MGB & GT Forum

Well, It looks like my choke cable came out. It still works fine, but whatever system that holds it to the dash has failed. Am I missing a nut that is on the cable? If this has happened to anyone else before I'd love to hear your solutions.

If I remember correctly there's a big nut on the backside. I made a homemade wrench to install or hold it some years ago. Yeah, it's a real bear to get behind there and work on it too.
My guess is it slid down the cable and you'll have to fish it back up there.

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Early 1974 MGB with OD, SU HIF's, 72 spoke chrome WW's, Schlemmer distributor, DuBois fuel pump, Limey's relays, Gerry's column kit.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2024-04-24 03:07 PM by Jim Gevay.

The nut on the back side is a pain to tighten.

The nut is very thin-maybe about 2mm thick. John Twist suggested I think in one of his videos to go to the hardware store and get a standard thickness nut. I don't recall exactly what it is-I THINK it's UNF and measures 3/4" across the flats, but don't hold me to that. In any case, the thicker nut is MUCH easier to tighten whether by hand or with a wrench. A stubby box end wrench with a hole cut in the box end(and maybe even the head chopped off to make it shorter) can help get it tight. Unfortunately, there's very little clearance in there to even work a wrench up to it, much less swing one.

Would it be worth it to take the glovebox and vents out for access?

Pulling the heater knob below it gives just enough space to get a small hand up and in. Once the nut is found, slid back up and screwed on the choke base by hand you can take a cut off closed end 12-pt wrench and tighten it.

How, you ask, do you get a closed wrench around the cable ? Well, cut away part of the wrench loop so it can slip over. So two modifications to the wrench: cut it down to about 2-1/2" long and cut a gap in the closed end.

Oh........and have a blood transfusion ready to go. You will leave some behind.

BH

Been many years since I had to access that in situ. It's easy with the dash pulled

My first pass would be to remove the glovebox and reach across over the vents. If that doesn't work pull the near vent box and reach through. The vents have center retainer bar that has to come out, it releases both vents.

The thicker nut makes a lot of sense.

Someone with small hands with some dexterity might be able to reach through the speedo hole.

The described nut will still be on the cable behind the dash. It's likely just worked its way loose over the years. Replacing with another nut will require removing the cable at the carbs and working your way back. Doable but.....

Yes, removing the glove box liner and face-level vents will benefit you on this project. Trying to go upwards past the heater control and temp gauge is not a job for the faint-hearted nor for anyone not wanting to lose any blood.

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"Speed costs........how fast you want to spend?"

Apologies in advance for this exact quote from Dad (RIP), quoth upon the occasion when I faced this precise situation:

"For crap sake, put it back in!"

Here's the tool I made for that job, following a suggestion from someone on this forum. That big nut has to be tight. I used a Dremel cutoff wheel to shorten a box-end wrench and then cut a slot so it will pass over the choke cable. It works well. It's a 3/4" box end wrench cut to 3" length with a 3/8" slot.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2024-04-24 05:00 PM by smokey w.

The nut in place.

Two possibilities for this issue...

1. Pull out the glovebox and then remove the two vent hoses (and the vent assembly too!).

2. Remove the speedo and temp gage for some access.

Neither way brings joy. I'd go with the speedo/temp gauge attempt first... Less work but also less room.

Either use a line wrench of the correct size or cut a box end as shown above, I'd apply some Blue thread locker to make sure it never comes apart again...

Just be prepared to lay on your back under the dash wishing you were Ant Man!

Been there, done that. MANY times...

Good luck!!!

P.S. the plastic handle on my choke cable broke so I have purchased a chromed metal cable. I just need shorten it to fit.

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Those who confuse Burro and Burrow don't know their @ss from a hole in the ground...

You all talking about accessing the nut through the vents and/or glovebox are making those of us with 68-71 dashboards jealous!

BTW, a few years ago I got fed up with the quality of the repros so tracked down an original. The only problem was that the only original/NOS one I could find was the earlier style round knob. For anyone tempted to put a round knob on your pillow dash, my best advice is don't! Granted it's probably fine with HIF carbs, but the choke pull on HS4s is a whole, whole lot heavier(that choke linkage moves a lot of stuff quite a distance) and getting a good grip on the round knob to pull it isn't always the most fun thing to do.

I did some behind-the-dash work last year on my 68. The pillow dash has no vents and not sure of other differences.

I removed the nuts holding the dash in place and pulled it a few inches to allow access from above. Of course, this was no easy job either. Removed the steering wheel and drivers seat, and still spent some time on my back looking up.

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I'd rather wear out than rust out.

"If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking." General George Smith Patton

I did what Ben suggested, I got a regular size, thick nut from the hardware store. It is very hard to get a wrench on the thin nut because your are coming at it on an angle so there is little area for the wrench to grip. A taller nut gives you a much larger grip area at an angle and raises the nut up off the back of the dash making it more accessible. It really is hard to get to on most models, especially the padded dash cars but the nut trick makes it easier on all models. I've done them all and hate it but nothing sucks worse than a coke that pulls from the dash. Another hint, they tend to come loose over time, using the big nut allows you to get it tighter so it won't come loose as easy. One reason they keep coming loose is that because they are so hard to tighten, when you do fix it you don't really get it all the way tight because access is so restricted so it keeps coming loose. With the big nut you can tighten it for real and hopefully it won't be a constant source of aggravation. Also use a very short wrench, cut one off it needed.
A full size wrench will hit something under the dash so you cant get to the next flat on the nut. Cut off an old junk wrench 2 inches long to stick in their so you can actually rotate it a little. Good luck.