Clutch Cable Splitting

[apshaughnessy]

Background: 87 GT Stock Quadrant/Cable, No headers.

We'll I figured this to be one of the easier jobs I've done on my car, but that was before I had to do the same job 3 times now. Apparently there is more than meets the eye here because every time I put a new cable on it splits below the headers right where it curves under the motor mount back towards the transmission, and it has split in that same exact spot every time.

To give more detail, these clutch cables have a black rubber outer housing which covers a layer of braided wire which holds in a smaller milky white inner housing that surrounds the actual cable. Now what I mean by "splitting" is that the inner milky white cable is managing to push its way through the braided wire because it appears the outer black covering is making a clean split every time.

My install procedure went like this:
1: Lubricate wire with White Lithium Grease
2: Feed cable thorough firewall and bolt on.
3: Attach bracket to the inner fender well to keep cable from touching the exhaust manifold.
4: Feed cable down between the driver's side motor mount the K-Member.
5: Feed cable over Oil Sensor
6: Attach cable to Transmission's housing and not to the fork itself.
7: Attach Cable to Stock Quadrant.
8: With the help of someone lifting the clutch pedal and de-activating the pawl, attach the cable to the Transmission fork.

I figured after the first split it was just a defective cable, so I did nothing except go out and find another one. After the second install I figured it was heat from the stock exhaust manifold heating up the outer black cable and causing it to become mailable and easy for the inner wire to push though. So to counter-act this I put 3 layers of heat insulating tape around the part of the cable that split as well as a 1/2" heater hose to help absorb the problem. I drove it to St. Eds the next day and low and behold it split the outer housing again. So after floating the gears 25 miles back home I am stuck and quite pissed at the car for making such a simple job into some monumental cluster bomb that is driving me up the wall.

At my most recent stop to O'Reillys to pick up yet another cable the manager there who is a bit of a Mustang guy said it could be my motor mounts rubbing on the cable and causing it to buckle under the pressure of the cable, but I don't know if this is so because the last time it split it had a 1/2" rubber heater hose around it to keep the heat away, which I would also think would keep any rubbing from occurring on the cable, but who knows this car is a phenomenon.

When I finished the installs the car shifted perfectly and almost effortlessly. It was fun to drive again and it felt like a truly brand new car. I don't know what happened to make it hate me but during those 12 miles between each cable split it was like I had finally fixed all the problems, but my car has a way of crappin' all over me. In any case, advice is welcomed from anyone.

Thanks guys!


This is a long post and it is early so I apologize for any spelling errors. If anyone can offer some advice to help me through this I would really appreciate it because if not I'm just going to sell it.

 

[Darkwriter77]

Part of your problem is the fact that you're buying aftermarket cheap-o cables. I know, I've been there, myself. The Pioneer brand cable I scored from Autozone lasted a whole 9 months before it popped on me. I thought a non-adjustible cable was a non-adjustible cable ... but that's just not so. All of the aftermarket companies tend to not wind their cables as tightly, and they're not as well-insulated to keep from being damaged by the heat.

I'm normally not one to go pimping name-brand OEM parts as the way to go, because they're overpriced and not at all better 9 times outta 10, but with these clutch cables, you simply MUST get a Ford cable, period. Cheapest and best way to go is to get the "universal" Ford cable from Maximum Motorsports (about $75 shipped); you could get the regular model-specific cable from someplace like 50resto or whatever, but they want some insane amount like $150 for the thing. The only major difference is that the "universal" cable doesn't have that little brass bracket that bolts the cable against the frame, and the part that pokes into the firewall is smaller, so you'll probably want to use that little bushing that comes with most firewall adjusters.

Said it many, many times before, but again, the formula for a happy left foot:

OEM Ford cable + FWA + multi-hook aluminum quadrant =

 

[HISSIN50]

I agree. One other thing: Try not lubing the new cables. Dirt gets in there, sticks to the lube and acts like sandpaper. This is definitely true for the OEM style cables (40 bucks at Buyfordracing) since they have teflon in there (no need for any lube).

I personally dont like multihook quadrants but that's just me. I only run single hooks.

The last thing I'd consider is to make sure your motor grounds are up to par. Otherwise, clutch and throttle cables attempt to be recruited as ground pathways, which shortens their lifespan.

Good luck.