clutch feel question

[amblerman]

Hi Folks,

I have a 1999 s70 5 speed.

I recently picked up a 1998 s70 5 speed as a parts car for a project I have.

One thing I noticed right away is how light and soft the clutch pedal is on the 98.

I never thought of my 99 clutch as being stiff or uncomfortable but the 98 presses down a LOT easier.
In fact i initially had difficulty shifting because I was letting the clutch out too quickly due to there being very little resistance.

My question is why would this be? What controls the resistance to the clutch pedal? Why would one offer more resistance than the other.

Again, I never thought of my 99 as being overly stiff. It's just the 98 is so light.

The previous owner told me the "transmission is relatively new" (5 years? ). I don't know (and forgot to ask) if the transmission was replaced or just the clutch.

I was shocked at the difference in feel.

Andy

[Clemens]

My 94 has a pretty stiff clutch as well if that helps. Probably not...

[abscate]

There are two different styles of release bearing that feel pretty different

My 2005 has a much lighter clutch pedal than the 99

[JimBee]

My 93 850 clutch is fairly firm and I need to depress it almost to the floor for either first or reverse. The concern I have is it is getting a progressively "grainy" feeling, which I assume is coming from the clutch master cylinder.

[abscate]

The clutches on these cars are top shelf Sachs stuff

My 99 had 2 awesome women and 6 Teen ladies learn on it, now at 210k original

[scot850]

Not having had a manual P80 in over 18 years, can't recall if they use cable or hydraulic clutches. If they are cable then it could be a worn or dry cable making the peddle harder. If it is hydraulic, when was the fluid last flushed?

Quick look at Vida shows Hydraulic clutches on both, but there was a change from 98 to 99 years (chassis number). There was also a clutch change in 99 on chassis up to - 579062 and then number beyond were a change again.

So it could be a fluid change is really overdue, one version of pressure plate has harder compression springs or maybe the actuating levers are also different.

Neil.

[Ozark Lee]

It largely depends on how old the clutch is. Mine was was like a workout until I changed it and then it was very light and smooth. A few years later it has stiffened up again, although not as bad as it was at 15 years old and 237k miles.

...Lee

[tryingbe]

98 could have a single mass flywheel with external salve cylinder which is different than the dual mass flywheel and internal salve cylinder.