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Problem with clutch pedal - soft like water!

2K views 2 replies 3 participants last post by  Superaero 
#1 ·
Car: SAAB 9000 CSE 2.3Turbo (1997 model)

My father was driving when he broke down. The clutch pedal became very soft. Usuall the clutch pedal is very heavy. Anyways, he can't really drive it.

My dad thinks it could be the clutch cable? Is this right? Is this an expensive repair? We have not called the resuce services to tow the car to repairer. But wanted to know, whether it is worth the repair....
 
#2 ·
your clutch is hydraulic, so it could be the master cylinder or slave cylinder or flex pipe.
to see if it is slave cylinder, see if you have fluid leaking from the bottom of the bell housing - not a guarantee its ok though if you cant see leaking fluid. to see if it is flex pipe, have someone depress the clutch pedal, while you look at the flex hose that goes between the gearbox and the firewall.
master cylinder is really the only thing left, but one of cheapest repairs. a new seal kit for the master cylinder is cheap, flex hose is only slightly more expensive, and slave cylinder is a gearbox out job.

if you find out which problem it is, it will tell you basically how expensive your repair will be.
 
#3 ·
Most often this is the master cylinder failure, though the one in the 97 is very reliable. When the MC fails it usually does not leak fluid onto the carpet (it is above the pedal inside the cabin). When the slave fails there will be brake fluid dripping from the bell housing. Also, the fluid in the brake fluid reservoir will be quite low and below the clutch line take off point part way up the side of the reservoir, there is no separate clutch fluid reservoir.
 
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