Burnt grease inside of the clutch slave cylinder causing a squeaky clutch pedal

[Si_chRis]

Right on! Thanks for clarifying, Chris. I've got the airbox and battery out today to do a Flex Fuel install, so I'll give this a go while I'm down there.

I'm curious as to why Honda decided not to design a rubber boot to cover the slave cylinder push pin/clutch fork end area as it exposed to the elements. My EM1, and I believe most older Hondas have a rubber boot covering these components.

My BRZ that I owned before my CTR had the same issue with the slave cylinder push pin and clutch fork end exposed. It would start to squeak every 20-30K miles so I am kind of familiar with this whole issue lol.

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[Fountainhead]

Yeah and in FL all is sand and I’m sure with only 9kbon my car the grease is already sandy

 

[eXstasy]

I'm curious as to why Honda decided not to design a rubber boot to cover the slave cylinder push pin/clutch fork end area as it exposed to the elements. My EM1, and I believe most older Hondas have a rubber boot covering these components.

My BRZ that I owned before my CTR had the same issue with the slave cylinder push pin and clutch fork end exposed. It would start to squeak every 20-30K miles so I am kind of familiar with this whole issue lol.

Agree. You're correct. I was familiar with this from my AP2. I'm sure it'd help the grease from drying out as fast. Picture attached is not mine.

 

[JoeChang0306]

This is very helpful! Thanks a lot!
I just did mine this afternoon cause my clutch made noise after 1 hour driving
After doing this I hope it can work as well.

 

[James534913]

Hi guys, I wanted to share my discoveries just incase anyone else was experiencing the same problem. Around 50k miles my R's clutch pedal started squeaking pretty loudly whenever the car got hot - especially after about 30-45 minutes of stop and go traffic, or anytime the weather was above 80 degrees. I took it by the dealer since it seemed like something that would get covered under the powertrain warranty but they weren't able to reproduce it so they did nothing.



Well, I dug in myself and I found out the squeaking was coming from the slave cylinder located just on top of the transmission right next to the downpipe. Here's a video demonstrating how the cylinder operates when you press the clutch.



I peeled back the rubber boot and it seemed like the heat from the exhaust completely burned up the grease. Probably also some dirt and grime got in there over time.



Here's an example of a normal OEM Slave Cylinder that has never been installed. I bought one of these a while back when I was thinking about deleting the delay valve. You guys out there that have done this probably recognize this little guy. An uneducated observation, but it seems like the grease they use here is just normal silicon grease. Not sure how heat resistant that stuff is and how comparable it is to hi-temp grease - I'd be curious to know from anyone that does.



Long story short, I bought some Hi-Temp grease from Autozone, cleaned off the cylinder boot and push rod of the old grease, and re-greased it. Immediately I was able to feel a significant difference in the smoothness of the clutch pedal, and the squeaking seems to be gone!

I'm going to start checking the grease now whenever I change the transmission fluid, since the slave cylinder is literally right next to the transmission fill hole and both jobs require you to take off the airbox.

To do this work, you'll need:
- 5.5mm socket or phillips head screwdriver for the hose clamps on the air box
- 10mm socket
- Some socket extensions
- Needle Nose Pliers (for re-applying the boot)
- Some hi-temp grease

Anyways, I hope this helps some people, especially as we go into the spring and summer months. Good luck and happy modding

Hi guys, I wanted to share my discoveries just incase anyone else was experiencing the same problem. Around 50k miles my R's clutch pedal started squeaking pretty loudly whenever the car got hot - especially after about 30-45 minutes of stop and go traffic, or anytime the weather was above 80 degrees. I took it by the dealer since it seemed like something that would get covered under the powertrain warranty but they weren't able to reproduce it so they did nothing.



Well, I dug in myself and I found out the squeaking was coming from the slave cylinder located just on top of the transmission right next to the downpipe. Here's a video demonstrating how the cylinder operates when you press the clutch.



