Intermittent Clutch Problem

[MariaAZ]

Occasionally the clutch on the 4 speed in my 260Z acts as if it's going out. 1st & 2nd become very difficult to engage, requiring some pretty serious force to shift but with no grinding. 3rd requires equal force, AND will grind, but 4th is pretty smooth.

This is only an occasional problem that seems more prevalent when the car is warm. It goes away just as suddenly as it starts; I can have a heck of a time shifting through the gears, then the next shift becomes smooth again & everything is fine.

I bled the system because the fluid was filthy. It's starting to cloud up again with black particles (master cylinder innards perhaps?)

Any ideas? I'm puzzled because of the transient nature of this problem!

[2ManyZs]

Sounds like the master cylinder seals are slowly giving up the fight..... The black you see in the reservoir is probably from the seals.

Of course, it could also be a problem in either the clutch disc or pressure plate itself.

I'd change the master first since it's the simplest to change and bleed the system to flush out all the contaminated fluid. If it still has the problem, the only thing other than the clutch itself is the slave cylinder.

[ZmeFly]

But he forgot one thing, just like your brakes your clutch needs a good line as well. The clutch hose can collapse just the the brake hose.

You should be replacing that with your slave cylinder if you do.

Besides that I would follow 2manys advice to the letter.