Yes. *NM*

I currently have 60,000 miles on my 06 Boxster S and i do change the brake fluid every 3 years,apparently the clutch fluid is pulled
from the same res a the brakes.Should it be bled out also or not really necessary and wait till im in there doing a clutch.Thx
ps: cant find ant info in manual on change intervals for clutch fluid

I thought it was supposed to be done at the same time as the brakes? I don't know the interval for certain on a 987.

The factory brake fluid interval, I'm pretty sure, is every 2 years.

Jim

... should be changed every 2 years.
When the brakes are bled so should the clutch be as well.
When the clutch is bled the pedal needs to be completely depressed.
Happy Boxstering
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

---

Racecar spelled backwards is Racecar

"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting" ... Steve McQueen as Michael Delaney in "LeMans"

"If you wait, all that happens is that you get older"... Mario Andretti

"Being second is to be the first of the ones who lose" ... Ayrton Senna

thx

a few months back I found it harder and harder to impossible to get the car off from a stop smoothly. NO matter how smoothly I worked the clutch the clutch would judder during engagement and take offs were well, not smooth. Additionally the transmission developed a reluctance to shift smoothly. It seemed like I was not pushing the clutch in far enough. Of course I mentally made a note to push the clutch in more fully but this didn't help.

Now with at that time way over 260K miles on the clutch and transmission and in spite of regular transmission fluid changes I figured the clutch if not both the clutch and the transmission were just wearing out. I had the transmission fluid changed not too many months prior to this to so I had confidence the fluid was ok.

I got to talking to the service manager about something and I mentioned this behavior and he looked up when the car was last in for a clutch/fluid flush/bleed. Over 2 hers, almost 2.5 years was what he found. So I booked the car in for this service. I'm going to throw some money at an overdue fluid service before I have the clutch replaced or the transmission rebuilt even with over a quarter of a million miles on them.

Well, believe it or not the clutch and transmission behavior was like night turned into day after the fluid service. The judder in the clutch was gone and the transmission once again shifted very smooth.

While I didn't feel any difference in the braking, and it was without any odd behavior before the fluid service, the improvement in the clutch's action and the shifting was well worth the cost of the service, which while I can't recall the cost was not IIRC eye watering. 'course many do this themselves, which is ok provided it is done correctly.

My experience really drove home how important this service is. Now I might not have encountered the clutch and transmission behavior had I had this service done at the 2 year interval. I've had the clutch/brake fluid service done in the past, or done it myself, at two year intervals and except for what I would see coming out of the bleed nipples of the rotors there was no change in brake or clutch or shifting action afterwards.

I have to admit that even with no change in the brake or clutch or shifting behavior what I see coming out of the bleed nipples of the rotors is enough to know that an every 2 year brake/clutch fluid flush/bleed is a good thing a dare I say it critical bit of fluid service for two vital subsystems of the car. But my experience showed me there is a real negative hit on the clutch and the shifting performance from letting this service go.

When I had my car in for the 4 year 40K mile service last week, I asked them to change the brake fluid. This is called out in the manual to be done every two years. This service had never been done, but I wasn't too concerned since it was an Arizona car and the climate is dry there. So, my question is that since the brake and clutch use the same reservoir, when I ask the dealer to change the brake fluid, will the dealer service include a clutch bleed?

so there is no misunderstanding

The clutch system shares the fluid with the brake system so if the brake fluid is due to be changed/flushed/bled the clutch system also is due.

While the fluid might not get as much moisture in it where you are due to the drier climate -- though who knows and I have to point out where I live is while not AZ dry it is pretty dry -- I'd not really try to stretch this service out beyond the two years recommended. The idea is this service should be done before any damage or degradation of the hydraulic systems occurs.

They would certainly charge you separately and itemize it. The dealers don't pass up such opportunities.

Whether or not they do it by default, it depends on the service manager.

All working great though! Just back from two days of nearly constant track time.

Practice, practice. Forget the "makes perfect" part though, i'm far from there :-)

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

If you have 60k miles without a clutch bleed you will likely notice the clutch get smoother after it's bled.

The two things that make the clutch bleed non-trivial are:
- You have to reach the bleeder from the right angle or it's hard to get at. If you can't reach it, try a different angle.
- The clutch pedal should be held to the floor during the entire clutch bleed process (I use a 2x4 or an assistant to hold it in place)

I have a Motive Power Bleeder that I have used many times to bleed the brakes and clutch on my 951 track car. I plan to do a brake fluid replacement in the near future on my 986 since I have no idea how long the fluid has been in there. Does the clutch pedal need to be held down when using a power bleeder?

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

Quote
Crooster
I have a Motive Power Bleeder that I have used many times to bleed the brakes and clutch on my 951 track car. I plan to do a brake fluid replacement in the near future on my 986 since I have no idea how long the fluid has been in there. Does the clutch pedal need to be held down when using a power bleeder?

Yes, but if you just open the bleed valve and push the clutch pedal it will stay on the floor. Bleed, then slowly pull the clutch off the floor.