Big Al's 03

Hey guys,
A quick question, Are the clutch paddle on the Mach 1 hard to depress?
I'm asking because it's been a while since I've driven a stick shift and
my 03 Mach 1 has a hard feel to it, it shifts alright except for the hard clutch ?

TXMach

The best answer I can give you is that "hard" is a relative word. Should your Mach 1 clutch be stiffer than that of an economy car? Absolutely.

Is it so stiff that you might snap the cable? If you have to think about how hard it is to press the pedal down every time you do it, it's probably too stiff and something is wrong.

Throwout bearing maybe. Are there any weird noises?

Big Al's 03

Thanks for your response ...... it is stiff, but not that stiff and there is no weird noise, so it must be me that has to get used to it.....like I said it's
been a long time about 45 years since I've driven a stick shift.
The reason I asked is because back in the day I don't remember my older brothers 69 Mach 1 clutch being that hard back in 1969 when he bought his.

dawson1112

The simple answer is ,, it depends on the clutch used. I had a clutch in my old 78 ford pick up with a 460 bigblock that would plumb ware you out after driving it around for a bit, but a stock clutch wouldn't hold the power. I am not familiar with the stock clutch in a Mach but Im guessing its your standard king cobra clutch, and they are a bit stiffer than the stock gt clutch.

Big Al's 03

[QUOTE=dawson1112;8486423]The simple answer is ,, it depends on the clutch used. I had a clutch in my old 78 ford pick up with a 460 bigblock that would plumb ware you out after driving it around for a bit, but a stock clutch wouldn't hold the power. I am not familiar with the stock clutch in a Mach but Im guessing its your standard king cobra clutch, and they are a bit stiffer than the stock gt clutch.[/

Thanks for your response.

1BAD3V

I know this thread is alittle old but I'm not on here as much as I used to be. I picked up my 03 Mach 1 back in April and haven't had any issues whatsoever except now the Throwout Bearing is making some chatter every now and again. With that being said ever since I bought the car the clutch has been pretty hard to push in. Granted I can still push it in with ease it's still harder than my 2013 Boss 302 and it's harder than what my turbo'd Cobalt's was. I'm in the process of changing out the TOB Monday morning and I'll let you know if the clutch got alittle bit easier. Another weird thing to is that when the shifter is in 5th gear it looks like it's in 1st.

Rick Gonzalez

I was wondering the same thing....I bought one years ago with 68,000 miles on it & the clutch seemed kinda stiff compared to my old 1986 GT....I am currently waiting on another lightly used 2003 Mach-1 / 13,500 miles / one owner to be delivered next week & am curious how its going to shift.....I know the new Boss 302 & GT-350'S are a breeze !

Big Al's 03

Let us know how the clutch is on the Mach 1 your getting ?

Also I found out that the previous owner upgraded my Mach 1 with a heavy duty racing clutch and the Cobra independent suspension among other racing upgrades ! Maybe that's why it's hard what do you all think?

Rick Gonzalez

Ten four.....thats what I figured....I will report back next week when It shows up.....

PDOGG74

Here is my experience with a MACH1 clutch, I bought a 03 MACH1 with 110,000 miles. The first thing I noticed was the hard clutch as well and the clutch didn't catch until the clutch pedal was almost at its start point before being depressed. Took my car to a mechanic and one of the things he told me was my clutch is almost gone that is why the clutch is not catching until pedal is at its start point and that is why it is so hard to depress. 1000 miles later my clutch started slipping and had to get a new one. SHORT STORY* I met the previous owner of the car and he told me what he has done and not done to the clutch since he had the car (if you want to know how I met the previous owner of my new used car that I got a dealership, request it and I will tell you). I knew I was going to replace the clutch and flywheel, since he never replaced the flywheel and the car now has well over 100,000 miles. I put in a Stage 2 Exceedy Clutch and Ford Racing Billet Flywheel and I used the original clutch cable. After every thing is said and done, my clutch felt a lot lighter (like a hot knife through warm butter) and now my clutch was catching when the pedal was depressed a half an inch from the firewall. In fact my friends say wow your clutch catches so early, the pedal barely off the floor and it catches. In lamest terms you may need a new clutch or new clutch cable or throw out bearing. The rule of thumb is if your going to change the throw out bearing might as well put in a new clutch. If its only your cable then get one of the new cable you can adjust from the firewall, even though or cable can adjust automatically(follow the instructions in your drives manual) it may need some readjusting. Can not wait to hear what you find out or discovered, good luck.