Clutch slipping after levers changed

[BigD]

Changed my levers to these  http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/290453587222? ... 1439.l2649 tonight  and had a bit of a problem with installation of the clutch lever.  For reasons only known to me, I pulled the push rod out of the boot and spent the next god knows how long trying to get it back in. Ended up splitting the boot getting the rod back in and I think its overstretched it a bit.  Fitted the new lever and went out for a ride.

It basically felt pants.  Clutch slipped under throttle and it seemed to accelerate poorly.

I've ordered a new boot, push rod and bush and wondered whether the slipping/poor acceleration could just be down to the damaged boot or whether it needs bleeding and rebuilding.  I was pushing the rod in with some force at times to try to get the boot over the lip.

[Juvecu]

I'd drain the fluid, take the clutch master cylinder off and apart to see what's been damaged. If the clutch is slipping then it's not releasing properly. There might be something wrong with the master cylinder now that's causing a partial clutch release. Chances are good that when you've replaced the parts you've ordered things will be back to normal after putting some new fluid in and bleeding it (that's if there's no other damage to the MS.) You're on the right track

[BigD]

Thanks for the reply.  That's a job for Saturday morning then  

[Juvecu]

Let us know what it was if you find some problem, always good to know how things were fixed

[BigD]

I'm really struggling to get the push rod back in the boot if the boot is fit in first.  

Will it be OK to fit the push rod in the boot then put the boot and push rod back in together.  I'm worried this won't get the vacuum seal it needs to stay there.  If I have to put the boot in first, are there any tips for getting the boot lip over the push rod?  Tried small screwdriver but I'm going to end up splitting this one I can see.

[Juvecu]

I haven't done one of these myself yet, perhaps someone familiar with it can tell you what they did? I can't tell from the parts fiche what the difficulty is in putting the boot back on.

[BigD]

I seem to have it all back together and now trying to bleed it.  I can't get fluid to pump through.  Could the clutch banjo bolt be in the wrong position preventing fluid passing through it?  I didn't think that was possible but I can't see any other reason.  

[hookie]

Getting the fluid to start flowing in a dry system can be a real pain. As the master cylinder is rectangular in shape it's difficult to rig up a pressure seal round it so you can pump the fluid through to get it started, but that's the best way if you could improvise something. You also try opening the bleed screw on the slave cylinder each time you pull the clutch lever in. Hold it and close the bleed screw before releasing the lever. That way a little air will be pushed down the pipe each time and usually after a while it will start flowing and bleed OK.

[Juvecu]

You could also use a big syringe and then pump/suck fluid in via the bleed nipple on the slave cylinder. You'll need some pipe to connect the bleed nipple to the syringe. Search eBay for a nice big 50ml syringe.

[BigD]

Thanks for the reply, have tried what you suggest. I'm convinced there's a problem somewhere. I took the banjo bolt of the master and tried pumping the lever to see if any fluid was coming out and it wasn't. I'm sucking and blowing   on the bleed nipple and it seems like something is shut off as there is resistance. However I can hear gurgling when I pump the lever with the nipple open.

[Juvecu]

http://www.suzukipartshouse.com/oempart ... r-cylinder

That link is for the parts fiche for the clutch master cylinder. Best check if everything is in the right order and the right way around, though I think it is unlikely that it would go back in properly if this wasn't the case.

[hookie]

I you can hear gurgling when the nipple is open this shows that there is movement of air in the hose and if the bleed nipple is left open when you release the lever it is sucking air back into the hose. Hence the suggestion to close the nipple before releasing the lever to stop the air being sucked back in. This can take quite a long while and be very irritating but has always worked for me. If you can find a way of sucking fluid from the nipple end this should speed things up considerably.

[BigD]

OK, I have resolved the problem.  It was due to after market levers I've just put on.  It wasn't pumping fluid from the reservoir as I assume the fitting was slightly out.  I put the old lever back on and Hello presto everything fine.

It was these I bought http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/290453587222? ... 1439.l2649 which a few on here have also got I believe.  It would have been the reason why the clutch was slipping after I fit them.  Anyone else had problems with these levers?

[hookie]

It sounds like the new levers were not allowing the piston to come far enough back to let brake fluid enter the cylinder. If you can't return them you may be able to modify them by removing metal from the point where the lever pushes the piston. Suggest you check the front brake one as well as if the piston is not returning to it's base point it could make the brakes stick on. This may have been why the clutch was slipping...