At last success, "How to replace clutch pedal clip &

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falling-out-with-my-car
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At last success, "How to replace clutch pedal clip &

Post by falling-out-with-my-car »

before I start I should point out that this was done on a MK2 Citroen Xantia, I should point out also that his is a fairly big job and demands a fair strip down of the steering and steering colunm.

First of all read the haynes manual and remove the battery posative lead on your xantia Mk2, wrap it in something non-conductive to be sure it won't hit the metal body of the car.
remove the air filter box next to the battery, then remove the plate beneath the air filter box (three 10mm bolts) this will allow you access to the clutch cable at the gearbox end.Wait ten mins for the airbag capacitors to discharge otherwise the next step could fire the airbag in the steering wheel.
get into the car and insert your ignition key turn the key so that you can move the steering wheel 45 degrees left or right put a small compact mirror in front of the speedo as you turn the wheel through 45 degrees you will see a small hole in the back of the wheel use a star key to loosen the bolt inside the hole, turn the wheel through 180 degrees and do the same on the other side of the steering wheel, the airbag will now come away from the centre of the wheel, there are 3 leads connecting the airbag unit to the wiring loom one is green (earth) and one is red (live) remember where they go and remove the spade connectors from the air bag unit, try not to touch the metal surface of the rear of the airbag with both hands I have heard that the body contains enough static to fire the air bag but this remains to be seen.carefully unplug the Orange connector from the centre of the airbag unit, now place the airbag unit in the boot between 2 pillows better safe than sorry.
the centre of the steering wheel now exposed undo the star key bolt in the middle of the wheel with the steering wheel in it's locked position, don't worry citroens steering locks are so strong I have seen someone trying to break one with a ten fot scafold pole in the steering wheel and it still wouldn't budge. next carefully unplug the two plugs inside the steering wheel that connect to the ribbon cable that leads to the radio controls.
give the steering wheel a good hard tug wriggle the wheel from left to right and it should come away from the steering colum be careful not to snag the connectors in the hole at the bottom of the center part of the steering wheel they can only pass through the hole one at a time safely.
congratulations you have removed the airbag and steering wheel, easy isn't it.
Now you will have the tricky bit staring you in the face if you smoke go and have a ciggy it will help trust me if not go and have a cuppa it may help to.
Next remove the airbag rotating connector around the steering colum this looks like a large plastic washer with 2 white arrows at the top of it, if you rotate the centre by pushing the steering wheel connector leads left or right you will see the top white arrow change direction these arrows need to be aligned to replace the steering wheel later on.
once you have identified the three retainning screws holding this circular wiring connector to the colunm look to the upper right hand side, if you look carefully you will see that a flat rubberised cable enters the top right hand quarter of the colunm through a gap in the wiper switch arm holder, this cable tucks into the round cassette that surrounds the steering colum the circular object you have just undone the 3 star key screws on.
where the flat rubberised cable enters the back upper right part of the colunm look for a plastic flap that unclips releasing the flat rubberised cable from the cassette you should now be able to retrieve the circular cassette from around the steering colunm, take it very slow and be careful the ribbon cable should extend from the upper right hand quarter as you retrieve the cassette. let the circular cassette hang down on the floor for a moment. now undo the 3 brass coloured star key screws holding the right and left switch stalks to the steering colum. you may now remove the switch stalks by pushing in the buttions on the plugs behind and pulling them away from the connectors.
roll the ribbon cable into the cassette and place this and the stalk unit on top of the dashboard.
remove the upper and lower cowling from the steering colum.
remove all plastic covers from the underside of the steering colum and the fuse box cover there are four screws behind the drivers side fuse box.
Unplug all plugs beneath the steering colum, don't panic most of them are colour coded or only fit certain sockets you really can't go wrong.
Now with the steering colunm exposed and all leads disconnected undo the four 13mm nuts securing the steering upper and lower brackets to the upper dashboard (this is called the steering colum support bracket but is not mentioned in the haynes manual).
Do not remove the colum bracket nuts completely as yet.
Now remove the lower steering colunm universal joint connector again a 13mm bolt the nut cannot be removed it is fixed to the lower part of the colunm just in front of your clutch pedal.
now remove the steering column 13mm retainning nuts and pull the steering colunm free from the dashboard and place it in the passenger footwell after replacing the lower steering universal joint pinch bolt(remember the bolt that you undid in front of the clutch pedal).
You have now gained an extra 10 inches of room beneath the dashboard.
Now pull back the carpet from behind the pedals you will find that there are some lugs retainning the carpet behind the pedals fold the carpet back about 10inches. now place a mirror roughly the size of an A4 piece of paper under the clutch and brake pedals, lift one end of the mirror so it is at a slight angle so to not break your field of view to the back of the pedals when working behind them. light the mirror with a lead light or 150 watt flood lamp. this light will reflect behind the pedals lighting your way through the job of removing the clutch pedal.
Now the mk1 method is to remove the plastic barrel behind the brake pedal but this is not possible on the Mk2 so we have to work between the pedals.
carefully note the position of the brass coloured nut to the right of the clutch pedal piviot point and the silver coloured bolt head to the left of the clutch pedal piviot point in the reflection of the mirror.
