MDTrailrider
New member
Today I installed a clutch master cylinder rebuild kit by generally following the directions at 4x4Wire - Toyota Hydraulic Clutch Assembly Maintenance. It was a little tedious but rewarding. I’d like to add a few comments not included in the article at 4x4wire.
1. The fuel filler door remote release and the hood release are each retained in the lower dash shroud by a pair of screws behind the levers. They need to be disconnected to get the shroud out of the way. They are much easier to remove if you remove the screws prior to removing the shroud from the dashboard. They are readily accessible if you lift the levers. It’s actually pretty simple if you know the screws are there.
2. Tape a plastic store bag as a drop cloth under the master cylinder to catch any drops of brake fluid. I’ve read numerous times that the fluid will destroy any paint it touches. I ran the bag from the top of the fender, down and under the master cylinder and back up onto some black plastic part on the other side of the master cylinder. It just took two tabs of masking tape pressed softly to the 4Runner. I did loose a few drops but they all landed on the plastic bag.
3. Use a straw to remove most of the fluid from the reservoir to keep brake fluid from flowing out all over the engine compartment when you disconnect the hydraulic line. It’s an easy trick I developed to set the oil level in my dirt bike forks. A medium sized straw that you might get at a fast food restaurant works fine. Stick the straw down into the fluid as far as it will go, seal the end of the straw with your finger, lift the straw out and place the open end in the mouth of a bottle and remove your finger to dump the fluid into the bottle. Repeat about 50 times until most of the fluid has been removed. Keep the straw over the reservoir and bring the mouth of the bottle to the straw as a drop occasionally falls off the end of the straw.
4. The master cylinder still has a couple of tablespoons of brake fluid in it after attempts have been made to drain it all out. Remove the circlip and open the cylinder over an old newspaper or drain pan. I used a full news paper and it readily absorbed the fluid.
5. You don’t really need a One Man Brake Bleeding Kit or other fancy contraption to bleed the system if you have a hose and an empty bottle. I used an empty beer bottle. You really need a hose about 18 inches long that you can fish down from the nipple to the catch bottle or else the brake fluid will run down on your front suspension and other vehicle parts.
6. The bleeder nipple on the slave cylinder takes a ¼” ID hose. A clear hose is best to see what is happening.
7. If you pump the clutch pedal with the bleeder valve open you can pump all the brake fluid out of the reservoir pretty quickly, in about 30 pumps on the pedal. I was having a hard time getting the system to pump up under pressure. I found out the hard way a couple of times how long the fluid in the reservoir lasts.
1. The fuel filler door remote release and the hood release are each retained in the lower dash shroud by a pair of screws behind the levers. They need to be disconnected to get the shroud out of the way. They are much easier to remove if you remove the screws prior to removing the shroud from the dashboard. They are readily accessible if you lift the levers. It’s actually pretty simple if you know the screws are there.
2. Tape a plastic store bag as a drop cloth under the master cylinder to catch any drops of brake fluid. I’ve read numerous times that the fluid will destroy any paint it touches. I ran the bag from the top of the fender, down and under the master cylinder and back up onto some black plastic part on the other side of the master cylinder. It just took two tabs of masking tape pressed softly to the 4Runner. I did loose a few drops but they all landed on the plastic bag.
3. Use a straw to remove most of the fluid from the reservoir to keep brake fluid from flowing out all over the engine compartment when you disconnect the hydraulic line. It’s an easy trick I developed to set the oil level in my dirt bike forks. A medium sized straw that you might get at a fast food restaurant works fine. Stick the straw down into the fluid as far as it will go, seal the end of the straw with your finger, lift the straw out and place the open end in the mouth of a bottle and remove your finger to dump the fluid into the bottle. Repeat about 50 times until most of the fluid has been removed. Keep the straw over the reservoir and bring the mouth of the bottle to the straw as a drop occasionally falls off the end of the straw.
4. The master cylinder still has a couple of tablespoons of brake fluid in it after attempts have been made to drain it all out. Remove the circlip and open the cylinder over an old newspaper or drain pan. I used a full news paper and it readily absorbed the fluid.
5. You don’t really need a One Man Brake Bleeding Kit or other fancy contraption to bleed the system if you have a hose and an empty bottle. I used an empty beer bottle. You really need a hose about 18 inches long that you can fish down from the nipple to the catch bottle or else the brake fluid will run down on your front suspension and other vehicle parts.
6. The bleeder nipple on the slave cylinder takes a ¼” ID hose. A clear hose is best to see what is happening.
7. If you pump the clutch pedal with the bleeder valve open you can pump all the brake fluid out of the reservoir pretty quickly, in about 30 pumps on the pedal. I was having a hard time getting the system to pump up under pressure. I found out the hard way a couple of times how long the fluid in the reservoir lasts.
