Who pulled my pants down over my new clutch?
Discussion
TL:DR:
1. Clutch cable failed. AA mech and then mech at my local garage noted that the clutch was slipping as well.
2. Had clutch cable replaced at local garage as car was veering between drivable and non-drivable.
3. Booked car for clutch replacement at more distant garage.
3. More distant garage rings after 20 mins and says there's no way they can fit a new clutch on this clutch cable ("it's aftermarket rather than from Peugeot and we might have to cut it out") and they might have to cut it out. I OK the installation of another cable.
4. ???
Last month, I put my foot on the clutch in my Pug 206 and there was no tension, just a horrible grinding noise as the totally slack clutch cable was pulled through the bulkhead. I called the AA, and after a few minutes the car and gearbox was drivable again. Clutch cable continued to be problematic for the 15 miles home.
The day after I took the car to the nearest garage and instructed them to replace the cable with a new one. They did it and the clutch cable problems (obviously) went away. Both the AA man and the chap at the garage (as well as me over the course of a few weeks) noted that the clutch was slipping.
Not wanting to be left on the hard shoulder at some mad time in the morning with no gears, I booked the Pug in at a well-known clutch chain-garage. Bite the bullet and all that. When I arrived I mentioned that the clutch cable was brand new.
Twenty mins into the procedure the garage rang and said with a note of incredulity, "*when* did you say you had this new cable installed?". Sensing danger I told them it was about a week old. Over the phone they told me it was an aftermarket part (i.e. non-Pug), had pulled completely taut and they might have to cut it out to install a new clutch. Already resigned to a new clutch bill I sighed and gave them the go-ahead to install *another* new clutch cable. This may have been my first mistake.
I now have a car with a functioning gearbox, which is the main thing, but I also have a spare auto-adjusting clutch cable sitting in my passenger-seat footwell glaring at me. It's in one piece (i.e. didn't need to be cut out), and I'm struggling to understand, from a technical point of view what the problem could have been. Did the clutch specialist simply see a brand new clutch cable and sense an opportunity?
I'm also after some advice as to what to do next - go back to the garage that installed the (apparently) duff clutch cable and challenge them, go to a third party garage to get an impartial opinion or something else.
In fairness the new cable cost £80 which compared to the cost of missing a day's work and getting towed home is not too bad, and if I'm going to have my pants pulled down by a garage this is a relatively cheap way of having it done, but I'm slightly miffed at having bought two clutch cables within a week for the same car.
Any advice, shared experiences, technical-speak gratefully received. Thanks all.
1. Clutch cable failed. AA mech and then mech at my local garage noted that the clutch was slipping as well.
2. Had clutch cable replaced at local garage as car was veering between drivable and non-drivable.
3. Booked car for clutch replacement at more distant garage.
3. More distant garage rings after 20 mins and says there's no way they can fit a new clutch on this clutch cable ("it's aftermarket rather than from Peugeot and we might have to cut it out") and they might have to cut it out. I OK the installation of another cable.
4. ???
Last month, I put my foot on the clutch in my Pug 206 and there was no tension, just a horrible grinding noise as the totally slack clutch cable was pulled through the bulkhead. I called the AA, and after a few minutes the car and gearbox was drivable again. Clutch cable continued to be problematic for the 15 miles home.
The day after I took the car to the nearest garage and instructed them to replace the cable with a new one. They did it and the clutch cable problems (obviously) went away. Both the AA man and the chap at the garage (as well as me over the course of a few weeks) noted that the clutch was slipping.
Not wanting to be left on the hard shoulder at some mad time in the morning with no gears, I booked the Pug in at a well-known clutch chain-garage. Bite the bullet and all that. When I arrived I mentioned that the clutch cable was brand new.
Twenty mins into the procedure the garage rang and said with a note of incredulity, "*when* did you say you had this new cable installed?". Sensing danger I told them it was about a week old. Over the phone they told me it was an aftermarket part (i.e. non-Pug), had pulled completely taut and they might have to cut it out to install a new clutch. Already resigned to a new clutch bill I sighed and gave them the go-ahead to install *another* new clutch cable. This may have been my first mistake.
