Clutch pedal gone to the floor

cantdecide

My 2002 Mazda 323F 2.0 Sport has been off the road for over two years. I'm finally putting it back on the road. I've serviced it and done the necessary to get it roadworthy but I've known that the clutch pedal has been iffy for a while now.

As of yesterday, the clutch pedal is going to the floor where it doesn't fully dis-engage the clutch plates. The clutch pedal then only returns a few inches but hovers over the floor. If I hook my foot under the pedal, I can pull it back up easily but the whole thing repeats.

Any ideas of a cause and a solution?

Red Crow

Master and slave cylinder perhaps

dooroy

Presume this is hydraulic clutch.
Have you tried bleeding it - not disengaging properly sounds like air in the system and you said it was a bit iffy before it was parked up .
Pedal not returning without assistance would also point to air in the system.
The seals in the slave and master cylinders could also have deteriorated over the 2 yr lay up - but bleeding would be worth a try.

Greyfoot

seal blown on the slave cylinder, check for oil leaks on the gearbox, also check the reservoir.

cantdecide

I've done a bit more investigating today and found evidence of leaking fluid coming from the master cylinder. I have a friend in the local motor factor pricing a replacement but if anyone out there fancies giving me tips on replacing it, I'd gratefully accept any or all.

Greyfoot

Are you sure its the master cylinder? The one with the reservoir on top?

dooroy

Have a look at the pics :
1) your master cylinder may not have a reservoir - its supplied from the brake master cylinder ;
2) it appears to be held in place by 2 bolts - one threaded section attached to cylinder and possibly the other threaded section attached to bulkhead ;
3) another part of the 'operation' that may be tricky is disconnecting and reconnecting the cylinder to the clutch pedal . Space under the dash can be restricted .

When you get the new cylinder examine it and compare it to whats there - make sure its suitable .Having the new one also helps to get an idea of what the connections are like .
Just another thought - if its supplied from the brake master cylinder always make sure the level in the brake cylinder stays above the level of the pipe supplying the clutch master cylinder
http://www.google.ie/search?q=2002+mazda+323F+clutch+master+cylinder&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ganyUvODJbLT7AaEpIAI&ved=0CHcQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=599

jayok

Not done a master on a 323F but when bleeding the system, make sure that the slave is compressed or reverse bleed the system. For some reason, I always seem to end up with air unless I actually compress the slave piston back into the housing.