1978 Mercedes Benz 280S 'AMG' 4spd manual

[zook]

yeahh linkages for 1-2 and 3-4 are buggered, but goes into gear fine when not running. it ran like that before i took it to pieces..just gotta be careful not to bruise your knuckles on the radio in 1st

the shims for reverse are fine, and thats what ive been trying to put it into when its running, but it 'scrunches'.

[Tony66_au]

Repco stuff as Tim said is fine mate and cover all your bases before yanking the box again.

Im not familiar with the setup but its worth seeing if you can move the fork yourself to check for excessive play and length of "Throw" and if it feels ok movement wise.

Sometimes its just a matter of laying under the girl and contemplating something you may have missed and the solution may come to you.

Tony

[TJ 450]

I was having problems getting mine into reverse and "scrunching" before I replaced the slave cylinder, which was leaking. But yes, I would be ensuring that is bled properly and going from there.

Tim

[zook]

hmmm..reckon ill wrap some tape around the bleed screw, try bleeding again..but probably not this weekend, got a serious case of cbfffffff....

[oversize]

On difficult ones this is a two-man job.  I found it curious that a clutch doesn't have a return spring when you open the bleeder, so you have to manually draw the pedal back to rest (slowly) before pushing it to the floor again (faster).  If you connect the drain hose to the bleeder and run it up, then down in a loop, air shouldn't be drawn back into the system.  Unless the bleeder has an air leak around the thread which can happen.  If this is the case, you don't need a new slave necessarily; just a little helper with a good left foot!

[zook]

haha yeah my dads been helping with the bleeding, which has made it much easier..just need to eliminate the bleed screw leak at high pressure and i should be right!

[zook]

fuck this. officially cracked the shits.

gone through two more bottles of fluid trying to bleed the clutch. took off the slave cylinder, made sure it was contacting the release arm, clamped the rod down while it was disconnected from the gearbox and bled it that way too. nothing. just wasting fluid. had just about enough

[TJ 450]

It sounds like it's time to take a break.

I went through that when I was trying to get my 6.9 registered and realised it wasn't going to take a month... it ended up taking a few years. LOL

Tim

[zook]

yeahh..that'd be okay if i had another car!!! seriously considering selling it, i cant wait a few years to have something to drive even if it is a lovely old benz

on another note, worked out how to get the front seats out, turned up 11 $2 coins, total of like $26 ! that makes more than $40 in under-seat coins theyre filthy and greasy and disgusting though, like the carpets.

[s class]

I can sympathise.  Just this afternoon, myself and my helper (who is a qualified mechanic with 15 years experience) took over an hour to successfully bleed the clutch on a 300D W123.  We eventually got it right by sucking on the slave's bleed nipple with the mityvac. 

[oversize]

Describe the symptoms and show us some pix.  I'm sure we can solve to problem and get you on the road!

[Tony66_au]

Dont give up Chris, its just a stumbling block mate.

get her going and good for club reg mate.

[zook]

Describe the symptoms and show us some pix.  I'm sure we can solve to problem and get you on the road!

haha basically bleeding isnt doing anything...clutch is soft had another go this morning, feels a bit firmer, but no dice. got it to idle properly though, at just over 1k rpm.

gonna have another shot after lunch..

[oversize]

Is the slave moving the fork?  Maybe the clutch is working, but it has a much softer feel?  If the fork isn't moving and the master cylinder is pumping and not leaking, it must be the slave.  Can anyone help Zook with the part number and price of a new slave (or bleeder nipple)?

[TJ 450]

This is the one I purchased, and works well, except on a very few occasions she won't go into reverse. The master cylinder is weeping a bit now, so I think it pays to replace them both.

https://www.autohausaz.com/search/product.aspx?sid=bmg3tt45xdz2b555grz1sj55&makeid=800016@Mercedes&modelid=1193329@280S%20&year=1976&cid=15@Clutch%20Parts&gid=2044@Clutch%20Slave%20Cylinder

Tim

P.S. If you pull the slave cylinder out and it's remotely wet behind there, you have a leak. Mine was leaking so much there was clutch(brake) fluid dripping out the bell housing.