PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post - Final chapter for 190E clutch saga (I hope)

Greg in Oz · #7 05-19-2004, 08:40 PM

Jim,
Yes, it appears to be that brown-coloured, hard, "glass filled" type of plastic (excuse my ignorance, I'm no plastics expert). My attention was drawn to this by its light weight and non-metallic colour. I had to be extra careful when threading in the rigid line leading to the slave since it is so easy to cross-thread into plastic. Being plastic does sound scary but then I guess the seals are only soft anyway. The cylinder is a genuine item from my local dealership, obviously as fitted to the W202 C-class judging by the part number. The price of the new master cylinder (about AUD$115) was only slightly more expensive than a kit for the old one. It was also in stock in the country whereas a kit would have to come from Germany. No after-market suppliers here stocked a clutch master cylinder (obviously not much demand with relatively few manuals).

Duke,
I can imagine replacing the slave is tricky, especially if it has a rigid line leading up over the transmission. I did not have to get under mine this time but from memory it has a short flexible hose between the slave an the rigid line. The bleeding technique Hanno mentions is described in some workshop manuals (mine don't desribe it but a friend's earlier Haynes manual does). The technique is to connect a hose between the bleed nipple on the slave and the nipple on the front right brake caliper. Lossen the nipple on the slave and then using a two-man technique "bleed" the front right brake. This will force fluid from the brake caliper throught the hose into the slave. This forces air from the clutch slave back through the master and back to the common fluid reservoir. It was using this technique many months ago that I established that the inlet port to my old clutch master was blocked.

Greg