# Failed Clutch Pedal Repair Write Up.



## Rosskie (Jul 31, 2007)

Hey folks,

Finally finished fitting my newly welded clutch pedal, and thought I'd give a quick write up of how to do it yourself! Hope its helpful to someone.

Its an easy job in principle, but very fiddly and time consuming (2.5 hours for me). Also you will think your Australian once your done, due to the amount of time your gonna spend upside down! That having been said, if you've done it once, you'll find its relatively easy the next time around.

If your not remotely mechanically minded however, then I'd recommend you dont try yourself. Dont get me wrong, if your considering it, then you probably ARE very capable, but dont think its a walk in the park for everyone.

Ok, if your driving along and your clutch suddenly hits the floor with a crunching noise then its failed.










What you now have to do is try and get yourself home!

You can easily pull the car out of gear without a clutch, so, best bet is to do that then pull over safely, but do not stop closely behind another car/obstacle.

Turn off the engine, then put the car into first gear.

Make sure your handbrakes off and take your foot off the foot brake, then start the engine and you'll bounce forward, but the car will start, and go. You can then change gear without the clutch, but it isn't easy. Just try and push the relevant gear in, it doesn't have to be a hard push, so, dont go silly. Its all to do with the rev's, and you can change easiest around the 2500 mark. Just try, if you can't get it, stop, and try again, or drive home in first.

Hopefully someone else can explain better about how to do this.

Persevere with this and you'll get home, saving yourself Â£Â£Â£ on a flatbed. Obviously, be prepared to re-start the engine at any roundabouts/traffic lights. But dont take it out of gear unless you really have to, as if you can't get it back into gear, its restart time!! Unfortunately, if your really far from home, you should maybe just accept defeat and find a car park.

Next step is to go to Audi and order the following parts:

Stop for Switch

Part no: 1J2721332A

Cost: Â£1.98

(I didn't need the following bits so, no part numbers / costs)

Master Cylinder Head Retaining Clip:

Part No:????

Cost: Â£2 roughly

New Clutch Pedal:

Part no:????

Cost: Â£25 roughly

Its better that you actually get your old clutch pedal repaired as if you get someone to weld it properly, it'll be stronger that buying another weak one from Audi. Take the pedal and small rectangular metal bit (in pic above) that will be on your floor to any local garage, the smaller the better really as they are more likely to do it there and then. Also make sure they file down the edges of the new welds, or you will not be able to fit the Stop For Switch onto the pedal.

So once you've got your new parts, you'll need some tools.

You will need:

2 x 12mm Spanners

2 x 12 inch Zip ties

Grease

T25 Torx keys/screwdriver attachements

Flat headed screwdriver

Stanley knife

Torch

Long nosed pliers

Hacksaw/File (if cheating, see below)

Scrap solid plastic (again if cheating)

The first step is to remove the lower dash. See the following link, and bear in mind, a lot of the illustrations are from a LHD model. Its a relatively simple procedure, but my dash had 3 screws holding it in place, not two as the manual says.

http://www.kisolutionz.com/ttforum/trim.pdf

That should have been easy enough, so, next step:

Remove the Foot-Rest, as it gives you a lot more room to work.

Unscrew the single torx screw, and use your flat-head screwdriver to undo the one plastic screw, then just pull the foot-rest assembly out.

Next you need to remove the pedal.

See the following:

http://www.kisolutionz.com/ttforum/clutchinfo.pdf

Its a good idea to remove your mat too, and lay an old towel in the footwell as you may get grease on your upholstery otherwise.

Start by pushing the clutch pedal to the floor. If the white master cylinder retaining clip is still on the end of the master cylinder, take this off. Try not to break it, as you'll need to keep it, unless you bought a new one. Its stiff to get off.

Oh, remove the switch that will be sticking out of the top of clutch pedal housing. It'll be pointing directly towards you. Pull out the connector, and twist the switch to remove.

Next remove the pivot bolt which is holding the clutch pedal in the housing, using your two spanners. It can be hard to pull the bolt out, as space is tight and using your long nosed pliers and an unscrewing action will help.

Then wiggle the pedal out, and the spring behind the pedal should fall out if it hasn't already. It shouldn't bounce out as it wont be highly compressed if the pedal is down, otherwise it could be dangerous.

Get your old pedal welded and pickup any parts you need.

So, eveythings appart/out now, and next you should grease some bits- the ball end of the master cylinder, the pivot assembly of the clutch pedal, the plastic ends of the spring.

Attach the black Stop For Switch on the new/repaired pedal.

Next step is to compress the spring.

Using your zip ties, thread them underneath the spring on opposite sides of each other. There are obvious gaps for where you'll get the zip ties under. Try to get as many coils of the spring in the loop of the zip ties as possible. Then pull them as tight as you can, alternating the sides will ensure you get maximum compression.

Once you've done this, cut off the ends so they are not flapping about and getting in the way.

Now, the hard parts.

You need to re-attach the White clip onto the ball end of the master cylinder. Its hard to get on, and should be greased slightly, which will help. Then you need to get the white clip into the housing on the clutch pedal. This is very hard to do, and is most easily done if you refrain from putting anything else back together before this step. No pivot bolt, or spring back in yet.

I have to admit, I cheated with this bit, in a very bad way, but it made it a LOT easier. I cut off about 3mm of plastic from the head of the white clip, and put about 3mm depth of scrap, hard plastic into the square on the clutch pedal. Even if you do this, it'll still be fiddly and take a while. If you can find a way of compressing the master cylinder then their will be no need to cheat, but I didn't have the strength/ability to do this.

Once you've got the master cylinder clip into the housing on the clutch pedal, you should put the pivot bolt back in. It will be fiddly, and is easiest to put the bolt back in the opposite way from the way you removed it. The nut will be beside the brake pedal with the new setup.

Secure the bolt using your spanners, and now you just need to refit the spring.

