Real Fiero Tech

I recently installed Speed Bleeders @ all brake calipers on my '87 GT 5spd. Work great! Got idea. How about installing Speed Bleeder in place of the OEM slave cylinder bleeder? I emailed the manufacturer for an p/n application for the clutch. They replied that it would work, but didn't have a p/n for the application. I would have to match the OEM clutch bleeder to the correct sized brake Speed Bleeder. Maybe I can cross reference the OEM slave bleeder p/n with an OEM brake bleeder p/n. Does this sound like a workable/safe application, or am I nuts? Has anyone already tried this?
Thanks, Ray in Texas.

It should work. I had the same idea, but I dont' bleed the clutch all that often.

All you wuold need to do is yes, match up the slave bleeder to the speed bleeder. Be it by p/n or by buying some and matching up the threads and length or whatever means you have. But it should technically work.

Thanks for the reply on the clutch bleeding. Now.......what is the proper sequence for brake bleeding on '87 GT? Anyone?
Thanks, Ray in Texas.

Method I've always used, easy with a helper.

push clutch pedal in, open bleeder on slave, allow fluid/air to come out, close bleeder on slave, release clutch pedal and repeat until there is no air left in the system. Make sure to keep the fluid topped up as you are doing this.

I put 5 psi of air on top of the reservoir and bleed through a vinyl hose until bubbles stop coming out. Ditto on keeping the reservoir full.

The idea in bleeding brakes is to start with the furthest caliper on a tube and work inward.

There are three connections to the combo valve: LF, RF & rear. The order of these doesn't matter because they're all in "parallel". Only the order of bleeding the rears matters because they're in "series". The tube goes to the right and has a T block feeding the left rear through a much longer connection than the right rear, so the left rear is bled first.

Thanks to all for the replies. I'll get this done tomorrow.
Ray in Texas.

i went to my local napa auto parts where they has a large rack of all different speed bleeders and there were none that matched the bleeder for the slave.

crzyone wrote:Method I've always used, easy with a helper.

push clutch pedal in, open bleeder on slave, allow fluid/air to come out, close bleeder on slave, release clutch pedal and repeat until there is no air left in the system. Make sure to keep the fluid topped up as you are doing this.

This doesn't work. At all.

I attempted to bleed my clutch this way. My friend, the "helper", got bored after 15 tries and went to play my ps3. What a douche.

After 15 tries of pedal in, open bleeder, close bleeder, release pedal the master cylinder went down barely a 1/4 inch.

What works? Gravity bleeding. Jack the front of the car into the air (preferably just the driver's side). Put a clear tube on the slave nipple, open it, and open the master. Fluid will flow out, it'll take forever, but you can just sit by and top off the master every once in a while. This way it would go down about 1/2"-3/4" in the master every 5-10 minutes or so. To speed it up, you can also manipulate the slave. Open the slave, grab the pushrod (IIRC you grab the clutch arm itself, its impossible to grab the actual pushrod shaft itself) and pull it into the slave cylinder. A load of brake fluid will come out. While holding the slave, close the bleeder valve. Then release the pushrod. When you release the pushrod the slave will pull fluid from the master cylinder in the front. At the same time you'll also be bleeding the slave cylinder itself. Do that 10 times or so and the clutch should be bled.

bled my clutch just like you bleed brakes. had my GF pump it a few times then hold it down all the way, opened the bleeder, tightened the bleeder back up etc... only took about 3-4 times and it was good. Brakes on the other hand i have yet to get completely bled...


Also, what is a speed bleeder? never heard of them

Vacuum pump that draws fluid through the system IIRC...

A speed bleeder is just a check valve that replaces the bleeder screw. When you crack it loose, it lets fluid/air out but doesn't let air back in.

Tinton wrote:

crzyone wrote:Method I've always used, easy with a helper.

push clutch pedal in, open bleeder on slave, allow fluid/air to come out, close bleeder on slave, release clutch pedal and repeat until there is no air left in the system. Make sure to keep the fluid topped up as you are doing this.

This doesn't work. At all.

You mean you couldn't get it to work. I've used this method on all my engine swaps. Works just fine.

crzyone wrote: You mean you couldn't get it to work. I've used this method on all my engine swaps. Works just fine.

Your method only works with the factory slaves that have an o-ring behind the umbrella seal so they can suck fluid from the reservoir without pressure on the umbrella seal.
The aftermarket slaves don't have that o-ring, so besides sucking in general, they also suck in air when you release the clutch pedal because the seal design is completely incapable of sealing where the pressure inside the slave is lower. You can ONLY gravity bleed the aftermarket slaves.

I hear the replacement getrag slaves have the umbrella seal.

I am using an isuzu slave on my getrag, and I had a muncie slave on my muncie.

I do not have experience with the umbrella getrag slave, I just figured that it would be the same as the others. I have gravity bled before by myself but it is a very slow process.

Link to manufacturers website: Still haven't found one to fit Fiero slave.

http://www.speedbleeder.com/

I used a gravity bleed on mine. Worked perfectly.
This took just a few minutes, where doing the "pedal and bleeder" thing didn't accomplish much of anything. (Except making a little puddle of hydraulic fluid on my garage floor.)

Started out with a completely dry system (line and hydraulics.)

The Dark Side of Will wrote:I put 5 psi of air on top of the reservoir and bleed through a vinyl hose until bubbles stop coming out. Ditto on keeping the reservoir full.

how did you put 5psi on the master cylinder??

Chris-Nelson wrote:

The Dark Side of Will wrote:I put 5 psi of air on top of the reservoir and bleed through a vinyl hose until bubbles stop coming out. Ditto on keeping the reservoir full.

how did you put 5psi on the master cylinder??

http://item.express.ebay.com/Vehicle-Pa ... xpressItem

Series8217 wrote:

crzyone wrote: You mean you couldn't get it to work. I've used this method on all my engine swaps. Works just fine.

Your method only works with the factory slaves that have an o-ring behind the umbrella seal so they can suck fluid from the reservoir without pressure on the umbrella seal.
The aftermarket slaves don't have that o-ring, so besides sucking in general, they also suck in air when you release the clutch pedal because the seal design is completely incapable of sealing where the pressure inside the slave is lower. You can ONLY gravity bleed the aftermarket slaves.

The slaves are pushed back by the pressure plate spring and throw out arm. The fluid does not suck them back in. In fact they have internal springs trying to extend them.

The Dark Side of Will wrote: The slaves are pushed back by the pressure plate spring and throw out arm. The fluid does not suck them back in. In fact they have internal springs trying to extend them.

What are you talking about? The slave doesn't even move when you try to bleed with the non-gravity method. The fluid retracts when you let out the pedal and there's a big fucking vacuum left behind that makes the seal useless and air gets in.
The factory slaves have an o-ring behind the umbrella seal so they can seal at least a bit when there is no fluid pressure, that way the vacuum draws fluid from the master cylinder reservoir as the master cylinder piston retracts, rather than drawing in air.