Clutch Pedal Sticky?

[Night Hawk]

Hi All,
When my 4 Spd Top Loader warms up the clutch pedal does not come all the way up after pressed in. It's comes to about 80% then it sticks there. I can move it the remaining with my foot. Has anyone seen this before? Also when I depress the clutch it sounds like an old man with squeaking spring movement, do I need to add some grease somewhere? Besides this the transmission shifts amazing and the clutch works great. Thanks in advance.

A picture from the cars and coffee I took it to this morning....

 

[MikeGriese]

Sounds like you have a bunch of bushings failing. The clutch mechanism is completely mechanical, consisting of rods, a z-bar, pivots and springs. The z-bar in particular is susceptible to pivot hole bushes wearing out and the holes egging over time. You will want to start at the clutch pedal itself and then work your way out into the engine compartment and under the car and look for slop in the mechanism. Remove and replace as warranted.

 

[Hemikiller]

Like Mike said, it could be a stacking of tolerances with worn bushings and other components. You can temporarily "fix" it by re-setting the free play at the clutch fork pushrod to factory spec.

 

[Stanglover]

My first question is; did you replace the clutch with a newer style diaphragm? If you did and did not remove the original assist spring mounted at the top of the pedal arm, it will stick part way up.
Other than that, it could be as mentioned, a stack up of worn parts.

 

[Night Hawk]

Thanks for the responses. The car did get a new clutch decades ago with little miles put on. I was having issues with the linkages and found the bolt holding the rod cluster had come completely loose. This pedal stick did not happen decades ago but has gotten worse over time. Even though the car has very little miles since being restored time seems to take a toll. I will check under the dash - my most hated spot to check - and also back under the car.

 

[Stanglover]

This picture from the manual is, like many, pretty poor quality, but shows where the assist spring is located. I sketched in where I installed oillite bronze bushes and that made a huge difference to clutch operation.
When I removed the one in my car, I used a Dremel and cut the spring, but this may not have been the best way to do it. There is considerable pressure on it, so be careful.

 

[Cleveland Crush]

Another simple thing to check Night Hawk: Get a flashlight and verify the clutch rod (from clutch pedal to zbar) is not bent and rubbing on the steering column or fire wall area while being depressed and release.