Due to the setup of the plastic parts inside the spring there is a gap running at 3 O'Clock and 9 O'Clock in regards to the correct orientation of the spring. Your zip ties will be in these positions as you can't get them underneath the spring to compress it anywhere else.

If you use this and the torch to help you orientate the spring and position it so the GREY end is towards the engine. You should be able to sit the spring in the right position with the white end sitting on top of the clutch "hammer". Then, using a finger of your right hand, reach in from above the spring, and hold the white end in place, and aligned with the clutch hammer. Then using your left hand, push the pedal down, and when the hammer is getting close to engaging with the spring end, very gently push down with your finger. There will be a small click if the hammers engaged the spring properly. Release the clutch pedal and the spring should compress some more. This will be fiddly and will take a lot of attempts to get it right!

Using the torch, check the spring is definitely in the right place, at both ends, then double check, then if its ok, push the pedal a few times. If the spring doesnâ€™t pop out, use the stanley knife to cut the zip ties, and then a pair of long nosed pliers to carefully pull the cut ties out. They are easier to pull out if you push the pedal down.

Replace the switch you removed from the clutch housing. It goes into the bottom of the two spaces, and will rest gently on the black Stop For Switch.

Replace the foot-rest. It has to slide in, from right to left, rather than just pushing it back on.

Reconnect the headlight and dimmer switches, replace the OBD port, and replace the lower dash.

And you done!

You've just saved yourself a fortune, and have a better pedal than an Audi dealer would have put in.

IMPORTANT: If your clutch is unusually heavy, then the breakage may be indicative of another problem, and you should get it checked out by a specialist.

I used info on the forum already to do this myself, and wrote this up using that, so, credit to the following members (In no particular order):

John-H
Chip_iTT
Dino_Donis
JayGemson
TTej

Sorry if I missed anyone.

P.s. - Consider telling Harold your clutch broke, he's spearheading the recall campaign!!

Some assorted pics:


























EDIT:

If you experince some strange behaviour with the Rev's when changing gear after doing this, your switch at the top of the pedal is either broken or incorrectly setup. I.e. the rev's will jump up slightly when you change gear.

Some switches have a toothed piston with adjustable travel, and can just be pulled out to extend the length. If you have one of those, then pull it out quite far, then re-fit with the clutch pedal up and it should be at the correct length.

If yours isn't adjustable or that doesn't solve it, you'll have to buy a new one.

Enjoy


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## acmurray (Jun 28, 2007)

Thanks for taking the time to do this, as it is such a common issue with the TT I'm sure it will be very helpful to loads of us.


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## Hallyfella (Mar 5, 2007)

im glad i dont have a clutch pedal. great write up tho.


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## TH3UKRIDDL3R (May 2, 2009)

Howdy peeps, 1st post.

I wanna say a a big thanks for this guide. My partner brought a 2001 225 quattro Yesterday and guess what happened within hours of getting home....I get a phone call saying the clutch peddle has hit the floor and there was a loud noise [smiley=bigcry.gif] .

Needless to say, thanks to the above i was able to remove the peddle and get it welded by a friend (good person to know if you need welding done on a sunday lol). Just put it all back together and went out for a test drive - Good as new   

So far this forum has been an excellent source of information. [smiley=book2.gif]


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## tomnprice (Nov 4, 2008)

Great guide, i've just bought myself a TT and have read about this issue. I had exactly the same thing happen with the 1.8T Ibiza Cupra, with my limited skills it took me a good 3-4 hours! could have done with something like this!

Would it be worth taking the pedal off before it breaks and welding the top of the box all the way round so i dont get stuck in this situation?


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## baldycol (Mar 11, 2009)

thanks for the guide. ive just sorted it out, and im back on the road.  i thought it was just a broken clip at 1st untill i saw the same little square of metal as in your pic., gutted, but happy times again.


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## GilesRamsden (Nov 4, 2008)

Great thread.

Just picked this up half way through doing this! The spring-comressing tip is worth a million quid!


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## danger (Jun 20, 2008)

good to know, great write up


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## GilesRamsden (Nov 4, 2008)

...the white Master Cylinder clip remounting. What a nightmare. I nearly lost my rag with it.

Did a different cheat with it though... figured I could slide up up sideways into the clip housing as it was still about 3/4mm away from being able to slide into the front of the housing... but there's a small lip on the side of it. So, I filed a little material off the side of the white clip to allow it to slide 'sideways' into the clip housing. A little safer than cutting a section off the end I thought!

Hope this helps someone else.


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## TTitan (May 11, 2007)

Damn this clutch failure seems way too common. Might be an item to do as preventive maintenance? What do you thinK?

TTitan


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## GilesRamsden (Nov 4, 2008)

I've put the offending clutch pedal up for sale in the 'parts' section. It's now been welded/strengthened.

Worth doing it in my mind!


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## davegill79 (Oct 23, 2008)

Thanks for the great write up. Mine went on Friday and the AA man says he normally carries a spare welded pedal because this is such a common failure and he normally fixes by the roadside. Unfortunately he'd had a failure before me and didn't have a spare pedal so I had to get my fingers dirty! Just goes to reinforce how common a problem this is. 

Just a couple of observations from my experiences of doing this....

1) White 'dammit' plastic clip. I had absolute hell getting this back on and not sure I really needed to remove it as it wasn't broken. The only difficult is maneuvering the pedal around it, which is a cake walk compared to getting it back on. If you can inspect the clip and get the pedal out, you might want to consider leaving this in place.

2) I took the Stop for Switch off to fit the clutch pedal back onto the white clip. It gave me enough clearance to get the clip in quite easily and the Stop for Switch can be easily attached afterwards. Don't forget to put the pivot insert back into the pedal though before you attach the pedal back to the clip, otherwise you'll have to take the whole thing apart like I did :roll:

Yet another forums success story. Thanks! :lol:


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## matteeee (Mar 5, 2007)

LHD vs RHD...

