REALLY stiff clutch pedal - 020 Mk2 Jetta

Hi,

I've just put an 020 5 speed box into my Mk2 89 Jetta, haven't used the box before as I bought it to replace my auto.

I put a brand new clutch in and a new clutch cable (manual adjust) when fitting the box.

The clutch pedal is REALLY stiff, so much so that on the way home from the workshop today the cable clip snapped where it meets the clutch pedal!!! So I had to go home on a tow rope!!

I tried several different adjustments on the cable - at it's loosest the clutch pedal was very stiff to depress and didn't return at all once depressed. When adjusted almost fully tight, the pedal was easier to depress (but still very stiff) and returned but relatively slowly. The biting point of the clutch was after about one inch of travel, i.e. very high.

All gears select and drive perfectly, so no problem there I don't think.

When the box was out of the car, the release lever (think that's the right name - the arm that the cable connects to) had about 1 inch of free up and down movement, and the pushrod moved freely in and out when actuating it. Other than this free movement I couldn't easily move the lever up or down.

I'm not intimately acquainted with this gearbox so have no idea why it is so stiff to press the pedal. Could the release bearing be seized? Or is this stiffness just normal with a new clutch?!

Any ideas as to what I can do to sort this out would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers
George

 

George,

When you say...

....are you saying that the clutch release arm was stiff to actuate when the box was lying on the floor refore fitting? If so then there's something wrong as this should not be the case! The arm should have moved freely and the pushrod should have come out of the centre of the input shaft as you activated the lever.

 

Hi Tim,

Well... the release arm moved up and down, and the push rod went in and out of the input shaft - BUT the movement in the release arm was very free and only about 1" - 1.5". From memory the push rod probably projected at most 1".

This struck me as 'play' - but perhaps this is the correct amount of movement? (Like I say I don't know too much about gearboxes!)

The thing is though, if this is the correct amount of movement - with the cable as loose as possible, i.e. the plastic cup at the end of the cable screwed right up with no thread visible, the pedal is super stiff and doesn't return once depressed.

That said - I might be being a complete idiot, and should be doing the opposite and screwing the cup right out so that all the thread is visible?!

 

If you've converted this from auto to manual yourself, are you sure that the hole in the bulkhead is lined up properly with the pedal? Was it just a question of taking a blanking plug out or did you have to make the hole?

Other than that I'd be trying to push the pedal without a clutch cable attached - is it still very stiff? It should be pretty easy to push without a cable on it, and a bit firmer with the cable, but still easy enough that little old ladies can drive them without popping their hip out.

The lever on the side of the box should pull up to about the 9 o'clock position easily, and then be very stiff.

 

Thanks for that Mike.

The hole for the clutch cable was just blanked off by a grommet, so I popped it out and the tube that's part of the pedal box popped through, so hopefully in the right place.

The release arm moves up to 9 o'clock easily, like you mention. And the pedal with no cable attached moves really easily - once it hits a certain point it snaps back to the bulkhead.

I've been thinking about it and I think I've been really dense...

I assumed the easy movement of the release arm was play, but of course when the push rod comes into contact with the pressure plate it will become stiffer as the pressure plate resists it. Am I right in thinking this?

I can't work out why though it's still so stiff and slow to return with the cup wound right out of the cable...

I really hope I haven't deformed the push rod!!!

 

What he said... but first... has the gearbox actually got any oil in it? Probably, if you've been able to drive it without lots of nasty noises, but if the box is low on oil, then the pushrod and release bearing might not have enough lube.

 

Thanks guys.

The gearbox was drained an refilled with 2 litres of oil when fitting.
I lubed the release plate and end of push rod, but not the pressure plate fingers. I also lubed the spline of the friction plate and the input shaft (didn't have moly grease so used a PTFE lubricant).

The clutch is a cheapish kit from Ebay - 'National' branded, orange box.

The push rod moved very freely in and out of the input shaft, so I think this is ok, but will have to check on the release bearing - thanks for the links, good site.

I'm waiting on a new clutch cable later today - can I just confirm how I should be setting it...

Am I right in thinking the free movement in the release arm up to 9 o'clock, should be taken up by the cable adjustment as through this movement the push rod is not in contact with the release plate? The clutch then being released by the movement in the arm from 9 o'clock upwards?

Or, should the movement up to 9 o'clock be maintained as slack?

Thanks

 

I don't generally lube pressure plate fingers and have never had an issue. There's probably enough oil coming out of the crank seal to keep it all moist

 

As Mike and RJ said, but the point I was trying to find out was what was the resistance like on the lever before you put box in the car? You should have been able to lift the lever all the way up with very little or no resistance as the pushrod is acting against fresh air not the clutch pressure plate. If you had resistance then that would suggest an issue with the release bearing not sliding properly in the housing within the box.

 

I've just fitted a new clutch cable and discovered in doing so that the one that snapped must in fact be the wrong cable... It's a fair bit longer than the new one, though each end is pretty much the same. It was sold to me as the correct item.

Now the new cable is on, the pedal depresses easily and returns easily, thank god!

However, the pedal only has about 2" of travel until it is fully depressed - it sits much further back than the other two pedals. This is with the cup wound right out (about 5mm from fully wound out) and 10mm play on the release arm as RJ suggests.

Feel like a bit of an idiot now - but as it was auto before I didn't know the cable was wrong as I had nothing to compare to!

 

Good to hear it's now sorted mate Do you have the rubber spacers/guides in the gearbox where the cable goes through and also under the clutch lever where the cable goes through?

Easier to show you a pic than try and dsescribe.....lol



I'm talking about numbers 23, 22 & 33 (33 is a kit of parts including a rubber damper block, a metal shaped plate and the slotted securing piece)

 

There's 2 sizes of damper too, 1 thick and 1 thin.

 

As Mart says, I think the thick one was for the auto adjusting cable and the thin for the manual.....but not 100% certain about that!

 

if the clutch pedal is sitting very low you may need to take up a bit more slack on the cable, with the clutch fully depressed and the engine running, is the clutch fully disengaged? e.g easy to get into reverse without crunching. the biting point will be really low, which is not a bad thing as long as you can get it into gears, its better than riding the clutch.

 

Hi all,

Sorry for the late reply - been away with work for a few days.

I've made a video to show what the score is, perhaps you could take a look and see if it suggests anything? http://youtu.be/jNUAmdQ1W74

Re the diagram above posted by Tim, I have part number 33, but not 22 and 23.

As stated in the video, with the clutch pedal fully depressed I can change gear but it crunches 50% of the time and is very difficult to get 1st and 2nd. I'm pretty sure the shifter is set up right as all gears can be selected easily when the engine isn't running.

Thanks in advance,
George

 

You need to get hold of 23 for sure as this makes a big difference George.

Tim