Drivetrain Broken clutch cable- what it looks like

[JulianR]

Was driving my 89 convertible GT a few weeks ago. Thorough out the day, I felt like getting into 1st gear was getting weirder until I parked it and, when running, couldn't put it in any gear. With the engine off, going into gear was fine, but as soon as I turned the car on, shifting was like hitting a wall. Got it towed home and when I got underneath it, I noticed the sheathing on the clutch cable broke. Thought I post it here in case anyone wanted to see what a bad clutch cable looks like. I also posted photos of my plastic quadrant that I replaced with the upgraded billet one. I didn't have problems with the quadrant, but once I removed it, I noticed the teeth were starting to get ground off.

 

[DadLife0724]

That cable bit it hard. Did you remove your seat to do the work?

 

[JulianR]

I did not remove the seat and I'm a bigger guy. But I did have my back over the rocker panel and my head in the pedal bay while doing this. The car was lifted on the driver side only. I would suggest to have a 90 degree pick to pull out the cotter pins from the quadrants. Otherwise, besides patience, it's not too terrible.

 

[AeroCoupe]

Both are a common failure. I will say it’s rare to see a plastic quadrant on one of these cars as they are literally 33 to 47 years old.

 

[DadLife0724]

I did not remove the seat and I'm a bigger guy. But I did have my back over the rocker panel and my head in the pedal bay while doing this. The car was lifted on the driver side only. I would suggest to have a 90 degree pick to pull out the cotter pins from the quadrants. Otherwise, besides patience, it's not too terrible.

My back hurts thinkin about you doin that. Props to you though.

 

[FastDriver]

I've done it both ways, but if it makes you think about it, the seat's only 4 bolts. Take it out.

Get a Steeda cable, now, and if you have longtubes or it's possible it will get to close to the exhaust, then wrap the exhaust and the cable with this 1800* heat shield.

https://www.summitracing.com/search/brand/heatshield-products?SortBy=Default&SortOrder=Ascending

 

[Shakerhood]

Both are a common failure. I will say it’s rare to see a plastic quadrant on one of these cars as they are literally 33 to 47 years old.

Dont say that, my car doesnt need jinxed, lol.

 

[2000xp8]

I've done it both ways, but if it makes you think about it, the seat's only 4 bolts. Take it out.

I made it even easier, I bought grade 8 bolts and put them through from the bottom on the back side and put nuts on the top. Made the seat easier to align and no more digging in the carpet to find the bolt holes, no more nuts falling off from the subframe brackets and the wrench stays on the nuts far better than the bolts at the wierd angle to the floor. Now I don't hesitate to pull the seat out.

As for the quadrant as soon as I put one of my previous clutches that was very heavy in, it only lasted a few a few weeks until it started getting jammed up. Honestly I didn't want to have to adjust the new one, but at 500 mile or less a year, it pretty much never needs to be adjusted.

 

[JulianR]

I'm actually surprised how much smoother the shifting got. I didn't even notice the cable was bad before.