I have never heard of this problem on the Swedish Audi-forums, does anyone know if the weakness is a RHD related problem?


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## adamk (Aug 4, 2009)

Mine has just done it, also bent the master cylinder, looks like a fun weekend for me


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## droopsnoot (Sep 5, 2002)

davegill79 said:


> 1) White 'dammit' plastic clip. I had absolute hell getting this back on and not sure I really needed to remove it as it wasn't broken. The only difficult is maneuvering the pedal around it, which is a cake walk compared to getting it back on. If you can inspect the clip and get the pedal out, you might want to consider leaving this in place.


I also found it impossible to get the white clip back on the end of the master cylinder piston, until I put it on sideways, used a pair of pliers to snap it into place, then rotate it to the correct direction. I don't recall any trouble with it after that.


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## Pallas (Jul 5, 2009)

does the bit snap off over time or just suddenly?

if i got in the footwell upside down can you feel it or see it starting to come away or do you have to strip it all down?

can any7hing be done before it snaps to prevent this or is it just a matter of time and luck?


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## GKC5 (May 15, 2008)

Same happened to me and thanks to this write up my mate was able to sort it out within hours of the problem occurring.
Many thanks


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## p1234 (Nov 27, 2009)

This happened to me in a traffic jam on a motorway last night! It's been towed to a garage where they are working out whats wrong with it... has anyone had this repaired at a garage? How much did it cost inc labour etc?


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## TTrich (Sep 11, 2009)

All the images have stopped working :/

People should use www.tinypic.com


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## Greywolf (Dec 29, 2009)

Hi guys, thanks for this post I am half way through this problem and stumbled on this website via google! very helpful. However I cant see the pictures is it my settings or has the pics been removed? I also follow the links but they are broken?


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

As if having to turn into a pub car park to avoid sliding cars this morning an then have to dig myself out wasn't bad enough the flaming clutch pedal decided to break.

I managed to get back home after waiting hours for a gritting lorry and fortunately Audi in Sheffield had a new pedal in stock so I'm now up and running again.

Many thanks to Rosskie for the write up on changing this. Compressing the spring and holding it with cable ties was a huge help!


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## KimTT (Jul 12, 2009)

...easy way to fit the little white bit...stick it in a cup of hot water for about 2 mins! slips on easssy then cools down and fine 

eassy!


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## Rosskie (Jul 31, 2007)

just fixed photo links.


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## markthesparky (Apr 19, 2008)

Hi thanks for a great post. Just finished mine, took about four hours of hard work in the sun upside down. But done it in the end so happy.
A few tips to get the white clip in place put a screw driver handle up into the clutch peddle housing and lever it onto the rod. It should click on. Then you have got the fun bit of getting the white clip into its holder on the clutch peddle. I spent an hour trying to force it in. Then had a brak and sat and looked at it. The white clip has a little channle on the back. I wondered what this was for. Then it came to me. Its so that you can use the screwdriver trick again but use the blade up into the housing and the groove on the white clip should go iver the screw driver blade. You can then lever the clip back and up. Once its back far enough slide the screw driver down and the clip should pop into the housing. Simples. Not.


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## M1YK P (Jan 23, 2008)

Great write up. Snapped my pedal yesterday just as I reacheded Southend seafront. Unbelievable. Big thanks to 007TT who had a Wak reinforced one for sale. Picked it up about 8pm and got to work fitting it as I stripped it down earlier. Finished about 9.30 so not too bad. Also K10LMB's hot water tip made it easier. Damn I luv this forum.


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## coachvtt (Aug 25, 2009)

Is this a common thing to happen to the TT's in the UK?

Never heard of this happening in the US made TT's.

I may be wrong but does anyone know if the clutch pedals are the same here as they are in the UK?


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## les (Jul 24, 2006)

It most certainly would be. I and many others have had their clutch pedal reinforced and welded. Prevention is better than cure and often cheaper. This problem seems very common not just with TTs but any VAG cars yet Audi deny it is. They say they have had few reported incidents of clutch pedal failure. Well perhaps thats because few take their car back to Audi to have it fixed. :? Strangely enough I now hear the replacement clutch pedals Audi sell are better weld wise and have been strengthened in some way but not having seen one I can't confirm this.



tomnprice said:


> Would it be worth taking the pedal off before it breaks and welding the top of the box all the way round so i don't get stuck in this situation?


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## vwjim (Nov 27, 2011)

Mine broke many years ago in rush hour traffic heading into London, so that was fun..

Anyway, local non VW independent garage welded the pedal up and for the first week or so the pedal would return to say an inch off the correct position, hesitate then click and free itself and come to rest in the correct position. I reported this to the garage and they naturally said bring it back at the weekend, but before the weekend came it stopped doing it all on its own.

Now maybe 5 years down the road and MANY miles, its back and I think a little worse than it was before. I had a quick look the other day and it appears to be a white plastic clip on the pedal that is moving when it clicks free, could this be the same white clip that you're all referring too? ie they'd not fitted it correctly and it was moving about then set itself after a few miles in a position that didn't catch, but has now worn / broken and is catching on something again.

Seems to be worse on colder days.

thanks


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## muxgt (Apr 12, 2010)

Fantastic write up.

Well done [smiley=gossip.gif]


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## pcbbc (Sep 4, 2009)

Firstly, thanks Rosskie for an excellent guide. Without it I wouldn't have known what was wrong, or have known where to start with fixing it.

Having just completed this job, and discovering first-hand what a pain it is, I'd like to offer a few suggestions, if I may?

