Mazda Repair: 1997 miata slave cylinder, clutch hydraulics, repeat failure

Question
i was driving yesterday, i tried to shift and the clutch pedel felt spongy.  i was able to shift matching the RPM with the linlage and was able to make it home.  this same thing happened 2 years ago.  i took the car to the shop and he fixed it.  now that it has happened i am wondering, did it really get fixed or was it justa quick patch of some sort.  i asked the same mechanic about the clutch, i mentioned that it did the same thing 2 years ago.  he remembered and said he would have to think about it.  is this somethink i can do my self? i am good with my hands and i don't need this car every day.  should i take it to a mazda shop? thank you for your help

andy

Answer
Clutch Hydraulics is a common repeat failure every 30-50k.  The best advice replace both the clutch slave and the master with new parts not kits or rebuilds.  They wear at comparable rates and pressurize off each other so if you replace(ed) one without the other the new part will force the early demise of the old one.  Use Mazda OEM or Beck Arnley and you'll get the time out of them.  

What ever you do do not shift clutch-less and do not force a gear you can and will damage a selector fork and the synchronizer plates on that gear within the transmission which lead to another world of pain.

After 2 years it's a "no win" to hassle the repair shop.  They may have replaced the obvious source (slave-common)) and not the master or vice versa.  Not all shops have set standards in this area of repair like we do.  We're Miataphiles

service@miatashop.com