It all started with a shift coupler adjustment

Leland Pate · 06-05-2002, 06:44 AM

Well, I pulled the car out yesterday to fiddle a bit more with the coupler... still trying to dial it in...
After a short drive, I pulled back in to the garage... thinking about what one of you told me about the possibility of the clutch being out of adjustment so I jacked her up and had a look.
One thing I noticed is that a year ago when I installed the new clutch cable, I didn't quite have anough room to adjust the part that mounts to the tranny... I did manage to get it, it's just that I was at the very end of the threaded portion under the car.
I know to correct this that I need to readjust the pedal cluster end of the cable. So I started tearing away at it... Carpet out, floor board out, accellerator out... well I started looking around and thought..."hell, since I'm in here, why not pull the pedal cluster and rebuild it..." So, I started pulling stuff off left and right.

I used my new handy dandy air ratchet on the two badly rusted nuts securing the cluster to the pan. I soaked them in WD-40, then used the ait tool quickly snapped one of them.

. So I took my time with the second nut, making quick blurps, back and forth... tightening then loosening... back and forth... kinda like what you do when you use a tap. That worked like a champ.

I would have had that thing out in 30 minutes if it hadn't been for the fact that I didn't know there were two more bolt holding it in there that can only be reached from under the rack pan, so that took a bit of time to jack the car up and remove the pan.

Then she came out as pretty as you please...
When I was in the desert several months back, I bought an absolute ass-load of parts, including a pedal cluster rebuild kit which had been sitting patiently in a box for the day that I would call on it.

The roll pin was a pain, but I managed to get it out with a drill, WD-40 and a big hammer and drift. The rest of it was pretty easy, it isn't easy to put it back together the wrong way.. unless it just sat disassembled for 4 or 5 months...

Some of the plastic bushings were definately worn...especiallt the two that support the clutch pedal shaft. (One even had a hole worn through the side. So, it all went back together smoothly, no major problems... I did notice a couple things though:

For starters, when I pulled the floorboard, I imediately noticed that my cluster is missing the clutch pedal return spring.... hmmm...why would someone take that off?
So, I'll get a replacement.

And secondly, it sure looks like at one point, the lever on the clutch pedal shaft has been broken and cobbled back together... I don't know for certain, but it sure doesn't look factory, and I had one extra small bushing that came with the rebuild kit that I couldn't find a home for... I suspect that the extra bushing is supposed to go in the hole on the clutch pedal shaft lever but I'm not sure.

I took a picture of it just for kicks...

All in all, about a 3 hour job... not near as bad as I had somehow made it out in my mind that it would be.

After I get the clutch readjusted today after work, we'll see if it made an improvment or not.

Cheers!

Chuck Moreland · 06-05-2002, 06:57 AM

That's the end of the shaft where the clutch cable connects right?

It doesn't have a bushing.

Early_S_Man · 06-05-2002, 07:00 AM

Somebody brazed-up the hole on the lever after a previous bushing wore through and the hole got egg-shaped ... doesn't look like a bad repair job, though!

Did you see my reply about disassembling, cleaning, and re-shimming your shifter to eliminate the internal 'play?'

KTL · 06-05-2002, 07:12 AM

Nice job Lee.

Are you flipping us off, or the job itself???

Leland Pate · 06-05-2002, 08:05 AM

Oh, I knew someone would say that it looks like i was flipping a bird...

It was really awkward trying to hold the shaft in a way that it was recognizable, balance the bushing and take the picture... so that's just the way it is!

MikeB · 06-05-2002, 07:02 PM

Many people have removed the clutch pedal return spring. Much smoother operation I am told. Mine was removed by the PO, so I personally have no comparison. Local shop takes them off on a regular basis...

Early_S_Man · 06-05-2002, 11:21 PM

Noah,

No, the shims and washers Jim Sims and I were talking about in the other thread are inside the shifter mechanism/housing, and are on pins/shafts/studs that allow the X-Y motion of the shift lever ... so any play translates directly to 'slop'in the shifter action!

Wayne 962 · Wayne 962's Garage

Looks like the hole is too small for that bushing. Those shafts are still available if yours is too messed up...

Page 5 here:

http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/shopcart/911M/por_911M_pedals_main.htm

-Wayne

Jdub · 07:45 AM

I must disagree with Chuck. The hole you show is meant to have a bushing on rebuild, at least that is where the small bushing in my Pelican rebuild kit fit. When I removed the pedal cluster that hole was oblong from the trunnion pin's scraping over the years, and this notching had the effect of making my clutch pedal action uneven. How did the trunnion pin itself look? Was it worn away?

Of course, since the PO brass-brazed that puppy you how have the perfect medium on which the trunnion pin can ride. I would consider drilling it out and puttting in the correct bushing anyway though.

A trick I was taught sometime back with brass bushings was to put them in 80/90 weight over low heat to staturate the pores of the bushings. I dunno is this is overkill...

John

EDIT: The clutch return spring is best put in by rotating the clutch pedal fully around and under, hooking the spring to both posts, and then using the leverage of the pedal arm to overcome the tension of the spring as you bring the pedal back around. However, having this spring in place makes it very tough to put the brace bar back into the pedal pan, as the spring interferes with the (10 x .1?) hex bolt. On rebuild I found it best to put the brake pedal tube extension (to the MC) on first, then the brace, then the rest of the fittings. This is on an SC.

Leland Pate · 06-06-2002, 09:29 AM

Well, I guess my suspicions were correct.

The trunion pin is worn pretty badly, I knew that last year when I replaced the cable. I just bought a new one as well as a clutch return spring from Pelican.

I've already put the cluster back in the car so we'll see how much fun it is going to be to get that spring back in there...

...more to come.

Jdub · 06-06-2002, 10:55 AM

Leland:

The hot tip I was given by Denny Akers (great guy - owns Aker's in Seattle) was to snip a section of the spring to make in-situ replacement easier. When you get the spring, you will find one end has a hook that is a standard looking loop, while the other end is a loop that has a very long "ear," or extension, to it. The idea is to snip the "extra" bit off to facilitate snapping it back onto the clutch pedal. Please let me know if this doesn't make sense, but when you get the spring I think you will see what I am talking about. Use a very long screwdriver to link it over and wear gloves to prevent barked knuckles!

John

k9handler · 06-06-2002, 11:30 AM

You EOD guys have all the cash!

I have to wait until my 15 year mark before I can start on my baby. Nice car Leland, keep up the work.