1.	Firstly, do NOT attach the stop for the switch before starting (as davegill79 says)! The stop just gets in the way, and you may end up breaking it (as I did) trying to get the pedal into position. :x The stop can easily be attached last (with the pedal depressed) and you gain vital access for later on&#8230;

2.	Do NOT attach the white clip to the end of the master cylinder push rod either! I found that if I did this there was no conceivable way to get the box section on the pedal over the end of the white clip and into place, even without the pivot bold in and switch stop removed. At least not without cutting the clip (as Rosskie did) or compressing the master cylinder - which would seem exceeding difficult. Instead I found a much easier way to get everything assembled correctly.

3.	Insert the pivot bolt for the pedal, leaving the push rod hanging just below the pedal box section.

4.	Soak the white clip in some hot water for 5 minutes (a tip I read elsewhere). This will make it nice and flexible for receiving the ball of push rod. While you've got the kettle on, have a cuppa - you'll need it!

5.	Place the white clip into the box on the pedal, but do not push fully home. Ensure the ball socket in the white clip is located immediately above the ball of the push rod.









6.	Next insert a screw driver into the circular holes at the back of the box. This will stop the clip from pushing back into the box when you squeeze it into place with the adjustable pliers. This is why I said not to attach the switch stop in step 1!









7.	With your adjustable pliers, from below the pedals, place the top jaw on the top of the box section and the bottom jaw on the ball of the push rod. Now apply pressure with the pliers and the ball of the push rod should pop into place in the clip.

8.	When I did this I found the jaws of the pliers were fouling on the clip or box section and preventing the ball from being pushed far enough into the clip. So I took spare hex nut and taped it to the lower jaw of my pliers to give me a little more clearance.

















9.	Replace the spring. Here the cable tie instructions given by Rosskie are invaluable!

10.	Get the white clip fully pushed home into the box section and secured with the keying on the side of the clip engaged with the rectangular cutouts at the front of the pedal box section. You can use a smallish flat blade screwdriver through the cutout to lever the clip backwards and into place. I then found that by inserting another screwdriver from below on the inside (i.e. between the push rod and the clip) and twisting I could get the keys of the clip sufficiently pushed into the rectangular cutouts to hold it in place. Repeat for the other side.

11.	Finally replace the stop for switch and the switch itself (it may help if you get someone to depress the clutch for you).

Good luck!

Tomorrow it's off to the dealers for me to get a new stop for the switch. Plus it never rains but it poors - I now see my ESP and traction lights are stuck on. VCDS is telling me I have a faulty rear wheel speed sensor, and the Haldex is also showing an error code - let's hope it's just the wheel sensor.


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## vwjim (Nov 27, 2011)

I agree, fitting the plastic pedal switch stop just got in the way. But I didn't see 'pcbbc' post till now, so I did it this way.

First off I put the white clip in the pedal bracket but simply couldn't get the ball on the end of the clutch rod to pop fully home. But if I fitted the white clip to the ball then the whole assembly wouldn't go into the pedal, as shown in pcbbc's photos. So I simply ran a drill down the inside of the white plastic clip just to create a channel that the ball would slip down. Only took a fraction of a mm away with the drill, heated the white clip, fitted it fully in the pedal then aligned it all and while holding the clutch rod still with one hand, pressed down on the pedal with the other hand and with some effort the ball clicked home.

I welded / strengthened a new pedal so if anyone wants a broken pedal to get welded up before they take theirs apart they're welcome to it.


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## toocool (Nov 6, 2012)

hi, mine hasnt broken (yet) but i'm constanly parinoid about it, has anyone managed to weld it up to strenghen it before it breaks while its still in place? basically can it be welded without removing the pedal?


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## TT DWN UNDER (Aug 29, 2007)

Mine just broke, see post a little way down..no you cant strengthen it without taking it out...its a pain to get out, and Im dredding the putting back in part..... I managed to start mine in second gear after it broke and hobbled the 40km's home at 50km's an hour.....so its not that bad once it does break and seems they all break eventually......


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## nelmanners (Feb 1, 2012)

Hi, i decided to remove and strengthen my peddle as i am paranoid that it will break. Thanks to this forum i know how to now.

After i removed the peddle i saw that the original welding on the two sides were broken already and that the back was starting to crack so i was glad i decided to do it as it is an inevitable thing.

When i was under i saw that my master clutch cylinder shaft which goes into the rubber was moist and it looks if it is going to start leaking soon. Was it like this with you guys as well?

Any advice is appreciated

Cheers
Werner


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## vwjim (Nov 27, 2011)

No I don't remember seeing anything with signs of leaks under there.


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## toocool (Nov 6, 2012)

I still can't belive Audi didn't do a recall on this, it seems so common, I'm going to have to do mine as every time I dip the clutch I think is it going to break now? It's a horrible feeling. Anyone know the price of a pedal? I would rather buy one and weld it so I can change them over straight away as I obviously can't drive to get it welded once I take it out. Shame on you Audi for not recalling and fixing this problem. I've heard it also breaks on seats and vws. I wonder over all how many have actually broke and how many needed to before they would do a recall..


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## vwjim (Nov 27, 2011)

Mine broke a few years back, and a local garage welded it up.

This year I noticed the pedal wasn't returning as it once did, so I bought a new one to welded up before removing the old one. It only cost about £25, get the white plastic fitting too and the switch stop. If they don't break during the job you can take them back.

I found the previous weld repair was breaking again.


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## manikm (Feb 17, 2014)

what a great write up! i have that exact same bit in my footwell.


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## Ben81tt (Jul 4, 2014)

This s my job for tomorrow. Mine snapped as I pulled into the services on the M1 about 30 miles from my destination. Had the mrs and my three year old InThe car heading to stay with relatives for the week. It appears to just be the plastic stopper that has snapped. Everything else seems ok. I managed to get the white clip in position on the master cylinder rod and used a screwdriver wedged into the holes that the plastic stopper clips into and hey presto it worked perfectly. Drove it to our destination as I normally would. Will nip to audi in the morning and order a new plastic stopper which I'm hoping will clip straight into position. Thinking may order the whole pedal as well and get it welded ready to do a full replacement soon.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi Ben, get a new pedal while your there, as you will need it, they will have plenty in stock.
Hoggy.


