[No_curebimmer]

Hey guys! I'm posting here as this section gets more views and I really need your help: my clutch is dead as it barely has any pressure, so I can't drive the car!

I want to give you all details in case I missed something, so here is the background. Last week I did a CDV swap on my E92, and eventually I got the car drivable. I thought it was ok, but perhaps the clutch was somewhat less tight. Well today I wanted to bleed the clutch again as I thought I may not have taken all the air out of the system the first time around. I went and bought a 12 oz bottle of Valvoline break fluid DOT4 and poured about 1/2 of it in my Bavarian Auto bleeder kit. I then connected it to the clutch reservoir and pressurized the system to 20 psi.

Next I went under the car and released the bleeder valve screw. I did not see any air bubbles coming out, only air and perhaps I heard air pressure being released. I let this go for a couple of seconds and tighten the bleeder valve back up. Next I went back up and saw that the bleeder pressure was now ~ 10 psi; I then depressurized the bleeder kit and put the cap back on the reservoir. Btw, the car is on jack stands and the reservoir (albeit is not level) seems to have about 3/4 of break fluid in it.

Finally I went to the clutch and pushed it with my hand: it's 1,000 times worse than when I started: I pushed it in and while it comes back, it barely has any pressure.

Can you guys suggest what I did wrong??? I really appreciate your help!

Thanks so much!

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

I'd suggest calling your dealership and setting up a tow so that a certified BMW technician can fix it. Not like it's going to cost you anything, you're still under warranty.

[JayKay335i]

I dont know if that would be covered under warranty. If they see you screwed shit up, they wont cover it. Either way I dont think you have many other options. Bring it in and plead the fifth. Say you dont know wtf happened and that bolt must have been loose from the factory because theres fluid all over your floor. Make sure you dont leave any evidence.

[NiVeDh]

If they notice the CDV swap, they won't cover it under warranty.

[No_curebimmer]

Thanks guys for your replies! I finally got the car back onto the road!

It turned out the system had a lot of air . My problem was that I did not keep the bleeder kit pressure constant. If you keep draining the clutch liquid thru the bleeder valve, eventually the pressure will lower, evidently. So I did it in sequential steps, as outlined below:

1. raise the car and put it on jack stands. NEVER work under the car while being suspended only by the floor jack. It's always prudent to have a double safety system. I felt more comfortable driving the car up on the rhino ramps, raise the car with a solid floor jack, put it on the jack stands, but still left the ramps in place, just in case. Make sure you WAIT A WHILE till car cools off, the clutch fluid will burn you.
2. fill the bleeder kit bottle with one 12 oz DOT 4 synthetic brake fluid bottle
3. connect the bleeder kit bottle to the clutch reservoir and tighten the cap; connect the plastic tube between the two
4. pump the bleeder pressure to 20 psi
5. I assume here that you already took off the underpanel, located the bleeder valve and took off the rubber nipple cap. Now loosen the bleeder valve screw with an open ended 7/16" wrench. Connect a catch bottle to the end of the bleeder valve (or something with a plastic clear tube so you can see the fluid and bubbles coming out). Drain for approximately 5-7 seconds. Close the bleeder screw.
6. check the bleeder bottle pressure, and if it lowered below 20 psi, raise it again
7. check clutch, probably it's still mush, go under and drain some more, say for a few seconds more. When I say drain, just open the valve ever so slightly that fluid comes out, but not gushing out. Remember, the system is pressurized. Make sure you keep the clutch in the closed position (i.e. up, lift the clutch by hand if it doesn't want to come up by itself)
8. repeat steps 3-7 until the clutch fluid is pretty much air free. What I noticed is that at the end, the stream was nice and solid, but I still had tiny small air bubbles in the fluid, albeit barely perceptible.

Hope this helps someone who happens in a similar position!

Thanks for the responses though, but I'm really happy I don't have to call the dealership and have it towed there...

The car drives smoother now, no more jerky 1-2 shifts. I was able to even chirp the tires in 2nd...my first time! Couldn't do that before the CDV swap.

Cheers!

[GMWNashville]

i think its funny when people screw with there car...screw something up...and all you people on here say "oh bring it to the dealership-tell them something is wrong with the car-idk what happened! it will be free to be fixed!"...cheap bastards...at least own up to your mistakes...

to the OP-glad you got your car fixed...CDVs are stupid...

[John 070]

Originally Posted by volkswackin

i think its funny when people screw with there car...screw something up...and all you people on here say "oh bring it to the dealership-tell them something is wrong with the car-idk what happened! it will be free to be fixed!"...cheap bastards...at least own up to your mistakes...

to the OP-glad you got your car fixed...CDVs are stupid...

I totally agree, the OP should take satisfaction in knowing he solved the problem on his own. You can't buy that feeling with $$$$.

You constantly get that bad advice on this forum, just take it to the dealer and plead the 5th. That must come as the result of watching too much television and playing video games.

[742]

Originally Posted by John 070

I totally agree, the OP should take satisfaction in knowing he solved the problem on his own. You can't buy that feeling with $$$$.

+1, and then some.

[cbad335]

Good job on fixing it yourself.

[NinetyEight740]

Originally Posted by volkswackin

i think its funny when people screw with there car...screw something up...and all you people on here say "oh bring it to the dealership-tell them something is wrong with the car-idk what happened! it will be free to be fixed!"...cheap bastards...at least own up to your mistakes...
to the OP-glad you got your car fixed...CDVs are stupid...

This is exactly why warranties get voided, the dealerships are not out to get you, they will try to help you out when you can, however when they find that YOU WERE MESSING WITH SOMETHING, It does not make them very happy...

[TheTwinz]

hm, rather than doing all that, i think all you had to do was bleed the clutch by pumping it a bit until your clutch doesnt sink to the floor.

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by TheTwinz

hm, rather than doing all that, i think all you had to do was bleed the clutch by pumping it a bit until your clutch doesnt sink to the floor.

I don't think that would work, by pumping the clutch by hand all you're doing is internally cycling the air. You never let the air out because it has nowhere to go, system is closed. Once you have air in your system, the only way to let it out is to bleed it...

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by cbad335

Good job on fixing it yourself.

Thanks!

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by John 070

I totally agree, the OP should take satisfaction in knowing he solved the problem on his own. You can't buy that feeling with $$$$.

Absolutely, it always feels awesome when you get something done by yourself! After all, this is a learning process...it's always something stupid that you forget to do, but anywho, I just needed to bounce off some ideas off this forum!

Thanks guys!

[GMWNashville]

Originally Posted by NinetyEight740

This is exactly why warranties get voided, the dealerships are not out to get you, they will try to help you out when you can, however when they find that YOU WERE MESSING WITH SOMETHING, It does not make them very happy...

haha trust me i know, im a tech, ive had quite a few cars come with customer mods that either dont work at all, dont work right, or they fried call kinds of stuff in the process(for example a remote starter install gone bad on an e90 328i haha)