clutch cable trans attachment question

[JBG3]

Ive been reading on the forum, and im thinking my problem may be a misadjusted clutch cable.

This is on a 92 5-speed. What its doing it that its very difficult to get the car in first, a bit less in all other gears, and almost impossible to get into reverse without grinding. No gears are especially smooth shifting

The PO tells me that he installed a new clutch just recently, like within the past year.

Hopefully its not an internal bellhousing problem. The clutch engages approx 3/4 to 1 inch off the floor which seems very low, and just feels like I never have the clutch fully disengaged with I go to switch gears especially clear in reverse, where it grinds every time.

Here is a pic of the bushing on top of the bell housing, is this correct, am I missing any parts? it seems awful loose in there.

 

[jelloslug]

You are either missing the bushing completely or it's broken that goes where the cable feed through the boss on the top of the transaxle.

 

[Bob Gervais]

You're missing the plastic bushing that goes in that hole.

http://shosource.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=61_5_24&products_id=285

 

[JBG3]

Great Thanks! I had a feeling something was missing, the cable is just rattling around in there. ok, so I ordered that item from SHOsource, this thing-

And just to be completely clear, the black rubber/plastic part that is currently in there is not a version of this piece, but a piece of the cable housing?

What I have ordered is an additional piece that the black rubber/plastic piece pops into, and in turn this piece correctly pops into the hole in the housing?

-spectacular diagram showing what I am asking -

next question, while I wait for the bushing, any ideas on shimming for now? How about a bunch of fender washers and zip tie? I would hate to continue grinding the gearbox

 

[Bob Gervais]

Paint skillz ftw.

You're correct in your assumption, the part you ordered snaps into the trans, then the cable goes through it, and onto the clutch fork lever.

I guess shimming with fender washers could work until you get the part... Never tried it!

 

[JBG3]

Paint skillz ftw.

You're correct in your assumption, the part you ordered snaps into the trans, then the cable goes through it, and onto the clutch fork lever.

I guess shimming with fender washers could work until you get the part... Never tried it!

gimp free image program, I love it. As you can see, I am a master of spectacular 3D paint drawings

So the fender washer scheme worked perfectly, took about 10 minutes to install. (though the PO ripped out the factory airbox, so that would have added some time)

After posting that, I went out into my fastner bins, and found a pair of these-
old Mercedes benz transmission mount washers

They are just about the perfect interior size, and extremely thick, just over an 8th of an inch. Both of them together were between a third and a half inch thick

I used a C clamp to depress the clutch lever (worked pretty well, twist part of the clamp was totally accessible from behind the front tire.)

and both washers installed. No Grinding and all gears easier to shift! One washer would have been plenty, now the clutch engages very high, ill take one out, or just wait till the bushing gets here. At least the transmission won't be damaged in the interim, and I can actually reverse this thing without massive grinding.

 

[93rev2sev]

Well played, sir! Except for the whole c-clamp thing...oh well..

 

[JBG3]

Well played, sir! Except for the whole c-clamp thing...oh well..

lol, which brings me to another question-

What is the correct method to depress the arm? C-clamp was effective, but crude

 

[frosho]

You don't need to move the arm. You can release tension on the cable by having a helper lift the clutch pedal up while you pull on the other end at the trans. Lifting the pedal releases the quadrant (adjuster) so you can pull the cable out of the fork without moving the arm at all. There will be some resistance from the quadrant spring, but not much. Once you're done, work the pedal a bit then lift it up a couple more times to make sure it's adjusted correctly.

 

[JRA2000TL]

I may replace this on my 89 as well. Sometimes it is very difficult to get into first and grinds in R; other times I have no issues at all. Weird because shifting will go from notchy to smooth. The bushing on mine is white and doesn't look all beat up, but it's old and dirty looking. I'm wondering if it's the original.

What's the process in replacing these? Prop up the clutch pedal, then get needle nose pliers and pull the cable from the fork and slide the bushing off?

 

[JBG3]

You don't need to move the arm. You can release tension on the cable by having a helper lift the clutch pedal up while you pull on the other end at the trans. Lifting the pedal releases the quadrant (adjuster) so you can pull the cable out of the fork without moving the arm at all. There will be some resistance from the quadrant spring, but not much. Once you're done, work the pedal a bit then lift it up a couple more times to make sure it's adjusted correctly.

interesting, but there is a disadvantage to this because you need a helper, right?

compressing the arm with the clamp was easy for one person to do on the side of the street. If there is no reason why clamping the arm is a bad idea, ill probably keep doing it that way, i frequently do not have helpers available for automotive projects.

mostly just me, early in the morning or late at night.

