My buddies XJ is having some clutch issues. The clutch won't go all the way in- feels very tight. The fluid in the master cylinder doesn't look quite full- there isn't any visible fluid looking down from the lid. I advised him to fill-er-up right away and try again. Has anyone had this issue? Any other words of wisdom?

 

hey bud, I had the same issue a few months back........I bought a new master cylinder and nothing. so I then assumed the clutch was bad, replaced that....nothing, now Im scrachin my head thinkin, ummmmm.
make a long story short. the clutch pedal was bent. no kiddin man, all that work and money and all i had to do was remove the pedal from the jeep and straighten it up in the vice, it sucked but now I dont have to worry about the clutch anymore huh. it was a lil worn anyhow. yea man, check the pedal, if slightly bent even a lil it will not allow the master cylinder to apply the pressure needed to compress the clutch plate. if that is your issue also be careful when removing it from the jeep. the seal on the brake booster can be damaged very easily if its an old one. I have a vacume leak on mine now and the long bolt that you have to remove to get the pedal out is a B#*ch! to remove. I actually had to chisel the wall under the dash to make room for it to slide all the way out. Good Luck man.

 

you are checking the right reservoir correct? The small round one? Take the cap off and look.

If the fluid is low, fill it up - but it shouldn't be...low = leak.
If the clutch were wearing out the fluid level would be increasing.

Try lifting UP on the clutch pedal. If there is a bit of resistance to it moving up, it's likely the seals are starting to fail in the slave, allowing fluid behind the seal.

dunno, just some ideas

 

Yea he must have a leak- cause it's low. Yes I was checking the clutch master cylinder reservoir- far right on the firewall. I thought we would be doin the job- but he bought the jeep from his girlfriends dad who owns our local jeep dealership- so he's getting hooked up. Curious to see what the problem is- my guess is a leak in the line. I appreciate the comments guys- hope I didn't waste your time. I'll post the diagnostic.