1995 Ranger Clutch/Transmission Issues

I had the same problem with my 95 Ranger. I found I could get it to work if I popped the clutch pedal, or stomped on it. Took it to the dealer and of course it worked fine while they had it. Eventually the plastic actuating rod for the master cylinder broke. Dealer insisted it was a master cylinder problem. Drove it home after repairs, parked it in my drive until I needed it again. Used it several times with no problems.

About 5 months later and after work warranty was up, with very few miles driven, it happened again. Ends up the slave cylinder, inside the clutch housing, is made of plastic and is unprotected. There is an improved part that has a rubber boot to keep dust out of the piston area. Another $100+ and towing charges later, dealer replaced it and haven't had a problem with it again in over a year.

Make sure you get the newer improved rubber boot protected slave cylinder, that "should" solve your problem.

Thanks for your response. I have only seen this issue pop up on forums a couple of times, and each time the same fix was suggested. I just didn't want to go into dropping the transmission having uncertainty about whether what I was replacing would fix the problem. I will drop the transmission and replace the slave cylinder, as well as the clutch, this weekend. I will report back with the outcome once this is done.

Thanks again!

The rear main seal is right there if you're pulling off the clutch.

Never got much of a chance to reply about this once the job was done. I have been driving the truck around normally for about a week and a half since installing the new slave cylinder and clutch, and it seems to have fixed the problem. The original slave cylinder had quite a bit of grit and grime in it, and had obviously been leaking a little bit. The action on the new one is fantastic compared to the old one, and it has not let me down yet. I think I need to bleed the system again as it is a little tough to get into second gear from time to time since doing the job. Otherwise, job complete.

To anyone contemplating doing the slave cyl/clutch on these trucks, do yourself a favor and remove the inner fender splash guards, as its really the only way to get to the top two bellhousing to motor bolts. What really helped on the driver's side was a 1/2" gear wrench to get to the top bolt. The passenger side wasn't as bad, as there is less in the way. The other big hangup was the fact that the transmission support crossmember was seized in place where it bolted to the frame on the drivers' side and we ended up having to cut it out. Apparently it is a common issue on these trucks, as no salvage yard within 100 miles had one. The brand new replacement from Ford was $180, which is about $30 more than the clutch kit. Other than these couple of issues, pretty straightforward.