clutch clip...sorry moronic question

[weety]

ok the dreaded clutch clip has bust on my friends xantia and after three hours of screaming and butchery i have the pedal out...

petes top tip...removing the instrument cluster and hacksawing out all the plastic behind it DOES NOT offer a quick and easy way to the top of the clutch pedal (though partially cutting through a wiring loom is a very amusing way to add extra time to a job )

now this is the uber uber moronic bit (if the bit above wasnt enough).....er does the clutch cable fit inside the white plastic tube or attach on to the metal clip at the bottom?

unfortunately my usual method of trying to make things look exactly how they looked before i er repaired them dont work if the bit is busted to start with

the haynes book of lies doesnt really help...

my brand spanking new clutch clip doesnt seem to want to have the cable attached by wedging it down the white plastic tubey bit and the cable fits nicely to the bottom clip (except it dont look that secure) i am in two minds (and my hair is now covered in the black goo that they coat the internals of cars with)....this has not been a good day!

please help

cheers

Peter

[CitroJim]

Hi Peter,

What a battle

The bullet end of the cable goes down inside the tube of the clip and all that holds it is the small vaugely "U" shaped spring metal part of the clip. I find the best method is for one person to be in the footwell holding the pedal and clip in position whilst another person on the other end of the cable gives the inner a very sharp push to engage the bullet with the spring clip. Note that for some reason the clutch clips from GSF don't come with a new metal spring clip but those (with an identical part no.) from a Citroen dealer do Do you have this spring clip? The old one is likely to be badly bent and not really usable again. It is this spring clip that does all the real work.

It looks so flimsy it is a real wonder it ever works at all, let alone last a reasonable time.

I have also found, if you have changed the cable, that on some after-market cables (not GSF) the bullet is too long and will not properly engage without a little delicate surgery with a file. It's not a bad idea to do a dummy run, fitting the bullet into the clip, out in the open so that you know what you are aming for when lying upside down and blind in the footwell.

Luckily, the job of reassembly is a lot easier than disassembly, now you can put the pedal bolt in the logically correct way!

[citronut]

i agree with Jim but to add to that i always set the metal clip so that it is on the balance partly out of its seat, so once your assitant has gently pushed the inner cable in towards you as far as it will go into the plastic part of the clip body from the gear box end, you then with a long screwdriver push the metal clip home,

PS.
DONT GIVE UP YOUR DAY JOB JUST YEY, HE HE HE

regards malcolm

[dnsey]

Note that for some reason the clutch clips from GSF don't come with a new metal spring clip but those (with an identical part no.) from a Citroen dealer do

Not any more! Last time a bought a clip from the dealer, there was no spring with it. I queried this, and they confirmed that they are now sold without the spring (and cost about 20% more than they did a couple of years ago).

[Monkeyfeet]

I had so much trouble twisting underneath to do this once (once? ) I pulled out the drivers seat to lay on the floor.Made it easier for me anyway.

[CitroJim]

Luckily, the job of reassembly is a lot easier than disassembly, now you can put the pedal bolt in the logically correct way!

Jim

Does it follow that if i've had the clip changed once that the bolt will have been reinserted correctly? Just that at my age I worry about this sort of thing and a reassurance that all will be well next break around would be something ...

Generally yes as who'd go to all the trouble of putting the bolt back in the "wrong way" except perhaps a complete idiot

You have no such worries on an Activa as it has no clip or clutch cable However it does have a hydraulic clutch which, thankfully, is reliable but.. if it gives trouble, a mortgage is called for and a session of work that makes the clutch clip look like a gentle evening stroll in the park

As I say, don't worry, hydraulic ones are not troublesome. The most likely reason for needing to replace one is if, when changing the clutch, you let the slave cylinder pushrod fall out. You then need to replace the master and slave cylinders and the pipe between as they are a sealed unit

[weety]

from my expirence so far i wouldnt have thought it possible to put the bolt back in the right way round (without removing the brake pedal)...

dont you just hate car designers

[vince]

Update people......

GSF do sell the metal clip and it is listed as a related sale when you sell the plastic part. It is however under a Peugeot part number beginning with "T" The plastic part is under a Citroen number beginning with "N"

Sorry i cant remember the exact part number.....

[weety]

ok job is done....thanks for the guidance....the way i did it in the end was to connect the clutch cable to the pedal before putting it back into the car (if you take the clutch cable out to maxmum adjustment as the gearbox end it gives you a lot of cable to play with at the pedal end)

the spring on the pedal i didnt attach properly at the car bit until after the pedal was bolted in (easy enough to move the end of the sprng with a screwdriver at that point)

oh and to get the nut on the end of the bolt i ended up taping it to my finger! .... there was so little space up there that i kept dropping the nut, but if you tape it to your finger then get your finger into the right place you can get the crucial first couple of turns by just turning the bolt (oh and its easier to do this bit 'normal way round' (rather than lying upside down in the footwell)

all in all a mega fiddly job a bit patence testing but very satisfying when done