MINI CLUBMAN CLUTCH ADJUSTMENT
Q
I have a 1972 Mini Clubman which had the clutch replaced around 1500 miles ago by a local Mini specialist. Due to the low usage, this was over 18 months ago. I am now having difficulty engaging gear and have tried to follow the instructions to make the necessary adjustments, but without success. In fact, adjusting the throw- out stop to 0.50mm as per the instructions I have made matters worse, and I need to slacken the nut off again to allow the clutch to release. I am hoping you can set me in the right direction. Lennard Carman
AThe setting of 0.50mm is for the release lever adjustment, and this is possibly where you are going wrong. The Mini clutch should be adjusted as follows:
Remove the spring from the release lever and adjust the gap between the stop bolt and the lever to 0.50mm (0.020in in old money) with the lever held as far away as possible, then refit the spring.
Once the release lever gap is set, the throw-out can be set by loosening the locknut and unscrewing the stop several turns. Asking an assistant to then push the clutch pedal to the floor, the stop nut should be turned by hand until it makes contact. The clutch pedal can then be released and the stop nut turned one flat further and then locked in position by tightening the lock nut.
The clutch should now be properly adjusted and should clear without any problems. If the clutch still does not clear, the centre plate may be sticking on the splines, in which case the unit would need to be removed.