I've nearly had enough...

[Stu_CDX]

Driving through Cambridge, my clutch cable decided to snap off at the gear box end.

Someone tell me this isn't what Maestro ownership is about!

Was wondering, how do I change it? There is a new one in the boot and I am going to attempt to change them over.

How is it done and is it a reasonably easy thing to do? I've got tons of tools and so on, but can someone give me a walk through and so on?

Pics would be great.

Stu.

[G51 NAV]

Sorry you're having a bad time. No, generally they are not mechanically unreliable but as always with any used car you are at the mercy of p/os' maintenance and/or bodges, plus let's not forget the youngest production models are 13 years old. Hope you get it sorted :)

If there is a new one in the boot, presumably someone knew the current one was on its last legs.

Also if you really want help, perhaps remove the somewhat insulting 'nazi camp' comments in your signature, which from your previous comments I presume (wrongly? sorry if that's the case) to be aimed at this club or forum.

[Peter J]

Hi,

First thing is did you lose the clips that hold the cable at the gearbox end - for further info click this link http://www.maestro.org.uk/forums/showthread.php?p=67620#post67620

If you have still got those clips, and its the usual self adjusting type,
I think the only tools you need are a pair of pliers to pull out the circlip to release the self adjuster on the new cable. Then its a straight forward job and quick job to fit. :)

If you have lost the clips there are several bodges you can use that will work ok, you just have to bear in mind the cable is liable to chafe at the clutch lever joint.

Whats the 'nazi camp' signature about?

[KitBryson]

Hi Stu,
As Peter has said it’s an easy enough job if you just follow the old cable from end to end, once fitted you just need to pump the pedal to take up the slack.
Don’t get too down hearted though, old cars go wrong and things wear out. The cable was probably the original so has had a good long life before snapping. Owning and running an old vehicle is largely preventive medicine, change anything which is likely to snap or wear and you’ll narrow trouble down significantly and get to know your car as you do it.
Now really impress us and tell that despite the cable snapping you managed to drive home?:cool:
HTH
KitBryson

[threelitre]

The change is - as detailed above - very easy.

This happened to me 3 times now. The first time I was afraid of driving on, but the last occasions I wasn't anymore. Make sure the car starts well with 1st gear engaged, everything else you need is a bit of sympathy in your hand and right foot :)

Regards,
Alexander

[Stu_CDX]

Hi Stu,
As Peter has said it’s an easy enough job if you just follow the old cable from end to end, once fitted you just need to pump the pedal to take up the slack.
Don’t get too down hearted though, old cars go wrong and things wear out. The cable was probably the original so has had a good long life before snapping. Owning and running an old vehicle is largely preventive medicine, change anything which is likely to snap or wear and you’ll narrow trouble down significantly and get to know your car as you do it.
Now really impress us and tell that despite the cable snapping you managed to drive home?:cool:
HTH
KitBryson

I drove home using a variety of roads... Was up to national speed limit as I had full use of the gears, just have to change gear so that when the gear goes in, the engine is at the right rev's and so on.

Problem was pulling off... Managed to put it in gear with the engine off and start it off with the starter motor.

Missus' was impressed.... I wasn't tho! :rolleyes:

[Stu_CDX]

Done it myself...

**** easy job. Am going to cable tie the spacers back on to avoid losing them.

Never done anything so easy! But, the cable in the boot was an AA repaired one. The bobbled bit on the end was an AA jobbie.

It'll do for now. Clutch now feels a lot nicer although, anything is better than a flimsy pedal with nothing on the end!

[countrydude]

i'm glad to hear you sorted it, are you now going to remove that charming line about this forum? It seems stupid to me to be so derogatory about everyone on here but you are perfectly happy to get their advice about your problem cable?

Either you do think this is a nazi camp or you don't.

If you don't and you are going to continue to ask for advice then remove it.

Otherwise ...

Take offense if you like but it is you causing the offense as it stands.

[D87 SMW]

As I said it's a simple enough job.

If this was a nazi camp, by the way, you wouldn't be free to leave anyway. :o

It isn't fair to brand everyone on the forum (or the forum as a whole) as such, just because your opinion differs with theirs.

[KitBryson]

Glad you got it sorted Stu, get a new spare off ebay for the next time.
And pleased you were able to get it home, there’s something satisfying about driving home against the odds.:cool:
KitBryson

[Stu_CDX]

As I said it's a simple enough job.

If this was a nazi camp, by the way, you wouldn't be free to leave anyway. :o

It isn't fair to brand everyone on the forum (or the forum as a whole) as such, just because your opinion differs with theirs.

Steve,

I think we both speak on friendly enough terms to keep this OFF the forum.

At the end of the day, (take this how you will), from my understanding, people are being unfairly branded as unsuitable for a forum because of their actions that don't really affect the club at all.