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## manikm (Feb 17, 2014)

This is the best write up on how to fix.... especially the trick in section 14. Bullet point 4 saves a lot of time and no spring compression. Yes this is on an a3 but exact same on tt m1 as I followed it when it happened to me.

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-foru ... -pics.html

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk


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## Ben81tt (Jul 4, 2014)

Thanks to this write up I have fully replaced my pedal this morning. Just under two hours. Great guide.


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## fatboy13 (Feb 19, 2014)

Sounds like I had a bit of a mare in comparison to everyone else! Gave up after trying to replace the spring, couldn't get it lined up right even with it compressed


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## Roadrunner6623 (Jun 7, 2014)

My recent visit to Wak revealed that my ball joint has been welded to the pedal! I'm sure this will wreck my Master cylinder in time but I'm not sure how to separate them to repair it properly. :roll:


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## atticvs (Nov 18, 2013)

Just repaired mine and first a complaint. Had my TT about a year now and have had two 'common fault' failures...first the relay for the indicators and second the clutch pedal. Pointless a company with the heritage of Audi (Auto Union for crissakes)and with their level of engineering, not to attempt to put right their faults! My pedal failed but when I looked at a new one it was exactly the same with the same inherent fault...unacceptable Audi! Anyway I welded mine all around with a heavier gauge metal making sure the piece didn't sit proud of the pedal edge. Making sure that both clips fitted without a problem I removed both. There's a hole that runs through the box section where the white clip sits...I inserted a small bolt through this and secured it with a nut finger tight (this prevents the white clip from 'clicking' home...not wanted yet). I soaked the white clip in water for a few minutes and attached molegrips to the end and holding the cylinder rod easily pushed the clip over the ball joint (greasing the ball joint lightly is a MUST). I then copper slipped the pivot bush and inserted it into the pedal and manoeuvred it into the frame. I seem to be alone in having no trouble at all wangling the white clip into the box section but I really didn't! I then inserted the pivot bolt through the frame and bush (left to right) and secured a nut finger tight. I then use a small bungy to hold the pedal firm against the frame to allow me to fit the spring. I have read that one person got away without compressing the spring...well I never tried that...I just compressed the spring and using one cable tie secured it at 6 o'clock to the spring orientation to allow for easy removal and prevent the tie from fouling against the frame when offered up. I have a small spring loaded grab tool (for retrieving lost bits in awkward places) and I fitted this to the spring so I could fettle it into place against the back recess then pushed the pedal forward to engage the arm on the pedal then cut the tie and the spring did the rest. I then removed the small bolt, pushed on the pedal and the white clip snapped home. I then fitted the black clip, tightened the pivot nut and refitted the switch. The dash surround was fiddly to replace but 10 mins or so of cursing saw me through. All in all the job was about and 75 minutes (plus the welding of course) and fiddly and laying in such an awkward position is never going to be great, but don't be intimidated and I would urge all of you who have a TT to do the job to prevent a costly and embarrassing breakdown...mine happened on the way to the airport and I almost missed a flight because of it! Good luck.


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## sco (Mar 2, 2013)

Is it possible to see a cracked pedal without removing it?

Simon.


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## manikm (Feb 17, 2014)

atticvs said:


> Just repaired mine and first a complaint. Had my TT about a year now and have had two 'common fault' failures...first the relay for the indicators and second the clutch pedal. Pointless a company with the heritage of Audi (Auto Union for crissakes)and with their level of engineering, not to attempt to put right their faults! My pedal failed but when I looked at a new one it was exactly the same with the same inherent fault...unacceptable Audi! Anyway I welded mine all around with a heavier gauge metal making sure the piece didn't sit proud of the pedal edge. Making sure that both clips fitted without a problem I removed both. There's a hole that runs through the box section where the white clip sits...I inserted a small bolt through this and secured it with a nut finger tight (this prevents the white clip from 'clicking' home...not wanted yet). I soaked the white clip in water for a few minutes and attached molegrips to the end and holding the cylinder rod easily pushed the clip over the ball joint (greasing the ball joint lightly is a MUST). I then copper slipped the pivot bush and inserted it into the pedal and manoeuvred it into the frame. I seem to be alone in having no trouble at all wangling the white clip into the box section but I really didn't! I then inserted the pivot bolt through the frame and bush (left to right) and secured a nut finger tight. I then use a small bungy to hold the pedal firm against the frame to allow me to fit the spring. I have read that one person got away without compressing the spring...well I never tried that...I just compressed the spring and using one cable tie secured it at 6 o'clock to the spring orientation to allow for easy removal and prevent the tie from fouling against the frame when offered up. I have a small spring loaded grab tool (for retrieving lost bits in awkward places) and I fitted this to the spring so I could fettle it into place against the back recess then pushed the pedal forward to engage the arm on the pedal then cut the tie and the spring did the rest. I then removed the small bolt, pushed on the pedal and the white clip snapped home. I then fitted the black clip, tightened the pivot nut and refitted the switch. The dash surround was fiddly to replace but 10 mins or so of cursing saw me through. All in all the job was about and 75 minutes (plus the welding of course) and fiddly and laying in such an awkward position is never going to be great, but don't be intimidated and I would urge all of you who have a TT to do the job to prevent a costly and embarrassing breakdown...mine happened on the way to the airport and I almost missed a flight because of it! Good luck.


What, u had your welder in the car then along with all the tools to do the job. Lol.

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## firediamonduk (Dec 24, 2013)

Great write up. Managed mine in around an hour and half total time. Came apart nice and easily, took the pedal to a friends body shop and had them weld it for me and then refitted. I found getting the white clip back on the most difficult (and painful after slipping twice and slicing all of the fingers on my left hand, however once on the rest fitted back together nicely. I managed to get the pedal above the clip and then get the clip to fit into the box section reasonably easily without to much fuss... Didn't even cost me anything as only broken parts was the snapped pedal... 

