Please help me identify this part by the oil filter pedestal
 

Hello! The area circled in blue in the first picture is an open fitting that I noticed in my SA22C. The second picture shows an exact same car (previously auctioned on BAT) with the same fitting wearing a rubber hat. What is the name of the fitting and is it a problem that it's been exposed? Thank you!

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...be402be4de.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...a7017efedf.jpg

That is the bleed screw for your clutch slave cylinder, same principle as a bleed screw on a brake caliper

Just find a spare vacuum cap to use as a plug, just to protect it from the elements.

Your fitting appears to have teflon tape on the threads? That is kinda unusual. Maybe stops it leaking around the threads during bleeding before it is tightened.

Thank you for your quick response! I will need to buy some caps tomorrow, in the mean time, silicone self-fusing tape... 😁

I've never used any sort of teflon tape on a bleeder screw. There really is no need to.

Wow it's been 3 years! I should have inspected the relevant components more carefully when you guys pointed out the teflon tape. About two months later I got stranded on a twisty hilly highway because she wouldn't go into any gear. Fluid had been leaking from the slave cylinder and the master was empty. Previous owner had been topping off the master all these years. She got towed home and I spent the next few weeks replacing the master, the slave, bolts, and bleeding the system. Things have been fine since then. I check it every time I add oil.

Glad to hear things are all good now. Teflon tape on a bleeder is ridiculous. The bleeder seals in the seat of the bore. Putting Teflon tape there is useless unless the seat or bleeder screw are faulty.

On a side note, these cars are usually very reliable when maintained properly. If you stay up on the maintenance and repairs, your car will give you many years of trouble free miles for the most part.

I put Teflon tape on bleeder screws, to make it easier to vacuum or reverse bleed. A tight thread seal makes vacuum bleeding (by hand) possible, and reverse bleeding not a horrible mess.

It also ensures that the bleeder will open the next time I need to open it!
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There is so much to learn! Bleeding was a fun task. I forgot exactly how I bent and twisted myself, but I was low to the ground, pushing the pedal by hand while checking if the level in a clear hose (on the bleeder tool) was going up. Clutch still feels soft compared to my other cars. One time at a meet the organizer invited me to try his FD, when I felt how hard the clutch was to push in, I thanked him without even starting.

The FB'S clutch pedal will be softer but it will have some spring to it. It just doesn't take a ton of force to depress the clutch pedal.