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MG MGB Technical - please, clutch, disengage for me!

so when I got my B GT, the clutch wasn't working. master cylinder was in pretty bad shape. After replacing and bleeding, the clutch isn't disengaging! I'm trying to rock the car in gear to make sure the motor's not seized before I try to start it but I can't get the damned clutch to work! I gave it a thorough bleeding which yielded no postive results and I'm quite frustrated. Also, the pedal doesn't return after depressing it. help? please?
Chris

oops... I need it to engage. my mistake
Chris

Chris - Now that you have bled the clutch using the normal procedure, manually push the piston all the way to the back of the slave cylinder and then rebleed the clutch normally. You may have to do this two or three times, but it will get all the air out of the system and the clutch will work properly. Good luck - Dave
David DuBois

Chris. Dave's method will eliminate the possibility that it is a hydraulic pressure problem due to air in the lines. However, if I am reading your post correctly, that is not the problem you have. My reading indicates that your problem is that the clutch is disengaged and will not engage properly to link the engine flywheel with the transmission. You have a further problem in that, when you push the clutch pedal to the floor, it does not return to the "full up" position. If this is a correct statement of your problem, I offer the following.

First, there is a return spring attached to the pedal and the underside of the dash. This should be in place.

Second, there is a return spring inside the clutch master cylinder which should be pushing the pedal backwards, somewhat, even if the pedal return spring is not present.

Third, it sounds like the problem is the clutch has been depressed and something has jambed up the system and is not allowing it to release. This can be related to the slave cylinder, the master cylinder or the rubber flex hose that links the slave cylinder to the hard line from the master cylinder. One test, to find if the flex line has collapsed internally and is not allowing the pressure to release in the slave cylinder, is to crack open the bleed nipple on the slave cylinder. That should relieve all the pressure in the slave cylinder and you should see the pushrod move into the cylinder.

Another quick check is to disconnect the pushrod from the clutch fork (throwout bearing fork) and see if the clutch then engages. If not, it is something inside the tranny/clutch that is causing your problem. Les
Les Bengtson

well I figured it all out. I got underneath it and I pounded the piston on the slave with a hammer and freed it. works fine. thanks guys
Chris

There's nothing a good hammer can't fix :)
Mike MaGee

This thread was discussed on 12/11/2003

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