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## Tone (Nov 29, 2009)

At the beginning of this thread are several links how to remove dash etc but the links now just go to a advert for parts for Audi's.


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## manikm (Feb 17, 2014)

Me and my dad did mine tool all day. Couldn't get the spring compressed until we found a great write up on audi.net or some site. It was for a mk1 Leon but same thing . Had back and neck aches for days. U don't need to compress spring

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## droopsnoot (Sep 5, 2002)

** THIS IS AN EDITED COPY OF THE ORIGINAL POST BY ROSSKIE TO SEE IF THE PICTURES WORK **

Hey folks,

Finally finished fitting my newly welded clutch pedal, and thought I'd give a quick write up of how to do it yourself! Hope its helpful to someone.

Its an easy job in principle, but very fiddly and time consuming (2.5 hours for me). Also you will think your Australian once your done, due to the amount of time your gonna spend upside down! That having been said, if you've done it once, you'll find its relatively easy the next time around.

If your not remotely mechanically minded however, then I'd recommend you dont try yourself. Dont get me wrong, if your considering it, then you probably ARE very capable, but dont think its a walk in the park for everyone.

Ok, if your driving along and your clutch suddenly hits the floor with a crunching noise then its failed.










What you now have to do is try and get yourself home!

You can easily pull the car out of gear without a clutch, so, best bet is to do that then pull over safely, but do not stop closely behind another car/obstacle.

Turn off the engine, then put the car into first gear.

Make sure your handbrakes off and take your foot off the foot brake, then start the engine and you'll bounce forward, but the car will start, and go. You can then change gear without the clutch, but it isn't easy. Just try and push the relevant gear in, it doesn't have to be a hard push, so, dont go silly. Its all to do with the rev's, and you can change easiest around the 2500 mark. Just try, if you can't get it, stop, and try again, or drive home in first.

Hopefully someone else can explain better about how to do this.

Persevere with this and you'll get home, saving yourself Â£Â£Â£ on a flatbed. Obviously, be prepared to re-start the engine at any roundabouts/traffic lights. But dont take it out of gear unless you really have to, as if you can't get it back into gear, its restart time!! Unfortunately, if your really far from home, you should maybe just accept defeat and find a car park.

Next step is to go to Audi and order the following parts:

Stop for Switch

Part no: 1J2721332A

Cost: Â£1.98

(I didn't need the following bits so, no part numbers / costs)

Master Cylinder Head Retaining Clip:

Part No:????

Cost: Â£2 roughly

New Clutch Pedal:

Part no:????

Cost: Â£25 roughly

Its better that you actually get your old clutch pedal repaired as if you get someone to weld it properly, it'll be stronger that buying another weak one from Audi. Take the pedal and small rectangular metal bit (in pic above) that will be on your floor to any local garage, the smaller the better really as they are more likely to do it there and then. Also make sure they file down the edges of the new welds, or you will not be able to fit the Stop For Switch onto the pedal.

So once you've got your new parts, you'll need some tools.

You will need:

2 x 12mm Spanners

2 x 12 inch Zip ties

Grease

T25 Torx keys/screwdriver attachements

Flat headed screwdriver

Stanley knife

Torch

Long nosed pliers

Hacksaw/File (if cheating, see below)

Scrap solid plastic (again if cheating)

The first step is to remove the lower dash. See the following link, and bear in mind, a lot of the illustrations are from a LHD model. Its a relatively simple procedure, but my dash had 3 screws holding it in place, not two as the manual says.

http://www.kisolutionz.com/ttforum/trim.pdf

That should have been easy enough, so, next step:

Remove the Foot-Rest, as it gives you a lot more room to work.

Unscrew the single torx screw, and use your flat-head screwdriver to undo the one plastic screw, then just pull the foot-rest assembly out.

Next you need to remove the pedal.

See the following:

http://www.kisolutionz.com/ttforum/clutchinfo.pdf

Its a good idea to remove your mat too, and lay an old towel in the footwell as you may get grease on your upholstery otherwise.

Start by pushing the clutch pedal to the floor. If the white master cylinder retaining clip is still on the end of the master cylinder, take this off. Try not to break it, as you'll need to keep it, unless you bought a new one. Its stiff to get off.

Oh, remove the switch that will be sticking out of the top of clutch pedal housing. It'll be pointing directly towards you. Pull out the connector, and twist the switch to remove.

Next remove the pivot bolt which is holding the clutch pedal in the housing, using your two spanners. It can be hard to pull the bolt out, as space is tight and using your long nosed pliers and an unscrewing action will help.

Then wiggle the pedal out, and the spring behind the pedal should fall out if it hasn't already. It shouldn't bounce out as it wont be highly compressed if the pedal is down, otherwise it could be dangerous.

Get your old pedal welded and pickup any parts you need.

So, eveythings appart/out now, and next you should grease some bits- the ball end of the master cylinder, the pivot assembly of the clutch pedal, the plastic ends of the spring.

Attach the black Stop For Switch on the new/repaired pedal.

Next step is to compress the spring.

Using your zip ties, thread them underneath the spring on opposite sides of each other. There are obvious gaps for where you'll get the zip ties under. Try to get as many coils of the spring in the loop of the zip ties as possible. Then pull them as tight as you can, alternating the sides will ensure you get maximum compression.

Once you've done this, cut off the ends so they are not flapping about and getting in the way.

Now, the hard parts.

You need to re-attach the White clip onto the ball end of the master cylinder. Its hard to get on, and should be greased slightly, which will help. Then you need to get the white clip into the housing on the clutch pedal. This is very hard to do, and is most easily done if you refrain from putting anything else back together before this step. No pivot bolt, or spring back in yet.

