Spring overhaul sanity check

I just changed out the clutch fluid... It's possible I didn't bleed it all the way. I'll double check the seals too in case I put them on wrong. Thanks again Pete.

Well that'll teach me to take shortcuts. I opened up the clutch master cylinder, and the brand new fluid inside was milky brown. Last time I'd just flushed out the old fluid, replacing it when it got discolored while pumping the clutch handle...for the fluid to go bad so quickly, I'm thinking there was a contaminant or I got air in the system. I bled it properly this time using the bleeder under the seat and made sure I didn't overfill the master cylinder. The seal looks fine on the master, so I'm guessing it was just my laziness kicking me in the butt.

raulnorry wrote:

4. Balance throttle bodies (I've got a kit similar to this from amazon)

I really like dial vacuum gauges, but as they are mass produced mechanical items-unless you are luckier than St Luck on Lucky Day in Good-Luck-town they will read very slightly differently from one gauge to  another.
I suggest that when you next use them start off by swapping them over on one vacuum connection and note which one reads higher or sweeps faster (or both) and mark that gauge so you can compensate for the difference when you use them.

If you have old fashioned mercury (gasp) tube gauges they are not able to read differently to each other due to the laws of physics -(The less poisonous tube gauges that use rods and springs also read differently one tube to the next due to manufacturing tolerances and friction)

raulnorry wrote:

Well that'll teach me to take shortcuts. I opened up the clutch master cylinder, and the brand new fluid inside was milky brown. Last time I'd just flushed out the old fluid, replacing it when it got discolored while pumping the clutch handle...for the fluid to go bad so quickly, I'm thinking there was a contaminant or I got air in the system. I bled it properly this time using the bleeder under the seat and made sure I didn't overfill the master cylinder. The seal looks fine on the master, so I'm guessing it was just my laziness kicking me in the butt.

When you say you inspected the seal are you talking about the rubber bellows under the lid of the master cylinder? If so that isn't the seal I meant when I said the seals fail. The piston of the master cylinder has seals that prevent the fluid escaping out of the bore. It is those that can cause problems if the fluid is not changed frequently and yes, as you've found, simply changing the fluid in the reservoir is not sufficient, the entire system needs flushing top to bottom.

If you look at the rubber under the clutch master cyl, cap, you'll see that it is neither a bellows, nor a good seal. Air can get in to make up the volume difference, thus brining moisture to the party. Pretty poor design. But's it's part of the character of a MG.