Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing 4/4 Zetec clutch issue

Hi all,

Hope you had a good summer, and are enjoying a last hurrah over this unusually warm weekend.

I have a clutch issue - it’s dragging. My car has done 135,000 miles (yes, really) and the clutch has never been touched as far as I’m aware.

So if it needs a new clutch is it a specialist job and if not, what are the parts needed? I've never done a clutch (apart rom on 3 motorbikes) so it's not something I'd tackle. If you don't think to would be the clutch itself then any other ideas? I know it's a hydraulic clutch, so it could be the master cylinder, or even that Clevis pin (mentioned here - Mogtalk - clevis pin issue - not checked that yet either!)

At least it's happened at the end of the summer and I only have a short journey today for our local centre AGM, so it's going!

Thanks,
Julia

How is the clutch fluid? When was it last changed? Are there any leaks?
Check there is nothing blocking the full pedal movement.

It is a Ford engine but I have no idea about the clutch, I'm guessing Ford also. I'm sure someone on here will comment soon.

At that sort of mileage, one might expect clutch slip rather than drag. So, I go along with John V6, and suggest you change the clutch fluid whether it needs it or not, make sure any air is bled out, and check linkages for slop. If it doesn’t help, you have only lost a fiver or so for the fluid.
Others might be able to shed some light especially if you quote the model year and engine capacity.

Sorry to read of your clutch drag issue. Perhaps there is a chance that some air has got into the system via worn seals..? Might be worth trying the following. Immediately prior to starting you pump the pedal a few times, while holding the pedal clutch down, quickly fire up the engine to see if engaging your first selection of any gear is better than "normal" i.e, not as stiff as it has been of late...? If that might be the case then perhaps bleeding the clutch as part of your replacement fluid process might help... Checking gearbox oil level might be worthwhile too...?

Good luck in resolving your issue.

What year is the car?

Thanks all.

@Graham - 2004 car.
@John - frankly no idea! I honestly can’t say it’s ever been changed or even last tested.
@Deejay - thanks for that too.
@Luddite - thanks for the suggestion. I’ll try that out too.

I think next steps are to make time to get the clutch fluid checked and changed, and the whole system checked out.

I am assuming from what you say it has been a long time since the clutch fluid was changed so that is where I would start.

Thanks Bruce!