I have to admit, I cheated with this bit, in a very bad way, but it made it a LOT easier. I cut off about 3mm of plastic from the head of the white clip, and put about 3mm depth of scrap, hard plastic into the square on the clutch pedal. Even if you do this, it'll still be fiddly and take a while. If you can find a way of compressing the master cylinder then their will be no need to cheat, but I didn't have the strength/ability to do this.

Once you've got the master cylinder clip into the housing on the clutch pedal, you should put the pivot bolt back in. It will be fiddly, and is easiest to put the bolt back in the opposite way from the way you removed it. The nut will be beside the brake pedal with the new setup.

Secure the bolt using your spanners, and now you just need to refit the spring.

Due to the setup of the plastic parts inside the spring there is a gap running at 3 O'Clock and 9 O'Clock in regards to the correct orientation of the spring. Your zip ties will be in these positions as you can't get them underneath the spring to compress it anywhere else.

If you use this and the torch to help you orientate the spring and position it so the GREY end is towards the engine. You should be able to sit the spring in the right position with the white end sitting on top of the clutch "hammer". Then, using a finger of your right hand, reach in from above the spring, and hold the white end in place, and aligned with the clutch hammer. Then using your left hand, push the pedal down, and when the hammer is getting close to engaging with the spring end, very gently push down with your finger. There will be a small click if the hammers engaged the spring properly. Release the clutch pedal and the spring should compress some more. This will be fiddly and will take a lot of attempts to get it right!

Using the torch, check the spring is definitely in the right place, at both ends, then double check, then if its ok, push the pedal a few times. If the spring doesnâ€™t pop out, use the stanley knife to cut the zip ties, and then a pair of long nosed pliers to carefully pull the cut ties out. They are easier to pull out if you push the pedal down.

Replace the switch you removed from the clutch housing. It goes into the bottom of the two spaces, and will rest gently on the black Stop For Switch.

Replace the foot-rest. It has to slide in, from right to left, rather than just pushing it back on.

Reconnect the headlight and dimmer switches, replace the OBD port, and replace the lower dash.

And you done!

You've just saved yourself a fortune, and have a better pedal than an Audi dealer would have put in.

IMPORTANT: If your clutch is unusually heavy, then the breakage may be indicative of another problem, and you should get it checked out by a specialist.

I used info on the forum already to do this myself, and wrote this up using that, so, credit to the following members (In no particular order):

John-H
Chip_iTT
Dino_Donis
JayGemson
TTej

Sorry if I missed anyone.

P.s. - Consider telling Harold your clutch broke, he's spearheading the recall campaign!!

Some assorted pics:


























EDIT:

If you experince some strange behaviour with the Rev's when changing gear after doing this, your switch at the top of the pedal is either broken or incorrectly setup. I.e. the rev's will jump up slightly when you change gear.

Some switches have a toothed piston with adjustable travel, and can just be pulled out to extend the length. If you have one of those, then pull it out quite far, then re-fit with the clutch pedal up and it should be at the correct length.

If yours isn't adjustable or that doesn't solve it, you'll have to buy a new one.

Enjoy


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

So glad I found this. Mine just went. Luckily not far from home (I've been abroad various times in it, unaware of this little timebomb). Took 17 years to go, so can't complain. Drove it home in 2nd gear all the way, with a trail of disgruntled drivers behind :lol:


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

I fixed this today, but haven't put the clutch switch and dashboard back because I'm waiting for a new stop for switch part to arrive. Meanwhile the ESP and ABS lights have come on. Never been on before so it's related to my fixing the pedal. Have I damaged something under the dash? Sensors under there?

I'm going to add some aspects of my experience of doing this job; perhaps it will help others.

I basically used the method explained here:

https://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/r ... cs.167759/

There's no need to compress the spring with cable ties.

The infamous white clip isn't actually that hard to get on. I rounded off the end of a bar I had that was the same diameter as the ball on the push rod, pushed it in, and wiggled it around a bit to open it up a little; then put some light oil in there and it pushed on relatively easily.

After welding you must make sure that the white clip fits nicely into the box on the pedal before bolting the pedal back in.

Use a ratchet spanner for the pedal bolt - makes it a lot easier than a standard spanner.

Other than that I think it's all been said before.

Oh yes, don't drop the white clip into the hole through the carpet below where the footrest was. You will have to tape a small hose to the end of a hoover hose and suck it back out. Perhaps that one's just exclusive to me :lol:


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

sminky said:


> I fixed this today, but haven't put the clutch switch and dashboard back because I'm waiting for a new stop for switch part to arrive. Meanwhile the ESP and ABS lights have come on. Never been on before so it's related to my fixing the pedal. Have I damaged something under the dash? Sensors under there?


Hi, Unlikely to have disturbed any thing under there. Once driven again they may clear. 
Do a fault scan to see whats made them alarm
Hoggy.


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

Thanks Hoggy.

I have one of these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/KONNWEI-KW808- ... B00GMC8WNW

Hope that's good enough


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

sminky said:


> Thanks Hoggy.
> 
> I have one of these:
> 
> ...


Hi, Doesn't appear to be VAG specitic so will probably give a generic code, but may give some idea.
Hoggy.


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

I'll try it tomorrow, see what comes up.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

sminky said:


> I'll try it tomorrow, see what comes up.


Hi, Hopefully they'll clear once taken for a spin.
Hoggy.


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## droopsnoot (Sep 5, 2002)

sminky said:


> Drove it home in 2nd gear all the way, with a trail of disgruntled drivers behind :lol:


It's worth practising changing gears without using the clutch, if you get a chance. It's just a case of balancing the road speed and engine revs to the gear you want to change into. You'll know when you've got it right, because it will just slip into gear without any nasty grinding noise. The only problem is stopping at junctions, or more to the point starting off - the only way I know is to turn off the engine, stick it in first, wait for a gap and then crank it over - car will jump forward (as it does when you start it in gear by mistake) but then then engine catches and you're away.

