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I get questions constantly and read many threads with the same questions and concerns about the same issue stemming from the Clutch Pedal. Many RX-8 owners complain and have concerns about what is going on with their pedal which is no new issue to the RX-8 community.
The issues that come from the OE Clutch pedal assembly are nothing we are not familiar with but I wanted to have a thread in one place showing my experience of what I have seen along with pictures and everything in between.
These issues Include but not limited to:
- Snapping (making vehicle inoperable)
- Squeaking (re-lube the spring!)
- Popping
- Side to side movement
The Following are pictures and explanations to show the weakness and possible fixes and failed attempts as well.
Let's take a new pedal to start off with these pictures are of Revision C the latest Clutch Pedal Assembly.
Bottom Side of Clutch Pedal Assembly:
There are two spot welds as shown in red circles showing how the top pedal is fixed to the base assembly.
Another Angle this time from the top side. Again circled in Red you can see the only spot weld holding this assembly in place. If you look at the red arrow you can see where the one bolt will come thru the assembly and no welding or reinforcements added. ( This is the most problematic area of the Clutch Pedal assembly) Typically this is where the spot weld will come apart and seperate from its base. More pics explained later.
Here is another angle showing the lack of support and reinforcement on the pedal.
Now common fixes for this issue are two things Welding and our Clutch Pedal reinforcement bracket.
Lets first look at welding.
Although this is not my favorite it is a viable option to be completed for the end user. From my experience with customers I advise against it only based on what I have seen with several instances with customers. (This is not to say that all welding techniques are not good) I have seen one RX8 owner from GA have a very interesting approach with welding I will let him chime in with his pictures and what he did and how it is working for him so far.
To date I have received back several failed assemblies from welding where the customer ending up welding the pedal intially then when it failed again ended up buying the clutch pedal bracket we offer.
Here is one such instance of what I have received back from the customer, below are pictures and explanations.
In this picture we can see that a local welder to this customer had done some more welding for him because he had read up that his pedal was prone to issue. Which is a good thing he was proactive about it instead of reactive. I have arrows showing where he had welded the assembly and as you can see the clutch pedal still snapped!
On the bottom side of this assembly we can see that the base has cracked in two points and has lifted apart where it has been reinforced with welding and it has failed.
In this last picture people most commonly over look this issue or don't notice at first. The pedal as you can see here has been warped. Remember this piece has been reinforced with welding and the unit still flexed out of proportion which lead to its failure once again and snapping. A common question is that is welding a viable solution? Yes and No. I have yet to see a welding job eliminate the flex commonly associated with this pedal which in the end can still lead to it potentially failing. I say yes because it can temporarily fix the issue. Synthetic Darkenss has a good DIY in the DIY forum but if you may know his pedal snapped again and now has a new assembly with our bracket installed.
The Next group of pictures are a breakdown of what the Clutch pedal Bracket we offer actually does.
This first picture shows the components of the reinforcement bracket. The arrows I have pointing out where the bracket will reinforce, stabilize and prevent flex of your clutch pedal. With the unit installed it gives the Clutch Pedal a much firmer more confident feel along with the strength and design that is much needed.
These next two pictures showing how it is affixed and reinforced to the other side.
And of course lastly the completed reinforced assembly with the bracket installed.
Q. " My pedal snapped and broke do I have to buy a new pedal and get this bracket so it doesn't happen again?"
A. NO! Not necessarily I have installed several brackets on broken clutch pedal assemblies and the unit will be use-able again. If you have concern snap some pictures and email them to me. I will let you know if it is reusable or not. I have only come across two units that were not re-useable.
Q. "I am not very handy, is this item difficult to install?"
A. This does require drilling but the average DIY'er will be able to complete this. All units include instructions on how to complete installation. There have been few occurrences where a customer has not been able to complete on their own, feel free to contact me for assistance.
Q. "Will this make my clutch pedal feel stiff?"
A. Yes it will give a very firm pedal feel, it will be vastly improved over stock pedal feel depending on application.
Q. "My pedal squeaks is this normal?"
A. Yes and no. It is best to inspect your pedal for any signs of flexing or cracking. The spring located on the top of the pedal is known to need to re-lubing and that should eliminate any squeaking.
I'm posting these images at the request of Race Roots. Mine snapped two years ago.
After welding, I installed a bracket also. Don't have pics of the bracket install. I'm very pleased with the combination. The welding was done at the company I work for. I'm lucky enough to have a source for fine quality shop work.
it takes me hours and hours to install this.
specially this part, i had to buy an crawfoot wrench just to tight the bolt, you cannot use any normal wrench, the clearance of the bolt to the bracket is to tight...
ill try to take a picture of the actual set later...
My only warning on the reinforcement bracket is to remove the switches from the clutch pedal as early in the installation process as possible. 1) they get compressed and must be reset. 2) The metal can twist during drilling and damage the switch housing.
Getting the reinforced assembly back on to those three bolts trough the firewall is a pain. Maybe it would be good to have someone on the other side to push things together?
The bracket transforms the feel of the clutch: It's an awesome upgrade and good preventive measure.
Nice post: Good pictures... It is a thinly disguised sales pitch but it is for a great product!
