My Clutch is like a Nautilus machine

[Mo]

I am not a wizzard mechanic yet. Hope to be someday! My clutch works fine but compared to my E34 it is a bitch to drive. I have taken her out--the E28 535i--in traffic 3 days in a row b/c my lady has my E34 but it is killing my legs.

It is lots of work to get her in and out of traffic. Combine this w/ the fact she has a sloppy shifter and it is 'hellacious work' getting her home.

The great news is she is QUICK as ever (when I can find the right gear) and when (my calf doesnt cramp up) the bottom line is she is FUN to drive minuse the aforementioned nuisances.

Can anyone out there make some suggestions.
1. Clutch? [soften it up a bit]
2.Shifter? [tighten her up back to stock w/ out breaking the bank)

[pdx 528e]

Mine seems pretty stiff too. Is this a normal attribute for this car? I haven't driven an E34, but I have an E30, and it also seems to have a stiff clutch. My car's clutch seems to be stiffer, and grab harder than most other manual transmission cars I have driven. People notice if I am sloppy with a shift.

Wish I had some answers for ya. In what condition are your clutch hydraulics in, and have you checked for the elusive pedal bracket crack? I hear that a crack will increase the effort required to depress.

Chris

[FirstFives Dictator]

[QUOTE="Mo"]I am not a wizzard mechanic yet. Hope to be someday! My clutch works fine but compared to my E34 it is a bitch to drive. I have taken her out--the E28 535i--in traffic 3 days in a row b/c my lady has my E34 but it is killing my legs. [/QUOTE]

Probably previous clutch job was not performed well AFA properly lubing the tranny input shaft splines and/or replacing the plastic pivot point. Next clutch job make sure that stuff is done.

My M5 pressure plate (Thanks Steve Haygood) on my e12 feels like butter.

[Steve Haygood]

Another thing that can cause this is a pressure plate about to go

[smackmybutter535i]

My shifting is getting pretty sloppy too. would the brrake accumulaor have anything to do with it? I think I have a bad one. The accumulator is starting to hiss at me for some reason. There also seems be to a fluid leakage near the accumulaor. SO what I'm asking is... are those the signs of a leaky brake accumulator, and will they efffect the clutch?

[Steve Haygood]

no affect(?) on the clutch operation from a defective accumulator. Sounds as if you have a couple of problems, replace shifter parts, maybe leaking brake pressure switches( one on top and one on the side of the brake regulator( has several pipes/hoses going to it. it is located between the inner fender and the brake master cylinder. Check those and if no leak is there, the brake booster may be leaking, some have been fortunate and repaired this with a simple oring, others needed the brake booster itself. I have both , or all of this in stock if need be

[Shawn D.]

Mo,

I suggest you check the condition and operation of the clutch pedal spring. Contrary to popular misconception, it is not a "return spring" in that it's an over-center type assembly. What it does is add effort at the beginning of the push, then it applies no force near the middle of the push, then it helps as the pedal approaches the floor. This operation helps make the pedal pressure consistent throughout the travel. If the spring is not functioning, you have to apply more effort when operating the clutch.

-Shawn

[smackmybutter535i]

[QUOTE="Steve Haygood"]no affect(?) on the clutch operation from a defective accumulator. Sounds as if you have a couple of problems, replace shifter parts, maybe leaking brake pressure switches( one on top and one on the side of the brake regulator( has several pipes/hoses going to it. it is located between the inner fender and the brake master cylinder. Check those and if no leak is there, the brake booster may be leaking, some have been fortunate and repaired this with a simple oring, others needed the brake booster itself. I have both , or all of this in stock if need be[/QUOTE]

there are some leaks on top of the high pressure switch. I'm not sure where to go from here. I was going to replace the accumulator, just because I heard it has a %100 failure rate. I figure the thing is only 70 bucks in bavarian(or cheaper from you steve (@) ) so I'll just replace it. What scares me is the Power flow regulator lookin wet on top. Could somebody point me in the right direction to go so I can just fix this thing. it hisses at me every few seconds too... so now I know I better fix it sometime beforeautocross

[Steve Haygood]

I would start with the switches. Together, they are less than 40.00 and are about as failure prone as the accumulator...and they do leak ,the accumulator does not. If you want, send me an email with your number and I will call you and get these out to you

[Dinan 5er]

I agree with Shawn;

check the clutch "helper" spring. My car had the same symptoms as yours. Someone posted the procedure with pictures awhile back on what to look for and how to replace it. Unfortunately, I don't have a link to post. It is a common problem and a relatively easy fix.

Mike C.

'88 535i, Dinan Stage 3, chipped, euro bumper'd, big brake'd, Hi-po motor'd, PG bushing'd, etcetera'd, etcetera'd...