I peeled back the rubber boot and it seemed like the heat from the exhaust completely burned up the grease. Probably also some dirt and grime got in there over time.



Here's an example of a normal OEM Slave Cylinder that has never been installed. I bought one of these a while back when I was thinking about deleting the delay valve. You guys out there that have done this probably recognize this little guy. An uneducated observation, but it seems like the grease they use here is just normal silicon grease. Not sure how heat resistant that stuff is and how comparable it is to hi-temp grease - I'd be curious to know from anyone that does.



Long story short, I bought some Hi-Temp grease from Autozone, cleaned off the cylinder boot and push rod of the old grease, and re-greased it. Immediately I was able to feel a significant difference in the smoothness of the clutch pedal, and the squeaking seems to be gone!

I'm going to start checking the grease now whenever I change the transmission fluid, since the slave cylinder is literally right next to the transmission fill hole and both jobs require you to take off the airbox.

To do this work, you'll need:
- 5.5mm socket or phillips head screwdriver for the hose clamps on the air box
- 10mm socket
- Some socket extensions
- Needle Nose Pliers (for re-applying the boot)
- Some hi-temp grease

Anyways, I hope this helps some people, especially as we go into the spring and summer months. Good luck and happy modding

 

[James534913]

Hi guys, I wanted to share my discoveries just incase anyone else was experiencing the same problem. Around 50k miles my R's clutch pedal started squeaking pretty loudly whenever the car got hot - especially after about 30-45 minutes of stop and go traffic, or anytime the weather was above 80 degrees. I took it by the dealer since it seemed like something that would get covered under the powertrain warranty but they weren't able to reproduce it so they did nothing.



Well, I dug in myself and I found out the squeaking was coming from the slave cylinder located just on top of the transmission right next to the downpipe. Here's a video demonstrating how the cylinder operates when you press the clutch.



I peeled back the rubber boot and it seemed like the heat from the exhaust completely burned up the grease. Probably also some dirt and grime got in there over time.



Here's an example of a normal OEM Slave Cylinder that has never been installed. I bought one of these a while back when I was thinking about deleting the delay valve. You guys out there that have done this probably recognize this little guy. An uneducated observation, but it seems like the grease they use here is just normal silicon grease. Not sure how heat resistant that stuff is and how comparable it is to hi-temp grease - I'd be curious to know from anyone that does.



Long story short, I bought some Hi-Temp grease from Autozone, cleaned off the cylinder boot and push rod of the old grease, and re-greased it. Immediately I was able to feel a significant difference in the smoothness of the clutch pedal, and the squeaking seems to be gone!

I'm going to start checking the grease now whenever I change the transmission fluid, since the slave cylinder is literally right next to the transmission fill hole and both jobs require you to take off the airbox.

To do this work, you'll need:
- 5.5mm socket or phillips head screwdriver for the hose clamps on the air box
- 10mm socket
- Some socket extensions
- Needle Nose Pliers (for re-applying the boot)
- Some hi-temp grease

Anyways, I hope this helps some people, especially as we go into the spring and summer months. Good luck and happy modding

Question. So mine is making noise recently and I just saw your post. Do I have to pull out the salve completely off or I can just pull the rubber boot out and grease it?

 

[James534913]

This is very helpful! Thanks a lot!
I just did mine this afternoon cause my clutch made noise after 1 hour driving
After doing this I hope it can work as well.

Do I have to remove the slave cylinder in order to re-grease? Or I can grease it up by just removing the intake box and pull the boot back?

 

[SkittleSi]

This is very helpful! Thanks a lot!
I just did mine this afternoon cause my clutch made noise after 1 hour driving
After doing this I hope it can work as well.

How were you able to remove the slave cylinder? I’m having trouble as I can only grease what I can when pulling the rubber boot back. Still hearing the squeak/creak after applying grease.

 

[Tomodoki]

Really nice post, I think I need to do this one of these days. Hopefully in the coming months, because mine is starting to squeak and it has gotten a bit louder, I feel the slave has been losing grease over the year or so.

