hi there, I was hoping for some sound advise as I have just bought a 51 plate berlingo.
I find the clutch pedal very stiff especially close to being fully depressed, but my main concern is that the biting point is almost at the bottom of the clutch pedal travel, pulling off you only have to let your foot off the clutch literaly 10mm. Is there a way of adjusting the biting point? or does it involve new clutch or cable ect ect??
I removed the air box and got a friend to depress the clutch and the cable only pulls the clutch arm about 1" inch if this helps with any diagnosis.
I would check the cable & clutch arm for free movement,both can sieze on older cars.A worn clutch can give these symptoms but check the easy/cheaper bits first.Come back if you need more help.
Hello James or should i call you Jim ? welcome to the forum good to have you with us
as ron said the thing's to check first
thanks guys, cable is off and i'll take it with me tomorrow to euro car parts, it's probably had it's life expectancy anyways. if symptoms persist then what you recommend? any other D.I.Y fix's or garage job?
the clutch arm by the way doesn't feel seized so hopefully all good there! hopefully a cable will do the trick
thanks for the hospitality, nice to have people out there for a help in hand once in a while. JAY
[
attachment=2161]
Make sure it is a good brand cable.Another tip poached from Geoff I think,is to make a plasticene cup around the shaft spindle & fill with thinnish oil.This will keep the shaft bushes nicely lubricated.Good luck.
I not totally sure but if its the common Citroen gearbox? Make sure you spray the pivot bushes in the gearbox bell housing with something like WD it make a big difference to how smooth the clutch feels.
Ron is correct it was me with the plasticine, it works too !
Re route the cable to get the smoothest / least tortuous path from pedal to clutch actuator.
WD40 is ok in the very short term as it evaporates away hence my first sentence ^^^
I always oil ( older ) cables, a new one should be ok. My MK2 has an auto tensioner and I use moly grease in that.
If it's a BE3 box then the plastic bushes the actuator runs in are a prime cause of friction when worn. The upper one is quite easy to replace, the lower one requires gearbox removal. The arm is held on to the shaft by a taper pin and you PULL it out (not unscrew it) by winding an M7 nut onto it with a couple of spacers.
Be aware that the lower bush is expected to act as a thrust bearing for the shaft, and if it's worn through at the bottom (look under the gearbox, if you see shaft metal it is worn through) the shaft will drop down when you take the arm off and may be difficult to get back to its proper position. If this is likely, support it from below. The lack of vertical support can be remedied by putting a washer or two on top of the upper bush to get the height correct.
The cables with auto adjusters are a constant bother, get a manual cable if you can. Oh, and a strange symptom on these is that if the cable is too slack the pedal sticks down and has to be pulled up. This is due the pull being insufficient to overcome the 'helper spring' on the pedal, but may give the impression the cable has seized.
Ebay #361114325822 for a photo of what I mean.
(27-03-2015, 06:56 PM)geoff Wrote: [ -> ]Ron is correct it was me with the plasticine, it works too !
Re route the cable to get the smoothest / least tortuous path from pedal to clutch actuator.
WD40 is ok in the very short term as it evaporates away hence my first sentence ^^^
I always oil ( older ) cables, a new one should be ok. My MK2 has an auto tensioner and I use moly grease in that.
Thanks Geoff.Didn't want to be accused of plagiarising.
You're welcome Ron .......
Talking of the M7 nut if the Berlingo is he same as the C15 the top strut nuts are this very size, most convenient. I only found this out after making my own M7 nut in work - too mean to buy !
Anyway, regards the bottom bush my oiling tip can avoid the need for a full strip out, I'm all for proactive maintenance rather than reactive maintenance whilst believing that a well maintained vehicle is cheap to run.
as ron said the thing's to check first 