this is where you will have to learn to work with a reverse image it takes a little bit of practice but it will save you a lot of frustraition trying to tuck yourself under the dash board, it might seem a little pointless removing the steering colum but later on you will need to get into the foot well and it will save you half killing yourself trying to squeeze into such a small space, believe you me if you get cramp in your legs when your tucked under the dashboard you will want to get out quickly and the steering colunm and steering wheel will just imprision you making it very hard to get in and out of such a small space. now remove the compressed spring mounted on the right hand side of the clutch pedal, pull down the top of the spring to compress it at the end with the single clip.
right if you are still with me well done you are about 2 hours in and three hours from finishing the job altogether. have a ciggy if you smoke youre going to need it or a cuppa if you don't. and stretch those legs a bit.
now if your ready using a rachet 13mm ring spanner squeeze the spanner between the brake pedal and the clutch pedal and hook it over the brass clutch piviot nut hold it in position with your right hand and carefully insert a normal 13mm ring spanner attached to the silver coluored clutch piviot bolt head on the left hand side of the clutch pedal, you can do all this looking in the mirror there is no need to squash yourself under the dashboard. using the ratchet at first undo the nut slowly and carefully be sure to have the ratchet spanner around the right way before inserting and positionning it onto the nut it can be very frustraiting locating the nut with the rachet spanner and finding out your turnning the rachet spanner in the wrong direction.
once the piviot bolt and nut are loose use both spanners against each other to create more movement on the loosening process. take a break if necessary it can be very difficult in an awkward position turning spanners with both hands. once the nut is free from the bolt put your left hand up to the far left of the frame beside the clutch peddle and there is a large hole in the metal freamework you will be able to withdraw the bolt by grabbing the bolt head and turnning it as if to unscrew it from its position.
you will need to use this technique to reposition the bolt later on.
with the bolt out and the nut retrieved turn the clutch pedal to the right and lower it to the floor.
Contratulations you have removed the clutch pedal, take a break and gloat to someone how much of a B**8ard of a job that was and how you will give the car the benefit of the doubt in not playing up again for another year before you condem her to the scrap heap.
Replace the plastic clutch cable retainer housing on the pedal with the new one you have bought from your local citroen dealer and make a note of the position of the clip if there is anything left of it.
push on the clip so that it will face the front of the pedal so that it can be pushed home once the pedal is back in place, this is when you will need to get under the dash to see the cable guided into the round tube in the nylon replacement. the clip should only be put on so that half of it is locked in on one side, you will se what I mean as you put the cip on to the nylon retainer.
superglue the brass nut to an ordinary open ended 13mm spanner and spray with some cynocroyaloate hardner this makes the glue dry very brittle and makes the spanner snap away from the nut once it is in position quite easily.
using your glued in nut hold it in place on the right hand side of the clutch pedal housing with the pedal replaced in position and by hand replace the bolt through the upper left hand framework push the bolt through the pedal piviot alluminium tube and out of the other side be careful not to push the bolt to far as it will be difficult to locate the nut screw the bolt into the the first couple of threads of the nut and tighten slightly using a normal type 13mm ring spanner and your mirror to locate the bolt head.
Now snap away the open ended spanner from the right hand side and put your rachet ring spanner back on the nut and tighten the nut and bolt securing the clutch pedal in place. do not worry if the pedal has some side to side play this will be taken up by the spring and cable adjuster.
Remove the mirror from the floor and get a friend to release the clutch cable from the arm on top of the gearbox in the engine bay.
Now while you are tucked up in the foot well with your light shinning right up behind the pedals locate the new nylon clutch retainning tube and the half clipped on clip ask your friend to manipulate the clutch cable by pushing it in or out until you are able to locate it in the end of the nylon tube you fitted to the clutch pedal,(you may find a pair of long forceps for pike fishing somewhat useful positionning the cable here).
Once the cable is inside the tube lift the clutch pedal and ask your friend to push on the cable as haerd as possiable whilst you push the centre of the clip into position with a very long screwdriver this might need a tap a small mallet but be careful the clip is brittle and could split in half if you are to heavy handed. better to use a blunt drift of some sort rather than a screwdriver with a sharp blade. ask your friend to pull the clutch cable towards him/her and you should push the clutch pedal to the floor asking your friend if he/she can feel the cable being pulled away from him/her.
go round to the engine bay and rwefit the clutch cable to the gearbox lever and go and sit in the drivers seat and try the clutch peddle to see if it is pulling the clutch in, if you feel resistance then you have acheived what i would consider to be one of the most horrible jobs i have ever had to do on an xantia you will also have save yourself about £400 in a citroen garge or £140 in a clutchfit centre if you can find one that is willing to do the job. I hate to say this but I am giong to have to after writing now for over an hour "the rebuild is the reverse of the stripdown" good luck I have tried to explain how the airbag conections go you should find it fairly straight forward, I hope you have yur steroe codes as well because when you reconnect the battery it will have forgotten the code.
Remember do not be tempted to reconnect the battery posative lead until you have checked that every connection has been made and the airbag has been restored to its orriginal position. I have heard that the computer may think you have had an accident and the airbag has fired if it is not connected and the electronic imobiliser may not permit you to start the engine even if you do reconnect the airbag at a later time, be patient and take your time and you will be rewarded.

