I bought the Viper green 914...have a problem with accelerator, Gas pedal pushes very jerky, not smooth, where to look first? Options

[Ampex351]

I was the lucky one who bought the Viper green '76 914. Great car. They put in a new accelerator cable before I got it. The pedal pushes real stiff and jerky not smooth at all. Takes most of the fun out of driving. What would you suggest looking at first?

Thanks, Roger

[Craigers17]

Pretty much everything Rjames said. If you have to remove the pedal board, you might as well inspect the pedal cluster.....at that point you might as well replace the clutch cable as well. While you're looking at the pedal cluster, if it hasn't been serviced or replaced, you're gonna notice it's got a lot of surface rust, dirt, & grime around it. This will probably bother you, so you're gonna be tempted to pull the pedal cluster.

When you find that the pedal cluster is binding or sticky, you're gonna wanna rebuild it or, better yet, send your core to @bdstone914 and get a perfectly restored cluster in return. After realizing that you can't put his pristine new pedal cluster on top of that dirt & grime, you're gonna feel compelled to get out the wire wheel, primer, rust inhibitor, etc., and clean that area under the pedal cluster up.

At that point, you're gonna notice the nose of the brake master cylinder staring at you longingly, and you're going to think to yourself,.....Hell, I've got this whole damn thing pulled apart, I might as well replace the master cylinder. While getting under the car, and pulling off the MC, you're gonna ponder about putting in a new MC without putting in new brake lines....both hard and soft.....and as your eyes slowly follow those lines to the brakes, it suddenly hits you......these brakes look like shit...and maybe that scrubbing I'm hearing on the passenger side and slight wheel wobble is actually the brake pad that is permanently rubbing against the disc because the caliper has seized up.

Well....now you're into the brakes, so you might as well pull them off and send them off to PMB for a complete restoration....be sure to get new pads and possibly the plastic lines that run to the reservoir....to access them you might have to pull the fuel tank, or at least pull it out partially on the driver's side. You'll be glad you did this because when you figure out what a bitch it is to fit the new master cylinder with new grommets back on to the steel lines, you'll probably find it easier to do it on a bench, and then slide the lines back up from the bottom.

Since you pulled the tank partially, it will be a good time to check it out for pin hole leaks and replace the gaskets and fuel sock at a bare minimum. If you end up pulling it completely, in order to replace or refurbish it....or maybe just paint it, then it would be a good time to replace the fuel lines running through the tunnel.....unless they've already been replaced. It would probably be a good time to replace the lines under the tank as well......

Anyhow,....I digress.....in order to check whether the accelerator cable is binding with the clutch cable, pull the inspection cover at the front of the tunnel and take a picture inside the tunnel. You should be able to tell whether they are interfering with one another..... Here is a pic of the tunnel:(sorry the pic is sideways)



By the way....welcome and good luck....Don't pay any attention to my ramblings. I loves me some Viper Green!