Astra J manual – pedal box gone? pretty expensive!

[Mr Writer]

Hi, all.

I'm new around here, first post and I'm afraid it is to ask for help and advice (though I intend to stick around as a new Astra driver and hopefully help others in time).

A few weeks ago I bought an Astra J. It is a 2001 model. Petrol 1.6 (none turbo) 5-speed manual 5-door hatchback. Oh, it's the top of the range Elite model.

However, I've noticed there is a bit of sideways play on the clutch pedal. It is noticeable when changing gear as I can feel the sideways movement, which doesn't inspire confidence as it feels like my foot could slip off it. I've grabbed the clutch pedal with my hand and I can physically move it about (I've measured) half an inch either side of its natural sitting position – one inch in total from the pushed to extreme left to the extreme right. Hope this makes sense.

I took the car to my local Vauxhall dealer, Murketts, who advised me that the pedal box had gone and it is £1,099 including parts, vat and fitting. They said it is a good 4 or 5 hours labour as a lot of the dash has to come out to do the job. Also, the pedal box would have to be ordered in from Germany or somewhere as they don't keep them in the UK. I phoned Murketts back a few hours later and spoke with the service department manager to ask him if Vauxhall could show any 'good will' towards this price, even though the car is nearly 5-years old and has covered 56,000 miles. After a phone call to Head Office I was told they could do it for £745, all in, somewhat better.

For the record, I bought the car privately, not from a dealer, and I paid cash, so talking to the seller about this is out of the question, especially as I got the car for about £1,500 less than the usual Auto Trader prices.

I've been informed by two garages, including Murketts, that the pedal box on Astra J cars are 'sealed units' and cannot be opened up to repair. I was surprised at this as, after examining the clutch pedal, it simply appears that it is simply a case of tightening a nut/bolt somewhere at the top of the shaft, which I can't see as it goes up into the car somewhere. The service manager at Murketts told me they have never had to do a pedal box, which would suggest they rarely go wrong.

I'm not sure how they diagnosed that the pedal box had gone, apart from a little sideways play on the clutch pedal, the car is tip top and drives way better (and smoother) than the BMW 530 Sport (2001 year) I just sold.]

Any advice would be much appreciated before I blow £750 to simply fix a little sideways play on the clutch pedal.

Thanks all.

[Rusty2009]

Welcome to VXOC.

There have been a few people suffer from this issue although the end result was the same a new pedal box all diagnosed by dealers.

I'll look on TIS later and see if I can find any info for you.

[Jj0063]

That's the least of your worries if you think a 1.6 petrol J drives better than a 530!

[Mr Writer]

Thanks Rusty209, I'll look out for your post later.

[Rusty2009]

Hope this will help it looks like there are 2 bolts / screws that could be tightened.

http://workshop-manuals.com/vauxhall/ast...and_drive/

[Gav-Astra]

I've had this issue. I've had it replaced under warranty once. It's come back. Is it possible those screws and bolts work their way loose? It's just a matter of tightening the bolt and screw?