 

[James534913]

How were you able to remove the slave cylinder? I’m having trouble as I can only grease what I can when pulling the rubber boot back. Still hearing the squeak/creak after applying grease.

I just did mine recently. Just uninstall the intake box for more clearance to work on. All you gotta do just remove the 2 12s on top of the slave cylinder. Then you can wriggle it off from the fork. Then you can just pull the pin includes the boot off. I used WD40 to clean the pin and boot. After that I greased the entire pin up. After that you just do the reverse of everything you did from the beginning

 

[SkittleSi]

I just did mine recently. Just uninstall the intake box for more clearance to work on. All you gotta do just remove the 2 12s on top of the slave cylinder. Then you can wriggle it off from the fork. Then you can just pull the pin includes the boot off. I used WD40 to clean the pin and boot. After that I greased the entire pin up. After that you just do the reverse of everything you did from the beginning

Appreciate it! I was just nervous I would mess something up & spill fluid everywhere. Will definitely try this later.

 

[James534913]

Appreciate it! I was just nervous I would mess something up & spill fluid everywhere. Will definitely try this later.

Glad to help
ya by pulling out the boot and the pin no fluid will come out. Just be careful with the clutch slave cylinder line when you pulling them out.

 

[Si_chRis]

Just an update incase you higher mileage guys are experiencing this.

I just clocked 74K miles, and the last time I regreased my clutch slave cylinder pivot points was back at 64K miles.

The weather recently got colder, and my clutch pedal started to squeak bad after driving for 30 minutes to an hour. It has only been about 10K miles since my last regrease, and it usually stays quiet for at least 20-30K miles but, I decided to regrease it again last Friday. It was quiet for a day or two but then the squeaking came back. I suspected the clutch fork pivot ball inside the transmission was causing the squeak.

So yesterday, I pulled out the intake airbox, lower to upper cold side charge pipe, slave cylinder, and the clutch fork boot (which was dry rotted and torn due to heat). I slid the clutch fork towards the passenger side of the car, and used a mechanics mirror with a flashlight to look inside the transmission. The pivot ball was dirty/rusty with the factory grease essentially gone, and dried up.

I then went about doing my best to clean the pivot ball area with a microfiber as you can actually reach it with your fingers. After that, I regreased the pivot ball by using a curved tip plastic syringe packed with Honda Super High Temp Urea grease. It is tricky to do but using the mechanics mirror, and gently pressing on the clutch fork towards the passenger side at the same time, you can fit the tip of the plastic syringe between the pivot ball and the clutch fork. I shot a couple dabs of grease, and pivoted the clutch fork each time after.

After reinstalling everything along with regreasing the clutch slave cylinder pivot points again, let me tell you, the clutch pedal is now butter smooth, and it has not felt this good since I first got my car.

After driving the car around for 30 mins to an hour, I can confirm the squeaking noise is mainly gone except for a tiny faint noise right at end of depressing the clutch pedal. It is coming from the engine bay/transmission area so I am not sure what might be causing this. Maybe it is the two contact points on the clutch fork to the throwout bearing? Or perhaps the throwout bearing sliding on the input shaft housing? If so, these cannot be reached, or regreased without dropping the transmission.

Overall, the squeaking noise is 90% fixed and the clutch pedal is way smoother now. Perhaps when I change out the dried and torn clutch fork boot with the one I have on order from Honda, I can add a tiny bit more grease to the pivot ball area to see if it can get rid of the tiny faint noise I am still hearing.

 

[Si_chRis]

So another update. I just got back driving the car for two hours straight. Parked the car, shut off the engine to closely listen for the faint squeak I still had a few days ago. Low and behold, no more noise when depressing the clutch pedal

 

[doneledwards]

I recently replace my slave and it still make that noise so I’m gonna try to remove that boot on the clutch fork and try that when it’s not so cold out

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