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T-Series Clutch Slave-rebuild or replace? [Pretty nasty...]

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RickB

RickB

Yoda
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Right now I have 3 LBC's none of which are drivable.
I was going out to work on the B this morning when I glanced under the Midget and saw a wet patch on the road.

Popped the hood & found water leaking from the bottom of the water pump. We took it out on an MG club run yesterday - I noticed there wasn't any heat coming out from the heater but thought it was just cold out so no biggie & the water temp never rose above 180F.
Called NAPA and ordered a new pump, will be here tomorrow they say.

The B had leaked several quarts of oil the last time my wife took it out so its been grounded since, waiting for me to take a look at it.
The leak as it turns out was due to the small hose going to the oil pressure sensor. I removed it and took it in to NAPA but they couldn't come up with a replacement and said I should bring in the fixture it hooks up to or the piece off the block where it connects.

I go back home and take the piece off the side of the block and decided to go across the street to True Value and see if they had anything. They did have a plug, so I got that and some tape to seal the threads. The thought was I could plug the hole until I could find the right thing for the job.

So I plugged it up and then got in to drive it out to NAPA...

NO CLUTCH!!!

:nopity: :wall: :eeek: :pukeface:

I have been having to add a little fluid to the clutch master for the past few months, but today it was low again and the pedal goes right to the floor.

Where is all the fluid going?? It's not around the master or dripping through to the drivers side floor, so where is it.

I jacked up the car and looked at the slave. The rubber seal on the end looks a bit bulgy and everything is drenched with oil, so much so that I can't tell if any brake fluid has been escaping.
I'd bet on it being a slave cylinder problem at this point, but it's pretty hard to tell.

All in all not such a great LBC day here.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Rick, I've been exactly where you are too many times. Too many LBC's and not a one of them worth a darn. I finally figured out what I wanted and sold everyone of them. I then used the money and bought an E-type. Trust me, it's like owning a very expensive midget. Same problems, same BS, same parts will be in on monday.
I drive a trusty Nissan as a daily driver and when the Jag breaks down, the garage door gets closed and I'll see you when I see you. It's always a love and hate relationship with these cars. I drove a BGT for years and piled major miles on it. I could adjust the valves in complete darkness, change the fuel pump while fighting off fire ants on the side of the road and learned how to clean antifreeze off the INSIDE of my windshield while doing 70mph on Interstate 40. It was then I decided ONE english car at a time was enough. Sure the cars are cheap to buy and I could fill up my backyard with them if I wanted to. But keeping them in tip top shape is a different animal. Hang in there. Sooner or later you'll end up like me or in the nut house!
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Thanks Jason, I guess I haven't gotten that far yet. :wink:

So what is the general consensus on whether to rebuild the clutch slave or replace it?
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

I just called NAPA and they say there are two possibilities for the slave rebuild kit - 1 inch bore & 1.25 inch bore.
How do I know without removing the thing and measuring?
Does the 70 MGB GT have 1" or 1.25" clutch slave?
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Rick I can't remember which size mine was. It was a difference between the B and C I think. It's a quick and relatively painless ordeal to remove the slave. Then you can measure it. I was always able to kit my slaves. I did however NOT rebuild the brake master on my BGT. Same goes with the wheel cylinders on the back brakes. New ones were so cheap so why bother. Try these guys for parts. I have been finding them cheaper for my Jag parts that my usual suspects.

https://www.bpnorthwest.com/.sc/ms/dd/MGB...der%20MGA%20MGB
compared to vicki B https://www.victoriabritish.com/icatalog/mg/full.aspx?Page=127
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Thanks Jason, that is a lot better at BPNW.
I've been on their site before, but never ordered from them.

EDIT:
I looked up the rebuild kit, $12 shipping for a $6 part. I guess it would be better if I was ordering something bigger & more expensive.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

I bought the kit from Pat's MG & Triumph parts on Ebay.
I have bought several parts from him, he said he would try to get it out to me yesterday. I asked him if I could add a few bucks for priority shipping and he did it for just $1 extra. Nice guy!
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

RickB said:
Thanks Jason, I guess I haven't gotten that far yet. :wink:

So what is the general consensus on whether to rebuild the clutch slave or replace it?
Click to expand...

Replace it. Unless it's an original AP Lockheed in good shape (decent bore). Your labor is free; the parts price difference is not that great. Do it once.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Well seeing how I was down two cars I opted to bleed the clutch and see how it went. The stuff that came out bore little resemblance to brake fluid.
Afterwards it worked better than ever. I know I still have to rebuild or replace, but I have a driver for the time being anyway!
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

It was sunny and warm today, so I rebuilt that slave cylinder.
The bore & the piston were dirty but not pitted.

I cleaned it all up and put it back together with the rebuild kit then SWMBO and I bled the thing and WahLah - works better now than it ever has as long as I've owned it!

Shifting into 1st & reverse is remarkably easier too! :wink:
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Hey Rick, Glad to hear your back on 4 wheels again. Sometimes it was difficult on my BGT to slip into reverse so I was taught to shift back into first, lightly lift on the clutch once and then shift into reverse. Some old man told me it slows the synchros down and allows easier engagement. Anyone know if this is why this actually works? I know it does, but have never really been sure this is the WHY part of it.

While I'm at it, a beer to the first person that knows why cars whine in reverse and not in FWD gears???? (Let's see who gets this one right!) :smile:
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

I have to try 1'st or 2nd before going into reverse, it does make it slip into reverse easier. It really does seem to "slow" something in the gearbox down - even when it isn't quite ready to slip in you can hear / feel the slowing of the gears when doing this.

Why it whines in reverse?

A guess: None of the gear faces that are coming into contact under load have been worn in like the opposite side in the forward gears so they make a bit of noise, all of them building up to an audible level and the faster you go in reverse the higher the pitch.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

That's a good guess and sounds logical, but no. Anyone else want to take a stab at it. It has to do with $$$.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Scott_Hower said:
Reverse is a straight cut gear. Costs more to make a helical cut.
Click to expand...

On early cars, so is first and they whine as well.

OTOH, a straight cut gear is supposedly slightly stronger than a helical gear. I have one of the fairly rare factory competition gearsets (developed for the racing MGCs) that are straight cut in ALL gears. They make a nice whine as RPM increases.

In contrast, my old Lambo not only has helical cut gears on all 5 forward AND reverse, it also has synchro on reverse! Other end of the spectrum.
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

The Getrag 265 fitted to 5, 6 & 7 series BMWs a couple of decades ago had a synchro reverse gear.

Colin
 
Re: Pretty nasty LBC day at my house

Nice job Scott. Looks like I owe you a beer sir!

Jason
 
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