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2004 SS GT 6MT : Clear corners : AFE SS : Voodoo : leather boot : KDW2 : RB Rev8, screens : Al strakes : Catch can : Clutch pedal reinforcement : RB springs, sway bars and end links : D-specs : Racing Brake rotors and SS lines : Hawk Ceramics : AP WCS tune : MM OP mod : RB gauges & Ram Air : N3Z1-18-400 : GROM + Sirius : BHR ignition : Davesport Cat : Waiting : Sohn adapter
Getting the reinforced assembly back on to those three bolts trough the firewall is a pain. Maybe it would be good to have someone on the other side to push things together?
Yes! as in PAIN, it took me 3 hours to do this as i tried to install it alone, the crawfoot wrench is the right tool for the 3rd bolt & it's a good option to have someone on the other side to push it.
and one more point that i find useful, leave the bolts for the bracket un-tighten until you have the 3 bolts inserted.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkBrew
The bracket transforms the feel of the clutch: It's an awesome upgrade and good preventive measure.
Don't forget about the spring digging through. I don't know if you still have that picture I sent you, but if not you can find it in my clutch thread to use it on here.
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[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
AFE SS - Cobb AP - Race Roots Clutch Bracket - Tein S-tech Springs - AEM Intake
Ralco Pulley Kit - BHR Ignition Kit - Cooling Mod Bypass - ACT Prolite Flywheel Kit
ACT HDSS Clutch - Battery Relocated To Trunk - AP Duel Res Midpipe - AP Catback
Zex Nitrous System - Window Tint - Enkei GF-1 Rims - (M Power Body Kit SOON)
when my buddy was installing it, he had 2 problems:
1. the bolts supplied were too small to hold the bracket in place while drilling
2. the ******* thing wouldnt go back in the clutch slave cuz it wasn't lining up
eventually it got in but after multiple attempts...
when my buddy was installing it, he had 2 problems:
1. the bolts supplied were too small to hold the bracket in place while drilling
2. the ******* thing wouldnt go back in the clutch slave cuz it wasn't lining up
eventually it got in but after multiple attempts...
So, pretty much a typical installation?
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2004 SS GT 6MT : Clear corners : AFE SS : Voodoo : leather boot : KDW2 : RB Rev8, screens : Al strakes : Catch can : Clutch pedal reinforcement : RB springs, sway bars and end links : D-specs : Racing Brake rotors and SS lines : Hawk Ceramics : AP WCS tune : MM OP mod : RB gauges & Ram Air : N3Z1-18-400 : GROM + Sirius : BHR ignition : Davesport Cat : Waiting : Sohn adapter
has anyone's pedal squeaked MORE after installing the bracket?
i have the gained confidence in my pedal, but the squeaking and creaking annoys me... any point of the pedal i should take a look at? maybe tighten/loosen/grease something up?
Got mine installed last night. The holes drilled into the bracket didn't line up with the holes on the clutch pedal (the ones that go into the firewall) so it was a complete pain in the *** to get it in there. We finally got it together by doing what you see below:
As you can see even then the holes in that bottom right opening didn't line up very well. I'm not sure if mine was a defect or if they are all this way.
Another thing was that the description when I purchased the item said that all necessary tools and instructions will be included. All I got were some stickers to buy brakes? lol
I can definitely say that there's a huge difference from before and after the pedal. My clutch engagement isn't as far out on the pedal anymore and shifting just feels a lot firmer. My pedal was in the BEGINNING stages of starting to break and the notice even then was night and day. Because of that I think these brackets would cause a difference even on a pedal that isn't broken at all. I'm very satisfied!
I have been meaning to write some instructions for the complete assemblies, I have the instructions for just the bracket but that is pointless at your point when it is already done for you.
And yes that is common with it being difficult to line up, because the bolts are tightened down and the pedal itself flexes it can be a challenge to line those two up.
I have been meaning to write some instructions for the complete assemblies, I have the instructions for just the bracket but that is pointless at your point when it is already done for you.
And yes that is common with it being difficult to line up, because the bolts are tightened down and the pedal itself flexes it can be a challenge to line those two up.
Gotcha. I figured that was the case so I didn't want to say anything too negative.
I'm still a very satisfied customer thanks to both your service and your product. Money well-spent if you ask me!
Finally got a chance to install mine. Pain in the butt to get it in. I had to hit it with a dremel to get the assembly back in with the brace installed. Sounds like the typical installation for this product so be prepared to wrestle it in there.
But once it's in, WOW!
Huge improvement in clutch engagement consistency and feel. Results greatly exceeded my expectations.
I sware my brake pedal even feels stiffer, anybody else notice this?
Yes. Like I said though, might just be in my head haha.
I'm gonna keep the car for a while still. Even if I do sell it this part would improve a potential buyers test drive experience substantially. I'm going to try and put in the stainless clutch line right away too so hopefully that makes it even better.
Hey RR, was just thinking...
With clutch pedal interest peaking you might want to offer some kind of special on the reinforcement brackets and help convince the fence-sitters to get this mod.
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2004 SS GT 6MT : Clear corners : AFE SS : Voodoo : leather boot : KDW2 : RB Rev8, screens : Al strakes : Catch can : Clutch pedal reinforcement : RB springs, sway bars and end links : D-specs : Racing Brake rotors and SS lines : Hawk Ceramics : AP WCS tune : MM OP mod : RB gauges & Ram Air : N3Z1-18-400 : GROM + Sirius : BHR ignition : Davesport Cat : Waiting : Sohn adapter
It has been making squeaking noise for some time now, but its always been on-and-off. But earlier today after work, I noticed that it was wobbling side-to-side. Is this a sure sign that its going to break soon?
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