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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Clutch question

While I am here on the forum I have a problem that was look at by the previous owner. I have to push the clutch all the way to the floor to engage the gears. The previous owner had it looked at by mechanics, they replace the clutch, slave piston and clutch master cylinder.
When I had the gearbox out I watched the movement of the slave when someone else pushed on the clutch and it started to move as soon as the pedel was started to be pushed.
I am wondering if the push rod that the slave pushes is to short!
Anybody have this problem??
RC Bishop

Commonly the pedel can wear out whereit pivots and also aroind where the clevis pin goes through it. In addition the master cylinder pushrod can wear out over round and allow lots of play before the pedel even does anyting. Take the pedel box cover plate off and pull out the clevis pin on the clutch and inspect the pushrods there. This is VERY easy to do. The slave pushrod is NOT adjustible nor do they come in different sizes. Of course this is assuming that we are talking about an MG gearbox and the car doesnt have any 5 speed conversion. I also noticed that you didnt mention the throwout bearing being replaced. These were made out of graphite and wear down a fair bit to the point where you have to push it to the floor or beyond to disengage the engine from the gearbox. Basically, once you eliminate all the wear up top and make sure that everything beween the clutch pedal and the throwout bearing are up to spec, and you still havent fixed the problem. You have no choice but to pull the engine and inspect what this PO's mechanic supossedly did and did not do.
S.A. Jones

I inspected all these when I had the engine out and all seem to be in order. Seems from the paper work that the clutch, throwout bearing, slave cylinder, and the master clutch cylinder with all its parts had been replaced.
From what I can gather the previous owner took the midget in because of this problem and after they finnished their repair it still had the same problem.
Could it be that it is not blead completely?
RC Bishop

Are you sure that there is a fault? One is supposed to push the pedal all the way to the floor to engage the gears. You may be able to change gear once on the move just by "dipping" the clutch, but for full clutch disengagement the pedal needs to go right down to the floor.

Guy
Guy Weller

did you inspect the pushrod on the master, the condition of the pedal, and the clevis pin? You don't need to have the engine out for that. Also, I wouldnt trust paperwork. I have had too many problems with professional repair shops over the years. I don't trust anybody's work except my own (even then I only trust that a little more than the "professionals"). In order to fix the problem, you need to diagnose it yourself, maybe with the help of someone else who has an MG. That goes for any and all problems. If you go through the whole system right now and check everything between your foot and the throwout bearing in the clutch system (that is possible with the engine in the car), and it all checks out, then whatever is left no matter how improbible must be the problem. That piece of paper may not mean much. I once tried getting an alignment job done and spent a bunch of money at a pro shop only to find out a few years later when I learned to do it myself that they left me with massive toe out.

That said it is true that you do have to move the clutch pedal a fair bit to disengage the engine and some of your complaint may be normal, but it is also true that you are supposed to feel the clutch start to disengage the engine roughly half way up. Remember that the stock throwout bearings are carbon and have a nasty tendency to wear out rather quick. When my dad had my car when I was a kid, he used to have to replace the throwout bearing roughly every 4 years (the car was a daily driver). I have a ball bearing one in there now and it's good to have that kind of reassurance.
S.A. Jones

I will check out those easy to check again but will wait to pull the engine after all this good weather more toward rain time in October.


RC Bishop

This thread was discussed between 02/06/2009 and 03/06/2009

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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