Remember, I'm a member of many forums. Being banned from one caused me all sorts of grief when I joined Astra-Mk2 (www.astra-mk2.com) and so on when the hierarchy at MIGWEB decided I wasn't suitable there.

I just think that reasons should be clearly outlined and simply "Breaking a rule" which is possibly what I'm doing now shouldn't be something people are banned for constantly. It causes people in the higher ranks to look for faults with people they don't like.

That's all I'm going to say. Please feel free to MSN me with any other comments but don't clog an otherwise tidy forum with arguments and so on. It's un-necessary. :o

[Stu_CDX]

Glad you got it sorted Stu, get a new spare off ebay for the next time.
And pleased you were able to get it home, there’s something satisfying about driving home against the odds.:cool:
KitBryson

It was an eBay one that snapped at just over a year old. I want a quality one next time as it's all too inconvienient to NEARLY hit a bus in traffic when the clutch comes out of situe at a rate of knots. :(

And it was quite pleasant knowing the whole clutch hadn't gone. Driving home without a clutch wasn't difficult, just requires some sympathy for the gearbox.

[mgdavid]

Steve,

............. It's un-necessary. :o

And so is your strap-line, please remove it.
I may not be the only person on here with some German parentage that finds it offensive.

[G51 NAV]

No and I'm probably not the only one who knows people who lived through the War. My parents for starters. If you want to know what a Nazi camp was really like, go and visit Auschwitz. You'll find the things you don't like on this forum are put somwehat into perspective.

[Stu_CDX]

No and I'm probably not the only one who knows people who lived through the War. My parents for starters. If you want to know what a Nazi camp was really like, go and visit Auschwitz. You'll find the things you don't like on this forum are put somwehat into perspective.

Been there with my Grandmother in the late 90's. Amazing place. Quite an experiance. (Not amazing for the things that happened, but amazing when you see it all!)

Will remove it for now... But if things start getting silly, so will I.

[ChrisM]

If you don't like it here, Stu, you don't have to post here. There is absolutely no need to resort to petty insults and offensive remarks. In general this is a friendly place, so instead of moaning when it isn't, how about you try your best to be friendly to everyone else?:D

[Stu_CDX]

If you don't like it here, Stu, you don't have to post here. There is absolutely no need to resort to petty insults and offensive remarks. In general this is a friendly place, so instead of moaning when it isn't, how about you try your best to be friendly to everyone else?:D

Ask a majority of members who KNOW me better than those simply picking fault who like doing same what they think of me. :p

[D87 SMW]

Well Stu, I know you a bit better but I will still say that you're causing your own problems here. If you just use the forum to get to know about your Maestro and have some friendly banter, nobody will moan at you. However, despite your claims that you were having a laugh, picking at my posts for the past few months and the comment in your signature have already got people against you...

We are not out to just ban people who scrap a rotten car off, which is how you're making it out. People get banned because they turn offensive when questioned why a succession of decent cars (some of the best known to the club) get scrapped off for no reason at all.

[Stu_CDX]

Well Stu, I know you a bit better but I will still say that you're causing your own problems here. If you just use the forum to get to know about your Maestro and have some friendly banter, nobody will moan at you. However, despite your claims that you were having a laugh, picking at my posts for the past few months and the comment in your signature have already got people against you...

We are not out to just ban people who scrap a rotten car off, which is how you're making it out. People get banned because they turn offensive when questioned why a succession of decent cars (some of the best known to the club) get scrapped off for no reason at all.



Don't see people on AdultFriendFinder and so on being banned for divorcing a great looking woman now do you :laugh:

[G51 NAV]

Don't see people on AdultFriendFinder and so on being banned for divorcing a great looking woman now do you :laugh:No, but there'd be a few raised eyebrows if someone posted-up saying they'd murdered her. Hardly a fair analogy I know, but it was your analogy.

[Peter J]

It was an eBay one that snapped at just over a year old.

Could that have been a problem with the fitting?

Clutch cables have to cope with a lot of tension, as you can see if you try to pull up the clutch lever by hand. The original joint at the clutch lever end is like a ball and socket arrangement - a flexible coupling that should be lubricated so that the cable does not bend every time it pulls the clutch lever up. If this joint is too rigid, or chafing the cable at all, the cable will inevitably fail there whether it is an e bay cable or not.

If you want to re-use a cable where the end has snapped off, you can get very small U bolts and cable protectors from Hardware Stores or Agricultural Merchants who use them for things like wire fencing, or the wire cables that pull up overhead garage doors. Perhaps clamp the cable to the thread of a bolt, with the bolt head through the hole in the clutch lever. Alternatively a piece of electrical cheese block connector will work as a temporary bodge if you have enough slack in the cable.