What is the proper way of bleeding the clutch hydraulic system on a 2005-up GT?

I checked the FSM and it did not have a set of procedures, nor did it mention any bleeder valves for the slave cylinder/line.

 

Do a search , there was a big discussion on this a while back ...

 

So was there a bleeder valve?

 

The post I followed worked for me. The clutch was a bit firmer and it now works much better.

The directions were to jack up the drivers side of the car about 8 inches. while it is jacked up SLOWLY push the clutch in and out for 5 minutes. The cycle of pushing the clutch from top down and back needs to be 5-10 seconds. After about 4 minutes I feel it firm up. I first thought it was my leg getting tired but I switched and it still felt the same. Give it a try it can't hurt.

 

Well...
The slave is inside the tranny.
The manual says to do it through the master cylinder by applying vacuum to the clutch line to suck in the fluid and then pumping the pedal a lot after you finish.
I don't like the design. I prefer to have an external slave I can easily bleed.

 

While the slave cylinder/release bearing is inside the transmission, the bleader is just outside of the bellhousing. The problem is that it is all but impossible to get to with the transmission installed. In fact, I think somebody mentioned that they no longer come from the factory with the bleeder.

After replacing my slave cylinder/release bearing I used the procedure from the Ford manual and it actually worked very well. I had to perform it twice before I got a good pedal and did it one more time to make sure.

Here's the PDF and good luck.

 

I suppose the vacuum tool is used to try and suck up any residual air pockets in the line, because the procedures don't say to maintain the vacuum and pump the clutch or brakes.

It looks like pumping the clutch pedal is all that is really required in this procedure (jacking the driver's side, using the tool, etc...) might help but we're still stuck pumping the pedal for 5-10 minutes. I'll have to try it out this weekend. I did this before but I rapidly pumped and released the clutch pedal instead of taking 5-10 seconds per pump/release.

 

I did exactly what it said in the procedure and it worked. I held 20 inches of vacuum on the reservoir for a minute, released it, worked the pedal 10-12 times, and repeated. After studying the new slave/throwout up close, I'm not convinced that simply pumping the pedal will work, no matter what the angle. I think the vacuum method totally collapses the spring that is part of the slave cylinder, bringing the air to the reservoir. I was very skeptical of this procedure at first because the new part was installed totally dry. Now my pedal feels as good as it ever did. If you have the vacuum pump, the procedure is actually easier because there is no jacking involved. Do both. it can't hurt!

 

I have a vacuum pump so I'll give it a try!

 

I bought a rubber stopper (to fit a 1.5" hole), $2.50 at Lowes, and a 1/4" ID barbed hose splicer (about 3/8" OD - fits the Mityvac hoses) $1.74 at home despot.

I followed the instructions and applied vacuum for 1 min prior to pumping the clutch pedal. 15 inHg of vacuum seemed like a lot. I was afraid the reservoir was going to collapse! I found that the brake fluid would rise in the column and contact the rubber stopper, so make sure you clean it off prior to using it. After pumping the pedal several dozen times, it did seem stiffer when I slowly applied the clutch pedal. A rapid motion (as in when driving) doesn't show much of a change in pedal effort. It *seems* that the friction point is more "tactile" than before. The actual friction point itself has not changed much.

 

So did you conclude that there was nothing wrong with it in the first place? or is it better, and worth the effort?

 

The ''jack up the driver's side and pump the pedal'' method works great. I've been doing that for years. When I swapped my tranny from auto to manual on my '05 I did it that way using all new bone dry parts and it bled right out in about 5 minutes.

 

What's the purpose of jacking just the driver's side? To allow the air to flow up to the reservoir?

Steve: I can't say for sure until I test drive the car. In the meantime, it feels like the pedal gives more "tactile" feedback. I can feel (through the pedal) the friction point. If you're not experiencing any problems, I wouldn't bother with this procedure. I just wanted to do it to make sure it was bled properly.

 

Because the morons who designed the system took the hydraulic line off of the side of the slave cylinder instead of the top which would have allowed the air to easily escape.

 

I wish the weather would clear up so I can test it out. It's snowing and in the 20s-40s (*F) in the middle of April.

 

Understand. Yeah, I am getting tired of this cold stuff already. It has been record lows here for the past 3 nights. Going to wreak havoc on all the plants and crops. Come on Spring/Summer...give me 80 and sunny baby!! Woooo!!!!!

 

holy dead threads
finally replaced my clutch today- man, that huge engine compartment isnt that big, tight tight tight fit, the plugs at the back of the motor are so hidden even my skinny 15 yr old couldnt get his hands in there...i see now why some folks drop the cradle down.
I noticed a rubber plug in the tunnel, right above the bleeder- appears there may be access to the stupid looking hose end/tee/bleeder from inside the car, but dont think I wanna pull the console apart...was thinking about vacuum bleeding, a search sent me right back here to TMS good to know about the raising drivers side/self bleeding, but the way the goofy slave tubing comes off the cyl, wraps around then out the side of the bell, think vacuum is likely best way to go... will get a stopper for the mightyvac tomorrow.

was really shocked- 60k miles, many 1/4 runs, clutch was engaging high/tending to chatter/very grabby, but upon pulling apart, could still see the machine feed lines on the flywheel and the pressure plate, just lightly glazed- but the disc was nearly gone, very few grooves left... was glad to see it was still in such good shape otherwise. 50 bucks for a NTO disc, smooth as silk again, but engaging too low and kinda soft, know theres still air in there...

anyone ever putting in a clutch, expect a few issues:
the exhaust studs/nuts were a SOB to get off... 1/4 turn off/on/oil repeat... they all 4 screeched all the way to the end, thankfully none broke-but took like a half hour apiece to get them off. the case dowels were stuck tight as heck in the block, and one was rusted into the dustcover plate, lots of careful prying to get the pins to separate, and more to get the plate off the one pin... I cleaned up the holes in the steel plate so it would slip on/off easier next time, and neverseized the pins- never had that hard a time popping one loose before- but other stuff I had was iron.

had no luck finding a clutch pilot tool- found one at advance, heck I coulda eyeballed a lot closer than that piece of junk- the sliding 'cone' had a 1/32 clearance, the threaded bearing ends were visibly out of round...ended up turning down a old screwdriver handle in the lathe to fit the spline ID and the pilot bearing.

sure glad its done- the motor/bellhousing/firewall are a LOT tighter than in the old cars and make what used to be a simple job a PITA... cant imagine doing without a lift- 15 years ago, maybe, but my backs killing me still just from stretching/contorting around... waaaaa...