Thought I’d pass on a write up I did tonight on my G37 vert 6mt. I did this mod on my Maxima as soon as I got it. the clutch engagement is way too high. So I lowered it on my max. I drove 70k miles like that on the stock clutch and it was still holding up strong when I sold the car last week. I didn’t baby the clutch either. I have over 100 1/4mile time slips to prove that in that car.
Ok on to the disclaimer stuff…. You can damage your clutch if you do not do this correctly and I do not take any responsibility if you do damage your car. Do this at your own risk…. ok now to the fun part.
Fist I noticed that the clutch pedal mechanism is different than on my 2k2 max in how things are routed but the ideas are exactly the same. One thing that I noticed on the G is that I dont have as much room to work with on the rod going into the fork (see pictures down below for explanation of this) as I did my max because there is no more threads to screw into the fork.
Instructions (read entirely before starting)
**Before starting you will need to get some speed measurements in each gear. Get the rpms for each gear at a set speed. Example on my car: 40mph in 3rd gear is 3100rpm, 4th gear 2500rpm, 5th gear 2000rpm. Do this for 40mph, 30mph, 50, 60, and 70mph. This is done so when the adjustment is done you can see if the rpms will match at all the speeds in each gear. This will help determine if you are totally disengaged.
1.) You will need a 12mm wrench for the bolt behind the fork. You will need to losen this bolt to its max.
2.) Mark the rod going into the fork with a sharpie pen and make sure you make a very visible mark. This is so you can see how many turns you have done.
3.) Turn the rod counterclockwise (**see below for clarification**)going into the fork until desired turns. I was able to do my Maxima 2.5 turns but the max i can do the G is 1.5-1.75 turns. There just are no more threads for the bolt on the rod to unscrew. Most people that I have talked to say do not go over 2. WARNING this is where you can screw up your clutch. If you are able to screw beyond 2 turns you can get to the point where when you release the clutch pedal, the clutch will not be fully engaged. I’ll explain how to test this below. (**counter clockwise as if you are looking right at the rod from the drivers seat toward the engine bay**)
Hint: It’s easier to turn the rod if you slightly press in the clutch pedal to release the force on the rod.
Hint: I used long nose needle nose pliers with rubber ends to help keep from scratching up the rod… That’s just me. No one can see it but if the dealer ever sees it, then well, they have something against you.
4.) After achieve the amount of turns, you will need to tight the bold on the rod so the rod will not turn on you over time. Make sure this is really really tight. It may help to put a big screwdriver into the fork and the 12mm wrench to help tighten.
5.) You will not have to worry about the clutch pedal starter switch, but you will have to worry about the cruise control switch. When you move the rod you move the pedal away from the switch and closer to the floor. When you see the pic below of the cruise switch you will see the losing bolt is a PIA to get to. (Its a 12mm as well. the only way I was able to get to it was a small pair of locking pliers to loosen and tighten it. I was not able to get a wrench in there.) You can test if you need to adjust this by driving the car and seeing if you can set the cruise control. If not then you will need to adjust this. You will want to unplug the switch and then after the bold is loose screw the switch down until its in complete contact with the clutch pedal, and reassemble
Hint: I’ve heard of people just cluing quarters to the clutch pedal stop and that was enough. Nothing really wrong with that
Hint: If this DIY is something you want to just try, then you can tape some quarters there for the meantime.
6.) Test your new mod out. First start the car with the car out of gear. Push in clutch and put in 1st. Car should not move. You should be able to move the pedal off the floor a little before it moves. If its move right after the floor you may have screwed the rod into the fork too much. Now remember how I said to get the rpms at certain speeds in certain gears. Here is where you test it out. If after the adjustment you are having higher rpms that what you previously recorded then your clutch is not fully engaged and you need to back off the rod until you get matching speeds.
ok pictures
This picture shows the pedals and how the clutch pedal is a bit higher than the brake pedal. The goal is to get the clutch close to the brake pedal.
This pic shows the clutch pedal start switch right in the middle. To the left is the fork and rod in discussion. The order of the rod mechanism is from right to left… black boot, rod, bolt(one you need to loosen), fork, and clutch pedal.
Better pic of the rod mechanism
Here is the cruise control switch. The whole thing:
Next pic is a closeup between the clutch pedal and the cruise switch. This will open up when you screw in the rod. Enough to open the switch depending on how much adjustment you do.
Article By: Fezzik
