Free play on Clutch Linkage
Posted: Thu Aug 26, 2010 4:08 am
Hello. Haven't posted for a while - the car has been behaving itself very well!
Was doing some routine maintainance and adjusted the clutch free play which had stretched out to just under 2 inches. On trying to get a nice tight 3/4" free play at the pedal I have found it difficult as there is so much free play in the linkage itself. This means that the pedal moves nearly an inch before the linkage takes up the slack. After tightening up the two roundhead nuts which lock onto the clutch lever the pedal also sits a little low compared to the brake and can be pulled back manually about 3/4". The hole in the plate that attaches to the clutch pedal is a little widened after 50 years of use. I have replaced the clevis pin on the pedal to plate link with a larger bolt and nylock nut to take up some slack but there is still quite a bit of looseness there.
I have fitted a new linkage kit a while back, which was for a later car - the 803cc had a rod system and the later cars have a plate system. The pedal is also different, as the early cars have a seperate shaft and pedal, while later cars have shaft and pedal combined. Mine still has original pedal
Might it help to fit a fully later system, ie: later type clutch pedal to suit the more modern linkage? If so, is it a straight swap to fit the later pedal with shaft? Any advice would be welcome! Thanks.
Was doing some routine maintainance and adjusted the clutch free play which had stretched out to just under 2 inches. On trying to get a nice tight 3/4" free play at the pedal I have found it difficult as there is so much free play in the linkage itself. This means that the pedal moves nearly an inch before the linkage takes up the slack. After tightening up the two roundhead nuts which lock onto the clutch lever the pedal also sits a little low compared to the brake and can be pulled back manually about 3/4". The hole in the plate that attaches to the clutch pedal is a little widened after 50 years of use. I have replaced the clevis pin on the pedal to plate link with a larger bolt and nylock nut to take up some slack but there is still quite a bit of looseness there.
I have fitted a new linkage kit a while back, which was for a later car - the 803cc had a rod system and the later cars have a plate system. The pedal is also different, as the early cars have a seperate shaft and pedal, while later cars have shaft and pedal combined. Mine still has original pedal
Might it help to fit a fully later system, ie: later type clutch pedal to suit the more modern linkage? If so, is it a straight swap to fit the later pedal with shaft? Any advice would be welcome! Thanks.