four.rings@MCIONE.com wrote:
>
> Osman Parvez wrote:
>
> > Hi Igor,
> > Tony Lum recommended I ask you about my clutch problems.
>
> That's justifiable. I hold the current Q-List record as I broke two of them in a
> row :-)
> Scott Mockry is a close second with having it broken once.
> You are the third. All of us own the '89 200TQ's so I see a pattern here.
>
> > It's firmly my belief this occured due to the fact that the
> > clutch MC was never properly installed (having a hard time coming up
> > fully).
>
> I think you're right, the skewed MC might have caused the piston jamming in it's
> bore. The pedal develops a tremendous leverage (without going again into a
> boring Physics excursus let's just say that the clutch pedal is the classic
> Archimedes lever with quite a torque multiplication). The weight savers at
> Ingolstadt in their bold wisdom in '87 ditched the steel clutch pedals in favour
> of the light alloy ones on all 44-chassis cars. Musta saved the whopping 100g or
> so.
>
> In my case both pedals snapped in the very beginning of travel, so I attribute
> it to the MC piston jamming in the bore. I rebuilt it
> once when it first started leaking and in the process noticed how pitted
> the walls were.
> Then the pedal broke. I thought it was just a grainy/fatigued casting in
> the Al pedal and replaced it. It broke less than a year later in exactly
> the same spot. This time I replaced the MC all together. No problems so
> far.
> Despite the fact that I always advocate rebuilding anything hydraulic on the
> car, in this case I'll make an exception: if I just replaced the MC it would've
> been
> only $64 (new MC). The way I did it it was $16 (repair seal kit), $180
> (two clutch pedals), and $64 (new MC). $260 total plus I had to drive
> the car home without the clutch pedal on two occasions - not fun!
>
> I installed the MC from an '92 100. It was made out of Fe (the original was Al)
> and had a different feed spout, but fit perfectly well. The p/n was goofy too,
> something like A0...... something, not the familiar 443/441.... type-44
> nomenclature.
>
> > The pedal snapped where the MC u-joint meets the pedal.
>
> That's where it always snaps.
>
> > I called the tow truck.
>
> Could've driven it home, if you're are comfortable with the clutchless shifting.
>
> > >From the bentley it looks like the pedal itself is simply attached with
> > clips on the ends of pins. Great... too bad it's completely inacessible.
> > There is all sorts of stuff around it, blocking acess.. not to mention the
> > fact that you are upside down.
>
> It is accessible but prepare to get a lot of cuts on your hands. You also need a
> special tool to hold that stiff over-centre spring. I made my own but it is
> available commercially from Zelenda.
>
> --WEAR SAFETY GOGGLES WHEN COMPRESSING THE SPRING IN THE TOOL IN THE VISE!!! THE
> SPRING HOUSING HAS ROUNDED ENDS LIKE A BULLET AND FLIES LIKE ONE! IT WILL TAKE
> YOUR EYE RIGHT OUT IF YOU'RE NOT CAREFUL!--
>
> > Okay.. so where do I get a used pedal?
>
> Don't.
> First time I spent 3 hours on the phone calling all over 49 states and finally
> got the pedal from Colorado (from an '88 100). Ended up waiting 3 days and
> paying $84 (with shipping).
> Second time I got it from my friendly local dealer for $90, zero shipping, zero
> waiting. Yes I enjoy a discount at my dealer :-), but so do you.
>
> > Also, is *this* a common problem?
>
> Oh yes.
>
> > P.S. Thank god it wasn't the MC again, and this must be vengence from the
> > Audi Gods for recommending that our fellow lister Andrei purchase a Toyota.
>
> I never had a chance to answer Andrei but I'll chime in now: Andrei, if you're
> on a tight budget and do not/can not work on cars yourself, stay away from
> 44-chassis Audis altogether. Mind you, this comes from an Audi lunatic who
> wouldn't consider buying a car unless four rings grace it's grill. Judging by
> some indirect hints I gather you're in graduate school on the student's budget.
> A 10y/o type-44 car with 100kmi _will_ drain you dry, BTDT. :-) In any event
> don't buy a turbo car. Quattro is marginally OK except the insanely expensive
> rear camber links, the propeller shaft and front bushings in the rear
> trapezoidal arms. All these items _will_ go bad sooner or later. The quattro sys
> itself in bullet-proof tho.
> As much as I hate to say this, for the time being get yourself a Japanese
> beater, just be prepared that unlike Audis it is likely to fall completely apart
> at about 140kmi.
>
> ************************************************************
> Igor Kessel
> '89 200TQ -- 18psi (TAP)
> '98 A4TQ -- mostly stock
> Philadelphia, PA
> USA
> http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Garage/8949/homepage.html
> ************************************************************
Igor: My respects for your closing comments.
I have recently worked on my clutch 87 5KCSTQ. I found two areas that
offer very high resistance to clutch separation and pedal:
1.- Throwout (Clutch release)bearing guide corroded or scoured badly or
both(Clutch release bearing guide sleeve). This resist the smooth action
needed.
2.- Pressure plate spring ends (fingers) corroded refusing to be pushed
by mr. bearing.
In my case after replacing clutch, pressure plate, bearing ,guide, slave
and pressure hose, clutch depression effort decreased to the point where
pedal stress is minimal.
HTH
Pablo