Date:         Tue, 16 May 2006 13:37:16 -0700
Reply-To:     Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      suddenly clutch just gone?
Comments: To: vanagon@FRONTLEFTSPEAKERPOSSE.COM
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1

Chris,

You may find my Technical write-up helpful in
diagnosing and replacing your clutch master and/or
slave cylinders:
http://www.vanthology.com/1Layout/Technical/Clutch1.html

As for whether to replace one or both of the clutch
hydraulic cylinders, you'll just have to listen to the
conflicting advice and then decide for yourself.

Ron Salmon of Bus Depot fame has chimed in before to
note that his informal analysis of sales of these two
parts indicate that most who order one cylinder soon
order the other, suggesting a tendency toward paired
failure. This makes sense to me personally, since the
two parts are ALWAYS used together; if you found your
driver-side brake pads to be worn, would you be
surprised to find your passenger-side pads in equal
need of replacement?

On the other hand, some claim to have replaced the
slave cylinder far more frequently than the master,
citing the harsher conditions found in the engine bay.
This is certainly plausible, but seems a minor
difference at best, considering how well sealed the
slave piston is, beneath its protective bellows.

Personally, I don't enjoy fixin' what ain't broken any
more than the next guy, but I ultimately weighed the
major inconvenience of a potential breakdown far from
home against the relatively minor trouble of doing the
job at my leisure, in the comfort of my own garage.
Even if you do have the necessary part on board, a
failure will still take a good chunk of time out of
your precious vacation, and an impatient travel
partner may well take a chunk out of something else
...

Good luck!

Jeffrey Earl
1983 diesel Westfalia "Vanasazi"
http://www.vanthology.com/


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