Date:         Mon, 14 Mar 2005 09:33:59 -0800
Reply-To:     Alistair Bell <albell@UVIC.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Alistair Bell <albell@UVIC.CA>
Subject:      Re: Suburban Legends
In-Reply-To:  <71d7ab773f8d1ebaf1575df9ff021972@knology.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed

On 14-Mar-05, at 8:44 AM, Jim Felder wrote:
>>
>
> Actually, my slave cylinder failed WAY before my master cylinder did.
> Years ago. When I went to replace the MC, the advice I read said to
> "be ready to replace the clutch slave cylinder if you replace the
> master cylinder." Of all the advice I read, only one source (maybe
> two) said that the system would have to be rebled after a couple
> hundred miles


So you're slave failed "WAY before" the master cyl. And you replaced
the slave then later the master. Of course in that case it makes no
sense to then replace the slave at the time of the new master cyl.

Further, one can bleed the system completely at installation, no need
to wait a couple of hundred miles.

If one of the cyls (either master or slave) wears at a different rate
than the other, then the replacement interval can be calculated over
time just like the periodicity of turn signal flashing at a stop light.
You know the game, bored, looking at the two cars ahead, watching the
signals flash, each with a slightly different flash frequency, but they
do come into "syncronicity" after a definite period (then of course out
again).

:)


Alistair





> If I had listened to what most people had to say, at least what I
> found through my web research, I would have replaced the slave
> cylinder, because it had seemingly behaved as I was told it would. But
> when I did rebleed, problem was solved.
>
>> Maybe the slave is made from better materials than the master? Maybe
>> it will last 2X longer than the master? I doubt it.
>
> Like I said, mine didn't last nearly as long as the master. Looking at
> the service records from the vanagon I didn't own from new, the 83, it
> seems the same thing happened though one can never be sure.
>>
>> If the master cyl has worn out after 20 years of use I would expect
>> the slave to be not far behind - or vice versa. And really, why not
>> replace both when you have your overalls on? Does it cost that much
>> more, another $70?
>
> Point is, if I'd believed the urban legend instead of figuring out
> what was REALLY going on, I would have spend that $70 unnecessarily.
>
>> Similarly, I'd propose that if one of your brake cylinders is weeping
>> that you take it as a waning that all of them are getting close to
>> replacement time. They do not last forever.
>
> I'm not saying they do. I'm saying that the oft-told tale about how
> the failure of one portends the near-immediate failure of the other is
> a misconception.
>
> Jim