There are abnormalities on both my M/T pintos involving the clutch/brake pedals. On the 76, the clutch squeeks every time you push the pedal down. It doesnt take any excessive effort or anything like that, just squeeks. On the 74, the clutch pedal takes more effort to push down than the 76 does, and the brakes are the same way. Both are manual brakes. I dont see why one car takes more effort on both the clutch and the brakes than the other one does... maybe somone on here knows. Also, when i put my foot on the brake on the 74, you can feel the clutch pedal push upwards, and vice versa. The 74's pedal doesnt squeek. I had to put a new cable on it a while back, i was thinking the cable was just bound up on it from being old but now it has a new cable so that possibility has been elminated. I think it needs a new clutch soon, it seems like it slips a little once in a while. Because of this i suspect the pressure plate is at fault for the "excessive" effort needed to use the clutch. Not sure on the brakes tho. As for the problem with one pedal pushing the other one up when pushed down, i'm guessing the pedal bracket is loose. Now on the 76, i suspect there might be a bushing in there thats worn out. I dont know tho ive never had it apart, im not even sure there is one. Thats what i was told was wrong with my 79 chevys clutch pedal. (but then again its a chevy, not a ford, and its probably gonna get an auto anyways so im not worried about it.) With all this said these are just *MY* some-what educated guesses.
My 79 wagon's clutch pedal squeeks as well. It is not the pedal or the cable but the pressure plate itself. It also has the hardest pedal i have ever driven. It has gradually got harder thru the years and is now starting to die which is why the car is parked in my mom's garage. I will bring the car home at the first of the year to put in a new clutch. The clutch in my 73 is feather light and makes no noise at all. I can't comment much on the brakes as all the Pinto's I have owned have had different brake pedal effort. Most of the cars have been parts cars so I expect the brakes to be so so.
Well on the 76 the clutch and pressure plate is new. Its the one with the squeek and it doesnt squeek ALL the time... just most of the time. Now the 74 is the one that has the stiff clutch pedal, but it doesnt squeek. I do suspect it needs a new clutch & pressure plate both. But... id rather just put a T5 in it when it becomes a MUST DO thing. Its geared so low (3.55) that it is uncomfortable to drive on the highway. It sounds like its little hamster is about to have a heart attack ;D :D
There is supposed to be bakelite bushings that the pedals ride on.
Maybe those are worn out or just missing???
I was wondering if there were some bushings or something in there but i havnt taken it apart to see. Can i get those in the HELP! section at the parts store or...... somewhere else?
Quote from: pintoguy76 on December 26, 2007, 04:28:57 AM
I was wondering if there were some bushings or something in there but i havnt taken it apart to see. Can i get those in the HELP! section at the parts store or...... somewhere else?
???? Maybe????
Years ago I ordered a set of clutch pedal bushings for my 67 Mustang. I never did use them. As I said in my previous post my pedal as got harder thru the years. I took apart my pedal one afternoon to see if I could lube it to make effort less. The original bushings were in so so shape so i decided to replace them with the Mustang bushings I had. They seemed to be the same and worked just fine on my car. It didn't help the pedal effort much though.... They should be available by most Mustang parts vendors if you need them.
Im guessing the stiff clutch is from the pressure plate. I think i better replace it soon before i have to replace another clutch cable. The stiff brakes are probably from the master cylinder, or maybe a caliper going bad. Its got a slow leak somewhere. It runs out of fluid every month or so, i put more in and it bleeds itself, lol. Thats alone tells me somethings leaking somewhere. When it gets warmer ill be lookin for that problem. The other car has pretty much all new brakes all the way around. A couple of the short hard lines and one caliper is all that is old on it. Possibly explains why its pedal is easier to push. Could be the proportioning valve is out of whack on one of them. I havnt driven my 79 enough to compare its brakes to either of the other cars to see which one its closer too. I have alot of things i need to do on these cars. lol. I'll get um done slowly... :)
the cables can have strands that fray / break & bind up inside the cable housing also.
The clutch cable is new on the car that has the stiff clutch. It was stiff before the old cable broke. Only thing left that i can think of is the pressure plate.
After changing out my clutch cable I noticed my clutch pedal was squeaky and some what less smooth.
Today I took the pedal off and cleaned off the clutch pivot post and all the bushings, then put some wheel bearing grease on the bushings and the hole in the pedal where they go into. I also greased the bushing that the clutch cable bracket pin goes through.
Feels and sounds like new now. :)