Procon-TEN/'88 5kcstq

[Brett Dikeman]

At 3:35 PM -0700 4/23/02, auditude at get.net wrote:
>Hello,
>
>My '88 5kcstq doesn't have the Procon-TEN system.  However,
>when reassembling all the parts after putting the tranny back
>on, I noticed there is a bracket that has a round hole in it,
>as if it is intended to guide a cable or something.

The procon bracket looks like a buisness end of a big pipe bender,
almost.  It's a 180 degree circular bracket.

>Is it possible?

Probably not; you'd need to guide the cable somehow to the seatbelt
reels, get new seatbelt reels, etc...not to mention a new cable.  The
older body may not even have places for the cable to get attached.

>
>This was on the right side tranny mount, I believe.

nope, than certainly not.  Procon's bracket is dead smack in the
middle, on top.


While we're on the subject of Procon...as I posted on the 200q20v
list this morning, all owners with procon equipped cars should
double-check that the bracket and cable are in place; on my car, my
mechanic found the cable zip-tied up to the body of the car,
completely removed from the bracket.  It would have done absolutely
nothing in the event of a crash.  Probably some lazy $#@! who did the
last clutch job under one of the previous owners.

If it happened to me, it can happen to someone else.  Check your cars.
It's one of those things that makes me think we need to start a
project, which lists all the really important safety
mistakes/gotchas.  Call it a Audifans TSB of sorts...with plenty of
disclaimers that it's not complete, its a public service designed to
help, nothing more, etc. etc.

>   I think it got a sickly "one-star" rating, whereas the
>later models got all five.

There were other design changes...remember, the interiors are
completely different.  One substantial improvement is the
antisubmarining panels in the newer type44 dash.  If you've never
been in a newer type44, your knees are -very- close to the lower part
of the dash; in a crash, your knees hit that panel and stop you from
sinking further under the belt.  If I remember correctly from when I
had the driver's side panel out, there was an internal cavity between
the outer surface and the inner foam, probably designed to give a
little to keep from shattering your kneecaps.

The real danger in type44 cars is side impacts; the ONLY side impact
protection is a strip of metal in the outer trim piece(yeah, you read
right.  Body trim piece.)  Side impact protection is a total joke in
our cars.

(I actually just posted on this subject on the 200q20v list earlier today.)

Brett
--
----
"They that give up essential liberty to obtain temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Ben Franklin
http://www.users.cloud9.net/~brett/