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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Slave or master cylinder?

Hi everyone. I'm having some clutch issues with my 77 1500. Both the master and slave look very old, they haven't been replaced any time recently.

The symptoms I'm getting is that sometimes the the clutch pedal only has pressure at the lower part of its travel other times it's fine. When this happens I have to move into neutral release clutch and re-apply.

So I did a test on the driveway. I put it into gear and pushed and released clutch to the biting point repeatedly. As I do this the biting point gets lower and lower in the travel of the pedal until eventually the car begins to creep with the pedal fully down.

I've checked all unions and pipes for leaks with nothing evident. So it looks to me like fluid is leaking past seals in either the slave or master allowing the clutch to return.

Is there anyway to tell which is at fault or am I as well replacing both along with the connecting pipe?
S Marshall

If you’re not losing fluid, it’s more likely to be the master cylinder.
Dave O'Neill 2

So if I were losing fluid at the slave, would it leak into the gearbox?
S Marshall

Fluid might find its way into the bellhousing, but not the gearbox. More likely just drip from the slave.

On a 1500, have you checked that the lever arm (actually a pressed steel plate) pivot pin hasnt dropped out. When this happens clutch can still work, in a fashion, as the arm pivots against the edge of the bell housing. But acts irregularly.
Otherwise its m/c as David says.
GuyW

GuyW, I will check that out and report back. Thanks.
S Marshall

So I ended up pulling both the master and slave out of the car for a closer look and found fluid pouring out of the end of the slave. So it must have been slowly leaking into bell housing. So I ordered a new slave and for my peace of mind I'm replacing the old master too. The issue I'm having now is that I'm having great difficulty getting the new slave cylinder back into its aperture. Is there a knack to this?
S Marshall

This thread was discussed between 23/07/2025 and 11/08/2025

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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