When mine went, I stuck a bit of paper on the back saying "no clutch, please leave some room" (which made absolutely no difference to other road users, I might add) and just approached red traffic lights very slowly so as to not have to stop. Managed to get it 15-odd miles back home without any trouble. Probably wouldn't be possible in a much more built-up area, but the technique is handy if you have a problem in a place where it's really not safe to leave the car.


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

> It's worth practising changing gears without using the clutch, if you get a chance.


I had a go at 3rd but wasn't going in and I only had about a mile to go. In fairness I was pleasantly surprised that other drivers seemed to be quite understanding. Had my hazards on the whole time so they knew I was crippled. And yes, trying to time the traffic lights is something you do instinctively.


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## sminky (Jul 19, 2016)

Hoggy said:


> Hi, Doesn't appear to be VAG specitic so will probably give a generic code, but may give some idea.
> Hoggy.


Didn't come up with anything (apart from an unrelated 'running too lean" code).

Took it for a spin to see if the lights went out (ESP and ABS) but instead the lights were joined by the big red flashing brake light in the DIS. Brake fluid level is fine.

Weird that this should start after fixing the clutch pedal. If it isn't related in some way it's a hell of a coincidence as those lights have never come on before and I've owned it for 12 years.

I suspect I've damaged the brake light switch whilst fumbling around down in that footwell.


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## drone (Sep 24, 2014)

Just finished doing my clutch pedal. 
One tip that made the replacement easy peasy for me was to set the clutch up for bleeding, ie pop a 1 metre length of hose on the bleed nipple, the other end in an old can mounted up on the inlet manifold; the nipple can be reached on the 225 version without dismantling anything, incidentally.
To slacken the bleed nipple I used a socket on an extension to loosen it then, when I was ready slackened the nipple off a couple of turns with an open ended spanner.
You can now easily depress the master cylinder pushrod by hand - you only need to do it once and slowly btw. The white nylon retainer on the end of the rod can now be easily placed in the box on the pedal. Tighten up the nipple , squeeze the pipe near the nipple and remove it putting the open end in the old can to avoid spraying brake fluid everywhere.
With the nipple tightened a push on the pedal gets the white nylon retainer pushed home.
As I only moved the pushrod on mine about 10mm, so the loss of fluid was absolutely minimal.
For me the hardest part of the job was getting the bloody pedal cover back on as I stupidly didn't do it before putting the pedal back in :roll: .


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## mlema11 (Dec 3, 2018)

coachvtt said:


> Is this a common thing to happen to the TT's in the UK?
> 
> Never heard of this happening in the US made TT's.
> 
> I may be wrong but does anyone know if the clutch pedals are the same here as they are in the UK?


Would also like to know this^


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

mlema11 said:


> coachvtt said:
> 
> 
> > Is this a common thing to happen to the TT's in the UK?
> ...


Hi, Very common with some VAG vehicles in UK.
US TT clutch pedal is made of a solid molded resin type material, so doesn't happen to them.
Someone was going to bring one back from the states to see if it was a direct replacement, but it never appeared.
Hoggy.


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## pcbbc (Sep 4, 2009)

mlema11 said:


> Never heard of this happening in the US made TT's.
> Would also like to know this^


Same parts listed in US and EU parts catalogues:
10	1J1 721 321 D	clutch pedal	lhd
(10)	1J2 721 319 C	clutch pedal	rhd

Perhaps US and EU driving styles differ? Straighter roads, no roundabouts, etc. Less need to change gear? It's just a guess. :?


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## pcbbc (Sep 4, 2009)

Seems Hoggy is right as usual...

I found this on eBay.com:

1999-2006 AUDI TT MK1 - CLUTCH PEDAL ASSEMBLY 8N1721059 OEM









But as there seem to be different parts LHD vs RHD in Europe, it seems unlikely a LHD US part would be an easy replacement for a UK RHD vehicle. European vehicle, maybe.


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## ryanmtt (Sep 13, 2010)

pcbbc said:


> Firstly, thanks Rosskie for an excellent guide. Without it I wouldn't have known what was wrong, or have known where to start with fixing it.
> 
> Having just completed this job, and discovering first-hand what a pain it is, I'd like to offer a few suggestions, if I may?
> 
> ...


Is there any tips on how to get the clip onto the ball joint, I have been trying for the best part of today with no success


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## TiTi_Boy (Jun 9, 2017)

> Is there any tips on how to get the clip onto the ball joint, I have been trying for the best part of today with no success


Put the white part in boiling water for about 10 mins. It will make it easier.


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## ryanmtt (Sep 13, 2010)

TiTi_Boy said:


> > Is there any tips on how to get the clip onto the b  all joint, I have been trying for the best part of today with no success
> 
> 
> Put the white part in boiling water for about 10 mins. It will make it easier.


Awesome cheers will give that a go, left it in boiling water and it did help, I come very close to getting the damn thing in.

This has got to be the worst job I have ever done on any car


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## TiTi_Boy (Jun 9, 2017)

ryanmtt said:


> TiTi_Boy said:
> 
> 
> > > Is there any tips on how to get the clip onto the b  all joint, I have been trying for the best part of today with no success
> ...


Yeah I had to boil it a few times before it clicked on. But it does work. You really have to give it some welly.

This job SUCKS. My left elbow and ribs were sore as F


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## ryanmtt (Sep 13, 2010)

I genuinely feel broken, I love my car but this literally takes the *****

I appreciate the advice though 8)


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## ryanmtt (Sep 13, 2010)

ryanmtt said:


> I genuinely feel broken, I love my car but this literally takes the *****
> 
> I appreciate the advice though 8)


All fixed, I have to say this is the worst job I have ever had to do on any car

However I am glad it's done


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