Clutch pedal extension to accommodate short legs?

[soviet_merlin]

Hi all,

has anyone looked into this before? I'm looking for a way of extending the clutch pedal. Essentially short legs plus heavy duty clutch in my Stagea don't go well together. Even with the seat all the way forward. Not to say that it is super awkward that close to the steering wheel.

It should be easy to attach and remove as it will only be needed occasionally.

The best I could find so far seems to be PedalMates in the US. See photos below.

   

 

The problem is they do domestic sales only and paying Shopmate for shipping to AU gets a bit pricey.

Thanks!

[PLYNX]

Have you tried Mobility Engineering in Asquith NSW ?

I found a 5Zigen Twin Mode clutch system.

Allows operation of the clutch on the gear stick.

Bit hard to find now though

 

[Duncan]

almost totally off topic, but Mobility Engineering are the guys that complied my Cima a few years back...so at least they should know what a Stagea is

[soviet_merlin]

On 25/08/2021 at 6:54 AM, PLYNX said:

Have you tried Mobility Engineering in Asquith NSW ?

I found a 5Zigen Twin Mode clutch system.

Thanks for the tip, much appreciated! I did not come across them in my search. Looks like they have a couple of pedal extension that they offer. Plus custom made gear if I see it right. I shall give them a visit once restrictions allow it. This looks so much more promising than blindly ordering from the US.

 

The Twin Mode clutch system sounds a bit invasive. I'm really just after something that you can attach and remove easily as it won't be needed 90% of the time. Though I like to think that it would turn the dad van into some sequentially geared monster.

[soviet_merlin]

On 25/08/2021 at 9:49 AM, Duncan said:

almost totally off topic, but Mobility Engineering are the guys that complied my Cima a few years back...so at least they should know what a Stagea is

Hah. I never paid much attention but I would think there is not going to be too much of a difference when it comes to clutch pedals in different cars.

At the current rate it will be a bit before I'll get there, but I'll see if they remember.

[soviet_merlin]

Somewhat of an update on this one: we went to Mobility Engineering in Asquith today to see what they can do for the pedal extensions. Nice guys! Just waiting for a quote now and to book in a time to get them fitted.

 

It's interesting what the guy there was saying: Basically, stop thinking of trying to reach the pedals and adjust the seat best in terms of visibility and distance to the steering wheel. And from there they make the pedals work. I'm hopeful now that it will make a big difference. You see so many shorter people driving way too close to the steering wheel and from what my partner was saying it is really not a great experience. Probably very much not safe either with the airbag being too close. See how it goes.

[soviet_merlin]

Woot, we finally got this done. We went to Mobility Engineering on Monday to get the extensions fitted. Took the day off for it. Dropped off the car in the morning and picked it up again around 2.30pm. Altogether it cost $1600 for parts and labour. A bit more than I was expecting, but meh. As a one-off to make the car driveable it's fine.

We did two hours of practicing yesterday in the pouring rain on an empty parking lot. Initial feedback from my partner: it's great and it just feels normal to drive. She has been taking lessons beforehand to practice in a manual transmission car. Apparently the Stagea is a lot nicer to drive than the instructor's Yaris. I'm not entirely surprised but kind of glad to hear that. It will still take a bit of practice but we'll get to that bit by bit.

I'm considering getting a set of magnetic L's to stick on the car for practice in actual traffic. Just to avoid pissing people off with the inevitable going slow or stalling. Not sure though what the legal situation is considering that she has a full license and that it's a car with a turbo. Has anyone done that?

See attached photos of the extensions. We got them for all three pedals. There are holders screwed onto the pedals. The holders stay on and I don't notice them at all even with my gargantuan feet. The pedals drop in and get fixed in place with a pin. It looks a bit odd but it works really well. I was a bit worried they'd be shitty plastic but they are actually proper metal pedals and no worse than the original ones. Mobility Engineering sells pedals that fold away as well but those weren't great. Even folded up they were still in the way. This is much better.

Altogether good stuff. Would recommend.

 

 

[niZmO_Man]

Nicely done. I'd get the plate mounts as those magnetic plates aren't that great, and can leave residue on your paint.

[soviet_merlin]

On 02/03/2022 at 7:05 PM, niZmO_Man said:

Nicely done. I'd get the plate mounts as those magnetic plates aren't that great, and can leave residue on your paint.

That's good to know, thanks! I'll have a look at the various clip-on or screw-on solutions next time.

One could argue that it'll help with the dad wagon look as well. It's already rocking the learner-driver-or-distracted-parent bumper scrapes so why not go all in.

[niZmO_Man]

just grab a pair from Supercheap Auto or similar. Better than getting a fine for not having plates displayed properly.

[soviet_merlin]

On 03/03/2022 at 11:51 PM, niZmO_Man said:

just grab a pair from Supercheap Auto or similar. Better than getting a fine for not having plates displayed properly.

Agreed. I'm still on the fence about doing it at all. I'll get the plates and some holders and see how I feel.

FWIW, it looks like legally it is okay to drive with L/P plates on a full license in NSW. I had a look through the official list of general driving offences, of which there are many. According to the internet it's an offense in QLD.