the last 6 months I've noticed a slight squeak from the clutch when I rest
my foot on the pedal while driving.
>Simple - I got out of the habit of resting it there.Yesterday it developed
into a hiss.
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Good idea, that (extremely bad) habit is probably what caused the problem,
which is probably a bad throw-out bearing. Resting your foot on the pedal
puts a slight pressure on the bearing at all times, something it was
definitely not designed for. Does the Hearld have the same (probably)
clutch/slave cylinder system (no adjustment) as the Spitfire? You may what
to check out the system. There really shouldn't be any contact of the
release (throw-out) bearing when you foot is OFF the pedal. You should
feel a small, about 1/2-3/4 inch free travel before you 'feel' the pressure
plate fingers contact the bearing.
Chances are you have worn it out pre-maturely. What you are *probably*
hearing is the bearing rattling while its rotating as it touches the
'fingers' on the clutch. It goes away because you 'load' it when you
depress the pedal. Does this 'hiss' change in pitch as the RPM's change,
if not then it's something else -
If you *need* to rest your foot on something, then make, buy, whatever, a
dead pedal or foot rest next to the clutch pedal. I have one on the
Spitfire, made up of an angle plate, cut and shaped, then screwed onto the
inner sill directly across from the clutch pedal, at the same height.
Works great. You have a place to put your foot, and it's at the right
height to just slide your foot over to depress the clutch when needed.
Barry Schwartz (San Diego)
bschwart@pacbell.net
72 V6 Spitfire (daily driver)
70 GT6+ (When I don't drive the Spit)
70 Spit (Currently undergoing a frame off)
73 Ford Courier (parts hauler)
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