EDIT- SHOsource does not mess around! ordered this thing at 2ish, and its already shipped!

 

[frosho]

It can be done by one person if you have something to prop the pedal up. I think I used a small 2x4 before. Wedged between the pedal and the carpet and it worked like a charm.

The only disadvantage I can think of is the possibility of damage to the arm or trans case, or to you. There's a lot of energy in the pressure plate spring, so if the clamp was to slip off somehow while you're working on it, it could break a finger or two.

 

[frosho]

What's the process in replacing these? Prop up the clutch pedal, then get needle nose pliers and pull the cable from the fork and slide the bushing off?

The only step you missed is pulling the cable out of the trans case. The bushing is sandwiched between the cable and the case, so the cable has to come out. You'll see once you get in there.

 

[Nessa]

This seems to be nearly exactly the issue with my car. Maybe it doesn't need a clutch after all? Where exactly is this so I can double check my own car? Mine is also a '92 5 speed.

 

[Bob Gervais]

It can be done by one person if you have something to prop the pedal up. I think I used a small 2x4 before. Wedged between the pedal and the carpet and it worked like a charm.

The only disadvantage I can think of is the possibility of damage to the arm or trans case, or to you. There's a lot of energy in the pressure plate spring, so if the clamp was to slip off somehow while you're working on it, it could break a finger or two.

I use a bungee cord between the clutch pedal and steering wheel. Bonus points if it's a RealTree print bungee cord.

Nessa, the photos above show where you'll need to look. Basically, top side of transaxle, under the air intake tube.

 

[jayro]

This seems to be nearly exactly the issue with my car. Maybe it doesn't need a clutch after all? Where exactly is this so I can double check my own car? Mine is also a '92 5 speed.

Just take off the the air box lid/maf/rubber intake tube from the throttle body and look down. You will see whats in the pics.

 

[JBG3]

so I got this thing in two days, shipped across the entire country!

Its a pretty nice product-

Disconnected the clutch cable, popped the bushing in-

and re-attached the clutch cable, the bushing is about twice as thick as the double washers I was using.

Test drive later today to see how it feels, should be a nice improvement.

 

[JRA2000TL]

so I got this thing in two days, shipped across the entire country!

Its a pretty nice product-

Test drive later today to see how it feels, should be a nice improvement.

Was it difficult to install? I guess you can just use some pliers to pull the cable out of the fork and then pull it by hand through the bracket in the tranny case. I'm assuming that existing old bushing you just pull up on with your hand to remove it and push the new one in, correct?

I'm going to get one of these. They're pretty cheap, but shipping is really high on them.

 

[JBG3]

Was it difficult to install? I guess you can just use some pliers to pull the cable out of the fork and then pull it by hand through the bracket in the tranny case. I'm assuming that existing old bushing you just pull up on with your hand to remove it and push the new one in, correct?

I'm going to get one of these. They're pretty cheap, but shipping is really high on them.

Just put about 40 miles on it, HUGE improvement. Grabs in just the right place and all the gears are smooth as silk to shift into now.

Not too difficult to install, but you have to depress the clutch lever to get the cable out. Earlier on in the thread frosho said this-

"You don't need to move the arm. You can release tension on the cable by having a helper lift the clutch pedal up while you pull on the other end at the trans. Lifting the pedal releases the quadrant (adjuster) so you can pull the cable out of the fork without moving the arm at all. There will be some resistance from the quadrant spring, but not much. Once you're done, work the pedal a bit then lift it up a couple more times to make sure it's adjusted correctly."

This is the correct way to do it, although I went back in and used a C-clamp a second time since its super fast. To make it a little safer for my hands, I just used a long pair of needle nose pliers to pull off and install the cable.

I didn't have an old bushing at all, not sure what it looks like or how hard to remove, but this pops right in in about 2 seconds

 

[JRA2000TL]

Thanks, just ordered one for my 89. Not sure if it will fix my shifting/grinding issues or not, but the bushing on mine is probably the original. Can't hurt to replace it anyway I guess.