Tricks for adjusting clutch

[Chris078]

Anything special about adjusting the clutch in a GS?
installed new master/slave cylinders during the week and having much trouble getting the pedal right.
It's either too low, too high, grabbing about 5mm off the floor etc

Any tips to getting it right would be muchly appreciated!

[Dervish]

As in the EMEI; adjust resting pedal height, then adjust free play.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/05/744.jpg

[87County]

That 140mm to get the pedal stop correct is a bare floor dimension - you may have to make an allowance for the fixed mats (if you have 'em) :)

The other thing that I thought of in relation to the clutch taking up just off the floor, is, have you bled the system fully ? - you can easily check and see if the clutch takes up in a more normal position if you pump it a few times ?

[Chris078]

That 140mm to get the pedal stop correct is a bare floor dimension - you may have to make an allowance for the fixed mats (if you have 'em) :)

The other thing that I thought of in relation to the clutch taking up just off the floor, is, have you bled the system fully ? - you can easily check and see if the clutch takes up in a more normal position if you pump it a few times ?


I've re-bled the clutch, no air.
pumping it doesn't make any difference.
I take the mats out when attempting to adjust it.
I'll give it another go this afternoon.

[Chris078]

how high off the floor does your (anyone!) pedal have to be before the clutch starts grabbing?

Maybe I am just used to the old, shagged out master cylinder.
I've set the pedal to the correct height, and the clutch starts engaging with the pedal very low off the floor. and when depressing the pedal, the first 10 cm or so do nothing. Everything seems to happen over a short bit of travel very low off the floor.
It just feels very wrong compared to how it used to.
It's not dragging or slipping, so I'm fairly certain the clutch has full movement in it.

[Bearman]

how high off the floor does your (anyone!) pedal have to be before the clutch starts grabbing?

Maybe I am just used to the old, shagged out master cylinder.
I've set the pedal to the correct height, and the clutch starts engaging with the pedal very low off the floor. and when depressing the pedal, the first 10 cm or so do nothing. Everything seems to happen over a short bit of travel very low off the floor.
It just feels very wrong compared to how it used to.
It's not dragging or slipping, so I'm fairly certain the clutch has full movement in it.

In the info Dervish has posted up above it says you should have 6mm free play before the pushrod engages the MC so you might have to adjust that a bit. Also they are a right bitch to bleed, the air seems to get trapped in the lines above the slave cylinder and is very reluctant to come out even with extended bleeding time. I have spent up to half an hour on some. My guess is you still have some air in there. Pressure bleeding is the go if you can get hold of one.

[Chris078]

In the info Dervish has posted up above it says you should have 6mm free play before the pushrod engages the MC so you might have to adjust that a bit. Also they are a right bitch to bleed, the air seems to get trapped in the lines above the slave cylinder and is very reluctant to come out even with extended bleeding time. I have spent up to half an hour on some. My guess is you still have some air in there. Pressure bleeding is the go if you can get hold of one.


Thanks Bearman.
I've bled 2 bottles through it. I don't think there is any air left in the system (though I could be wrong)
I don't have a pressure bleeder.

what is happening is that I can set the pedal height correct (14cm).
but then the clutch starts engaging when the pedal in only 2cm off the floor, which for me is annoying.
I think the new master cylinder has a slightly different stroke than the old one.
I'm tired of flaffing with it. I'm just going to set the pedal a bit high so the clutch starts engaging 3-4 cm off the floor and be done with it.

[87County]

Thanks Bearman.
I've bled 2 bottles through it. I don't think there is any air left in the system (though I could be wrong)
I don't have a pressure bleeder.

what is happening is that I can set the pedal height correct (14cm).
but then the clutch starts engaging when the pedal in only 2cm off the floor, which for me is annoying.
I think the new master cylinder has a slightly different stroke than the old one.
I'm tired of flaffing with it. I'm just going to set the pedal a bit high so the clutch starts engaging 3-4 cm off the floor and be done with it.

Whatever you do Chris, ensure that you have "freeplay" as per point "c" in the drawing above.

As both Bearman and I previously noted, it still does seem like there is some doubt about the system being bled sufficiently.

[Chris078]

I'm pretty sure I've got the air out.
The engagement point does not change (either from leaving it alone or pumping the pedal) nor does it give me a random soft pedal to indicate there is still air in there.

[BadCo.]

I'm pretty sure I've got the air out.
The engagement point does not change (either from leaving it alone or pumping the pedal) nor does it give me a random soft pedal to indicate there is still air in there.

Do a proper reverse bleed. These clutches aren't like bleeding brakes, it can be a pain at times. I really struggled after upgrading the clutch

I ended up using something like this (http://m.supercheapauto.co.nz/Product/Toledo-Brake-Bleeder-Pump-Kit-Vacuum-310012/SPO1352869) that my boss had in his workshop.

[Chris078]

update on this. after multiple rebleeds and adjustments I've come to the conclusion that the new master is slightly different from the old one (even though it's the factory part).
It takes a bit longer to pick up, and is less progressive than the old one.
(this is assuming that the new lockheed slave that was fitted at the same time is functioning correctly).
Finally have it set so it is not dragging and fully engaging.
ended up with a pedal height that is about 1 cm lower than it 'should' be going by the manual.
Takes a bit of getting used to and makes smooth take offs a bit difficult.
Might get a bit better once I put some more km in and get used to it.