clutch woes
 

Hi all, like many owners of these cars ( great tho they are) just had the clutch fail and would appreciate other owners advise as to where to get it replaced. Am in Chelmsford Essex but the local MR CLUTCH has a poor reputation and I would like it fixed properly, using OE .parts. By the way this forum is so much more useful and friendly than the MG owners club one, sadly.

first things first, try to decide what part has failed.
can you give us an indication of what has happened?

without any other info, remove the clutch master cylinder cap and the rubber sleeve underneath, this is often referred to as a condom.
Is there any clutch fluid in the master cylinder?

The clutch master cylinder is attached to the clutch pedal, you need to look behind the pedal to see it.

macafee2

Do not buy the three part clutch supplied by Rimmer Bros under the part number ZUA001321, 11 months in and it's juddering like a pig.

Oh and I replaced the flywheel too, which is an LUK item, I only wish I'd fitted an LUK REPSET Pro clutch kit.....LINK, rather than the white box special :duh::getmecoat:

Brian :D

Was it fitted properly :getmecoat:

Nah, it was clashed in by a right old bodger in a couple of hours on the driveway New Years eve 2018 :getmecoat:

Brian :D

All joking aside, that's not good for Rimmer's :duh:

thanks for the replies, I should have done some investigation before posting, I guess I panicked having lost all gears on a very busy roundabout. I will remove the dash panels covering the pedals and report back, cheers chris.

If the master cylinder looks dry, disconnect the coupling on top of the gearbox then press the clutch, if it is solid, the chances are the slave has failed.

By "dry", I am assuming you mean "hasn't been leaking". If the master has lost a lot of fluid, (so dry in a different way) I wouldn't expect it to go solid when the self-closing valve in the coupling is disconnected from the slave.

I would interpret dry as no fluid in it and so somewhere there is a leak.
once the coupling is disconnected mid way along the hydraulic line in the engine bay the pedal does go solid as there is nowhere for it to push the fluid.
If there is fluid in the master and the coupling is disconnected and the pedal goes solid and then slowly goes to the floor, then I think fluid is by passing a seal and staying in the master cylinder. I have had this problem recently.

macafee2

Hi again, and thanks for the info. Well, where do I start. My problem is not helped by the fact that the recovery co. had to offload the car onto the only place I can park it , namely a muddy track behind where I live, and made worse by my advanced years. ( I,m 71 years young ) However I have managed to remove two panels over the pedals and shine a light into the dark recesses which shows a fluid leak around the master cylinder from the pushrod rubber cap. none onto carpets etc and the pedal stays on the floor when pushed. Now the problem really comes into focus as there is no way I can reach the mc cap to check fluid level, even a long thin screwdriver pushed against the cap ribs wont work. I guess a young adult Gibbon ( MG trained of course ) would be able to access this area but its beyond my capabilities, so I would like to revert to my original request, a reliable place to get it fixed in my part of Essex. Any members who can help with this info will get my undying appreciation. cheers chris.

Well that made I larf! :D:D:D

Give Kevin at MG Rover in Wickford a call, knows his MG/Rovers inside out. I use him for both my 75 and ZT-T, would recommend him and he is quite local to you.

I can feel your pain having had (as it turned out) the master cylinder fail on me 250 miles from home facing the wrong way in a car park and not able to engage reverse gear! Eventually managed tp preside it to do so and got it to a Clutch specialist. I had no choice but leave it with them.
The next day collected car but despite my chunterings of a metal one would be better than plastic to which they claimed they don't exist ended up with a LUK plastic one. They did get it fixed and agreed it really was a pig of a job to do and cost £339 for the repair inc labour. (part was £150). I know, ripped off.

Mobile, it was not until near home I thought of trying the Cruise control. Nope, they had disturb that and it no longer worked. Annoying as Jules last year got it to work.

So, not much help to you and don't know anyone local to yourself but be assured we all sympathise. Ray

thank you for the replies much appreciated BSAFLY I didn't know there was a MG dealer that close, so will try contacting Kevin.

Kevin is not a dealer, he specialises in MG and Rover. As i said I have used him many times and always been pleased with his work and pricing . I can’t remember his phone number, but you will find him with a Google search. Hope that helps.

P.M’d you Kevin’s phone number.

+1 for Kevin.

If you want really local there is Chelmer Auto Repair Services in Chelmsford.

Not used them myself. They are in the linked map from the "T4 Location Map" link near the top of the General Forum.

thanks everyone for info. its going to be checked out by Kevin next week so am keeping digits crossed its not terminal, will update once inspected.

Yes indeed, as Andy well knew. :icon_lol:

clutch woes update
 

Hi all, just to update all members who have sent advice etc. Have had total replacement done by local mg/ rover specialist (master , slave, and clutch plates, bearing, etc. ) flywheel within tolerances so time will tell. Interestingly the release bearing was totally wrecked, falling to pieces on removal. Considering I have done less than 1000miles since purchasing the beast I guess a previous owner had little mechanical sympathy, as I have had 20 plus cars over 50 years and have never needed a replacement clutch!!! happy Christmas motoring to you all.