Help Please! Clutch pedal stuck to floor..

[fourtaylor]

My quick trip to Wal-mart turned into a three hour tour!

When I was done with my shopping I started my 99 C2 and off I went, shifted into first.....zoom....depress clutch to shift into second.... the clutch did not come back up? At first I thought it came back up 1/2 way but I depressed the clutch again and it sticks to the floor.

I stopped my 911 and pulled the clutch up by hand but when I pushed it again it stuck again, I repeated this several times in hopes that something would catch and I could limp home. I ended up pushing the car into a parking spot and going into the store to purchase a flash light so I could see better.

The light did help reveal a good size puddle of fluid under the driver's side door just in ahead of the rear tire. It looked to be brake/clutch fluid. I also checked the front reservoir and it was slightly low (near the min line). So I suspect this may have something to do with my problem?

I had my 911 flatbeded back to my home garage but have not gone any further yet. My plan is to jack up the car and remove the underbody plastic panels tomorrow and check for leaks. If anyone has any recommendations on things to look for please let me know.

In the interest of full disclosure.....

I changed the plugs/filters Monday afternoon but I doubt there is any relationship.

The car is approaching 40K miles.

I have only owned the car a few weeks and do have a warranty from the non-Porsche dealer I purchased from but I am not sure I want them working on the car.

I would not guess the clutch itself is gone but I could be wrong.

Believe it or not, I have an appointment for an inspection at Auto Edge in St. Paul tomorrow afternoon. I guess I will have to reschedule...

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Chris.

[Loren]

Sounds like your clutch has air in the line or the slave cylinder is leaking. Check the brake fluid level as the clutch and brakes share the same reservoir. There is a clutch/brake bleeding procedure here in the DIY section.

[SPR]

slave cylinder-

[fourtaylor]

Sounds like your clutch has air in the line or the slave cylinder is leaking. Check the brake fluid level as the clutch and brakes share the same reservoir. There is a clutch/brake bleeding procedure here in the DIY section.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks for the quick response!

Is it a difficutl job to replace the slave cylinder?

Chris

[Tool Pants]

Hard to know without seeing your car. On a Boxster the slave cylinder is on the drivers side above the left rear wheel. I thought it was on the passenger side on a 996, but you say the fluid is on the divers side.

The clutch line is blue plastic. This is it on a Boxster. There is a black plastic cover under the drivers side door sill that covers part of the line. Check the line. Have someone operate the pedal and look for the source of the leak.

[fourtaylor]

Yes, as many of you suspected there is a clutch fluid line leak. I did not take a picture yet but the leak is just in front of the drivers side rear jack point. It is right where the line makes a turn to go to the tranny. The hole is not visable by my naked eye but when under pressure a nice spray is visable. After raising the car it was pretty obvious where the leak was, there was a crack in the under belly plastic panel right under the clutch line and the clutch line was somewhat crushed above this. I noticed the crack previously but did not think much of it.

My next question (and I will ask the parts guy as well), is what do I do? Is there a line repair kit or do I just replace the line?

Thanks again, Chris

[Loren]

Yes, as many of you suspected there is a clutch fluid line leak. I did not take a picture yet but the leak is just in front of the drivers side rear jack point. It is right where the line makes a turn to go to the tranny. The hole is not visable by my naked eye but when under pressure a nice spray is visable.  After raising the car it was pretty obvious where the leak was, there was a crack in the under belly plastic panel right under the clutch line and the clutch line was somewhat crushed above this.  I noticed the crack previously but did not think much of it.

My next question (and I will ask the parts guy as well), is what do I do? Is there a line repair kit or do I just replace the line?

Thanks again, Chris

Sounds like item 10 (996 423 113 05) in the image below. If it is further forward then it is item 9 (996 423 109 10). Each line is about $75 - $85 each (retail).

[fourtaylor]

Thanks Loren, the diagram helps very much. I think you are right that it is item 10.

That is a steep price for a piece of plastic pipe! Must be all those custom bends :)

Do you know the partnumber for the rear - most plastic belly pan?

Thanks again, your site has been most helpful!

[sinbad]

Very impressive. Three cheers to Toolpants and Loren.

[Loren]

That is a steep price for a piece of plastic pipe! Must be all those custom bends

Yes, and my price list is a year old :(

Do you know the partnumber for the rear - most plastic belly pan?

Are you talking about item 5 (996 504 129 01)? Also, don't forget to look for missing plastic rivets (item 6) and plastic nuts (item 2).

[fourtaylor]

Yes Loren, you nailed it again :)

I guess it is probably a good idea to keep some extra rivets and nuts, I will ask for those as well.

Thanks again,

Chris.

[SPR]

I can't believe the line is plastic??? As the line is shared with the brakes if you replaced the hose and brake and that slave line with braided I wonder how nice and firm the pedal would be afterwards????? HMMMM

[fourtaylor]

Well here are a couple of photos I snapped this evening. The first shows the leak/squirt when the line has some pressure. Also note the line is crushed, either caused by the car bottoming out or possibly a misplaced jack.

This photos shows the crack in the belly pan. The missing part in the middle fell out when I was removing the belly pan.

Chris

[ar38070]

The line is not plastic. It just has a blue plastic coating. Not sure why.

[fourtaylor]

I can't believe the line is plastic??? As the line is shared with the brakes if you replaced the hose and brake and that slave line with braided I wonder how nice and firm the pedal would be afterwards????? HMMMM

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The line is not plastic.  It just has a blue plastic coating.  Not sure why.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That is right the line is NOT plastic. It just looks like it might be. It is metal with a blue vinal coating; it has what look like brass fittings on either end. Seems pretty heave duty to me. I removed the leaking section of clutch line at lunch. Unfortunately no parts places that I have contacted stock the replacement so I will have to wait a week before I can drive my 996 again :(

[SPR]

did you call sunset? they can also search all other deals as they do inventory assessments 2x a month so it's relatively accurate. If they don't have it ask who does and they should tell you

[fourtaylor]

Yes, I called Sunset and subsequently ordered the clutch line and a few other things from them (the plastic belly pan and some other stuff). It will take Sunset a few days to get the parts and then they will ship to me. I would expect I will get the parts sometime next week; hopefully prior to the weekend of 11/20. This will work out fine since I will be out of town this coming weekend. The unfortunate thing is we are running out of nice days in MN :(.

I also ordered the Motive power bleeder as suggested in the DIY section. I will report back on how it all works in a couple weeks.

Oh, I did have another question if anyone is still following this thread;

How much brake fluid should I expect to use? 1-2 Litres?

Edited November 9, 2004 by fourtaylor

[Loren]

How much brake fluid should I expect to use?  1-2 Litres?

1 liter will be plenty.

[fourtaylor]

Update:

I finally received the parts I ordered for the clutch line repair last night. I had the new line installed and power bled (via motive) in short order. Also installed the new belly pan (which came with a small crack in it :( ). I took her our last night and again today to test it out, all is good :). It is cold here in MN, but it is sunny and the roads are dry today...a great day to drive a 911!

I missed not being able to drive the car the last couple weeks.

Thanks again everyone for the advice.

Chris.

P.S. Now that I have the power bleeder I am tempted to replace all the brake fluid but maybe I will wait until spring.