Fiesta MK6 oil leak under engine and clutch has no resistance

[adzie123]

Hi,

I've noticed over the weeks that from time to time the car would struggle to go into gear. I've also noticed that if you try and put the car in reverse, it makes a crunching sort of noise. These problems don't seem to occur however when the car is off! I also realised and thought maybe it was a separate issue that the brake fluid light kept coming on every 3 weeks or so saying the reservoir was low so kept topping it up.

This evening, I wanted to go out and started the car as usual. As soon as I put my foot down on the clutch, it went straight to the floor. There was no resistance what so ever and would spring back to its usual spot. I thought maybe it was a clutch cable however just out of curiousity I turned my iPhone torch on from under the front of the car and there seems to be a leak. I've attached a image as I have no idea what part of the car this is...looks like the gearbox maybe? 

I'm assuming the clutch and brake fluid must work together somehow and wanted to ask you guys what on earth has gone wrong...I have a mobile mechanic arriving on the weekend and want to know exactly what the problem is and roughly how much it will cost so I don't get ripped off.

I very much appreciate your help.

[iantt]

looks like the clutch slave cyl in the gearbox has failed. the brake reservoir feeds the hydraulic clutch master and slave.

not a cheap fix. gearbox out , new concentric slave cyl , and probably new clutch if fliud has contaminated clutch plate.

[adzie123]

1 hour ago, iantt said:

looks like the clutch slave cyl in the gearbox has failed. the brake reservoir feeds the hydraulic clutch master and slave.

not a cheap fix. gearbox out , new concentric slave cyl , and probably new clutch if fliud has contaminated clutch plate.

Thanks for that. I assume the leak is from the gearbox then in the picture?

The mechanic on the phone said if it's just the slave that needs replacing he will do it for £80. I assume that's reasonable. If it's the clutch and master slave too he quoted around £290

Would you reckon it's maybe worth getting a new gearbox as a whole instead? To be honest I've had this car for 5 years with 83k miles...not serviced it once...had a appointment for a service on Thursday :( 

 

 

[DieselPig]

£80 to change the slave cylinder is a bargain assuming the clutch plate is not contaminate as Ian says. Nothing wrong with the gearbox, the clutch is dragging hence the crunchy gears.

[Joss max]

Whilst not disagreeing with the comments already made, There is an other possible cause besides the leak. Mark 5 fiestas are prown to the clutch rod disconnecting from the foot pedal causing the clutch to go straight to the floor and then return to usual position with the spring. It's a very common fault.

.So please have a look around your clutch pedal to see if that is a part of the issue

[iantt]

£80!! No chance at all at that price. Lol

[stef123]

A £40 part fitted for £10 an hour, no bad must be some mechanic lol. 

[adzie123]

Thanks for your input guys....didn't even know a clutch master and slave part existed up until now!

@Joss max I will defo have a look once I get home and let you know if there's a problem with the cable

@DieselPig The mechanic has quite a lot of good reviews and his independent. Seemed a nice chap on the phone too! Hopefully it is just the slave that needs changing...

I'll keep you all posted on any updates as and when they come!

[DieselPig]

For £80 I'd bite his arm off!

Oh, and get a receipt as well 

[iantt]

This is the slave cyl.your issues could even be pipe related that attatches to the slave leaking

[Tdci-Peter]

On 14/09/2016 at 0:01 AM, adzie123 said:

The mechanic on the phone said if it's just the slave that needs replacing he will do it for £80.

I reckon he is not familiar with the car, and assumes it is an external slave cylinder. It would be wise or considerate to check with him first. Make sure he knows it is concentric (internal).

On 14/09/2016 at 0:01 AM, adzie123 said:

To be honest I've had this car for 5 years with 83k miles...not serviced it once.

Do you mean the whole car, including oil changes, or just the gearbox?

If it is the car, that must be a bit of a record!

[dave_k]

1 hour ago, Tdci-Peter said:

I reckon he is not familiar with the car, and assumes it is an external slave cylinder. It would be wise or considerate to check with him first. Make sure he knows it is concentric (internal).

Do you mean the whole car, including oil changes, or just the gearbox?

If it is the car, that must be a bit of a record!

If its the car, he'll be needing a new engine too just shortly....

[TomsFocus]

It's not really a surprise these days...  I know loads of people that don't bother servicing cars and never have problems with them... 

It's us wasting money on decent oil and filters every 6-12k that seem to get the problems.

[stef123]

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

It's not really a surprise these days...  I know loads of people that don't bother servicing cars and never have problems with them... 

It's us wasting money on decent oil and filters every 6-12k that seem to get the problems.

I don't know, ask my father in law about that lol. For 5 years he never serviced his car despite it only costing him the price of oil n filter.. Until the smoke from the exhaust appeared and started getting worse until it was at the point where you couldn't see anything in rear view mirror. 

After fitting a new engine for him, he never misses an oil change now

but it's all at a cost, the new engine, plus clutch, coolant, drive belt, oil and filter, other service items and any other parts I fitted come in around £400 instead of something like £18 a year  

[TomsFocus]

Ah well at least that's something!

My Dad hasn't had a car serviced in at least 15 years and never seems to get engine problems!  Tbf, he does always buy big NA petrol engines which seem to take the abuse well lol.  When something does break (not servicing related) he just buys another sub £1000 Mondeo anyway...

