beatupjeep
03-05-2015, 06:37 PM
89 xj 4.0 manual
Replaced clutch master cylinder because it was leaking. Clutch was working fine otherwise.
This year jeep has the clutch bleeder port exposed on a little tube outside the bellhousing, with a screw-in fitting that has a barb you can put a hose on. The slave cylinder is inside the housing though..
Tried to bleed it using a brand new mityvac..didnt go well. Bottle wasnt holding vacuum, mityvac was awkward..had to keep refilling master cylinder..generally not a method I would attempt again.
Then tried just dipping the bleeder hose into a cup with some brake fluid in it, and pressing in the pedal, loosening the screw, letting some flow, tightening, filling master cyl, repeat 10+ times...also a huge pain, and when I was "done" the clutch engagement point was basically at the firewall.
So to kick everythings a%% I decided to try a method I read on some forum, where you connect the bleeder screw back to the master cylinder with a long hose. This way, you never run out of fluid (except for the initial fill of the hose), and you can pump away for years until all the bubbles are gone, without having to do anything else while you are pumping. No refilling the master cyl, no tightening/loosening the bleeder screw.
The downside to this method is that you are breaking the "sterile" barrier by allowing fluid that has been somewhere besides the inside of a DOT3 container back into the system. However if you take precautions as described below I dont see a problem with this.
First, clean the bleeder screw and its area with a steel brush. The blast it with some brake cleaner. Then, put a big flat glob of grease on the area where it screws in. This will prevent air from leaking through the threads when its loosened later.
Then you will have to do a little "clean out" ..meaning pumping all the OLD brake fluid out until you get new brake fluid coming out of the system. I had already done this because of my previous attempts. So crack the bleeder screw, tube it into a container, and pump away while you fill up the master cyl. I dont think you have to worry about air bubbles/tightening/retightening, just topping off the master cyl. Once clean fluid starts coming out, you might want to swap in a new section of hose just to decrease the likelyhood of any junk from the old fluid getting back into the system.
Now put your new section of hose from the bleeder all the way back into the master cylinder. I put a funnel into the master cyl, and the hose into the funnel..makes things a little less spill prone. Then I used something to hold the tube lightly so it wouldnt pop out of place. All just for tidiness..Im sick of brake fluid messes.
Now start pumping the clutch pedal. Fluid will move through the tube, and the master cyl level will drop. Top it off until the hose is full and then you shouldnt need to top it off anymore. Keep pumping until there are no more air bubbles.
Then tighten the bleeder screw and clean up! Enagement on mine went from firewall to half-travel after about 3 pumps! But my system was probably mostly bled already.
WARNING: Remember, under NO circumstances should you pump old fluid back into the master cyl. Only allow the fluid coming out of the bleeder screw to go back into the master cyl once its starts to be NEW fluid..and you should probably throw away the first section of hose you used to pump out the old fluid, since its probably still got little dirt crap in it even though new fluid is coming out of it.
Also, I noticed a couple crumbs of dirt coming even when I had cleaned everything. So keep an eye on the tube and if you see any dirt heading towards the master cyl at any time, point the tube towards your "dump" container until the dirt is gone.
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161039_zpslqtbbaxi.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161039_zpslqtbbaxi.jpg.html)
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161051_zpsaor6enii.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161051_zpsaor6enii.jpg.html)
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161102_zpsmad2hocb.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161102_zpsmad2hocb.jpg.html)
Replaced clutch master cylinder because it was leaking. Clutch was working fine otherwise.
This year jeep has the clutch bleeder port exposed on a little tube outside the bellhousing, with a screw-in fitting that has a barb you can put a hose on. The slave cylinder is inside the housing though..
Tried to bleed it using a brand new mityvac..didnt go well. Bottle wasnt holding vacuum, mityvac was awkward..had to keep refilling master cylinder..generally not a method I would attempt again.
Then tried just dipping the bleeder hose into a cup with some brake fluid in it, and pressing in the pedal, loosening the screw, letting some flow, tightening, filling master cyl, repeat 10+ times...also a huge pain, and when I was "done" the clutch engagement point was basically at the firewall.
So to kick everythings a%% I decided to try a method I read on some forum, where you connect the bleeder screw back to the master cylinder with a long hose. This way, you never run out of fluid (except for the initial fill of the hose), and you can pump away for years until all the bubbles are gone, without having to do anything else while you are pumping. No refilling the master cyl, no tightening/loosening the bleeder screw.
The downside to this method is that you are breaking the "sterile" barrier by allowing fluid that has been somewhere besides the inside of a DOT3 container back into the system. However if you take precautions as described below I dont see a problem with this.
First, clean the bleeder screw and its area with a steel brush. The blast it with some brake cleaner. Then, put a big flat glob of grease on the area where it screws in. This will prevent air from leaking through the threads when its loosened later.
Then you will have to do a little "clean out" ..meaning pumping all the OLD brake fluid out until you get new brake fluid coming out of the system. I had already done this because of my previous attempts. So crack the bleeder screw, tube it into a container, and pump away while you fill up the master cyl. I dont think you have to worry about air bubbles/tightening/retightening, just topping off the master cyl. Once clean fluid starts coming out, you might want to swap in a new section of hose just to decrease the likelyhood of any junk from the old fluid getting back into the system.
Now put your new section of hose from the bleeder all the way back into the master cylinder. I put a funnel into the master cyl, and the hose into the funnel..makes things a little less spill prone. Then I used something to hold the tube lightly so it wouldnt pop out of place. All just for tidiness..Im sick of brake fluid messes.
Now start pumping the clutch pedal. Fluid will move through the tube, and the master cyl level will drop. Top it off until the hose is full and then you shouldnt need to top it off anymore. Keep pumping until there are no more air bubbles.
Then tighten the bleeder screw and clean up! Enagement on mine went from firewall to half-travel after about 3 pumps! But my system was probably mostly bled already.
WARNING: Remember, under NO circumstances should you pump old fluid back into the master cyl. Only allow the fluid coming out of the bleeder screw to go back into the master cyl once its starts to be NEW fluid..and you should probably throw away the first section of hose you used to pump out the old fluid, since its probably still got little dirt crap in it even though new fluid is coming out of it.
Also, I noticed a couple crumbs of dirt coming even when I had cleaned everything. So keep an eye on the tube and if you see any dirt heading towards the master cyl at any time, point the tube towards your "dump" container until the dirt is gone.
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161039_zpslqtbbaxi.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161039_zpslqtbbaxi.jpg.html)
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161051_zpsaor6enii.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161051_zpsaor6enii.jpg.html)
http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff197/acannell/20150305_161102_zpsmad2hocb.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/acannell/media/20150305_161102_zpsmad2hocb.jpg.html)