgency. When I claimed in the last post that I haven't had any more trouble I apparently jinxed myself. I went out to the truck about a half an hour ago and after starting it, it sort of jumped forward and I couldn't shift into any gear at all. This is the first time that I've actually had any trouble getting the truck in gear and it led to a bit of panic as I'm on the other side of the mexican border at the moment and trying to deal with the situation from here would be a nightmare. I pumped the clutch pedal a few times and then things were fine. Hopefully it will survive at least until I finish my errands here and can get back on the other side of the border.

Fingers crossed.

-rs1971