Clutch Cable Adjustment

brumby_boy · Post by **brumby_boy** » Fri Dec 26, 2014 10:46 am

Finally got to take the brumby out to the river yesterday Christmas day with a couple of kayaks up on top a custom built roof rack.
On the way I started having problems with gear changes and on arriving at the car-park lost them all except I managed a crunching reverse.
Stuck out on the road on a bend I quickly high tailed backward knocked down a road marker and landed in a ditch but safely off the road. No damage only a bent plastic road marker.

I immediately lifted the bonnet and adjusted the cable.
That solved the problem until I arrived home when again I lost the ability to gear change. I again screwed in the nuts this time all the way possible.

My question is why is this happening? The clutch hasn't been slipping.

Post by **TOONGA** » Fri Dec 26, 2014 11:49 am

Sounds like the support on the pedal box has given way.

Look up under the dash where the clutch pedal is. you will see where the cable connects to the pedal. the cable goes to a bracket that is spot welded to the pedal box. these spot welds break and the clutch cable doesn't work any more.

heres one that was fixed

TOONGA

brumby_boy · Post by **brumby_boy** » Sat Dec 27, 2014 11:09 am

Thanks Toonga for the advise. I just checked under the dash to find someone previous had done some spot welding. Our roads must be a bit more savage or we are heavier footed then the Japanese.
Then I looked under the bonnet and found the cable boot was hiding a damaged cable held on by one thread. 6 had already broken and started unravelling. This may have caused the adjustment to shift around.

I have just pulled the cable out after a bit of an uncomfortable contortion.
I do have an unused 84 Touring wagon parked down in the paddock and wonder if that cable would fit??

The other option is to wait to Suabits in Melbourne opens again and ask if they have one available.
Well I suppose I could try a bit more contortion.

Post by **TOONGA** » Sat Dec 27, 2014 11:26 am

The cable from the 84 touring wagon will fit.

and not a problem

TOONGA

Silverbullet · Post by **Silverbullet** » Sat Dec 27, 2014 2:08 pm

^^Should fit^^

Dunno if it is a difference between earlier year models or just wagons and utes but, my wagons clutch cable was completely different to my utes. My brum has a cable bracket like the one in your pic TOONGA (which uses this cable: )
but my wagon had a much flimsier cable mounting system and the cables were not inter-changeable.

Brumby boy if your Brumby has a cable that mounts to the pedal box with 2 big washers and a spring clip, you can buy the cable new on ebay (link above) Also do yourself and your back a favor and remove the pedal box from the car so you can squash all those rubber grommets and washers together enough to get the spring clip in. Believe it or not I found it easier this way then trying to do it one-handed, upside down in the dark under the dash.

brumby_boy · Post by **brumby_boy** » Tue Dec 30, 2014 9:55 am

Thank you Toonga and Silverbullet.
Firstly the touring wagon cable definitely is the same and I removed it in 5 minutes flat. If ony that speed could have continued.

Silverbullet if I had read your post before I proceeded to install the cable I would have saved myself 3 HOURS. First attempt was an hour and bitten by mosquitoes. Gave up and returned the next day feeling ready for anything.

I managed to jam a piece of wood in to compress those grommets and left handedly squeezed on the clip and then tapped it with a small tack hammer.

Two hours.
Next time off comes that pedal box.

One more question if I may.

I have run out of thread on the clutch cable adjustment and installed a 10 mm rubber spacer to allow more tightening. I gather this would indicate that the clutch plate wear is complete though there doesn't to be any symptom of slipping. Am I up for another plate soon?

Silverbullet · Post by **Silverbullet** » Tue Dec 30, 2014 11:46 am

I had a similar problem on my ute once, the clutch fork was just flapping in the breeze for 80% of it's travel loose as a goose before it actually started pushing on the clutch, and I knew the friction plate had heaps of life left in it. Can't help you though, I never got to the bottom of it before I had the gearbox replaced for a different reason and the problem went away. Possibly it was something to do with the throwout bearing, or maybe in your case you just need a new clutch.

My hat goes off to you for getting the cable together under the dash

brumby_boy · Post by **brumby_boy** » Tue Dec 30, 2014 5:56 pm

Silverbullet wrote:I had a similar problem on my ute once, the clutch fork was just flapping in the breeze for 80% of it's travel loose as a goose before it actually started pushing on the clutch, and I knew the friction plate had heaps of life left in it. Can't help you though, I never got to the bottom of it before I had the gearbox replaced for a different reason and the problem went away. Possibly it was something to do with the throwout bearing, or maybe in your case you just need a new clutch.

My hat goes off to you for getting the cable together under the dash

That is reassuring Silverbullet. I am not in a hurry to do an epic clutch renewal. I still have the cracked windscreen to deal with now. I am considering removing the '84 touring wagons windscreen but was told they are impossible to remove. Is that true? and will IT fit.

My brumby is a workhorse and a magnificent one at that. I must confess I am also a MY03 forester/foz owner now.

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Wed Dec 31, 2014 11:08 am

it is strange with clutch cables on these MY. The one that seems to be easily after market available from flexible drive agencies - is to suit the earlier up to 83 MY. I managed to make one of these fit my 84 made 85MY ute that had the later type installed before. Was a bastard of a job.

Another suggestion made in here is to modify to take L Series cable, even up to making an L Sries pedal box fit. If you can make a pedal box fit, no need to modify its clutch cable mounting, just , maybe, need to fit MY accy pedal on the pivot BUT going by all the minute differences between MY and L - the pedal box is not a bolt up and the accy pedal pivot, I can see it being a pain too.

Once I get over the failed attempt to fit L front struts in my Brumby, I am gonna try an RX pedal box conversion.

No trouble getting MY front screens out when not saving the rubber. Stanley knife or the like and just cut it out !