snowy892 Posted March 11, 2017 Posted March 11, 2017 Hi All, My throttle cable has just snapped underneath the accelerator peddle aarrrhhh... I have a Duratec engine - do I go to ford For a replacement or a local car spares shop? Regards Richard Also is it relatively easy to replace???? Quote
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted March 11, 2017 Posted March 11, 2017 Most of the Duratec cars are on throttle bodies, so if yours is, it won't be a Ford part. Bicycle brake cables can often be modified to fit, but without knowing for sure what induction system your engine has, it's hard to be specific. If it's Jenvey or Omex throttle bodies, both Jenvey and Omex do sell spare throttle cables, if you want something that will fit straight on. Quote
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted March 11, 2017 Posted March 11, 2017 Just had a quick flick back, you mentioned your car has Weber Throttle Bodies in another post. So worst case, you could probably get a cable from Weber. Depending on what the cable-end at the TB end is like though, a bike type cable may fit. (You can do it with Omex, but I've never tried on Webers) Quote
snowy892 Posted March 11, 2017 Author Posted March 11, 2017 Thanks for the reply Dave you are correct it has Weber throttle bodies. I'll have a look on their site Quote
Welly Jen Posted March 11, 2017 Posted March 11, 2017 Worth investigating why it may have snapped too. Is there a throttle stop and is it properly adjusted so that the pedal touches at full throttle opening? Does the attachment where it has broken allow the cable to rotate so that it isn't being flexed back and forth? Jen 1 Quote
stephenh Posted March 12, 2017 Posted March 12, 2017 I don't think a bike cable is a good idea, it may not be of the same quality. Lots of people sell throttle cables. You need to take your cable off, which should be a simple job, look at what sort of end it has at the throttle body end. It may well just be a plain cable end, the ones which fit Weber carburetors are (or at least mine is) because Weber supply all there own throttle leaver assemblies for any given installation, and you just supply a plain cable. If that is so, then the critical thing will be to buy a replacement of decent quality, of the correct length. At the pedal end, I'd bet that on a modern Westfield with floor mounted factory supplied pedal box, the end of the cable will be locked by a grub screw, which will need a small allen key to undo the broken bit of cable, in a trunion pin which is free to rotate in the throttle pedal. Trying to do this from the cockpit is a nightmare, particularly if you are on the large size and/or past the first flush of youth. However the top of the pedal box (ie above where your feet are when driving the car, is usually very easy to remove. On my old car it was a black panel of (from memory) plastic. That will be most likely fixed by a few pop rivets which you can drill out, or if you are really lucky the builder will have thoughtfully fitted it using small bolts into rivnuts (like I have done on my new XI!) in which case it is even easier to remove. Either way, if you remove that panel then getting at the broken cable end to remove it, and fitting the new cable will be quite easy. Quote
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted March 12, 2017 Posted March 12, 2017 You're right. Many bike cables are of better quality. (It's just the nipples at the TB end that aren't necessarily right.) I had to replace my ITB cable supplied by Omex with a bike cable due to quality issues with the Omex cable, I'm afraid. It was literally sawing through the brass cable adjusters whenever not perfectly centered. I too was doubtful at first about the bike brake cables, but got so many recommendations on here from people that had used them I decided to give it a try and was really pleased with the results. PS, last time I spoke to Omex about it last Autumn, I think they said they'd sourced a different cable supplier where this was less likely to happen. 1 Quote
Thrustyjust Posted March 13, 2017 Posted March 13, 2017 Plenty of threads on people fitting brake cables from mountain bikes and finding they are smoother and just as strong and much better quality than car cables. I have used them for years now without death. 1 Quote
Welly Jen Posted March 13, 2017 Posted March 13, 2017 Push bike brake cables are safety critical in a way that throttle cables are not. I would expect the quality to be good. Jen 2 Quote
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted March 13, 2017 Posted March 13, 2017 4 minutes ago, Welly Jen said: Push bike brake cables are safety critical in a way that throttle cables are not. I would expect the quality to be good. Jen Indeed, that's been my experience after being persuaded to try them. Quote
Andy Dawson Posted March 14, 2017 Posted March 14, 2017 I've had this link on my fleabay account since I bought my Duratec, and I'm sure it was for a good reason. Just can't remember what it was now! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231870533925 would be interested to know what you end up with as I keep meaning to get a spare to chuck in the "boot" Quote
snowy892 Posted April 1, 2017 Author Posted April 1, 2017 On 14/03/2017 at 08:24, Andy Dawson said: I've had this link on my fleabay account since I bought my Duratec, and I'm sure it was for a good reason. Just can't remember what it was now! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231870533925 would be interested to know what you end up with as I keep meaning to get a spare to chuck in the "boot" Andy, Finally got my throttle cable replaced. Took it to my local custom garage who specialise in MG, he used cable from an MG took out the metal cable and threaded it throw the outer coating. Reasonable easy he stated!! Any way she's back on the road... Quote
jeff oakley Posted April 2, 2017 Posted April 2, 2017 The pull pressure on a properly set up throttle pedal is quite low overall. Usually the reason they break is that when the throttle is fully open, the pedal has not hit the stop and people are still pushing it harder. The weak bit is usually the crimp which pulls out. Misalignment is also a reason The cure is to make sure the pedal has a stop which is set at full throttle opening. 1 Quote
Andy Dawson Posted April 4, 2017 Posted April 4, 2017 On 02/04/2017 at 07:19, snowy892 said: Andy, Finally got my throttle cable replaced. Took it to my local custom garage who specialise in MG, he used cable from an MG took out the metal cable and threaded it throw the outer coating. Reasonable easy he stated!! Any way she's back on the road... Thanks for letting me know, hope it works well! Quote
CosKev Posted April 5, 2017 Posted April 5, 2017 As above,routing from the bulkhead to the pedal cable angles ,a pedal stop and making sure the cable end can rotate in the clevis/pedal are all the main issues with cables snapping 1 Quote
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