good luck

if you have any questions about this job simply post a reply and I will get your message mailed to me i will try to help if i can.
I would like to say a big Thank you to everyone that contacted me with regards to this job on this website, Thank You everyone.

Best wishes , Nigel. Northants. UK.
citronut
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Post by citronut »

i thought APRIL the first was a few days ago, you can not be serious, i do these in under an hour without removing almost any of what you list,
and to top it all your bolt must have already been out before as it had been re/fitted the easy way (bolt head on the left of clutch peddle)
regards malcolm
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falling-out-with-my-car
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under an hour you must be joking

Post by falling-out-with-my-car »

I think you might be talkjing about a Mk1 Xantia but there you go this was my first attempt and I do have an SX Diesel which has a dam great metal plate which the steering colunm hangs on and that plate skirts the front of the pedals so you cannot phisically get under the dashboard with the steering wheel and colunm in place well not at least if you weight 20 stone and have very broard shoulders, I am also Physically disabled and I have an inoperable inguinal hernia, so stetching under the dash has rendered me quite incapacatated for some time to come, and in considerable pain.

The bolt was confirmed as the orriginal at the citroen garage and the schematic drawing showed the bolt entering from the left hand side on the MK 2 and the nut on the right hand side next to the brake pedal, so no change there then. even the black plastic bit was the orriginal componant.
I found this job reasonably easy but you may not, I have had the airbag out several times before its really not a problem.
I would like to see you do this job on an Xantia Mk 2 in under an hour I think the dream world ppl live in on here has no relevance to actual real time at all unless they are a mechanic and do this every other day of the week and even then things are never really that simple, not all xantias share the same specification, as others have pointed out when I asked about removing the steering colunm support bracket earlier on. the Mk 1 xantia is relatively easy and the support bracket does not skirt the pedals in short, ppl on here have looked at both cars and acknoledged that there is a difference between the two models. ask citrojim he owns both models and has looked and acknowledged the difference.
he to accepts that the job would be somewhat more difficult in the MK 2 than the Mk 1. oh! and another thing citronut at least I acheived it first time with no mistakes, I have tried to explain in some detail how I did it If you don't want my help thats your problem if you had done it the same way I would have at least had the balls to say congratulations mate well done and not got critical right off the mark, I though this forum thing was meant to be a method of support for all citroen enthusiasts not another medium for everyone to critisize other people, I can go into any chatroom anytime for that sort of crap. I am very happy with the result and I feell I have acheived something yesterday even if It did mean stripping down the inside of the car to some extent.

Regards Nigel. Northants.
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Post by citroenesque »

I have to agree with the above. It's awfully poor forum etiquette to slag off someone for trying - even if you believe it was largely wasted effort. C'mon, give the guy a break.

:evil:
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Post by MikeT »

Hi Nigel, just thought I'd say thanks for taking the time to write that up. I don't know if it's already been covered as I've never had reason to look it up but if I do, now I know where to come.

I can empathise with the suffering you endure - I have canal stenosis which makes me very reluctant to take on such jobs owing to the days and days of pain and misery that follows so a remarkable achievement all round.

