[DeTomaso] Clutch Master Cylinder

[JDeRyke at aol.com]

In a message dated 12/3/07 11:39:05 AM, edlebby at yahoo.com writes:

> QUESTION: are these really fixed studs...or is there something on the 
> otherside of the firewall under the dash (like a bolt head) that one has to hold 
> down)?? - if not, it would be those 2 retaining nuts, unfasten the hydraulic 
> line and it is off...right? -
> 
Uh-uh, Peter. Once you get that far (assuming your 9000-series Pantera is 
similar to earlier ones under the dash), you'll find the accelerator pedal stop 
interferes with accessing the bolt-heads (or nuts- can't quite remember which). 
Taking the bolts out for the sheet metal pedal stop off allows you to access 
the MS retainer heads. But you may still be in deep woods as far as removing 
the MS: its actuating rod is held into the MS with a snap-ring and to the pedal 
with a 1/4" dia pin held by two of the tiniest c-clips you ever saw. Expect 
to drop a clip on the rug during removal. Be sure you find it- they are not 
easily replaceable. Sometimes the c-clips are rusted so they break in half but 
can be replaced by a drilled hole in the pin and a wire snap-retainer or roll 
pin. 

Once the inboard c-clip is out, the pin can be (sometimes) pushed toward the 
outside of the car enough to release the actuating rod & its clevis. Some pins 
are worn or rusted enough so a simple push does nothing. I've had to unbolt 
the whole pedal plate and pull it back enough so I could get a long pin-punch 
in there to drive the MS pin sideways. This can be done without disconnecting 
hydraulic lines. There is absolutely not enough room to hit the pin from under 
a dash hard enough to move it, if its stuck. And if you try moving it the 
other way, you'll find it won't move far enough toward the inboard side of the car 
before running into the welded toe box structure.

Finally after overcoming all this, you may find the MS leaked a little over 
the years and the fluid swelled and BONDED the rubber boot to both the stub end 
of the MS AND to the aluminum pedal plate, requiring some real brutality to 
break it free, so the MS can finally be pulled out The fit here is tight even 
under the best of circumstances. Of all the fussy jobs on a Pantera, this one 
is my least favorite! Good luck and be patient- the job CAN be done, and not 
all cars have all these things go wrong at once. Our '72 did, but..... Cheers-J 
DeRyke


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