04 Aveo clutch pedal goes to floor

Hey all,

Trying to solve a problem with the clutch pedal on my 04 Aveo. I went to shift into gear the other day and the clutch pedal was hard to push, to the point where it would only go down about half way as far as it usually does. I made the mistake of pushing it harder, and it lost all pressure and went all the way down to the floor. Now it just flops up and down with no resistance at all.

I checked under the hood and the brake fluid reservoir is full. It looks like there is some fluid leaked on top of the transmission. I was able to find where the master cylinder is mounted to the firewall but don't see any fluid leaked around there. Moving the clutch pedal up and down by hand doesn't show any movement in the brake fluid reservoir and the connecting rod on the back of the clutch pedal that goes through the firewall is still connected on the pedal side.

Any common failure points in the hydraulic system I should start with? I ordered a slave cylinder on Amazon today ($27) and was going to start with that since it looks easy enough to replace right in the front. The clutch system is one area I haven't tackled yet so any insights would be appreciated.

Thanks

-Dan

Update: slave cylinder came in yesterday and I replaced it. While I had the old one out I inspected it and found that the seal was blown. (from me pushing the pedal too hard)

Bled the system properly and now I'm back to the hard clutch pedal. If I disconnect the slave cylinder from the metal clutch release lever/fork that goes into the transmission then the pedal feels normal and has the proper resistance but is obviously not hooked up.

So basically I'm at the point where the clutch release lever is either stuck or in the wrong position... Any ideas before I dig into this more? After some more research sounds like my symptoms are similar to this:http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/f82/c...87/index2.html

Very possible. Unfortunately the only way to find out will be to take out the Transmission and have a good look at everything.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by daug1502

Very possible. Unfortunately the only way to find out will be to take out the Transmission and have a good look at everything.

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You might want check the linkage near the trans to see if the working smooth or jamming.

Update: it was the clutch lever that was bent after all. I tried to bend it back and it broke off at the weld on top. Sooo I got to drop the transmission after all. Took me about 3 1/2 hours to get it out of the car... first time dropping a transmission haha. While I was in there I replaced the lever and did a clutch job.

After extensive searching I kept getting conflicting answers on how to add more gear oil since I lost some when removing the drive axles. Finally found this pic for the fluid level hole: http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/f82/m...96/index2.html (was same spot on my 04). My plug has a magnet on it and had accumulated some gunk that I cleaned off.

Hopefully getting it all back together tonight! Taking my time since this isn't my daily driver... yet.

How heavy is the Transmission? Im taking mine out this weekend and im doing as much research as I can.

I am having the same problem and would like to know if u were able to fix your aveo, I'm at a loss right now and could use the help please email me terrylambert18@gmail.com thanks so much!!!

did you get a part number on that lever? Mine just broke off yeaterday

Here you go: https://www.gmpartsgiant.com/parts/c...~96144874.html

GM Part # 96144874

Good luck with the repair if you're going the DIY route! One of the easiest transmission removal jobs I've done since it's such a small one.

Any tips or tricks or supplies you would like to share to make this job even easier?

It's been a while, but from what I remember it was pretty simple. Remove the battery and battery tray for easy access from the top. The shift linkage was kind of a pain, but just follow the points it connects to the transmission and unbolt. I do remember I removed the whole C shaped bracket that a lot of the linkage was held to, and just let that hang while I dropped the transmission. That bracket was held in by 3 or 4 bolts.

I think there are only 2 or so wiring connectors, maybe one for the backup lights and one for a speed sensor?

Oh, and the gear oil will spill out when you pull the axels out, so you'll want to have a container handy and some more gear oil. Good time to actually fully drain it and clean the little magnet on the drain plug. If I remember right I just unbolted the ball joints and tie rod ends to allow the strut assembly so swing out enough to pull the axels out.

Unless you know your clutch is really decent, I'd recommend just ordering a clutch kit while you're at it and getting it over with. You'll literally have the whole transmission out at this point just like you'd have to do with a clutch job. Do you really want to have to drop it again sometime soon down the road? I wasn't about to gamble that! You can get a whole clutch kit on eBay for under $100. Parts are super cheap for these cars.

Thank you for the information, I really appreciate it.

Hey guys I'm having the same problem I have a 2008 Aveo I replace the slave cylinder my clutch pedal also went to the floor I put it in and now the clutch pedal is very hard it does not want to go back down I don't understand is there something that I am missing or not understanding about this is it something easy and simple please if you've had this problem and got past it please email me eddietierney515@gmail.com

Just e-mailed you this is case you don't check back here:

Sounds like you had the same problem I had. The shift lever in the transmission bent. This is the lever that the slave cylinder pushes against when you push the clutch pedal in. The lever isn't pushing back against the slave cylinder (because it's bent), so the slave cylinder is already all the way out, giving you the hard clutch pedal. If you push on the pedal too hard, you'll blow the slave cylinder seal out and need to replace that again.


The bad news is, to replace that clutch lever you have to drop the transmission. The good news is it's not terribly hard if you've done anything like that before, the part isn't expensive, and you might as well do a clutch job while you're in there since a whole kit is only around $100.


Good luck!

I recommend replacing the clutch release lever and fork whenever you do a clutch job on Aveos. It seems to be a common failure and will drive you nuts trying to figure it out when the lever "bends". It may appear fine like mine did, but the lever shifted or bent in the weld even though it appeared fine. This will prevent the clutch pedal from being fully pressed to the floor. Many times it will end up with you blowing out the slave cylinder. Both parts are less than $50 US dollars. Changing them while you already have the transmission out will save you from having to drop the transmission again. If your parts are fine, change them anyway. It may prevent a costly and inconvenient tow bill later. I believe the part numbers for 2004-2008 Aveos are as follows:

Part No.: 96144874 = LEVER

Part No.: 94580796 = FORK