I own a 2002 Mini with 85,000 miles manual transmission. Wife was driving and said clutch pedal went to the floor and she could not shift. When the car is off I can shift into every gear. When I turn the car on I hear a squeal from what I assume is the throw out bearing. As I depress the clutch pedal it only feels some resistance about 2 inches from the floor and the squeal gets louder once the pressure is felt but you still can not shift into gear.

I have worked on mechanical clutches before and this is my first hydraulic. After reading my repair manual and seeing my fluid was quite dark, how it should be replaced every two years and being the second owner I figured it would not hurt bleed the clutch. Bleeding was a fun new thing to do but after several days I finally was able to get it to bleed properly. At first I was getting no fluid at all out. Finally took out the bleeder and blew it out to be sure nothing clogged it. Now it seems fine I just need to turn the bleeder screw a full turn not a 1/4 turn. After bleeding the clutch pedal still does not feel right and only feels pressure close to the floor still. The pedal does return all the way up.

I was thinking the seals in either the master or slave cylinder may be my problem. Someone else is telling me the clutch should be replaced and that the throw out bearing my be lodged in the pressure plate. If I had noticed problems shifting before this happened I might believe it is the clutch. I have never heard of a throw out bearing getting lodged in a pressure plate before.

Most repair manuals I have used in the past have a trouble shooting sections but seems this manual even being almost 3 inches thick does not have one. Has anyone had a similar experience or know from what I explained where I need to go with this. I do not want to waste my time and money replacing hydraulic parts if it will not solve my problem. And would I need to replace one or both parts. Is there a way to test or tell which is bad if they are.

 

you have probably done this, but just in case

would it be possible (with someone else assisting) to observe the motion of the slave cylinder while operating the clutch pedal?

i would expect a linear relationship between the two, but if you see no slave cylinder motion until the pedal is substantially depressed then i'd tend to assume a hydraulic problem. if the slave cylinder moves consistantly with the pedal then i'd fear the issue could be within the clutch itself.

 

My wife's 05 Cabrio did the same thing. It was a bad slave cylinder. How is the fluid level?

 

I did see that the slave was moving but I am not sure if it was moving the whole time I was pressing the pedal or if only at the end. I am at work now but will see if it moves the whole time when I get home.

 

Fluid level is fine now. Once I bled the system there was all new fluid in the reservoir. I even bled the brakes while I was at it since they share the same reservoir. I never seen any fluid on the floor inside the car or leaking on the ground before this happened or now. So I do not think there are any leaks which has baffled me. Thats why I am assuming there in a problem with seals inside the master or slave not building pressure.

 

I think if you cannot shift into any gear, but the pedal still returns, then it is the clutch slave cylinder. If the pedal does not return, then it's the master cylinder. However, if the pedal makes a grinding noise, you can feel it too; this is the throwout bearing.

Might I ask about your driving style? Do either you or your wife keep the car in gear and hold the clutch pedal down while at a stop light? (wears throw out bearing prematurely) Do either of you ride the clutch to keep the car in place on a hill? (will wear out the pressure plate side of the clutch at twice the rate of the flywheel side) Rest your foot on the pedal? (wears throw out bearing prematurely) Power shift? (shreads clutches) These things are all very bad for clutches and related systems.

 

Maybe not related, but:

Another squeal is most possibly be the dual mass flywheel glazing up, a common problem with ALL MCSs both old and new, which the only remedy is a new DM flywheel and clutch (DM flywheels cannot be turned.)

Test: go on a side street, bring yr car to a stop, put on the E brake, put it in first, give it a little gas, and slowly let the clutch out while giving it gas. If it squeals and moans, that's a glazed flywheel.

Most of all, don't let the dealer try to pull "it's yr fault so we cant warranty replace it" crapola. This is a known problem with these cars. My dealer did not, and replaced everything w/o question to the tune of $2,679. Then a month later they replaced the master slave cylinder.

 

Well here is an update to my delema. I looked at my clutch slave cylinder as someone pushed the clutch pedal. It did not move in unison with the pedal. First time soon after it was being pushed I seen movement. Second time almost none till wwas at the bottom of the stroke. And third was half way through the stroke. The clutch pedal always returned fully up.

So with this in mind and your sugestions I tried replacing the slave. Well went in easy I have had it apart several times now so I could do this in my sleep. I still have a low squeal when I start the car. As I push the pedal the squeal gets louder. And yes I realize that noise is from the throw out bearing. I still can not get it to shift into any gear when it is running. I also turned the car off. Put it into first gear and tried to start it. The car jumps foward and stalls even when the clutch pedal is fully down.

So my assumtion is that I do have a definate clutch issue. So much for quick easy fixes. Have to decide if I am going to take it to be repaired or if it is a simple enough job to do at home. Like I said before I have done clutches before but never to a front wheel drive or car this low to the ground.

Oh and as for the last post. When I drive I always shift out of gear when at a light or sign. I live in Florida so very little hills. As for my wife I am not sure how she holds the clutch at lights. Usually I always drive when together but it is her car and her driving most the time.

Will post what happens any advice on how hard it would be to do the clutch myself is greatly appreciated.

 

What next?

I replaced my clutch slave, master cylinder
bled the brakes and the pedal returns only a couple inches.
The slave only moves 1/2" max when the pedel is pressed
and looks to be fully extended.

Will this correct when the car is started?
or do I have bigger clutch problems?

 

any suggestions?

 

What type fluid did you use? I know it sounds like a moronic question, but I'm sure you know MINIs do not use a typical brake fluid.

 

dot 4.

 

Sounds similar to my problem listed earlier here. I have my car in the shop now having a new clutch installed. It is costly too. You have to take half the car apart just to drop the transmission. I have done rear wheel drive clutches before but decided this one can go to a professional. Funny thing is I have a Jeep Grand Cherokee as well and the automatic transmission in that was slipping. It cost me $1300.00 to have that rebuilt and is costing me $1500.00 for just a clutch being replaced in the Cooper. And that is not at the dealer. So my guess is prepare for a costly job to solve the problem.

 

It's no MINI but ceratin Honda Accords use the 'self adjusting clutch' with almost an identical dual mass flywheel/clutch setup. I just read through all the previous posts and the problems are almost identical of those of the Accords when they need a clutch. There is no warning its going out b/c Honda designed it to have a 'constant pedal feel throughout the life of the clutch disc'. I assume thats the same thing with the MINI's but I could be wrong.

 

did you replace with stock equipt or upgrade?
I'm looking for a clutch kit as we speak.

 

If it was me I would upgrade. But if you don't have the money like me... just put some OEM back in it haha