(CLUTCH) Clutch Problems. Need Help...
 

Alrighty, i was pulling into my subdivision yesterday and it wouldnt go into second gear. its been acting funny lately, like not wanting to go into gear upshifting or downshifting. so i let the clutch out and pressed it all the way to the floor and put it into second. as it went into second, there was this horrible pop sound and the clutch stayed at the floor. i limped into the driveway and pulled the clutch pedal up with my hand. so i pumped the clutch a few times and it felt tougher than it did since ive owned this car...but now it wont go into gear. dad asked me to post on here and see what answers i could find...im jus hopin its not too expensive to fix. thanks in advance for the help guys. dad looked at it and he said the clutch is engaging and disengaging...its just not goin into gear. hes guessin hes got to bleed the clutch again and the master cylinder is bad, but hes jus wanting to make sure its not serious. thanks guys.

That 'pop' you felt was probably one of the cylinders blowing it's seal - either the Master Cylinder (MC), or Slave Cylinder (SC) which actuates the clutch fork and throwout bearing to engage the clutch.

Some things to look at include the drivers foot well - look for hydraulic fluid here that may be leaking down the inside of the firewall from the clutch pedal pushrod. If so, you've blown out the MC and will need a rebuild (~$16) or a replacement (~$57). Here's one at www.mazdatrix.com for complete or rebuild:

http://www.mazdatrix.com/pictures/f-clutch/master.jpg
Whole enchilada...
http://www.mazdatrix.com/pictures/f-clutch/mastrkit.jpg
Rebuild kit, only.

Another place to look is the SC mounted to the tranny. Grab that rubber boot covering it's pushrod and pull it off - if a bunch of hydraulic fluid runs out, or is already running down the side of the tranny, you need to replace/rebuild the SC. Here's one for $36, same place as above:

http://www.mazdatrix.com/pictures/f-clutch/slave.jpg
or rebuild kit, only at $24:
http://www.mazdatrix.com/pictures/f-clutch/slavekit.jpg

My suggestion to you is that if you find one component that's gone out - replace/rebuild both components at the same time. The nature of hydraulics is that you're pushing 300-400psi through these systems and if you bump up the tolerance of one by rebuilding, very soon thereafter, the other component will go out - and you're back in the same boat. For the money ~$100, you can replace it all and be done with it for another 40k-50k miles. Along this line, if you're going to do it all and drive the car for awhile, think about also grabbing a replacement or aftermarket clutch hydraulic line just to be sure;

This one's $18 and cheaper and better than stock:
http://www.mazdatrix.com/pictures/f-clutch/hose1.jpg

Hope this helps and reply back if you want a walk-through of the work, it's really straightforward except for cutting your hand to pieces removing the MC from the firewall!

Great response Longduck!;)

LongDuck nailed it, but I'll add a few comments.

Check/replace and bleed your master and slave as he said above. You can also get them at any local parts store, sometimes cheaper than mazdatrix. For me, anything local is cheaper than Mazdatrix because I have to pay shipping, customs and tax to Canada, but that's besides the point.

The clutch system is relatively simple. If you've replaced the master and slave cyl and bled the system and your clutch is still acting funny, the only other things it can be are the actual clutch components themselves. By your description though (the pedal sticking to the floor) your master and slave cylinders *have* to be the problem. However when I changed mine and got hard on the clutch again, I found I also had problems with the clutch parts themselves.

The clutch is made up of three components. The Clutch Disc, the Pressure Plate, and the Release Bearing.

Clutch Disc
http://www.racingbeat.com/photos/12513.jpg

Pressure Plate:
http://www.racingbeat.com/photos/12620.jpg

Release Bearing:
http://www.racingbeat.com/photos/12610.jpg

Note: I found these at RacingBeat (www.racingbeat.com). They have awesome clutch systems, but they're a little more expensive. Again, stock OEM replacements can be had at your local parts store. Those pictures definitely AREN'T to scale though. The bearing would fit in your palm, the disc is a bit bigger than a dinner plate, and the pressure plate is a little bigger than that.

Start with hydraulics (Master Cyl, Slave Cyl, Lines), but I thought I'd volunteer the other info since I had to replace everything.

Jon