Clutch Fluid Flush

The DOT3 fluid in my clutch reservoir is extremely dirty and I'm wanting to flush it out, as I would with brakes. I have a vacuum pump that I use for brake line bleeding. Can I use this for bleeding the clutch fluid? Would I just suction from the slave cylinder? I just don't have another set of hands right now... err feet rather.
Thanks!

 

Yes that will work. Make sure your clutch pedal is properly adjusted so that the master cylinder is fully retracted at rest, that allows the hole to be clear fromm the reservoir to the cylinder.

You will find it goes a lot quicker than doing brakes!

 

Thanks!
So as long as the clutch is fully disengaged, I should be good?

There doesn't happen to a way to use a system like this for the power steering is there? I was just under there looking around and didn't see one...

 

I'm interested in doing this on my truck, but I've never tried anything with thr clutch. Man, we need a video from Timmah on the subject.

 

Yeah, both the clutch, and the pedal, need to be fully released. If your pedal is setup correctly you won’t have to worry. If you start pulling a vacuum and nothing is coming out then your pedal is pushing the master cylinder in slightly, so you will need to adjust the turnbuckle under the dash to be a little shorter. Wasted 4 hours before I figured that one out LOL.

On the power steering, I don’t think the vacuum will do you any good, it can all be flushed by gravity. You will need to jack the front off the ground so you can turn lock to lock. There are a few videos on here that explain it better. Basically just put the return line in a jug, cap the connection on the reservoir, fill up reservoir, and slowly turn lock to lock many times, adding ATF as needed to the reservoir. When the drained fluid looks. We you are done. Hook everything back up and then turn lock to lock until no mor bubbles in reservoir.

 

The contamination is an indicator that some of the seals within the master cylinder as well as the slave cylinder are starting to wear down .
Crack the bleeder ever so slightly at the slave cylinder and allow it to drip into a canister
Continue topping up the master cylinder resevoir until the fluid coming out of the bleeder at the slave cylinder is clear .
If you drain the master resevoir completely , air will get into the line and cause a few issues with clutch release .

 

Yep as said above just gravity bleed it.

 

this is a good thing to do. I am going to use the gravity method to do mine shortly. It will help make your slave cylinder last longer. Also brake fluid is supposed to be changed every 2 years I think. harder to do but worth doing also

 

I did mine a while ago by bleeding into a gatorade bottle with a hole in the cap, then dunked the bleeder line into some submerged brake fluid. Pump it slowly a few times and then refill the cylinder. Repeat until clean fluid is running through the lines. I did this by myself. It was very easy. Just have some line long enough to set the bottle on the floor. It's the same concept for brakes. You can do it by yourself using this method.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/clutch-fluid-after-175k-miles-gross.493571/

 

With pumping the clutch, would I risk sucking the dirty fluid back into system? Or if the line is hanging vertically it wouldn't stay full of fluid and I'd risk sucking air in?

 

I wouldn't really call it "pumping" the clutch, it's more like pressing it in and out slowly. If you do this, you will only push fluid out, not suck it back in. You will see this from the clear lines as you do it. Make sure to check your reservoir levels frequently.

The cap to the reservoir needs to be off. Essentially you are just helping gravity do its job. Old fluid comes out the bottom, new fluid gets put in through the top of the system. The pressing of the pedal simply expedites this process.

 

Did it. Thanks for all the suggestions. Just booked a brake bleeder line/bottle to the clutch and let it do gravity. Too slow so I gently moved the pedal in and out with my hand. Got 6-7 "pumps" between reservoir fills. Worked like a charm!

 

That's exactly how I did it.

 

So I finally got around to replacing the clutch fluid on my truck today. I've been having a problem where the clutch engages hard sometimes, like it lets it all out at once despite me going easy with the pedal. I opened the reservoir cap and found the fluid dark green and below the minimum line. Oops!

I got under there and loosened the nipple on the slave cylinder and let gravity drain out the old fluid while I kept topping off the reservoir with fresh fluid (only used about 4-5 oz). Easy job I should have done months ago! I took it for a test drive and was amazed at the difference in the smoothness of the clutch. This is an easy maintenance item that shouldn't be neglected or overlooked. Picture attached for those who don't like to read.

 

This is exactly what I needed to know. I didn't realize that the pedal needed to be all the way up. Makes sense now. But I wasted a little more time than you bc of this issue. This site is awesome and has helped me with more than a few times. Thanks man

 

Glad it helped!! So cool to see folks keeping these trucks viable and running great!