Clutch Cable

[Rhothgar]

Bloody Norah!

Clutch cable just gone in the 'new' S1. Makes me realise why Paul likes S2's so much.

Not a job I fancy doing especially if it's as bad as doing a BX.

Any thoughts/feelings on cable quality? Genuine or pattern?

I thought cables didn't snap until clutch is ready for change

[Hell Razor5543]

Is it the cable or the clip that has failed? The clip is more likely, as it is the weakest part. Shine a torch up at the pedals to see. The original clip (which turned out to be a bit weak) was black, while the revised clip is cream. A replacement clip and spring from Citroen is about £5, so it makes good sense to get one from then, as opposed to a cheapie.

If it is the cable that has failed, try to get one from GSF rather than Citroen. When Gracie needed a replacement auto adjustor cable GSF charged me about £21 for a Motaquip cable, while Citroen wanted £43. Mind you, this was for a Series 2 Xantia cable.

Replacing the clip (or cable) isn't that difficult, just time consuming and you need to be very flexible (as you will end up upside down looking up at the pedals!). The only major (potential) problem is if the pedal bolt is the right (wrong!) way round, as it is a bitch to remove. There are guides on the forum on how to replace both clip and cable.

Good luck.

[Rhothgar]

Thanks hellrazor. Hopefully clip. Likely to be original as only 61k miles.

Bad back at the moment so not good. Can't get on drive either.

Thanks for prompt reply.

[Hell Razor5543]

I seriously hope that the clip has been replaced in the past, otherwise the pedal securing bolt will be as factory installed. This bolt needs to come out to allow the pedal to come out, and if it is the original (wrong, damnit!) way round it does not come out without a lot of persuasion/perseverance. As I said on my previous post, there are good notes on how to replace clip/cable. I have replaced the cable, and (second time around) it took about 2-3 hours, in the dark, it was drizzling, and I needed to get the car mobile in time for Christmas.

[Rhothgar]

Not sure if I've got off lightly yet. Hope so.

The metal clip has broken. I cannot see the end of the cable attached to the pedal. Cannot see a nipple either but in the engine bay the cable inner cannot be pulled out.

Is this a good sign?

Pushed it in as far as I could (which wasn't fully home) but still cannot see any cable in footwell.

So do I get a new metal clip only or plastic clip too?

[RichardW]

You'll need both bits of the clip - not worth only replacing half of it, and you'll probably find once you get it off that part of the plastic is missing anyway! It's very difficult to see the end of the cable in the foot well - to reconnect it to the pedal you will probably need to disconnect it and push it in from the gearbox end.

Info on it here: http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... 1&p=295044" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Looks like 11.5 years since I did it, and still scarred!! It's a lot easier if the bolt has already been out and is in the other way round

Price of the clip at Citroen doesn't seem too bad:


Part Number Description Quantity Price excl. VAT Price incl. VAT Total incl. VAT Selection
0000212821 CABLE LINKAGE 3.47 GBP 3.47 GBP 4.16 GBP 4.16 GBP 4.16 GBP 4.16 GBP

0000213805 CABLE STOP CLIP 1.22 GBP 1.22 GBP 1.46 GBP 1.46 GBP 1.46 GBP 1.46 GBP

[jgra1]

may souind obvious roth, but push the bellhousing clutch actuation lever back towards bulkhead too. that should get the inner cable back into the car interior.. (may)

remove drivers seat to help this (clutch cable clip) job
use head torch


don't do it if back is bad...

John

edit

to reconnect it to the pedal you will probably need to disconnect it and push it in from the gearbox end.

[Rhothgar]

Well guys.

It's half done. My back seemed fine so I thought I'd give it a shot.

A few questions before I give feedback on my experience and upload what I hope will be some useful comments / photos for others.

Clutch adjustment:-

I cannot find my Haynes manual so I used Sylv's ZX one.

150-160 mm. travel - is this correct for a Xantia?

Statement: As you wind the nut up on the cable, it moves the pedal towards the driver hence increasing the travel.

Question 2:

Am I right in assuming that if I keep tightening the nut that the actuation level on the bell housing will start to move towards the front of the car and start to release the clutch?

Question 3:

If the answer to question is yes, then am I right in assuming the lesser the pedal travel the better?

Statement:

The clip was indeed the original. As photo, the metal clip actually failed and broke a bit off the black clip. This has not been replaced with the cream clip and new metal clip.

Question 4:

What causes the clip to fail in general?

[citroenxm]

If it has a Black Clip then simply the clip design as theres NOT enough plastic in its construction.

If its a WHITE clip that’s failed then that can be signs of poor nylon bushes in the gearbox PLUS a heavy clutch indicating needing replacement soon.

[RichardW]

Q1 Haynes says 150 +/- 5mm for all models
Q2 Yes
Q3 Not really - if there is not enough travel then the clutch will probably not disengage properly, and the gears will crunch (which is not good for a BE3 box).

[Rhothgar]

Thanks guys.

Paul - black clip but this does not fully explain why it failed. Black clip, though not enough plastic, has served for nearly 19 years. Something causes it to go. There must be another reason.

Richard. Q1 - Nice clarification there. ZX manual simply states 150- 160 which whilst essential the same doesn't really indicate to actual try to set midway. Maybe me being a bit anal there but I like things to be cock-on.

Q3. So, to be on the safe side more travel is essentially better?

New question: Will more pedal travel give more usage before potential re-adjustment is required?

[citroenxm]

Its a sign the clutch is getting TOO heavey then Roger...

DO NOT adjust the pedal up too far, because if its too high and the travel ends at the gearbox end before the pedal gets to the floor you can potentially pull the cable out the clip AGAIN!!!!

Its a sign then that the nylon bushes and clutch will need replacement soon!

[Rhothgar]

It sounds as though the travel should be adjusted to the lower side of the travel then i.e. 150mm

I say this because:-

a) The clutch was not heavy
b) The nylon bushes and clutch are unlikely to need replacing soon as it only has 61k miles on it. S1 clutches start to slip and go around the 108k mark, then settle down again and last for another 20k miles minimum

Interesting, I can see the shine on the threaded end and I have already put the nut way past that and operated it to its full travel - no 'snappage'! At this amount of adjustment, I am sure that the actuation lever has still not moved.

I think I will slacken it off tomorrow and manually feel where the lever is no longer pullable by hand. I'll then retighten nut to where that naturally is and measure pedal travel again.

[citroenxm]

Well if the clutch is fine, then it IS the fact it was the original Clip! Compare them both, you will see there is hardley ANY plastic in the middle where the metal clip goes in...

Ive also had a few metal retainers break, but I think this is down to brittleness, why they should no idea. But IF I was you Roger, I wouldnt just fit the new Metal retainer, I would be changing the black clip too... But that IS GREAT FUN to do!

[Hell Razor5543]

The downside is that, as the original clip is still fitted, the pedal retaining bolt will almost certainly be the wrong way around. Take a look up at the pedal, and pray that the bolt head is on the gearbox side.