Getting a car you have your eye on is one thing. Getting an abandoned one out of the hands of an owner who is not sure about selling is another. According to @dou.kem, it took three days of effort to land an abandoned Mitsubishi 3000GT. Then came the next challenge, which was getting the car home with a clutch pedal that went straight to the floor.

The post opens on day three of the chase, which the creator calls “the finale.” After talking with the owner and “with a little persuasion,” the deal came together. The price stays a mystery for now. The creator teases a guess at what was paid and says the answer will come “another day.”

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No Clutch And An Empty Reservoir

With the car finally bought, the work of reviving it began, and day one of that work brought a problem right away. There was no clutch. The pedal went to the floor and stayed there. When the reservoir was checked, it was empty, which told the creator there was a leak somewhere in the system.

The good news was that the trip home was short, only about three minutes. The plan was simple: pour in more fluid and see what happens. So the creator topped off the reservoir and pumped the pedal for at least 20 minutes. Then, at some point, the clutch came back.

That is a small moment, but anyone who has worked on an old car knows how good it feels. After twenty minutes of pumping a pedal with nothing under it, the first bit of resistance must have felt like winning a prize.

What A Leaking Clutch System Is Telling You

Many manual cars use a hydraulic clutch. Pressing the pedal pushes fluid from a master cylinder to a slave cylinder, and the slave cylinder works the clutch. If fluid escapes, or air gets into the lines, the pedal can go soft or sink all the way to the floor with no bite at all. An empty reservoir, like the one in this story, points to a leak.

The creator’s trick got the car moving, but it is worth being clear about what it is. Topping off the fluid and pumping the pedal can get pressure back for a short trip. It does not fix the leak. If the fluid is escaping from the master cylinder, the slave cylinder or a line, it will keep escaping, and the pedal will fade again.

If you are ever in the same spot, here is a sensible order of operations:

• Check the reservoir first. Make sure it is topped off with the fluid your owner’s manual calls for. Many cars use brake fluid in the clutch system, but always confirm for your own car.
• Look for wet spots. Check around the master cylinder, along the lines and at the slave cylinder for fluid trails.
• Replace what is leaking. A tired seal means a new part, not more fluid every week.
• Bleed the system. After a repair, air has to be bled out so the pedal feels firm again.
• Keep the trip short. If you do have to limp a car home on borrowed pressure, go straight there and have a plan for where it will sit.

About The Car Itself

The Mitsubishi 3000GT was a sporty coupe sold in the 1990s, and it remains popular with fans of that era of Japanese performance cars. Some versions came with turbochargers and all wheel drive, which made them a technology showcase at the time. The post does not say which version this one is, so there is no way to know what it has under the hood.

What the post does show is a car that sat abandoned until someone decided it deserved another chance. That is the heart of a lot of underdog builds. The cars others walked past are sometimes the ones with the best stories.

Tips For Buying A Car Nobody Else Wants

If the idea of rescuing a forgotten car sounds appealing, the three days of persuasion in this story hold a few lessons.

• Be patient and polite. Owners of long parked cars often have feelings tied to them. A friendly conversation can open a door that a cash offer alone will not.
• Get the paperwork in order. Ask about the title and make sure the seller is the person who can legally sell the car. Get a bill of sale in writing.
• Assume the first problem is not the last. A dead clutch is one thing. Old fuel, tired brakes and dry rubber are common on cars that have sat. Set aside money for surprises.
• Plan the trip home. Three minutes of driving is a lot easier to manage than three hours. If the car is farther away, a trailer is the safer choice.
• Inspect before you drive. Check the tires, the brakes and the fluids before the wheels turn, even for a short trip.

The Price Still To Come

The question everyone wants answered is how much the 3000GT cost. The creator is keeping that for another post, and it is a smart way to keep people coming back. Until then, the story is a good reminder that a car deal is not always about the number. Sometimes it is about three days of talking, a little persuasion and a lot of pumping a pedal until it finally comes back.

With the clutch back, the short trip home was on. It is a small win, but with an abandoned car, small wins are how big projects begin.

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