Brakes Wheels 2nd Gen Tires Most liked posts in thread: R56 brake bleeding

Ok, finally got a chance to bleed the Clutch Slave and it was definitely not required for my 2006 25K mile car. No bubbles, no darkness, nothing, just clear pretty fluid. Oh well, I guess maybe I should have some peace of mind at least.

Anyway, I used the gravity method utilized this fancy BMW special tool to depress the piston.


I have not driven the car yet, but the pedal seems extremely soft/easy even after ~25 pumps. I am going to have to take it for a drive and hope like hell a normal pedal returns.

 

Ok, I almost have no clutch at all now. This is just great!

Anybody waith any ideas of why bleeding the clutch slave would kill the clutch operation? While no air was bled from the system, it feels like I put air in instead. I can't see how that would be possible though.

My next step is to bleed the damn thing again. This time I will use the Motive bleeder though and go though a little more fluid.

Anybody with any other ideas?

 

First check under the plunger boot for fluid. It appears in the photo the plunger has been depressed further than normal. Press the plunger until there are no gaps in the boot's expanding sections, but not to the point they are collapsed inward. You can feel a point of resistance and that's where the stop indicator is if you don't have the OEM tool. Let's hope the seal hasn't been breached.

I've also discovered on some troublesome bleeds, If air has been forced upstream into the master from an air pocket in the slave, or drawn downstream from the reservoir into the master from allowing the level to drop below the pickup tube, it seems pressure is required to remove bubbles from the master. Whether necessary or not, I also jiggle the clutch pedal in the free play travel before a master focused bleed to dislodge an errant bubble or two, seems to work. Burping the reservoir (apply pressure then abruptly remove) has been successful removing air from the master for me also.

 

Thanks for the response K.

I just bled it again with no change in results, a big WTF on this maintenance project! Well, there goes my track record.

A new slave cylinder is $43 and about a week's wait for the shipping. Happy July 4th, Ok this really happened on the 3rd. I just love my car being dead in the garage.

Also, since I have no clue of how the slave died, I have no clue of how to prevent death on the next one!

 

A clutch slave is something we all should have sitting around in the garage. I've been through 3 now with another bad right out of the box. These things are like roulette, sometimes they last forever and others die again and again.

 

Holy Crap, I had read that they could go out, but I certainly did not have the impression that they were as problematic as you have experienced.

While this news is disappointing, it does make me feel a little better:
1. Maybe mine was about ready to go anyway, and I just pushed it over the edge by touching it.
2. Misery does love company.

 

If it's any consolation, I killed mine the first time I tried to bleed it, too.

 

Thanks for that.
Were you able to determine anything you may have done that it did not like? I did pick up a replacement today, but I do not really know what I am going to do differently to be successful with this one.

 

Tips for the Unexpected

To remove the slave "pipe", pull retainer clip back with a screwdriver.


Place blade of screw driver between collet and slave feed neck, turn sideways to leverage collet upwards. It is easy to crack the collet, don't use brute force to remove.


After pulling pipe from slave neck, be sure rubber grommet/O-ring is attached to its end.


If not, use a right angle pick or bent end of a paper clip to pull grommet from feed neck.




Press grommet back on the pipe and make sure if fits over the retainer lip.

Bleed the slave once before compressing the plunger, err on the side of caution this time, stop compressing before the boot is completely collapsed. Photo below is not fully compressed.


More than a few ounces of fluid may need to flow before the main air void passes.

 

Thanks for the tips K, I will definitely keep them in mind for the new slave install.

However, measuring from my pic the amount of plunger depression is almost exactly what you are showing in the tip picture, so I am still not sure exactly what I need to do differently. Ah well, maybe it was just time for my old slave to go, I dunno.

Thanks Again..............

 

Oh come on, does this really qualify as a jack? This aspect of first gen to second is almost exactly the same. Certainly, all that been written applies to both.

 

I want beer too.............:beer

Oh and a working clutch, yeah beer and a clutch, that will make me happy, at least for a little while.

 

Yeah, when you try to jam it into a BMW bleed tool and the piston slips out and goes sideways, it doesn't like that. :mad2:

Mine's still not right. I'm going to try to bleed it again sometime with a wood block a la agranger's method. (see library)

 

It did not feel good until I jiggled it.

I am finally at the end of my Clutch Slave odyssey, OK it was really yesterday, but close enough.

A few points to make:
1. My original slave was actually bad. At first glance under the boot it was slightly damp. After the various bleeds, some gravity, some with up to 14psi, it was wet. I mean now it was dripping wet under the boot.

2. Shout out to K-huevo with his advice on bleeding methods. Keith suggested to jiggle the pedal to possibly dislodge any trapped bubbles, and that proved very useful for me with the new slave installed. So, the clutch pedal did not feel good until I jiggled the pedal, this really made a difference. Thanks Keith

3. I utilized a different fancy special tool that worked great for me. Just go ahead and mount the slave to the tranny, and just wedge a small block of 1/2" plywood between the clutch lever arm and the plunger. Nice and simple.

I slid a putty knife in there first.
Then the 2" X 6" block of 1/2" plywood, a smaller piece of 1/2" plywood would work as well.


The putty knife can come out or you can leave it for the bleed, it does not matter.