DieselSpider wrote:akershaw wrote:Thanks Steinonkel. Good tips. If I was in the States I'd do as you suggest. But with postage and customs it gets pretty pricey. The new correct ones from Holtmann in Germany are being supplied in the UK for more than $140. So I might just try the second hand one for now. And who needs a clutch anyway? When my cable kept breaking (before I knew the old pedal fork was distorted) I had a few interesting drives across rush hour London. Perfectly possible to start in first at traffic lights, even on a slight incline, and then it's just a question of matching the revs. Fun days!
Ended up doing that last week. The diesel gets a little fussy starting under a load when it gets below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Yes when you are use to the sound of your engine you can match the gears with the engine speed and power shift quite smoothly.
My wife was going to pay for a $200 tow to get her car to her favorite shop when her clutch slave blew. I started it in gear and drove it there. When that hollow clutch slave cylinder built into the throwout bearing goes it soaks the clutch with brake fluid so all done and told what might be a $25 event on my Spider can too easily be a $1,200 to $1,500 event on her Saturn VUE. I am really beginning to hate those hydraulic clutches with the internal slave cylinder that only seem to last about 40,000 miles and kill the clutch before its even half way worn out and even more so on a front wheel drive where you have to take so much of the front suspension apart to get the job done.
I think you're preaching to the choir, Diesel. All three of my cars are at least 32 years old. They're much, much cheaper and simpler. Makes them easier to fix. Need a suspension overhaul? K, that's like $200 in parts and a weekend of work. No big deal.