Accelerator Cable & Bracket- Just can't wait to figure this mess out!

[72Satellitescoop]

Purchased 72 SSP about 8 weeks ago and have only put about 100 miles on. Had to fix a few issues- power steering gear box and pump- overheating- leaks, etc. When driven it always seemed a little flat at top end and passing gear was weak when you tried to give it a punch while cruising. So yesterday I did about a 20 mile run to check the cooling issues and they were all good but this cable issue pops up. All of a sudden, very very slow acceleration and the pedal lost some resistance. Engine wasn't missing and sounded ok , just real slow, like it was in third gear stuck. Checked the pedal to find theirs a lot of slack- see pic- and its not retracting down below. Checked the carb/cable and at idle, it appears fully forward and will only move back about 1/8 to 1/2 inc. when you floor the pedal. You can manually pull the throttle back and the engine revs up strong. Looking over the throttle cable, it looks odd. For starters, it's mounted in a stock mopar bracket that is out of alignment with the linkage attachment side. About 1/4 to a 1/2 towards the middle of the manifold further than it would need to be to be right on straight. The cables metal jacketed area is kind of kinked up and not straight.- See Pic To add to this, my cable bracket is a little different than what's being sold as an aftermarket bracket for my set up.- see pic

340 ci- 4bbl- edelbrock carb- auto floor shift. And to add to the fun, the kickdown hookup and rods look like a mess. Super loose does not move back with throttle. Will move manually but kind of sloppy. Looking to start with getting the throttle cable and bracket issue resolved first and add in the kickdown as it moves along.
1. Do you think I can just purchase a new correct throttle cable and hook it up to the existing bracket as is, maintaining the bad alignment OR is that my problem and a correct bracket and new cable are what's needed to get it back going and move on to the kickdown cable attachment and rods. Thanks for any input and possible pictures of what it should look like.

 

[khryslerkid]

The metal part of the cable is suppose to be clamped in the hold down and maybe you can try it in the other position under the clamp, if it will go there. That cable looks a little rough.

 

[moparmarks]

As stated, you need to slide the housing of the cable backwards so the metal part is under the clamp. That will take up the slack. You cable does look a little rough.

 

[oldbee]

Not real up on SB but you should have a return spring on your kickdown linkage also.

 

[furyus]

And the kickdown lever that goes down along the fire wall looks off center too. If this is not a resto, i would use Lokar throttle, and kickdown cables. Also, i can't tell, but do you have the Mopar throttle lever bracket on your carb? If not, you will never get it right.

 

[72Satellitescoop]

I just love the input from the senior members of the forum. So I ended up unintentionally disconnecting the cable at the pedal and it pulled thru the firewall. This gave me a little play to try and hook the cable up to the bracket correctly as you guys have mentioned. With it still connected to the carb linkage- and yes I checked and it does have the edelbrock mopar correct bracket adapter- I tried to connect the metal jacket under the bracket clamp, on the opposite side from where it was, that would be just a notch closer to the drivers side. Tried to clamp in but the clamp top piece has a tab on that side and it fits a groove , so it just won't clamp right with that tab and you cannot turn it around. Placed it back where it was originally before braking loose. It still looks way out of whack for me and check out the pics. I just think it needs to go just about 3/4 inch to be right. So I locked the clamp down in a good spot on the metal covering that put it at the best angle and had smooth, but goofy, action, while hand pulling the throttle back. Hooked up at the pedal and fired it up. An immediate difference in power. The pedal went from being soft to hair trigger responsive and a wide open growl I'd never heard from the engine before. Sealed everything back up and took it out. Just absolutely ripping it up- for a mild 340 and open rear end- Could not believe the difference. I also could feel the shifts more than before but they are clearly a little off. The kickdown was working a a little but it still needs adjustment. My idle also dropped quite a bit to a real nice range. So it sounds like the prior owner never really had the cable on their correctly. at this point I'm asking the group

1. This throttle cable might be bad and this throttle bracket is not right. Should I go for the other repop bracket being sold that is specific to the 340 and differs a little from what I've got? And get a new cable too. I cannot tell by looking at a picture if this bracket will give me the extra 3/4 inch over, to get me better lined up.

2. Is it okay to have the pedal as "tight" as it feels right now. Just a tap and you feel the response. I like it but not sure if that's the way it should be set up for best reliability.

3. Can anybody tell me about the return spring for the kickdown? Is it just find what works best because I see a million different springs
out there in mopar engine pics. I think I can get this kickdown dialed in better if it has the spring set up.




.

 

[oldbee]

Well "son". #1-probably , #2-yes, #3- spring doesn't need to be as strong as throttle return, just has to pull k/d linkage towards frt of engine to keep it snug against throttle.

 

[Bruzilla]

Your story sounds a lot like mine. My suggestion is quit wasting time and just replace the stock parts with a cable system. You need:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Stainles-Br...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chrome-Carb...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

And ask the seller of those parts what throttle cable you need, they're about $27, and for under $75 you can replace the stock springs, brackets, cable, and kickdown with something that actually works.