Some of you may remember the problem with the clutch in my '90 190E-2.3 Sportline that became apparent just over a year ago. Initially I thought it needed a new clutch. See the original thread here 190E clutch replacement. Any tips?

Due to the intermittent nature of the problem I initially did nothing other than to think about it and raise the possibility of a hydraulic fault in this thread "High" clutch pedal problem. Any ideas?

Further investigation and discussion focusing on the master cylinder continued in this thread Clutch master cylinder question W201 & 124.

Yet more discussion and my findings following flushing and bleeding the clutch hydraulics can be found in a fourth thread I was hoping one of the MB techs had experienced this

Well, up until about a week ago, the clutch had been behaving itself. It had gone through the heat of summer without the earlier problem of a "heat soak" causing the clutch engagement point to progressively get higher in the pedal travel until slip occured. Presumably, the fluid flush had cleared debris blocking the master cylinder inlet port. Last week, while shifting gears, the clutch pedal went to the floor without disengaging the clutch (a problem reported here on many occasions). I could pull the pedal up and it would work a few times until again remaining on the floor without disengaging the clutch. It was now obvious that the master cylinder had worn out (no fluid loss was occuring eliminating the possibility of a slave cylinder fault).

I ordered a new master cylinder (which now carries a 202 part number and is manufactured from a hard plastic). Being a right-hand-drive car, the two securing nuts for the master cylinder were impossible to access, so, after draining the fluid reservoir, I removed the entire clutch and brake pedal assembly (not as difficult as it sounds).

With the new master cylinder fitted and the pedals re-installed, I re-filled the reservoir with the pedal assist spring holding the pedal at the floor. With the master cylinder inlet port at the top this allowed the cylinder to re-fill, effectively "self-bleeding". Since no air had entered the slave cylinder or the line between the master and slave, and the master cylinder virtually full of fluid, the remaining air bubbled back to the reservoir with a few pumps of the pedal. The clutch has been working perfectly since with good pedal feel and consistent clutch engagement point at the correct point in the pedal travel.

Thanks again to all those who followed and contributed to the lengthy saga. Hopefully this will be the end of it.

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107.023: 350SLC, 3-speed auto, icon gold, parchment MBtex (sold 2012 after 29 years ownership).
107.026: 500SLC, 4-speed auto, thistle green, green velour.
124.090: 300TE, 4-speed auto, arctic white, cream-beige MBtex.
201.028: 190E 2.3 Sportline, 5-speed manual, arctic white, blue leather.
201.028: 190E 2.3, 4-speed auto, blue-black, grey MBtex.
201.034: 190E 2.3-16, 5-speed manual, blue-black, black leather.