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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - clutch problems

my clutch has started making a whirring sshhing noise when the clutch pedel is out,when i push the pedel in it stops, any ideas? the engine is a recon with a couple of 1000 miles on it and the gearbox and clutch i think is the same. do i really have to take the engine out to replace the clutch if its buggered?. an old retired mechanic mate of my dads says it can be done with the engine in the car by pushing the gearbox back?. there is nothing this man does not know about triumphs (stags in particuler) but is he right about the mg midget, the clutch is NOT slipping or anything just noisey .thanks
roy judd

Clutch thrust bearing?
Spigot bearing chattering
Input shaft bearing a bit worn?

Yours is a 1500 innit?

always helps to post a reminder Roy
bill sdgpm

sorry bill,i did mean to but alot on my plate this evening,lol. yes its a 1977 1500. how bads all those ideas? im ok with basics but not things 2 intense.and any ideas on if my dads mate is wrong or right? thanks.
roy judd

In a midget the easy way is to remove engine and box and seperate them when out
realy it only sounds invasive it realy is not that bad
Onno Könemann

onno the problem is i am unable to do it myself (cant do fiddly things as iv got a degenerative eye condition) and would need to pay a garage to do it,was hoping it wouldnt be an engine out job as thats looking at a few hours labour before they even get into fixing the clutch :~(
roy judd

Hmm

in your position I'd drive it until /unless it breaks

It isnt necessarily any more than a noise for now

it can be caused by assorted things & it aint necessarily awful YET

when it breaks then you will know that whipping the engine and box out and apart is for a really good reason

in your position I'd.......


in the long run we sometimes have to accept that best practise isnt always BEST

I dont believe the 1500 engine and box can be split that way, you can take the engine out and leave the box in place, not t'other way around

The box is bolted inside the tunnel, the mount would need taking out too attached to the gearbox
bill sdgpm

thanks bill,thats what i thought, i think my dads mate is thinking that becouse its a triumph spitfire engine you can work on them the same way.as i said he has restored dozens of stags and spitfires over the last 30 years but never worked on mgs.shame he dont work anymore (hes about 85)cos id farm the work out to him in his spare time. oh well il drive it till i break it like you say then have it fixed then.
roy judd

are you any good at making tea? can you get your hands on a lifting hoist? do you have a well lit garage? have you got a really good SOB tool to be thrown at the appropriate moment and a clear space to throw it? Buy a clutch kit, lets get it done.

labour cost 1 cup of tea per hour.
N Sayle

nick; i make a cracking cuppa tea and my wife makes better biscuits. however my garage is a single garage,so unsure if thats to small,it is however well lit.iv got a whole box of SOB tools and i live on salisbury plain so theres miles of green stuff to throw things. as for a hoist i could no doubt hire 1.if its easyer i could drive up to you? and if your serous about doing it i would be well indebted to you. i could be your fetch'it monkey for the day after you use the SOB tool.roy


roy judd

Anecdote - not a recommended solution.

The day after driving through deep floods on the way back from Mothy's first aborted Bonfire Run last November, my clutch developed horrid dry scraping noises when not depressed. It is a concentric slave clutch so the clutch thrust bearing is in constant contact with the clutch cover.
I assumed that the flood water had got into the bellhousing through the (not blanked off) clutch lever holes. Not wanting to take the engine out I sprayed some WD40 directly onto the bearing using one of those thin red tube nozzle things.

Problem instantly cured! And more amazingly, spraying WD40 onto the clutch did not induce clutch slip!

A risky strategy perhaps, but nothing to loose. Just shows that the uncionventional solution does sometimes pay off.

Guy
Guy Weller

hey it may be worth a try.
roy judd

You might get a Judd .....ery clutch.

Taraah!!
Guy Weller

boom! boom! :~)
roy judd

nick; iv been online and i can rent an engine lifting hoist.they have a choice of diffrent ones.as i said if its easyer i can drive up to you if you have a better garage to work in as the clutch is not slipping at all,just noisy when the pedel is out.push it in and the noise stops.roy
roy judd

This thread was discussed between 02/04/2010 and 04/04/2010

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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