"ZRexRider" <jerryg@ptd.net> wrote in message
news:1133104394.492697.319460@g47g2000cwa.googlegr oups.com...
> ooops! Some more details just came in. She went out to use her car
> this morning and can't get it out of first gear. Not even to nuetral.
> Says the clutch pushes in and there seems to be enough resistance to
> indicate that a cable or something simple isn't broken. Says the pedal
> doesn't just spring back to the "home" position though.
>
> Sound like a clutch replacement? Any ballpark costs if it is?
>
> Thanks again
>
That sure sounds like the clutch master or slave cylinder has failed
(although it could simply be low on fluid... caused by a failing cylinder.)
The master cylinder is in the engine compartment on the top of the firewall,
in front of the driver. It is the smaller cylinder farther outboard than the
brake master cylinder. The fluid reservoir is on top of that. IIRC it
requires fluid that at least is specified to be "Honda compatible." If the
level is low there is about a 100% chance one of the cylinders (master or
slave) is leaking. It is very rare for an actual clutch failure to cause the
pedal not to return.

My experience that replacing either clutch cylinder alone is inviting the
other to fail within a couple months, with all the aggravation that goes
along with it. Doing them both at the same time is the way to go.

The parts are the main cost... I'd guess in the $200 range for genuine Honda
and 1/2 to 3/4 that for good rebuilts. Unlike starters and alternators, the
rebuilt cylinders from almost any source should provide good service. Add
about an hour labor, or as much as two hours depending on how the job is
priced by the garage, and she should be in good shape. This is also
consistent with her other symptoms since the clutch may not have been
disengaging when she pressed it.

Calling around for quotes on the specific job (replacement of both clutch
cylinders) will probably yield quite a range of prices. The job is almost
too simple to mess up - any DIYer who has done brakes can do the clutch
cylinders - so the best quote from any place she feels comfortable with or
is recommended by a friend is a good way to go.

Filling the reservoir and warming up the engine may be enough to get it
working halfway again, but it will deteriorate in a hurry so I don't
recommend relying on getting it anywhere. It makes a mobile mechanic look
attractive. Or...if she has a DIYer in her circle of friends who has
successfully replaced a brake master cylinder, it is a couple hours work for
amateurs with decent wrenches and sockets plus a brake bleeding hose. It is
all done while standing up and leaning over, except pedal adjustment under
the dash, and the areas are easy to access (except the pedal, of course.)

Mike