Replace e-accelerator pedal

[savowood]

Somehow, I've broken my accelerator pedal. I looked in my Bentley book for instructions on replacing it, but I haven't had any luck finding instructions. Does anyone know how to replace the pedal? I have it arriving Monday and would like to be driving my Boxster again Monday afternoon.

-Michael

[Tool Pants]

Maybe this will help. http://www.pca.org/tech/tech_qa_question.a...C-215F5E221636}

[savowood]

Maybe this will help. http://www.pca.org/tech/tech_qa_question.a...C-215F5E221636}

That looks far too easy to be a Porsche Boxster repair. :P

When I get the new e-accelerator, I'll let you know if this did it.

-Michael

[savowood]

In preparation for the new pedal arriving tomorrow, I started to take the old one out. I got it off the floorboard, but it's not so easy to get it off the next point. The cable coming out the top goes into another unit. I'm afraid to twist too hard, but that connection doesn't seem to be one I can easily remove. It's of course a bit difficult to do while hanging upside-down, feet above the roll bar and head down by the pedals.

The pedal has a cable coming from the top. That cable goes into another cable at the top of the footwell. That connection appears to be able to be removed. That's the one I'm afraid to twist too hard. Can I use more force on this with the pliers? It started to torque the whole connection when I was trying earlier.

-Michael

[savowood]

It wasn't difficult, now that I've done it. Figuring it out was a pain.

Basically, to start, follow the directions in the post above to remove the accelerator pedal from the floor. Then, you need to remove the cable from the cam. I was about ready to just snip the cable, but I didn't have a pair of wire snips strong and sharp enough.

I realized I can simply remove the cam. A 10mm socket will do nicely here, but you'll probably need to have it on a handheld instead of a power drill. It's a pretty tight space. There's a 10mm nut and a washer. Once this is off, jiggle the cam to get it to come off the spindle.

Once this is off, the cable is easy enough to remove. The next part was a bear. I had to take a small flat head screwdriver and push it up against the "wing" of the plastic piece which comes through the metal bracket. Forget trying to remove the bracket. You don't have the time. :D

Once I got one wing through the bracket, I was able to twist and turn the piece to come through the square hole. This was the most violent part of the process, and much inappropriate language was uttered. There may be an easier way to do this. If someone else figures it out, please post it.

Putting the new piece in was not all that bad. I put the cable through the bracket's square hole. Align the "nubbin" on the plastic piece to the driver's side door. This will save you about 5 minutes of wondering why the stupid thing won't go through the hole, and a lot of thinking about round peg square hole jokes. You should feel a nice secure snap into place.

Now, connect the cable to the cam. Guide the cable through the groove of the cam and rotate the cam until the cable is taut. Then, put the washer and nut back on. You can probably slip the cam around a little tighter before you tighten the nut.

Now, put the pedal into the "holder" in the firewall. This is basically just the opposite of taking it out.

Check your pedal travel while watching the cam. It should move fully and freely. Start the car, make sure it idles as it was, and then try giving it some gas. Try the pedal a few times to make sure it feels right.

Put your tools away, and give the old pedal a nice heave-ho. If you can clear 33 meters, you did better than I did. My arm was sore from being contorted in strange positions while doing this stuff above, so I think I could get more distance if I waited a few hours. There was also a headwind. And it was uphill. :rolleyes:

Let me know if I missed anything. I think I got it all. I don't have pictures because I don't have a camera that small other than my mobile phone's camera, but it's ability to pick up anything in that dark a space (even with a flashlight) is miserable. The shots I do have look like black blurs.

-Michael