Technical 2017 Fiat 500 Lounge. Master cylinder Help Please

[Jojo1912]

Hi, My daughter’s car broke the other day. Wouldn’t go in gear. The AA said clutch fluid contaminated, they added fluid then bled the system then she had to drive to the garage where we bought it repeatedly pressing the clutch to keep pressure in the system.They suspected clutch slave cylinder or clutch master cylinder could be damaged due to contaminated fluid.
The garage are saying there is water in the brake fluid, the Master cylinder is damaged and it is a full clutch and brake system that needs replacing which is over £900 !,,
This should be covered by the warranty but they are saying that the only way the water got in there is to have physically unscrewed the cap and poured the water in and this has been done recently !
This is 100% not the case as she hasn’t had the bonnet open since her driving test 2 months ago, hasn’t even driven it much since her test and has only been out twice in last 2 weeks. She’s really upset that she has been accused of doing this but they say it’s the only explanation which is utter twaddle !
Soooo how on earth has this water got in there and caused this level of damage ???
Any advice appreciated.
Thanks Jo.

 

[GettinBetter]

What year?

 

[Jojo1912]

What year?

It’s a 2017

 

[John202020]

Hi, welcome, how good are you at home diy on cars?
The clutch hydraulics are a known weakness but are a straight forward fix, the clutch and brake system are totally separate on the 1.2.
First item to check is the connector under the passenger wing, looking from underneath it often fails and leaks just follow the pipe to find it?
Next try replacing the clutch fluid bleeding a decent amount through, can be messy how does the pedal feel?
If no leaks and new fluid and still faulty, then its either the slave or master cylinder or both, it is possible to use the existing pipework as long as the (pipe) connector is still good under the wing.
Both are not hard to replace even by a relative novice but you will need normal basic DIY tools ?
I'd say the clutch is probably OK just the control of it, though if a new driver it is possible to break a clutch that's had a lot of wear but rule out the hydraulics first.
Worst case scenario £200 for slave and master, these parts are in short supply hence price but careful looking on Ebay helps, 4 hours for a novice to replace hour for a competent car DIY'er.
Water in the system, doubtful even if if was it would still actually work( it would work with 100% water but not last long), a leak ( in the slave or master) or actual leak would give the symptoms you describe.
I'd try replacing the slave first, (connector ok) then if symptoms persist the master cylinder?

Garage says water in fluid given the AA replaced it ask them to prove this given its new fluid in there?

 

[jrkitching]

Hydraulic fluid is extremely hygroscopic and will pull the moisture out of any air that it comes into contact with. Air is drawn in and out of the master cylinder through a small vent hole during normal operation, and any moisture in that air is absorbed by the fluid.

If the hydraulic fluid has never been changed since the car was made (which is quite likely), I'm not surprised at all that it failed the standard moisture test.

My guess is that the garage found the clutch hydraulics weren't working properly, likely because of worn out seals, tested the hydraulic fluid and found it to be excessively contaminated by moisture, then gave you the explanation you've described here. I'd be surprised if anyone has actually added physical water to the hydraulic system.

They suspected clutch slave cylinder or clutch master cylinder could be damaged due to contaminated fluid.

Much more likely clutch slave and master worn out due to use and age. Probably not helped by never having had a fluid change during the lifetime of the car.

My guess is that the garage found the clutch hydraulics weren't working properly, likely because of worn out seals, tested the hydraulic fluid and found it to be excessively contaminated by moisture, then gave you the explanation you've described here.

This is a wear and tear failure.

I'm guessing you've bought this car fairly recently? Read all the small print, but probably not likely to be covered by most used car warranties. Realistically, most used car warranties are worth very little and exclude much of what's actually likely to happen.

A 6yr old 500 is likely to need quite a few wear and tear replacements over the next couple of years of its life, none of which will be warranted. Someone buying a car of that age who isn't going to do all of their own repairs could easily see several thousand pounds worth of bills during that time.

Have all the clutch hydraulics replaced, and all will likely be well again. If it's one of the models with combined clutch/brake master cylinders, I'd be surprised if the brakes needed anything more than flushing through with new fluid; replacing brake parts sounds like overkill.

£900 is excessive; I'd suggest negotiating with the garage on that, or alternatively look for another garage.

If a car is at a garage and not readily driveable, some garages have been known to take that into account when quoting for repairs.