240 General: clutch fork removal

[chili77]

Hi all,

Just finished reviewing all 1600 plus threads on 240. Did find clue to my clutch problem, it appears to be bent or weakened clutch fork. So the question is how can it be removed from housing in order to replace or repair it?

By the way my fork is installed in a 1990 240dl wagon with about 200k miles. This is my first volvo and other than this problem, the car is not too bad.

Thanks

chili77

[Mike_Brace]

First you need to remove the rod between the arm and slave cylinder. Then remove the rubber gaiter. the fork can the be unclipped and wiggled out. Replacement is basically the process in reverse. Best of luck.

Mike

[chili77]

Mike,

Thanks for the note. I forgot to mention that my v car has a cable operated clutch. Will this make a difference? I found information for an 89 240 in the autozone website, which showed the assembly from the inside. It shows the fork as being captured by the main shaft. I don't know if this is the same for a 90 model since the information for that year isn't available on the web site. Hope to learn more if possible. I don't want to drop tranny yet if not needed.

Thanks again for the quick response.

chili77

[Mike_Brace]

I'd better put my dunce's cap on - I noticed you were from the States and forgot that left hookers have the cable clutch (I have one myself so should know!) On this it is a box out job. Have you checked the adjustment of the clutch cable (knurled plastic adjuster on outer cable), Cable operated clutches are by their design less prone to this problem of wear. Check this out first - if it is a drop the box job let me know for advice on this. I suspect its going to be a case of adjustment. Let us know how you get on.

Mike

[chili77]

Mike, its me again,

Spent the whole day working on the v car. Started by straightening out the end of the clutch fork where the cable ball end fits. The more I thought about the problem the less cable and more lever it became. I had already checked the bell crank on the clutch pedal, so knew it was ok. In one of the threads the clutch fork was mentiond and this why I wanted to know if it could be removed without dropping the box. Once the end was made straight it was apparent that this was the problem. The metal just became weak, and fatigued. Now that it was straight I knew that if I hooked up the linkage again it would do the same thing. Call it de ja vu, again. So the plan was to make a stronger version of the lever arm without welding or removing it from the bell housing. I had some scrap metal stashed away, so began a search, found a section of channel that just fit. After some drilling, cutting and file work, I had an overlay strong back for the lever end. Since the car has sat for about a year with a few attempts at solving the problem, the battery was stone dead, so I had to wait a few hours to start the pesky rascal. Once I got it started, I tried the clutch and it worked fine, cycled it several times and no problem. Whew, what a long ordeal, but I did manage to avoid dropping the box, which would have been very difficult, since I work alone and have no lift.

Hope this wasn't too long and boring, but it is a moment of some joy, which I wanted to share.

Thanks again for the prompt response,

chili77

[minesa240x3]

Congratulation's and well done on sorting the problem.sound's like the same thing i would do in your situation.As you have noticed the folk's on here are very helpful on most any problem.Enjoy your volvo and happy motoring.
Brian.
Watch out for the shiny spinning thing's in the sky lol.

[Mike_Brace]

I am glad that you have successfully sorted this problem - just the sort of ingenious improvisationof which I approve. Well done. Most interesting solution - thanks for sharing it.

Mike

[chili77]

Mike, Brian and Volvo community,

Thanks for the support and good wishes. In gratitude may I offer this tip for 200 series V cars. The bonnet hinge pins need frequent lubrication. Not attending to this will ruin a perfectly good bonnet. I have been lucky to avoid this problem but, rest assured it can happen.

Cheers,

chili77

[minesa240x3]

Thank's chili77 being a long term volvo owner I have had to remove strangely enough the nearside(leftside as you sit in the vehicle for our american friends)hinge on two of my car's to unsieze them,one had to be welded as it had nearly broke through but thank's for the tip,first sign of siezure is when the bonnet's(hood) closed it stand's proud up by the windscreen in the corner.

[chili77]

As noted it took lots of work to isolate the problem of clutch actuation. It turns out that in the end the problem was a faulty clutch cable and sheath. It couldn't be seen from the outside, but finally once all ideas had been tried and failed. I pulled the cable and found the sheath nearly destroyed from the inside out. Installing a new cable was the final solution and the car is now a winner.

Thanks for all the help from the club.

Chili77

PS

I actually had to have the cable removed and replaced. I can't fit under the dash. Broad shoulders, Ha, Ha.