I support your call to denounce destructive criticism from forums such as these - I think there should be a rule to deter it as it invariably leads to petty personal squabbles. Some people can't help themselves and ruin it for the good of all though I don't actually believe Malcolm is one those despite how his post appears. :lol:
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Post by citronut »

very sorry for you to take my post like that Nigel, it certainly was not ment to be critical in any way what so ever,

its just i am a mechanic and i have never heard of this job beeing done that way before,

i was actualy sorry to hear you spending that much time and effort on the job

kind regards
malcolm
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Post by masood_ilyas »

Hi Citronut,
With my tongue firmly in my cheek can I suggest that you compensate the poor fellow's hurt feelings by offering to do his heating matrix! :lol:

Best regards
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Post by miked »

Sorry, slightly off topic but on a Mk 1, the clutch pedal can be removed without cutting the bolt. There is enough space to withdraw the bolt enough so it exits one side of the bracket, then the other side of the bracket can be bent with the bolt and pedal still attached until it can be removed.
Sounds brutal and I guess it must weaken the bracket but I was told to do it this way by the citroen dealer when I bought the new clip. Worked a treat.
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Post by citronut »

masood_ilyas wrote:Hi Citronut,
With my tongue firmly in my cheek can I suggest that you compensate the poor fellow's hurt feelings by offering to do his heating matrix! :lol:

Best regards
i was only giving my oppinion and certainly had no intention of offending anyone, also if you read my last reply i have apolagised before you went offering other peoples services even with your tongue firmly in your cheek

kind regards
malcolm
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no worries mate/more problems with car

Post by falling-out-with-my-car »

Citronut,

I am happy with the result to a certain extent anyway, except to say I now have to put the dam car on axle stands at the front and let down the suspension as I seem to have a steering problem.

Took the car 50miles yesterday on the way to Northampton I noticed a problem turning right esspecially around roundabouts, I don't know if this has been caused by my removing the steering colum or not but on cornering i can certainly say it is all to easy to oversteer right.
the strange sensation of the drivers side wheel at just over a quarter turn of the wheel feels as though I am going into oversteer, it is alnost as though the traction on the drivers side front wheel lets go when cornering so I'm off to play with my money pit again today, I seem to have lost all sensation of the road surface. the steering colum had a little play in it before wherby I could jiggle the colunm up and down whilst gripping the wheel now there is no play at all which is a good thing I guess. I put back every single nut, bolt and screw I had none left over at the end of the job which is also a good thing I hope. as for critism I can take it to some extent but I thought I made a good efort for my first attempt remember the mirror stunt bit thats got to be worth some praise.
I trained to be a mechanic in 1982 but then we trained on old fords we only had the cluth rachet and pawl device to worry about in those days and boy oh boy that one will really steel some skin from you hands, I remember the pedal spring with a hook on the end and punching the floor trying to get the hook throught the pedal with a piece of fencing wire with a loop on the end. placing a cushion on the floor helped as per say i can definately vouch that it was much more difficult than the xantia system.

Regards Nigel.
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Post by citronut »

i have heard on hear someone said they have done a clutch clip by removing the instrument panle to gain access,

yes Nigle i have had that spring stuck in my finger before now whilst trying to pull it into place on the F**D ratchet system,

im not sure what the fault might be with your steering though

kind regards
malcolm
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Joined: 06 Apr 2008, 15:26
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My Cars: Citroen C5 Aircross 8 speed Automatic, Flair Model with far to many toys and nice comfy armchair like leather seats. ha ha Ive just had a conversation with the car. setting everything up verbally
x 24

steering fault found

Post by falling-out-with-my-car »

citronut,

Hmm I thought it was something I had done but apparently not, I have unusually not replaced the front brake pads as early this year I brake quite heavily or to put it another way very late becuse the one thing I do trust on my Xantia is the brakes they are usually always kept in tip top condition, this year however I have let them wear down to over half worn, the auto adjust has been a bit over zealous and tightened the handbrake up a bit to much so i let it off about half a turn on each side and that cured the strange pulling whilst turnning right, whilst in the air I checked my bottom ball joints (on the car stupid) lol, and cv joints, well why waste the good use of a trolley jack?, I am getting p***ed of with the local moggy urinating on the front of my car and when I need to get underneath PWEWW! what a stink.
Thats it If it goes wrong again this year I'm buying a sledge hammer to keep in the boot so it respects me more, Ive heard it actually works the car gets a little scared.....lol.
It seems you don't like the word F**D then just like my aversion to the word OVLOV spelt backwards, if i say it forwards my car breaks down guarenteed every time something goes wrong with the car, I shall probably regret typing it now. my dislike came from an older car that had a very strange gearbox system with the clutch between the back wheels and 2 propshafts.

regards Nigel.
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