Clutch Pedal gone slack

[albertramsbottom]

2009 year

Clutch was fine yesterday and has always been but today after parking it in a carpark had real difficulties getting it in gear with only about one inch at bottom of pedal that had any bite. I needed to hook my foot under pedal to bring it back up again

No slipping previously. It seems like the cable has slipped rather than breaking, as I can still feel the car trying to engage if I push the pedal to the floor. Cant see a cable attached to pedal so I would have thought that there is a control box at top of pedal which I cannot see. There also appears to be fluid in the brake/clutch reservoir but difficult to see how much

Any ideas - thanks in advance

[Konrad C]

What engine is fitted to your car? If petrol (Valvematic), the system will be concentric (internal) slave cylinder. Diesels use external slave cylinders to the clutch bell housing. You can check for leaks from the pedal master cylinder, the pipe to the slave cylinder on both, and if the slave cylinder is leaking on diesels. With the petrol, look under the clutch bell housing for fluid. Hopefully it just needs a bleed, or master cylinder swap. If petrol, it will need a gearbox off job, basically a full clutch replacement! This why it is always advisable to replace the concentric slave cylinder, when the clutch is replaced. 
Pump the pedal up and down to see if there is any improvement.  

[albertramsbottom]

Thanks, its petrol valvematic, so doesn't sound good. But no lack of brake/clutch fluid in reservoir.

oh god dont the cash for that

I have owned it for 8 years and only done 8K in it. Its currently not due for a service after 8 years, except of fluids. I have now lost faith in Toyotas

Thanks, will try to pump peddle tomoz

[Konrad C]

On 7/22/2024 at 8:50 PM, albertramsbottom said:

Thanks, its petrol valvematic, so doesn't sound good. But no lack of brake/clutch fluid in reservoir.

oh god dont the cash for that

I have owned it for 8 years and only done 8K in it. Its currently not due for a service after 8 years, except of fluids. I have now lost faith in Toyotas

Thanks, will try to pump peddle tomoz

You can't loose faith in a car brand just because a suspected part failure, especially with a 13 year old car! You may or may to know if the clutch has been replaced in the past. Did you get any paperwork? I had the clutch replaced on my 1.8 Valvematic in 2017 -

 I had the concentric slave cylinder replaced with the clutch. So I have proof that the work has been done. There is a bleed nipple on the clutch bell housing. Clean and inspect the area and under the transmission before starting bleeding process. Then you can see if there is a leak and the pedal becomes solid. Going by the years, you have had good innings if the clutch is original. Also the clutch spring fingers may have weakened with age. This happens when idling with the car in gear and clutch pedal held down for long periods, especially in traffic! 
What ever the issue, the replacement price is similar to most models, and far cheaper than diesels, which may need the DMF flywheel replaced. Shop around for a decent mechanic or clutch specialist.