So I brought home my newest addition to the stable a few weeks ago, a lapis blue f150 XL 5.0 that the original owner couldn't get the clutch system to bleed and thus he had a pedal that would drop to the floor. I have replaced the entire hydraulic system and after some trial and error with parts, I now have firm pedal and can gravity bleed the system. My problem is that the concentric slave is only traveling about 1/4" and the manual states that it should travel .425" or roughly 7/16". I have bled a few times with gravity, and have yet to just sit there and pump the clutch pedal. The clutch is only a year old on the truck, and the gears shift fine when not running. Also, when the truck is running, the pedal feels like it goes softer while still maintaining pressure and I can hear some light noise from the throwout bearing, but I think that's just me hearing the noise from the inspection hole. I'm not getting any more air from the bleeder on the slave. Do I just need to spend some time pumping the pedal, or what? The clutch is definitely no disengaging. I have a new clutch and flywheel just in case, but I'd love to be able to return them. Thanks in advance. Also, this is my first Ford and my first truck that I've ever owned. Always had little two door cars and finally got a big boy vehicle.

 

Click this & read all the captions in the album (except the first one):


(phone app link)

Also follow the relevant links in those captions.

 

Thanks for the link. I read this earlier (believe it was also posted by you) and am looking into getting new bushings. This procedure doesn't really seem all that difficult. Could the bushings wearing out on the pedal assembly also have caused his master cylinder rod to have broken in the first place? I also noticed a very small but noticeable flex in teh firewall when the pedal is pressed combined with the pedal assembly moving some. I know the firewall flex was more of an issue in earlier models and I read somewhere that it was fixed by Ford, but I can't be sure. Just trying to make some sense of this.

 

No, the pedal shaft bushings can't break the clutch MC pushrod. Neither can firewall flex.

 

 

If you are talking about the plastic rod-to-lever bushing snapping off and/or breaking, then yes the pedal assembly bushings themselves have a lot to do with that.

Here is the best link I have found on the subject - it also discusses the heim joint mod which you can choose to do as well, but is not necessary:

http://www.dieselhub.com/maintenance...-bushings.html

Has links to all the parts as well.

 

 

It's plastic-coated steel - not just plastic. I've never seen one break.That's another symptom of the pedal cross-shaft bushings; BTDTGTP...


(phone app link)

 

 

Okay, update. So I got the pedal shaft bushing all changed out and they were pretty chewed up. That immediately improved the feel of everything and also changed the alignment of the master cylinder pushrod. It now sits further back in relation to the peg on the clutch pedal arm. I can adjust that later. but it's getting much better actuation but now I have another issue that may explain the softer pedal when the truck is running. I had my wife push the pedal for me while the truck was running because when holding the clutch in, a scratching/squealing noise builds in the transmission. When looking at the slave when extended, it's vibrating wildly and the noise builds the longer it's held down. Then, when the truck is off and the pedal is depressed, I can see the splined guide on the clutch disc move towards the front of the truck for some reason. I can take a video if that would be helpful. But that's where I am. I'm wondering now if the previous owner didn't install the clutch wrong a year ago, and it just is off kilter and not acting right as a result. Also worth noting I have a new clutch and flywheel in preparation for the seemingly inevitable future job.