Spongy clutch pedal

[deathsled]

Had a friend come over who knows Mustangs and said the equalizer bar is bent and the lower connection rod does not engage straight but off at an angle.  It is also touching the header very closely.  I am inclined to get a fortified bar this time around and he will install or I will install under his watchful eyes.
Was looking into this...
https://opentrackerracing.com/shop/mustang-roller-z-bar-and-clutch-rods-289-302-hi-po-small-block-v8-1965-1966/

[Bob Gaines]

Certainly easier then modifying a stock one yourself.

[shelbydoug]

Had a friend come over who knows Mustangs and said the equalizer bar is bent and the lower connection rod does not engage straight but off at an angle.  It is also touching the header very closely.  I am inclined to get a fortified bar this time around and he will install or I will install under his watchful eyes.
Was looking into this...
https://opentrackerracing.com/shop/mustang-roller-z-bar-and-clutch-rods-289-302-hi-po-small-block-v8-1965-1966/

In my experience the stock z-bar can be repaired and reinforced.

What I do is double up the top s portion. You do that by welding the new piece on and in the process you temper the metal by squelching it in a bucket of water. Everything else stays the same.


As Bob said, if you can't do the work yourself, a simpler solution would be to purchase a reinforced bar but I'm not sure that simply adding gusset plates (the triangular piece added) will clear everything there so I question the design of the reinforcements shown in those pictures.

I am surprised that Cobra Automotive can't supply one? This is a common failure. Mine is a simple and obvious solution.

Frankly hydraulic clutches present issues in the Mustang mounting them since they get mounted to the sheetmetal firewall which really is inadequate for supporting the mechanism. I do know of one person here that tried them on a '67 GT350 and had to remove it.


I did "roller bearing" everything in the system and although it works, it isn't an improvement in operating effort but it is an improvement in longevity over the original bushings. Those will have to be replaced eventually anyway so using bearings is a good solution.

[deathsled]

The problem has been fixed. My buddy came over and noticed that there were two adjustment points upper and lower on the equalizer bar. That wasn't the problem. The problem was that the z bar had been intentionally bent to accommodate a Lakewood bell housing that my father insisted be put on the car. As a result the lower rod was permanently at what looked like a 30 degree angle from straight. He took the bar off and brought it back to his garage and used a vice to secure it and bend the lower bar straight. There was about an inch and a half that was pushed away from the scattershield. He also noted some spring was missing that is supposed to bring the clutch pedal up to be even with the brake pedal.  I thought it was normal for the pedal to drop down with about an inch of play. Apparently not. Here are some pics. Car drives nice now. I let him drive it and he got on it. I drive like a grannie but it was nice to see how responsive the car was and how fast it goes. He was driving it more like it should be driven. Thank you all for your input!

[Bob Gaines]

The problem has been fixed. My buddy came over and noticed that there were two adjustment points upper and lower on the equalizer bar. That wasn't the problem. The problem was that the z bar had been intentionally bent to accommodate a Lakewood bell housing that my father insisted be put on the car. As a result the lower rod was permanently at what looked like a 30 degree angle from straight. He took the bar off and brought it back to his garage and used a vice to secure it and bend the lower bar straight. There was about an inch and a half that was pushed away from the scattershield. He also noted some spring was missing that is supposed to bring the clutch pedal up to be even with the brake pedal.  I thought it was normal for the pedal to drop down with about an inch of play. Apparently not. Here are some pics. Car drives nice now. I let him drive it and he got on it. I drive like a grannie but it was nice to see how responsive the car was and how fast it goes. He was driving it more like it should be driven. Thank you all for your input!

I think it would have been prudent to have welded in some strength gussets like in previous pictures while you had it out. FYI you have the 65 style Z Bar.The 66 is the same bar except you take off the swivel block with the hole in it . Instead of a straight rod with the nuts on each side the 66 bar from the pedal has a 90 degree bend on the engine side end and it goes into the hole left from taking off the swivel block. It is held in place with a pin.  It works ether way just thought you would like to know that one way (the way you have it ) is for 65 and the other way is the way it came on the assemblyline in 66. Glad to hear you got it back together with a minimum of effort.

[deathsled]

Thanks for the info Bob! I believe I can remove the bar next time myself. I could do that and bring it over to a welder to add the reinforcement. I have to get a clutch pedal spring as well.

[FL SAAC]

That would be the most economical method to employ

But if you opt for something stronger, this is what we did to one of our big block cars

[deathsled]

I take it that what you did is called a rollerized setup.

[shelbydoug]

I take it that what you did is called a rollerized setup.

The rollerized setup does not reduce the load on the z-bar. Theoretically it is just a smoother operation.

There is no way around it, you have to reinforce the long arm. How you do it is the only controversy.



Oh, that reminds me, what exactly is a "sponger"?

[deathsled]

I take it that what you did is called a rollerized setup.

The rollerized setup does not reduce the load on the z-bar. Theoretically it is just a smoother operation.

There is no way around it, you have to reinforce the long arm. How you do it is the only controversy.



Oh, that reminds me, what exactly is a "sponger"?

sponger
noun [ C ]   disapproving
US  /ˈspʌn.dʒɚ/ UK  /ˈspʌn.dʒər/
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a person who gets money, food, etc. from other people, especially in order to live without working
(Definition of sponger from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & T