Xantia-Replacing plastic cluthch retaining clip

This is the Forum for all your Citroen Technical Questions, Problems or Advice.

Moderator: RichardW

Post Reply
alanjb
Posts: 10
Joined: 26 Apr 2002, 19:24
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Xantia-Replacing plastic cluthch retaining clip

Post by alanjb »

Haynes suggest removing steering wheel, and lots,lots more!!
Is there anyway this can be avoided? We know space is limited but perhaps it would be possible to remove pedal.
ANY HELP would be much appreciated. Thanks.
A.Batchelor
Dave Burns
Posts: 1915
Joined: 14 May 2001, 05:30
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:
x 2

Post by Dave Burns »

Steering wheel stay's put, pedal must come out.
Are you doing it yourself.
Dave
Trevor C B
Posts: 18
Joined: 09 Mar 2002, 04:40
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by Trevor C B »

Yes - We thought about going for the pedal removal - there is no way to fit the new plastic gismo in situ.
Is there room to remove the bolt throuh the pivot ??
We are considering changing the cable in case it has gone tight.
Has any one had this plstic clip break when they have had clutch problems. we want to identify the reason for the failure
This car was not showing any clutch problems before the piece of plastic ruined a journey/
thanks all
alanjb
Posts: 10
Joined: 26 Apr 2002, 19:24
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by alanjb »

Thankyou DAVE BURNS.
Yes I am doing it myself- if only to "not let it beat me". I haven't had the car for long so I don't yet have a feel for it. This should start my learning experience.
Thnks ffor interest and expert help.
A.Batchelor
alanjb
Posts: 10
Joined: 26 Apr 2002, 19:24
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by alanjb »

....more from alanjb and Xantia Plastic clutch cable removal.
I have removed the nut from the pivot but as I suspected the pivot pin cannot be removed as it fails the brake pedal.
Can I remove/loosten brake pedal WITHOUT removing facia etc? I do hope someone can help.
A.Batchelor
Dave Burns
Posts: 1915
Joined: 14 May 2001, 05:30
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:
x 2

Post by Dave Burns »

You can't remove the brake pedal without taking the whole dash out.
You can however loosen the nut's holding the brake valve to the bulkhead, leave a full nut of thread's engaged so as not to push the valve through into the engine compartment, or pipes may get damaged.
Doing this just gave me enough room to get the bolt out but require's a hefty shove on the pedal.
Other people have sawn the head off with air powered saw's.

Replace the bolt the other way round with washer's or a spacer under the head to prevent the threaded end fouling the brake pedal, it is then only ten minutes to get the pedal out if the clip break's again.
Get a pair of very long snipe nosed pliers, mine are about 11 inches long, fit the new clip to the pedal and replace it, don't try to clip the cable in with the pedal out.
Position the end of the cable to line up with the clip, holding the cable with the pliers close to the floor, then lift the clutch pedal which will force the clip over the nipple on the cable and engage it, if you have'nt got a long pair of pliers to hold the cable you can't prevent it being pushed back as you raise the pedal.
If the operation of the clutch was heavy it may be a good idea to renew the cable at the same time.
Good luck
Dave
alanjb
Posts: 10
Joined: 26 Apr 2002, 19:24
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by alanjb »

Thank you Dave, I'll give it a go and let you know how I got on. Alan(jb).
A.Batchelor
Gaz
Posts: 40
Joined: 05 Jul 2002, 15:22
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by Gaz »

I've found an easier way. Undo the nut on the clutch pivot bolt approx 5mm. Push the bolt towards the brake pedal so now you can see 5mm of bolt head, with a hacksaw blade in hand (gloved) cut the head off the bolt. (don't worry !!) withdraw the remains of the bolt out towards the centre of the car, the clutch pedal and spring will come out (note the spring position). fix the new plastic piece to the pedal, lightly grease the inside of the metal forked clips to aid the new cable nipple. Re-assemble the pedal with a new bolt ( M8 1.25 pitch, I can't remember now whether it was 65 or 75mm long bolt because I had both to try but MAKE SURE that when its all done up tight the end of the bolt is CLEAR of the brake pedal (original was 70mm) but now the cleareances are different because its in the opposite way). Feed this in FROM the centre of the car. Once its all in, with spring and tigntened , align the cable end with the plastic clip. Get a pair of long noised pliers, pull the plastic shroud that acts as the grommit in the bulkhead up and get the pliers down underneath it to the cable beneath (you're getting a good deep grip of the cable) now pull the cable up and the plastic clip / pedal down until you hear them mate with a clunk. DONE. re-set the clutch to Haynes if necessary, replace air filter and covers etc. (2-3 hours tops). Gaz
alanjb
Posts: 10
Joined: 26 Apr 2002, 19:24
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by alanjb »

My thanks to you Dave Burns. With my son's help, and following your instructions, we finally achieved success. We were unable to get the pivot bolt head past the brake pedal possibly because we couldn't push hard enough. In the end we used a hacksaw blade. However, everything else was as you said and we are grateful to you.
I wonder what gallic logic caused the decision to enter the bolt from the brake pedal side. Perhaps they use a standard bolt length. Any way mine is now accessible for the future. Thanks Alan(jb).
A.Batchelor
Trevor C B
Posts: 18
Joined: 09 Mar 2002, 04:40
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by Trevor C B »

