Clutch hoses, braided

Seemed a simple enough job, but still managed to cost me more time than I'd have liked.

• First of all I removed the fixed pipe from the master cylinder to the bulkhead fitting
• Then I slackened off the union in the slave cylinder and undid the bulkhead union
  • this requires a spanner to hold the union at the bottom and a 1" socket on the nut holding the union on the bracket
• Keep the star washers - the new hose comes supplied without?
• The union can now be unscrewed from the slave cylinder

As tradition would have it, refitting is the reverse... etc. Remember to fully tighten the union on the slave cylinder first, then fix the bulkhead union (careful not to twist the hose) and finally the fixed pipe.

To bleed the system, I recommend that you undo the engine tie-bar at the block and swing it out of the way. This way it'll be easier to get a spanner on the bleed screw. This needs to be a fairly thin spanner - 11mm or 7/16ths - to allow the bleed hose to be fixed. The process of bleeding is then fairly straightforward. I would, however, suggest the following; it is fairly tricky to get all the air removed, so finally, close the bleed screw and depress the clutch pedal fully, and fix it in this postion for several hours. (In my case I left it overnight) This will allow any remaining air to escape. (Don't ask me how - I don't know, but I would speculate it seeps out past seals etc. After all, the system is fluid-tight, but not necessarily gas-tight)

The same method of bleeding will also work for brakes. Ed: there's another clutch bleeding tip here and here.

Now remember to refit the engine steady (and coil - it was stopping you getting the socket onto the steady - wasn't it?) and get that cold beer from the fridge!