clutch suddenly not working

[russeller]

My question is: Is there a way to confirm that the slave and not the mater cyl. has failed. I want to be certain before having to completely going through the r and r process of drive lines, transfer case, trans, to replace the slave cyl. if it is not the culprit of my failure. I did try bleeding out system and regained slight pressure on clutch pedal only to lose it again almost instantly. Note there is some signs of leakage in bell of trans., below the slave cylinder. At 120,000 miles is this a common failure? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks !

 

[410Fortune]

you have re-filled the system and bled and the pressure you get is only temporary
You have signs of leaking brake fluid inside your bellhousing


yes your slave cylinder is toast
it is a common failure with the internal slave cylinder
120K miles is low usually this happens around 200K, but it all depends on the truck and owner

YOu should be replacing the entire clutch assembly, slave cylinder AND the master cylinder, have the flywheel surfaced and pilot bearing replaced.

LAbor and parts for a gen I explorer 4x4 for a complete clutch can be $800 - 1800 so it pays to shop around
To do it yourself can be right around $300 for clutch, master and slave

 

[russeller]

Thanks for your input, I certainly plan on replacing complete package once it is apart, the labor alone is justifying this, not to mention the fact that the lost fluid will likely end up on disk anyway. I already anticipated all of your mentioned parts along with u-joints and exaust gaskets, I was just trying to find an easy answer to an obvious failure. lol better get started, and thanks again.

 

[410Fortune]

just be happy your doing your first full clutch at 120K, 120K is a good life for a heavy SUV clutch

 

[yellowcat]

double check if these flywheels can be resurfaced. I bought a new one at autozone for 60 -70 bucks, it was a Luke. I would replace the rear main seal as well. Good luck getting the new polit bearing into the flywheel.
be careful the type of slave that you buy. You might want to consider going to the dealer. I bought the luke kit at pep boys, the slave was @ 70 bucks extra. Oh, you may also want to replace the radius arm bushings as well