Just bought a 2000 Mustang GT 5Spd

[ChillPhatCat]

I have a question regarding the clutch in my new to me mustang and yes I have done a search on here, which has helped a little, but I mostly just want to confirm what I've pieced together. I have been driving a 97 Camaro RS the last 6 years and have grown accustomed to the weight of the clutch... which is just below the limit for what I can push with my current leg strength due to a disability. Currently I have to give my leg a nudge to engage the clutch in the Mustang, but holding power is not a problem once it's down. I am hoping there's some way I can drop maybe 5-10 lbs of force (or any) required to push the clutch pedal and have read that perhaps adjusting the clutch may help and that a different clutch cable may make it easier. Are there any other solutions short of swapping clutch discs? More leverage would obviously help, is it feasible to modify the mounting of the pedal? I'll probably drive it as is for a few months and see if I can become accustomed to it, but would like to make it lighter in the future either way.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Kilgore Trout]

There is no other clutch cable to use due to the fact that the OEM cable is the only one that is reliable. A new OEM cable _may_ provide less friction and drag making it easier...

Really the best and AFIK only way to accomplish this is a new clutch.

 

[ChillPhatCat]

The reduced friction from a new cable would only be temporary right?

 

[trinity_gt]

The reduced friction from a new cable would only be temporary right?

It depends. If the current cable is really defective, you'd get a long-term benefit from renewing it. If the old one simply has normal wear, you might not notice much a difference in the two. You might want to see if you can sample a few other GTs of similar vintage to see if their clutches compare to yours in terms of pedal force. That might help you determine if yours is defective in some way. Or perhaps the previous owner of the car installed an upgraded clutch that has a higher pedal force than stock...

Keep in mind that the GT's clutch is going to be stiffer than, say, a V6 Camaro. Even in stock form, the engine has 300ft-lbs of torque and is driving a fairly heavy car so the clutch has to be fairly ballsy. Did you drive the car before buying it to determine if you'd be able to live with the clutch effort and your disability?

It may be possible to find a multi-plate clutch to replace the single plate one that's in there. Many are oriented toward 1000+ HP engines but perhaps you can find one intended to replace OE parts. MP clutches can theoretically have reduced pedal effort because they don't require as much clamping force (i.e. spring pressure) to handle the same torque. Spec's "Super Twin" might be one example. (Note: Just throwing ideas out here...I don't know if Spec's pedal effort is lower or the same as OE: check with Spec to see if they might have something you can work with...)

 

[ChillPhatCat]

It depends. If the current cable is really defective, you'd get a long-term benefit from renewing it. If the old one simply has normal wear, you might not notice much a difference in the two. You might want to see if you can sample a few other GTs of similar vintage to see if their clutches compare to yours in terms of pedal force. That might help you determine if yours is defective in some way. Or perhaps the previous owner of the car installed an upgraded clutch that has a higher pedal force than stock...

Keep in mind that the GT's clutch is going to be stiffer than, say, a V6 Camaro. Even in stock form, the engine has 300ft-lbs of torque and is driving a fairly heavy car so the clutch has to be fairly ballsy. Did you drive the car before buying it to determine if you'd be able to live with the clutch effort and your disability?

It may be possible to find a multi-plate clutch to replace the single plate one that's in there. Many are oriented toward 1000+ HP engines but perhaps you can find one intended to replace OE parts. MP clutches can theoretically have reduced pedal effort because they don't require as much clamping force (i.e. spring pressure) to handle the same torque. Spec's "Super Twin" might be one example. (Note: Just throwing ideas out here...I don't know if Spec's pedal effort is lower or the same as OE: check with Spec to see if they might have something you can work with...)

Thanks for the info, yeah I drove it before purchasing and decided I could live with it... it's not too hard to assist that leg in changing gears and I should be able to build enough muscle in that leg over time to handle it. I'm pretty sure it's how it came from the factory... I've driven an 85 GT before and it seemed to have about the same pedal force... completely different years, but I'm sure the design is fairly similar. The Camaro had a hydraulic clutch, so that pedal force was basically the same as the V8 models... I was under the impression that a 2000 Mustang would have a hydraulic clutch before I went to see it, but obviously that's not the case.

Anyway, I've got a few options to consider, worst case I'll look into a muilti plate clutch. Thanks again.