I have a 740 turbo with the M46 manual transmission that has a strange problem with the cluch release. The clutch will not completely disengage and drags when the pedal is depressed. This is causing the transmission to grind when shifting into reverse and causes balky shifts into the rest of the gears. I have checked the clutch with the car on a hoist and an assistant running the car with the transmission in 1st gear and the clutch will not disengage enough to allow the rear wheels to stop spinning. The details on parts that have been replaced to try to cure this are as follows. New slave cylinder, new cluch disc/pressure plate/release bearing/pilot bearing, new clutch release fork and pivot, and new brake fluid with the hydraulic system bled multiple times and no trace of air even though the pedal pressure still seems light to me. At this point I am completely stumped and am about to remove the master cylinder to check it, but it is not leaking and shows no sign of having air in it. Has this situation happened to any of you?

If you have the plastic pedal arm it may also be worn where the clevis attaches effectively decreasing the travel at the master cyl. I found a good steel arm in the boneyard. I also had a master cyl. fail when hot, drove me crazy!
The slave should start moving as soon as pedal pressure is applied, very little freeplay if any.

Thanks for the info on the pedal arm. Mine is the plastic one and it was worn. I did a temporary fix with some JB weld and redrilled the hole in its original spot, but this still did not cure the problem. I will still replace the pedal with a metal one though (who figured out this plastic pedal piece of junk?). Looks like the only thing left to try is the master cylinder.

How were the splines on the transmission's input shaft? If they become worn or notched, the clutch disc won't release completely and drag. I found the only way I could bleed mine was to use a Mityvac hand pump and suction fluid (and air)through the slave cylinder.
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Erwin in Memphis, '88 745t 190,000 miles, '95 855t 92,000 miles

If possible try to measure the stroke of the slave cylinder on a car with a good working clutch . If if the stroke on your car is the same your problem is most likely in the clutch itself. If not ,probably the master cylinder.

The splines were very clean with no stepping or signs of wear. The slave was bled by using a pressure bleeder as well as the traditional assistant pumping the pedal method. Both produced the same results. How much foot pressure does it take to depress your clutch pedal as the pressure on mine seems very light compared to my other cars no matter what bleeding method I have used?

Without anything to measure against at the moment, I'd say my clutch pressure is between my 93 Ford F150 and my 89 Nissan pu. Not much help I know.

Could the clutch plate be in backwards? I know it's possible but could it prevent it from disengaging completely? Until I get mine apart and inspect it I can't offer any more advice.

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Erwin in Memphis, '88 745t 190,000 miles, '95 855t 92,000 miles

Thanks for the advice. We were very careful to orient the clutch plate correctly so I am sure it is in the right way. Your info. on the pedal pressure is exactly what I needed since I know what a clutch pedal feels like on Japanese cars and the pedal on this Volvo is much lighter than I remember on my Mazda or Isuzu. I'm thinking there is an internal problem with the master cylinder or the flexible line from the slave cylinder to the steel line is expanding when pressure is applied. Thanks again.