Clutch was very hard to engage

Asked by Hurlbut1027 May 24, 2017 at 08:17 PM about the 1976 MG MGB Base

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Clutch hard to engage. Pedal gave way at once. Fluid appears to come from
a ruptured line some where around the firewall or top of the tranny. Car was in
storage for 2 years. Ran good for about 1 day and then the clutch problem
occurred.

1 Answer

14,105

This is a very common problem with this car and has to do with the fact that the clutch line runs up hill, normally runs higher, on its way to the slave, than the master cylinder. This generally leaves an air bubble in the line at the highest point of the lines travel. Try as you might, it is dang hard to get air out of the line, as it moves to the highest point in the system, which is not the master. The key to solving this is a clutch line that is shorter, so that it does not run higher that the master. With a stock line, you are going to get several responses on bleeding. My two cents: You can vacc bleed the clutch, or disconnect the slave from the tranny and lower it to bleed, but you have to have two people, so one can hold the slave together. This lowers the line below the master. Whatever you chose, unless you get lucky, it will take time to get it bled.

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