I can't seem to get my clutch accumulator off; it's too tight for the awkward position it's in.

I've looked at old threads from Marc in AK and Basal Skull for ideas.

Ryojo, what sort of oil filter wrench did you use? I tried a strap wrench but couldn't get enough leverage. I can get an adjustable wrench on the hex fitting but access is again limiting the force I can apply.

Any help or ideas would be appreciated.

 

My mechanic used an oil-filter-wrench of the strap type, but it looked somewhat mid-evil, like a torture device. It was medal and had a hex-head bolt on the strap to tighten it, with a pivoting, metal handle attached to the strap.

 

You need a relatively thin adjustable wrench if you're using that method. Otherwise it will lock against the metal above the accumulator and not move.

If you can get a cheater bar over the end of the wrench to stick out the wheel well that helps. Also, having someone push on the wrench from underneath the car and someone push from the wheel well at the same time will give you a lot more force on it.

Hope that helps...

 

That's a good point. Although it did look like the boss on the slave cylinder was bigger.

Thanks for both of your posts. I may try taking a 27mm open end wrench, cutting it down and grinding the end thinner if I can't find a suitable oil filter wrench.

This is definately another one of those "what on earth were they thinking moments.

 

Just a hint - my replacement accumulator and the one on the car had different sized hex-fittings at the top (one on the car was smaller). Don't size your wrench to the replacement and necessarily expect it to work.

 

That's a very good point I forgot to mention. The original fitting was much smaller. I want to say it was in the area of 7/8", though I'm almost positive it was a metric size, haha.

Come to think of it, I might have actually used a fixed open end wrench instead of an adjustable one.

 

Ah, that explains why someone mentioned using a 22mm wrench!

 

Hi phelix
this is what I used, it doesn't have any markings on it so don't know what brand. I used to use it to remove the oil filter on my old 85 targa.
It has a joint in it that can be bent, is about 9-10 cm in dia.
hope this helps.
Ryojo

 

^^^

That's what my tech used, but with a bolt on the strap that allowed it to be tightened.

 

Basal, that looks very similar to the oil filter wrench I used to tighten the new accumulator on. I got mine from autozone or advance auto parts. It was cheap, but gets the job done.

 

This oil filter wrench is a little more robust than the really inexpensive strap wrenches. Once you get the accumulator off, you realize how thin your open ended or adjustable wrench would need to be to get it off without binding on the metal above the accumulator...

 

If it's not to late for some advice, I have always taken a donor (cheap) wrench and ground down the width of the open end. Further to improve the "bite" I stick it in a vice and heat it up and bend it. The works well when trying to retighten the accumulator.

 

Thanks for all of the quick responses and especially your photos Ryojo.

I've found a source for a heavy-duty strap wrench with a 1/2 drive that uses a section of timing belt to get a high friction grip that can take a lot of torque. That should do the trick.

 

Bah, looks pretty similar to my el-cheapo oil filter wrench. (mbc for scale)

 

Exactly what I did. I ground down the thickness of the jaws of a cheap adjustable wrench (7-8" length). This provided enough clearance and leverage to break it lose. Don't forget to drain the pentosin if you have not already.