240D Help Needed

[litty]

Hi There
We recently purchased a pristine 1981 240D with 100,000 miles on the clock. The car belonged to a deceased estate and was not driven very much for the last 18 months until we purchased her. About 2 weeks ago the slave cylinder kit had to be replaced and ever since then we have had problems when changing gear. The car shudders and sometimes there is a loud clunk which comes from area under the rear seat. The mechanic who replaced the slave cylinder told us that he though the problem was with the drive shaft and this has been replaced but the problem persists. He also said that the shuddering could have been caused by clutch fluid that leaked onto the clutch plates when the slave cylinder was changed.
We then took the car to another mechanic for a second opinion but he cannot find what the problem is.
Is there any one who can assist us as we would like to get this "grand old lady" running properly.
Thank you

[rs899]

Well, you've got to visually inspect the driveshaft flexdiscs, center support and bearing and see if there's a lot of wear/slop in the rear end that is causing the problem. Another area might be the transmission mount. I would crawl under the car and start pulling pushing and twisting on all the drivetrain areas.

I don't think it is possible to get hydraulic fluid on the clutch.

When is the shuddering? Is this starting in first gear? Was it OK before you changed the slave? Why did you change the slave?

Welcome aboard. Sounds like a nice car. I hope you consider doing some of the work yourself. You have one of the easiest cars to work on ever produced. However, if it has never had all it's suspension rubber changed, it is due, regardless of the low miles.

[litty]

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Yes the shuddering is in first and reverse and it didn't happen prior to replacing the slave. This was replaced as all the brake fluid leaked out. Will definitely look into all the rubbers as I am sure they deteriorate over age.
By the way, you are talking to a woman who has very little mechanical expertise!

[gascap]

I'm not sure I understand the symptom. Is the clutch completely disengaging when the pedal is on the floor? This is necessary to allow shifting. If not, then there is air still in the master/slave cylinder. If yoou are getting judder when letting the clutch out, that is a sign of crud or a high spot on the flywheel. After knowing that the cylinder was serviced, I'd go for air in the clutch hydraulics.

the banging? if you have to pull it out of gear, that would indicate clutch dragging . more info needed.

[junqueyardjim]

I just very recently changed the slave cylinder in my 83 and it was not a fun job. But I got it done and it works exactly as it did before. Mine was leaking a lot of fluid also and I don't know how or where that fluid goes, though most all old clutch housings would allow that fluid to escape through a "weep" hole. Install of a new slave cylinder does not involve messing with the clutch itself in any way. In that operation you don't get inside the clutch housing, just the rod only goes into the clutch housing. Also, remember it is a 30 year old vehicle and even though mileage is low, and it is only low if you know that to be true because those old Mercedes odometers are not very reliable, it is possible that it is running on a tired clutch, a clutch and pressure plate that needs to be replaced. It is a wear item much like the brakes, and if it has a broken spring or two, that is the problem. That of course does not address the fact that you say it wasn't there before the slave cylinder was replaced and I can't answer that. In days gone by, when all vehicles had clutches, a crude operation called burning a clutch was often done on cars, trucks and farm tractors. The vehicle was placed in a position where it couldn't move, engine speed was increased and the clutch slowly released. A great amount of heat is quickly generated then, and the smell of a burned clutch (it stinks) would fill the air. I rather accidentley did that to my 83 recently by trying to get the left side front and rear wheels up on my ramps. It didn't take much to do it either, but I do have the 617turbo. But it could be done with the 240D as well, but I would not count on it resulting in smoother clutch operation, but it might.

[47dodge]

careful about "burning" it. sometimes that will make the shudder worse, by glazing the clutch disc.

[piccolovic]

And, in her case, the reason for "burning the clutch" is what????

Or is this to see if the clutch slips horribly, indicating a need for a new clutch kit?