clutch not working

[albertfalgui]

so i was driving home from work yesterday in the prelude. halfway home kinda noticed that the clutch is feeling weird and different. i stepped on it and it would go pretty much 3/4 all the way with no resistance/pressure and the last 1/4 clutch would engage and i was still able to shift gears but it was getting harder. so this morning i was about to leave started the car and when i stepped on the clutch went straight down all the way with 0 resistance and i couldnt even switch gears.

anyone know what couldve caused this? i checked under the cars for leaks but doesnt seem like theres any and checked around the hoses and were all dry, also i topped up the clutch resercoir with dot3 and also checked the screws and bolts at the pedal and everythign seemed fine. any help would be appreciated.

[albertfalgui]

im guessing its a bad slave cylinder but would have to check it again

[Xanicron]

I think you're right, sounds like you need a new slave cylinder.

[albertfalgui]

what tests can i do to see if its the slave cyl? i gt my buddy to step on the clutch while i was looking at the cylinder and there was movement so im guessing its not a hydrolic problem

[Old_Geezer2]

Well, if you ran it low on fluid you will have to bleed the cylinder before it will work properly again.

[jdmvip]

I agree with the others, but first check your clutch fluid. You could try filling it up if it's low, but if it got low on it's own (without a leak) then I bet it is the slave cylinder.

Sorry I don't know how you would test it, first check the fluid level and go from there.

[albertfalgui]

so i bled the clutch today and so much air came out. i bought one of those 1 man bleeders to do it and it was very easy, only problem i had was sticking the tube into the bleeder valve but besides that was an easy job.

[William]

So that was the issue Albert ? Just air in the system ?

[Osweald99]

Check that the clutch actuator arm moves when the pedal is depressed. If it moves properly and you have no clutch you have probably made an error installing the gearbox. Did you replace the clutch and if so was it the correct assembly and was the clutch plate the right way round?? Did you ensure that the fork was correctly located on the pivot and release bearing. Have you read the manual to ensure that the initial adjustment is correct? Finally, did you let air into the clutch hydraulics when you installed the box, i.e did the piston pop out. Some can be a bugger to bleed out if that happens.
One more thought. Are the bell housings on the original and replacement boxes the same or should you have swapped them. I am not familiar with potential differences on the vauxhalls.