I now have a car with a functioning gearbox, which is the main thing, but I also have a spare auto-adjusting clutch cable sitting in my passenger-seat footwell glaring at me. It's in one piece (i.e. didn't need to be cut out), and I'm struggling to understand, from a technical point of view what the problem could have been. Did the clutch specialist simply see a brand new clutch cable and sense an opportunity?
I'm also after some advice as to what to do next - go back to the garage that installed the (apparently) duff clutch cable and challenge them, go to a third party garage to get an impartial opinion or something else.
In fairness the new cable cost £80 which compared to the cost of missing a day's work and getting towed home is not too bad, and if I'm going to have my pants pulled down by a garage this is a relatively cheap way of having it done, but I'm slightly miffed at having bought two clutch cables within a week for the same car.
Any advice, shared experiences, technical-speak gratefully received. Thanks all.
Great username.
It could be that "just to get you on the road" the first garage fitted a part which wasn't _exactly_ the right spec, but could be made to work. Gets you running again, but now you've got the opportunity for a new clutch, putting the real deal part in might be a good idea.
However, I don't think anyone online will be able to tell you whether it was:
i) a bodge by garage 1, mended properly by garage 2, or
ii) a fine job by garage 1, and a money spinning scam by garage 2.
You'll have to do some more investigation to find out, probably involving an independent 3rd party who knows what they're doing to assess if the initial cable was unsuitable or what. You have to decide if that's worth spending your time on.
Good luck.
It could be that "just to get you on the road" the first garage fitted a part which wasn't _exactly_ the right spec, but could be made to work. Gets you running again, but now you've got the opportunity for a new clutch, putting the real deal part in might be a good idea.
However, I don't think anyone online will be able to tell you whether it was:
i) a bodge by garage 1, mended properly by garage 2, or
ii) a fine job by garage 1, and a money spinning scam by garage 2.
You'll have to do some more investigation to find out, probably involving an independent 3rd party who knows what they're doing to assess if the initial cable was unsuitable or what. You have to decide if that's worth spending your time on.
Good luck.
Re username - haha, thanks 
Thanks for the reply, sort of chimes with my gut feeling which is that trying to figure out exactly what's going on will take way too long to actually be worth it.
I think the lesson to learn from this is that if you're not absolutely sure what a mech is talking about, get them to explain it to death until you actually understand, rather than okaying a procedure whose merits you're unsure of.
Ta!
Thanks for the reply, sort of chimes with my gut feeling which is that trying to figure out exactly what's going on will take way too long to actually be worth it.
I think the lesson to learn from this is that if you're not absolutely sure what a mech is talking about, get them to explain it to death until you actually understand, rather than okaying a procedure whose merits you're unsure of.
Ta!
It is worth trying to identify the clutch cable. The AA used to carry a kit to enable them to fit get-you-mobile cables, and if one of those came into my workshop i would advise it's removal as if you made it to me, then it has done its job. If any clutch or transmission work was required on the car i would insist on the temporary cable being removed.
However if the cable is a perfectly healthy genuine peugeot cable, then your garage comes under the spotlight...
However if the cable is a perfectly healthy genuine peugeot cable, then your garage comes under the spotlight...
Cheers for getting in touch. Ok, Tony Hart's gallery time:
Business end of the clutch cable. There's no branding anywhere, certainly no Pug logo etc. It does have "24/12 SF" stamped into it, but a bit of judicious Googling doesn't bring up any useful results.
Cable housing. Note the tear in the mount, which I assume was done by the second garage when they removed the cable.
View of the rubbery side of the housing, again damaged, again presumably where the second garage removed the cable.
Looking at the thing doesn't enlighten me very much but if anyone has any ideas I would appreciate hearing them.
Business end of the clutch cable. There's no branding anywhere, certainly no Pug logo etc. It does have "24/12 SF" stamped into it, but a bit of judicious Googling doesn't bring up any useful results.
Cable housing. Note the tear in the mount, which I assume was done by the second garage when they removed the cable.
View of the rubbery side of the housing, again damaged, again presumably where the second garage removed the cable.
Looking at the thing doesn't enlighten me very much but if anyone has any ideas I would appreciate hearing them.
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