i was attempting to leave a parking lot today and when i went to shift, it wouldnt go into gear at all. the clutch was all the way in and the stick still wouldnt do more than go side to side, no forward movement at all. while i was doing this i had the clutch in the whole time and my foot off the brake and as i was trying to push into first gear the car started to creap along like it was getting in gear but the clutch wasnt dis-engaged. Finally it started working but hesitated to shift and then while in traffic it started not going into gear again and i was only able to find 3rd and creep it into a parking lot. After a minute the tranny started working like normal. I get the car to work and i check it out and the clutch fluid resevoir line on the bottom has a little residual leak and was a little low. I'm thinking maybe a little air got into the line so i bled the clutch out and now all seems fine. Does this sound like air is just getting into the line? are my shift lines binding? is my clutch fubar? I'm just trying to rule out some expensive possibilitys. If it is that leaky line and air getting in then what can i do about replacing it? does the tranny need to be dropped?

The car is a 2001 cavalier 5 speed.

Thanks for any help.

It sounds like your problem would be the leaky clutch fluid reservoir line.

When the clutch master is short on fluid it sucks it from the reservoir, if that line is leaking then the vacuum would pull air into the system. Air compresses much more readily than fluid and so that would explain your loss of clutch action (and when the bubble pops up into the reservoir its re-active).

I just had this problem with my car (except that it was the slave cylinder that was leaking) and I experienced some of the same symptoms.

I would find out from your parts dealer what part you need to replace the leaky line and that should eliminate that problem - if thats not the problem, so what? Your leaky line needs to be replaced anyway right? - then move from there.

Well that is the problem, but i think the leak goes internally as well. This past weekend i ended up losing all clutch pressure all together and no matter how much i bled the line, it wouldnt help so i think i have an internal leak as well and my clutch is now officially all done . I have the car at a buddies shop right now and he'll be getting to work on replacing the clutch, all the lines, slave, throwout, all the lines, the resevoir, and anything else i may have forgoten to mention. And while he has the tranny out he's going to put in my new poly tranny mounts. I'm also having the flywheel machined. this is kinda bad timing because i was supposed to go to the J-body cape cod meet this weekend. such is life tho.

So i just got a call from my friends shop. He took a look at the clutch and it is soaked in fluid so i know for sure i need a new clutch and to have the flywheel machined. I also for sure need to replace the master cylinder, slave cylinder, resevoir, the lines, the throw out bearing and the pilot bearing. This is going to be a very costly job so all the suspension stuff i just ordered is going to go on the back burner for a long time and i may even end up selling it.

If anyone is interested shoot me an email at nickb216@hotmail.com and give me an offer.

The suspension stuff i have is front and rear brand new in box KYB AGX shocks/struts.
-new in box Eibach pro-kit springs
-new in box Eibach sway bar kit with all hardware
-for those who arent equiped with a factory front sway bar, i have brand new GM front sway bar bushing brackets and the bolt needed to install the front bar which i will include in the kit if you need it.

man, what a crappy day

I can see replacing the slave, clutch components etc and the line, but why replace the master cylinder and reservoir?

The slave is a common problem on these cars.

because the master is leaking too

Ok, so this past tuesday, i got my car fixed and back on the road. All in all, it needed a new clutch, pressure plate, slave, throw-out bearing, pilot bearing, all the lines, the master cylinder, resevoir, and machine the flywheel.

I was shocked when i was called down to the shop to ask me some questions. When i got there i told them the story about what was going on and that i had just bought the car off a friend of mine who i knew beat the hell out of this thing. After a minute of talking he points me over to his table where my old clutch is sitting. I pick it up and it obviously has some wear and tear, but most surprisingly, is every single spring on the clutch hub was snapped in several pieces!! Apparently, the kid before me thought that reving high and side-stepping the clutch was a good idea.

i new when i got the car that it needed a clutch and it always felt a little funny and not very smooth on engagement, but i was not expecting this at all!

So anyways, i get the car all put back together with all the new parts and while he was in there, i took the 10 minutes while the tranny was out to put in my new poly tanny mounts.

the car drove great for the first day and a half untill i noticed the pedal getting soft and the friction point on the clutch getting closer and closer to the floor. I get to my house and i open the hood to see my resevoir completely empty and a nice puddle of fresh DOT3 under my tranny. so after that i check the pedal and it was on the floor with no pressure.

I call up my friend who did the work and he sent a flat bed over and picked it up and took it over to his shop where he told me that the brand new slave cylinder let go. he then said he ordered the parts and just needed to wait on them to get me back on the road.

ok, so at this point i am very confused and very pissed off as to why this would happen but apparently, part new and old can unexpectedly fail. So thursday around 2:30 he picked up my car and ordered the parts....got the parts to his shop the next morning at 8....and had the new slave and brand new clutch #2 since the slave leaked fluid all over the other brand new clutch with not even 50 miles on it. gah! Like i said, he had the parts there at 8am, and had the car done and delivered to my work at 11 that same morning!! he pulled through for me big time since i had a little road trip to go on this weekend and of course, parts and labor were covered under his warranty so its all good now.

this is just a little story about what this week has been like for me and by the way, i have 200 miles on the new clutch and slave and all is good so far.