Hello
I am the son that helped - Thanks to you all for your assistance with this.
Three points to mention.
1. The bolt had a captured washer which may be the reason we could not move it past the brake pedal.
2, We used Dave's Hack saw blade technique. We found the blade cut better with the teeth cutting on the down stroke rather than the other way (one has to indulge in the odd experiment when up against it) We taped the end of the blade. but I reccomend you use gloves and safty glasses to keep the fileings out of your eyes.
3. The cluth cable form Andy Spares looked different to the original. Can any one confirm they have fiited a A/S part with out any problem please.
4. Now the replacement bolt is in from the other side we can swap and cahnge the latest colour plastic clips as our mood takes us,
5. Does any one know where we can find information about any other obscure plastic bits that may need changing before we are let down on the road.
6 Find a friend with long fingers, slim hands and a yearn to be upside down for long periods. while you read the instructions.
7. For other sufferers. It can be done
A BIG THANKS TO ALL WHO HELPED US OVER COME THIS OBVIOUS DESIGN FAULT FROM A COMPANY THAT I FEEL GOES A LONG WAY TO GOOD DESIGN AND NICE CARS.
Trevor C B
Posts: 18
Joined: 09 Mar 2002, 04:40
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:

Post by Trevor C B »

It was 3 points and then I felt a rush go over me and there were 4,5,6,and 7 points there waiting for me to tell you
Dave Burns
Posts: 1915
Joined: 14 May 2001, 05:30
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:
x 2

Post by Dave Burns »

Hi Trevor, there was no captive washer on the pivot bolt on my car, just to explain how close it is though, I had to have the bolt positioned so that one of the flat's of the head was against the brake pedal as opposed to a point, otherwise it would not come out, now that's close.
The clutch cable should'nt look much different if it's the correct one, they are different for the turbo diesel and the naturally aspirated diesel.
The turbo has a pull type clutch and the non turbo has the normal push type clutch.
The plastic moulding that clip's into the recess on the gearbox is free to move up and down the cable for the turbo version, for the non turbo the moulding is anchored to the end of the outer cable.
The only other plastic bit's that may let you down are the ball link's between the height corrector's and the anti-roll bar, though they don't break, just flip off, carry a spare and make sure there is some grease on the ones fitted, or the steel ball's rust and the link comes off.
Make sure all car's a safely supported before venturing underneath, but especially hydro cit's, they can come down very fast so don't take any risk's.
Dave
douglas_xantia
Posts: 7
Joined: 17 Aug 2002, 04:16
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:
Contact:

Post by douglas_xantia »

I've just spent the day replacing the plastic clip on the clutch pedal.
Thankfully, I came here first & I thank the contributors very much for posting their experiences.
OK then - first job - remove the driver's seat and lift it on to the back seat - this way you can have a degree of comfort instead of suffering a bad back for a week.
My Xantia (1996 TD LX Estate) also had the fixed washer on the bolt, and although we did try loosening the brake valve, we could not clear the brake pedal. We had to resort to cutting the bolt with a hack saw. We could not find a long enough replacement bolt, so used an M8 x 75mm coachbolt, with a nut screwed up to the square. This then made sure the bolt did not foul the brake pedal.
To get the cable into the plastic clip - we gave the bullet end of the cable a good coating of vaseline - slid the cable into the plastic clip (one man on the engine side, one man upside down under the dash, one woman relaying various euphamisms between the two - and after a few tries, (with the pedal fully up and supported with a brick) we were able to push the cable into the plastic clip - you will hear it and know it is fully home.
Excluding the coffee & fag breaks, and the trip to the dealer (£5.49 for the clip), and the trip to the local joiners (40p for the coachbolt)it took us about 3 hours - we did, of course, put the bolt in the other way round - and used a 9mm spanner on the coachbolt end.
A satisfactory end to a 350 mile trip on a big lorry with yellow flashing lights, and a 17 foot caravan on the back. Did we have a good holiday? Yeah, Wales was good, the RAC were great, the Xantia has a bit to answer for right now...
Xantias are not ALL bad
User avatar
ukmobileman
Posts: 113
Joined: 22 Dec 2001, 21:52
Location: United Kingdom
My Cars:
Contact:

Post by ukmobileman »

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
I've just spent the day replacing the plastic clip on the clutch pedal.
Thankfully, I came here first & I thank the contributors very much for posting their experiences.
OK then - first job - remove the driver's seat and lift it on to the back seat - this way you can have a degree of comfort instead of suffering a bad back for a week.
My Xantia (1996 TD LX Estate) also had the fixed washer on the bolt, and although we did try loosening the brake valve, we could not clear the brake pedal. We had to resort to cutting the bolt with a hack saw. We could not find a long enough replacement bolt, so used an M8 x 75mm coachbolt, with a nut screwed up to the square. This then made sure the bolt did not foul the brake pedal.
To get the cable into the plastic clip - we gave the bullet end of the cable a good coating of vaseline - slid the cable into the plastic clip (one man on the engine side, one man upside down under the dash, one woman relaying various euphamisms between the two - and after a few tries, (with the pedal fully up and supported with a brick) we were able to push the cable into the plastic clip - you will hear it and know it is fully home.
Excluding the coffee & fag breaks, and the trip to the dealer (£5.49 for the clip), and the trip to the local joiners (40p for the coachbolt)it took us about 3 hours - we did, of course, put the bolt in the other way round - and used a 9mm spanner on the coachbolt end.
A satisfactory end to a 350 mile trip on a big lorry with yellow flashing lights, and a 17 foot caravan on the back. Did we have a good holiday? Yeah, Wales was good, the RAC were great, the Xantia has a bit to answer for right now...
Xantias are not ALL bad
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>
just on the coachbolt note - coachbolts are normally made of soft mild steel -you may want to change it to a better quailty bolt
G J Wright
Post Reply