Friday, October 09, 2009

Karmann Ghia's Clutch repaired


From a Karmann Ghia Discussion Group:

Harri Rautiainen:

KG clutch problem.

re: Karmann Ghia -58

The clutch wire tube in the shaft tunnel is loose. This prevents adjusting the clutch.
Any similar experiences? 

Andy Holmes:

I thought I had a similar problem with my KG - the advice from Luke Theochari at Terry's Beetle Services was that we would need to cut a small inspection hole in the tunnel to enable the wire conduit inside the tunnel to be welded back in place. Luckily this turned out not to be the problem with my car, it was a fault with the release bearing.


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Harri Rautiainen:

More developments on the clutch. It came out that there were already inspection holes in the tunnel. There was some previous repair dome, but the welding was too sloppy and the part was loose again. After fixing that my trusted mechanic, Mr. Simo Makkonen went for a test ride, and broke the clutch release shaft. Cannot really blame him because the original shaft was 51 years old, and was heavily tried recently because of the clutch wire problem.

I found a new part from Kuplapaja in Mäntsälä, some 50 km from Helsinki costing 30 €. Simo is pleased because it is much sturdier and better material than the original. He is throwing in a new release bearing for free. It has been staying on his shelf, and looks like I am his only VW customer. On other hand he can afford a freebie because the overall repair bill will be pretty hefty. If Simo will retire next summer, I will be in deep sneakers with my Karmann Ghia.