hi, my brake fluid in the clutch master cylinder is black. I need to flush out all of the old fluid. I've seen 2 ways to do this. sucking the old fluid through a vacuum pump and keep doing that till the liquid is somewhat clean? doesnt seem like the best method.

the other method is 2 people and flushing through the bleeder screw from the slave cylinder.

am I able to attach a clear hose to the bleeder to watch for the fluid to turn clean? if so, how come no one has hooked the vacuum to that bleeder? I've done it with brakes before, seems like that would be more efficient.

thanks, this is on a 2002 camaro ss

 

a lot of people purchase a speed bleeder from Tick , basically connects to the slave bleeder then runs a line up to a new bleeder under hood.

the other common method is called the "Ranger" method after the member that came up with it- you extract what you can from the reservoir multiple times with drive cycles in between until it clears up , I used to use a hand extractor pump but now just use an old turkey baster , you will be surprised how quick it clears up if you change it after driving it every day for 4 or 5 days...

 

I will install a speed bleeder when the tranny is out, but im not dropping the transmission just for that. The Ranger method seems like easy maintenance, but doesn't seem like the best way to replace the fluid. Your just putting clean fluid into dirty old fluid. I'm pretty sure my fluid is original so I'd like to get rid of all of it.

has anyone used a vacuum pump on the bleeder to assist in flushing all of the fluid easier?

 

The Ranger method is easy. I did it on the original fluid in my car when I bought it 5 years ago. Took about an hour to go from fairly dark, to honey bronze. I only needed to do 3 cycles. You can perform them all in a row with the car parked by cycling the clutch pedal 25-30 times between reservoir fluid changes (2-3 oz). Do it until it gets clean. Then do it once or twice a year to keep it fresh looking. I spend about 20-30 min per year on it now. It always stays clean. Google "ranger protocol" for more details.

 

speed bleeder ftw

 

Figured I'd update this just in case someone is searching and stumbles across is.

My pedal was about 1/4 useless. I'd push the pedal to the floor and the clutch would start to grab a 1/4 up in travel. After 5 minutes of driving 1/2 the pedal was dead and it would engage right off the floor. I didn't drive far in this state just in case the clutch wasn't disengaging all the way.

I knew I had to flush all of the fluid out. The Ranger method looked like a waste of time and very time consuming. I used a vacuum pump and knew there was no air in the lines. The fluid looked Original though and was super black.

I did the 2 person method. I opened the bleeder and had someone push the pedal and hold it down. I would the close the bleeder. About every 8 times I'd add fluid to the master cylinder. I went through a 1/2 a quart of brake fluid and did that cycle 3 or 4 times. It made took 30 minutes. It's very messy though.

I went and showered came back, started the car and backed out of my garage. I was amazed at the diff. I took the car for a short errand and could immediately notice a huge improvement. The pedal was stiff and had no dead area. The clutch starts to grab about halfway up and very easy to modulate. Before it was like an on off switch.

Before I got to happy, I took a hour ride doing errands and such. Lots of stop and go and the pedal stayed consistent.

I would highly recommend flushing the system this way if your having any issues. It's really not hard or time consuming, just messy. I did use my vacuum pump at the end to make sure I didn't introduce any air, which I didnt.

I hope this helps someone cause I had a hell of a time trying to find any info on bleeding the system the traditional way. I will be installing a speed bleeder whenever I drop the trans.


This is the video that I followed on how to bleed it .

 

http://www.rangeracceleration.com/Clutch_Care.html

The ranger method: It's fast. It's simple. It's not messy. And it works. If it works for a guy setting stock Corvette drag racing records, it can't be all bad. There's so little fluid in the clutch hydraulic system it doesn't take very many reservoir drain and fills to clean up the system. I'm sure the original owner of my car (12,000 miles over 13 years) never did it as the fluid was light charcoal colored when I got it.....it cleaned up in 30 minutes. If you have gotten air into your system that's a different issue. Rather than waiting for your clutch pedal to start to stick from dirty fluid, clean up the system at least annually....or more often if you race and/or track your car.

 

Just bought the car 2 weeks ago from a one owner, so I didn't cause the neglect. I tried the ranger method for a hour with no improvement. This is what my fluid looked like after the Ranger method and waiting about 10 clutch pedal pushes with clear fluid coming out.

It took 30 minutes to flush the system and have a perfect pedal. I'm sure the Ranger method has its place if the fluid is kept on, but mine wasnt.

 

I'm surprised you showed no improvement via Ranger. The method suggests 30 clutch pedal cycles between reservoir fills.

Ranger:

Even badly degraded, dirty clutch fluid can be substantially cleaned up in 10-20 reservoir changes. This takes less than an hour, costs less than $10 for fluid and a syringe, and doesn’t require a service visit. I recommend this protocol for clutches on cars with LS-X engines that see any form of aggressive driving.