Clutch Issues

[Malkor]

Hey guys,

Just picked up my AU manual ute yesterday and it is a sweet ride! However the one thing i hate is the weight of the clutch pedal! I need legs like a track cyclist to push it in!

What can i do to lighten up the clutch? A new cable was installed prior to sale! Any thoughts would be great (including potential cost!)!

Thanks

-J

[FS5]

malkor ,the standard au clutch shouldn't be that heavy.maybe they have installed an after market HD clutch kit.
i had an rpm HD clutch fitted in our au and was heavy ,real heavy like your sayin in your post and it chewed out the clutch cable .recently went back to the standard au clutch and it feels like you could push it down with your little finger compared to the old one.

[mik]

a bit of lube can make a difference , is there any difference in the clutch heaviness between engine running and stopped??? if so the fingers on the presure plate may be worn,usually the if this is so there is rough spot (slight binding) as you push the pedal down, on cars fitted with an inspection plate on the bellhousing, you could put a tiny bit of graphite grease on the fingers just a smear will make a big difference, also a bit of crc or wd40 on the clutch pedal pivot /linkages may help, i wonder how well the cable in was lubed up, i hope thats some help
goodluck

[Malkor]

Originally Posted by mik

a bit of lube can make a difference , is there any difference in the clutch heaviness between engine running and stopped??? if so the fingers on the presure plate may be worn,usually the if this is so there is rough spot (slight binding) as you push the pedal down, on cars fitted with an inspection plate on the bellhousing, you could put a tiny bit of graphite grease on the fingers just a smear will make a big difference, also a bit of crc or wd40 on the clutch pedal pivot /linkages may help, i wonder how well the cable in was lubed up, i hope thats some help
goodluck

No difference in heaviness with the car on or off! There is a slight point in the travel where i get a grating feeling through the pedal! I think a good lube and investigate a standard clutch, as i am lead to believe that it is a performance clutch! And lubing the pressure plate might be a good idea too! I believe it needs overall maintenance, as the guy who i bought it off had a company car and this one was just kicking around!

Thanks for your help guys! Any idea on prices of a new clutch pack?

-J

[FS5]

mine cost $450 to get a standard clutch kit refitted.if i was to do it again i'd get a vn v8 clutch kit for it .niks performance clutches up here in brissy do a kit for $350 (THE VN V8 one) to suit au i6,then you'd have the labour cost of fitting it on top of that.
i forgot ask is yours a i6 or v8

[Malkor]

It's a 6...I'm a uni student and petrol prices are too high for an 8, plus v8's scare the hell out of me!

[XR6-VCT-2000]

if it was fine before you bought it when test driving it - and now if its tight after a new cable only , then maybe i'de be making sure the cable doesnt have too tight a bend in it somehwere, or , make sure the cable isn't rubbing hard against the tube that it runs through - through the firewall . Maybe also make sure your firewall hasn't got the startings of the dredded 'crack' syndrome around the clutch area of the firewall .

[stiddy]

The clutch standard in these things are heavy, very heavy.. you seriously get a sore leg/ankle from driving them around.. well in mine it was like that..

I got a heavy duty daiken excedy clutch put in over standard $500 worth inc labour, its a better clutch and much much lighter than stock..
my firewall wasnt cracked either.

[Malkor]

Originally Posted by stiddy

The clutch standard in these things are heavy, very heavy.. you seriously get a sore leg/ankle from driving them around.. well in mine it was like that..

I got a heavy duty daiken excedy clutch put in over standard $500 worth inc labour, its a better clutch and much much lighter than stock..
my firewall wasnt cracked either.

So who stocks this clutch range!?

With regard to the firewall cracking! The car belonged to a ford mechanic! And i discussed this with him prior to purchase, as i tried a ute that was even heavier still! I just think the clutch could be lighter!

On another note, it is developing some friction thru it's travel! As i describe it - it "grates" near the friction point! I have no idea what causes it, as my last car was a front wheel drive buzz box!

[superroo]

The standard ones are heavy.
I jumped out of my ute and into my folks 4wd, and near put the clutch pedal through the floor cause it was that light.

My advice, give it time, you end up getting use to it. If after a while you still think it’s excessively heavy then investigate getting it changed.

But are you the only one who thinks it’s excessively heavy?

Cheers

[FS5]

i reckon the au clitch is pretty light for a cable driven clutch ,fair enough the hydrolic ones are much lighter.

[mik]

if the pedal is binding something is amiss, if the clutch has a few k`s on it i would bet the presure plate fingers will have a groove in them, if that is the case probably clutch kit is easiest fix with the standard clutch for lightness, darbys in plenty rd preston if your in melb , or just get a price for a kit through repco, are you going to install it yourself????

[XR6-VCT-2000]

Also just a note , not saying it is this problem , but - if u just got the new cable installed when you bought it and it was fine before , and if now you get a bit of a grind now and then / or hard to get into ger now and then too , then it maybe its just a matter of the new clutch cable wasn't adjusted propperly/ or needs re-adjusting (or worste case the clutch plates have worn just as the new cable was installed , but i seriouslly doubt it ! ). As mentioned above - if you find your clutch is fine but you find the AU clutch too heavy for you then maybe look at instaliing a hydraulic clutch ..gl