1968 gt hardtop

I have a brand new GT coupe with less than 300 miles on it. Before buying it I test drove many GTs. The one I bought seems to haveclutch that releases quite high compared to others I drove. That is, I must use more throttle to keep it from stalling than the others I've driven. It's not bad, just concerning that if the pedal seems to release high now, what will it be like when the clutch wears a little. Has anyone experienced the same, or is it just my imagination? I'm reluctant to take it in fordealer inspection onlyhave have a mechanic mess around with what otherwise seems like a perfect car mechanically. By the way, it is a late model (March 07) built car if this makes a difference, and the transmission shifts silky smooth compared to others I've driven. Any advice is appreciated as always.

ohsixgt1217

Perfectly normal. Up untill last month i worked at a dealer and was the guy who drove all the new cars once they came in, and i was curious about this myself since my car does it as well. I made it a point to notice if the brand new cars were the same way and they were. No worries, it is perfectly normal

PLstang

Mine did the same thing. It had like a 3/4 release point (I dont know if I said that right). It felt like I was almost off the clutch when it released. I too had to give it more gas to keep it from stalling. However, i took mine in for a tune and several other items to include new rear gears (changed the 331 to373). I'm not sure if it was the tune or the gears or both but the throttle issue is solved. The clutch still releases high but is much easier to drive.

2CTPonyz

On my 06 4.0 the clutch started to engage the second my foot lifted from the floor, my 07 GT is the same as yours, still getting used to it! On the plus side, it's a much smoother release and I can actually shift faster. So I think it's normal...

tedBalog

I drove an 07 4.0 a couple weeks ago and I thought the same, the pedal was almost all the way out before it engaged, and the car had 20 miles on it.. Seemed a bit odd.

DemonLlama

My '07 4.0 is like this as well. Drives me crazy. I thought I had just forgotten how to drive a stick!

After about a month I'm getting used to it, though. Glad to hear it's fairly normal.

FenderParrothead

Same here! There's a lot of play there.

Which actually leads me to a very related question that I've been meaning to post (if I may indulge for a moment ). Because the pedal comes almost all the way out before engaging, I find myself sometimes not pushing the clutch all the way to the floor when I shift (unlike other manuals I have driven) - just about 1/2 way. I'm assuming since the bite point is located so far "up" (yeah, I know, poor terminology), as long as I've passed that point on the pedal, the clutch is disengaged enough to allow me to shift without tearing anything up.

Am I correct on that? I've never had any grinding or other unwanted noises when doing it.

I've been avoiding this practice lately, just in case, but it makes shifting much quicker/smoother when I do it this way.

Orion_240

just watch your tach as you let out your clutch. How far up is your foot when it drops if you're not giving it any throttle? If there's several inches where nothing changes than it's probably okay, but not a good habit.

Isn't there anyway to change the catchpoint, or whatever it's called? I know with clutch cables that could be done rather easily but I have a feeling these might be hydraulic.

Black07gt

yeap, it normal, but what about when the clutch wears out? i only have to press the clutch like1.5 inches at the most and the clutch is completely off. i need a new clutch


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1968 gt hardtop

Yeah, I'm concened that when the clutch begins to wear, I won't have any play left in the pedal. If it's normal, it feels odd compared to other new Mustangs I've driven.