My model of MX-5 is: MK2.5 1.8VVT Jap Import 6 Speed
I’m based near: Dublin, Ireland
Hi guys, so basically the past few days I’ve been driving the car has stalled out , at first I assumed I was in the wrong gear or for the times it was moving off I just assumed I let off too fast , I wouldn’t have been worried but it happened 4 times in 1 day with 2 of them times being from moving off and the other two just from either shifting or being in too high of a gear around a roundabout, it has happened 3 more times since that day with one time being while I was downshifting from 3-2 , I know for a fact that I had the gear right and I blipped the throttle so it’s not like the car just dipped in revs , driving it more I realized there is very very little pressure in the clutch pedal and it’s nearly impossible to define a biting point , check the clutch fluid and it’s at the max , I recently change all the fluids in my car except for my clutch fluid , my mechanic drained the reservoir and then topped it up with new fluid but didn’t bleed the whole system , this was nearly 2 weeks ago tho and the car has been driving perfectly up until 3 days ago , additionally I’ve never stalled this car once so the likely hood of me just stalling multiple times in the same day are very very slim ,any suggestions, faulty slave cylinder??? Clutch on its way out???Clutch Master cylinder???
What colour was the fluid before it was changed? If it was dark then odds are the seals in the master and/or slave cylinder are on the way out. One way to check is to peel the boot back on the slave cylinder (it is just about accessible via the RH wheel arch) and look for dampness). Or it may just need bleeding. Ideally the fluid should have been flushed through until clean fluid came out, rather than just vacuuming the old stuff out and replacing, as that way you will still have dirty fluid in the system.
I didn’t pay much attention to the color of the previous fluid when it was being changed but the current fluid is now a dark brown colour so I think master cylinder and/or the slave cylinder are the right call, I had a Quick Look at the slave cylinder this morning but didn’t have time to properly look at it , from the Quick Look I gathered that there is no obvious leaking anywhere and the master cylinder was the same , I’ve had a few people say both of these so I’m going to replace both and bleed in some new fluid as both parts are relatively cheap , thanks for the help and I’ll updated the thread once the parts arrive and are installed.
You have answered the question in your post. Your mechanic drained the system which has allowed air into the clutch circuit which is even under the best conditions difficult to bleed.
When you bleed the clutch system do not allow the fluid level in in the reservoir to drop at all as the clutch fluid supply is at the top of the reservoir.
I negated the fact it could be air in the system as I had been daily driving the car for 2 weeks before the problem occurred , could air in the system have only caused an issue now and would it not have happened in the first day or two ? , I will keep the fluid level in mind when bleeding the system myself.
Hi everyone , it’s been a while since I updated this forum , I’ve replaced the master cylinder and slave cyclinder and bled the system with my brother , making sure the fluid level did not drop. Took the car out for a test and at first everything felt amazing , I had clutch pressure and a clear biting point but as I drove for longer the biting point became less and less defined and the car died again after I downshifted from 6th to 3rd as I was coming up to a roundabout , the clutch was nearly fully released when the car turned off , I blipped the throttle before releasing and the revs went to about 4k (as I wanted them too) and as they were dropping I was releasing the clutch and the revs climbed up to about 5k ( yes I was driving hard enough) and then all of a sudden the car stalls with no warning , the car fired right back up after I stopped and I got it back home but I’m completely lost now . Do I try bleeding again just incase or is there another part I need to try have a look into , any help would be appreciated and I appreciate all the previous help
Outside possibility?
Have you had a look at the Clutch Support Bracket? There is a chance that it may have a fracture which could be causing the pedal to move and return in a strange way. But I can’t see that this would give the stalling symptoms you have experienced.
I’ll have a look at this on Monday and see how it’s looking , also forgot to add once I finished the work the clutch felt abit sticky when coming off but it only felt like this at the very bottem for about 1-2 cm and the once it was above that it felt fine , I don’t know if that would have anything to do with it or just the fact I’ve just put new parts in.
In my opinion I reckon you could possibly have two issues.
Regarding the clutch side. Have you tried a power bleeder of some description as opposed to the traditional method of pumping the clutch pedal etc?
As you have replaced both Master and Slave cylinders, perhaps air is still creeping in somewhere.
Seems very odd the engine is stalling because of the clutch. Has a sensor started playing up?
Ignition issue or even fuel.
Rather frustrating, but hopefully you can get to the bottom of it very soon.
I’ve been away for a couple of days and not paying proper attention!
However I seem to remember there is a similar switch function on the 2.5 where it also sets the pedal height.
Remember to unplug it before winding it in or out to make the adjustment!
Edit.
I had a look on the Mellens files and it is a Load/No load CPP (Clutch Pedal Position) switch along with the Neutral switch, both of which allow ECU to make fine adjustments to how the engine runs.
I haven’t tried any sort of power bleeder but it’s worth a shot and the only thing that makes me think that it’s the clutch system is the fact that every time the car has stalled it has been shifting or moving off , car has a new a known good cranck and cam sensors that were done a while before this problem arrived and the car idles and has full power while driving so I feel it might be the clutch but I won’t negate any possibility right now
