Zel's Fleet Blog - BX, Jag XJ-S, Sinclair C5, Mercedes 208D & 230TE, AC Model 70.

[Rp0thejester]

Regarding the Trabant, I thought it was an automatic as I only saw 2 pedals. Having looked closer at your pictures, is the accelerator that little stubby thing on the right without a 'pad' like the brake and clutch? Or am I completely wrong and it doesn't have a clutch as such?

[Zelandeth]

Regarding the Trabant, I thought it was an automatic as I only saw 2 pedals. Having looked closer at your pictures, is the accelerator that little stubby thing on the right without a 'pad' like the brake and clutch? Or am I completely wrong and it doesn't have a clutch as such?

The accelerator pedal is definitely smaller than the clutch/brake. Which makes sense given it's transmitting nearly zero force and only needs a fraction of the travel.

Pedals are offset a long way to the right because of the wheel tub.

Unlike certain other manufacturers though when faced with this problem they just stuck with a normal pedal spacing and accepted that the rightmost pedal is actually past the centre line of the car, rather than to cram the pedals in as tightly as possible meaning you need to wear ballet shoes to drive the thing. Lancia, I am particularly looking at you.

[Rp0thejester]

So effectively you could have 'a back seat driver' controlling your acceleration. Thank goodness it's not standard practice on vehicles

[Zelandeth]

I know it seems a bit strange to us, but it's going to be a pretty similar case in any left hand drive car with a flat or nearly flat floor. Just with it being a small car and with the floor being totally flat it's really quite obvious to see there in the Trabant.

[Rp0thejester]

Does the clutch work as a modern car or is it one of those double d clutch things I read about?

[mickthemaverick]

Double declutch is a usage method of a normal clutch which helps changing down when you have no synchromesh or straight cut gears on sport gearboxes. It simply refers to the method of changing down in two stages:
1 clutch in and take out of gear
2 release clutch ( de clutch)
3 rev engine to match road speed for lower gear
4 depress clutch second time
5 put into new gear
6 release clutch (2nd de clutch) to restore drive in the new lower gear.
Hence double de clutch.

Obviously it is much quicker when performed than when described!!

[Zelandeth]

No need to double declutch in the Trabant, it's got syncromesh on all forward gears. So aside from the gear lever being in a bit of an odd place, that all works as you'd expect.

Oh, and there being a freewheel device on fourth, so when you take your foot off the throttle the engine just drops to idle without you having to touch the clutch.

[Zelandeth]

Owner change, tax and insurance all sorted out today. Insurance is about a third of the price it is on the P6.

Now we just wait. Hopefully getting picked up roughly midday tomorrow.

Arriving when it's entirely too hot to do anything save for briefly run outside, maybe grab a photo or two and then run back inside again of course.

[Rp0thejester]

No mention of it on your blog, any photos to share before it arrives?

[mickthemaverick]

No mention of it on your blog, any photos to share before it arrives?

Oh yes there is!!

viewtopic.php?p=841492#p841492

[Rp0thejester]

I meant on his own official blog, last update was 12/12/24

[Zelandeth]

If that's my website you're pointing at, yeah it is always going to be quite a way behind as it takes a while to write and update things there.

I don't have a huge number of photos to share yet. Hopefully fix that tomorrow afternoon/Friday morning.

[Rp0thejester]

Firstly am I spelling 'meant' correctly in that context. Secondly, yes ZEL I was referring to your website. Looking forward to an update soon.

[mickthemaverick]

Yes you are spelling 'meant' correctly.

[Zelandeth]

Car has been collected and is en route. Current ETA is around 1830.

Already ordered the first parts for it after the seller poked a hole in a coolant line yesterday. It's been patched with something they had on hand so is currently water tight at least. The line in question isn't expensive and I'd definitely have changed it as a precaution anyway based on my experience with the metal lines on my previous example where they were all paper thin. No reason to expect this to be any different. Just normal old car things.