But its not only him, I've been surprised how many people don't bother tbh.  Usual excuse is that the car is old and cheap...  Or I've also heard 'with the amount of oil top ups I do it's basically had a change now'...

[Bobr]

I sold a car to a mate some years back.   It had been serviced every year on the dot.   It was perfect.   5 years later the engine seized up and it turned out he'd never bothered servicing or checking it.

[adzie123]

On 9/15/2016 at 1:11 AM, Tdci-Peter said:

I reckon he is not familiar with the car, and assumes it is an external slave cylinder. It would be wise or considerate to check with him first. Make sure he knows it is concentric (internal).

Do you mean the whole car, including oil changes, or just the gearbox?

If it is the car, that must be a bit of a record!

The mechanic didn't bother showing up to do the change...I ended up paying £270 for a chap to come out today who changed a 3 piece clutch kit? I recognised the slave cylinder and what seemed to be two parts of the clutch replaced with brand new parts. Did a fantastic job.

 

Yes...never serviced it at all in 5 years...only thing ive done is change tyres and top up oil when need be. I will however be doing a service with the same guy sometime next week though....lesson learnt today.

 

Thank you also to all the guys here that helped me understand what the problem was. You've been so helpful. 

[iantt]

At least it's fixed now.

[Tdci-Peter]

19 minutes ago, adzie123 said:

.I ended up paying £270 for a chap to come out today who changed a 3 piece clutch kit

That sounds like a pretty good price for a clutch & slave cylinder change to me!

Oil  & filter next, my last oil change cost £18 for the labour (local mechanic), and about £25 for the oil & filter, so it is not bank breaking. Then plugs check / change. Air filter is an easy DIY, and costs very little. Then check the cam belt (if it has one) service interval, and history. If that goes it will wipe out the engine. That item is a bit pricey, but could be worth it.

Anti-freeze: If it is not the Ford long life stuff (a clear, pretty pinkey/orangey colour), then change that, or corrosion could make the radiator leak or eat through the headgasket.

In my experience, those are the top priorities, but no doubt other people will add to the list!

On 15/09/2016 at 11:51 AM, TomsFocus said:

he does always buy big NA petrol engines which seem to take the abuse well lol.

Big, basic petrol engines can tolerate massive neglect, and why bother with servicing if another car costs less than a good service! But there is a cost, in the fuel bills. They tend to guzzle fuel like it was water.

A friend of mine runs an oldish Bentley. When he sets off uphill in it, it leaves a trail of petrol fumes behind it, strong enough to run a 1l Fiesta for a week on.

[TomsFocus]

10 hours ago, Tdci-Peter said:

Big, basic petrol engines can tolerate massive neglect, and why bother with servicing if another car costs less than a good service! But there is a cost, in the fuel bills. They tend to guzzle fuel like it was water.

A friend of mine runs an oldish Bentley. When he sets off uphill in it, it leaves a trail of petrol fumes behind it, strong enough to run a 1l Fiesta for a week on.

Oh definitely, my Dad isn't all that well off, yet he just didn't seem to worry about fuel or tax costs until very recently!  He's one of those that will sit waiting for someone with the engine running for ages, usually with the AC on too!   Averaged 20mpg (trip computer) mostly round town on his last car, 2.5 V6 Ghia X, and I seem to remember the tax is daft as well as it was just into the emissions based system...  He has now downsized to a 2.0 petrol one, it's a couple of years newer but not much better on fuel tbh and considerably slower lol, he asked me to check for a power loss...umm no, it's just a measly 2.0 petrol in a heavy Mondeo, it's the same engine as in my light Fiesta which still isn't that quick!!  

That said, I've spent many hundreds for sorting the emissions rubbish on a modern diesel.  So the 55mpg average (rubbish compared to my previous Golf diesel!) and £30 tax hasn't turned out to give quite as cheap running costs as I'd have liked.  Can't win either way really I guess lol.

[dave_k]

On ‎9‎/‎15‎/‎2016 at 9:30 AM, TomsFocus said:

On ‎9‎/‎15‎/‎2016 at 11:51 AM, TomsFocus said:

Ah well at least that's something!

My Dad hasn't had a car serviced in at least 15 years and never seems to get engine problems!  Tbf, he does always buy big NA petrol engines which seem to take the abuse well lol.  When something does break (not servicing related) he just buys another sub £1000 Mondeo anyway...

But its not only him, I've been surprised how many people don't bother tbh.  Usual excuse is that the car is old and cheap...  Or I've also heard 'with the amount of oil top ups I do it's basically had a change now'...

It's not really a surprise these days...  I know loads of people that don't bother servicing cars and never have problems with them... 

It's us wasting money on decent oil and filters every 6-12k that seem to get the problems.

You say that, but I've pretty much religiously serviced my cars over the years and never had any major breakdowns or unexpected expenditure, I generally know what the next thing to change will be and approx. cost inc labour for decent parts etc and labour from the local independent and like to keep things running smoothly and well maintained.

On the other hand I've heard lots of friends etc (who don't bother with there cars servicing and maintenance aside from an annual test and presumably a "service" every couple of years or suchlike) complaining about another hefty bill from there garage when there car is playing up or a several hundred pound bill to get it through its mot etc and most of there cars are probably in the 3-8 year old bracket so not exactly old sheds.

I think it defiantly pays to look after your car and keep a close eye on the basics. As above its keeps my mpg in the early 60's on mixed driving too.