P15 OEM Gas Pedal & Napa Ball Stud fitment

[3046moparcoupe]

I was able to pick up a NOS oem accelerator pedal for our P15 project car, ( pp#974405 Black).

Also, thanks to the forum - today I picked up 2ea of the Napa #735-1896 ball studs.

Both the pedal and the studs are shown in the picture I've attached to this post. 

The pedal wasn't cheap, so I'm moving carefully on this one, (and as many of you here on the forum are aware, sometimes it don't take much of a curve ball to strike this ole batter out),..so in support of the ole saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure",..I'm gonna reach out again to the members here for a little confirmation - if possible.

In theory, I get it,...the pedal pushes down onto the ball studs at the heel of the pedal to attach it to the toe board/floor pan),....but the combination of the hardness of the rubber of the pedal and the size of the ball studs (3/8" ball) has me a bit pinched up wondering if I'll destroy the heel of this pedal.

I took a small piece of copper wire as a depth/width gauge and probed around inside the two pedal holes, and the interior of the holes do appear to be the same or very close to the same size as the round oval countersinks you see at the opening of each hole. The countersink hole openings measure at 3/8" and the ball studs measure at 3/8 ".... but the smaller dimension of the pedal hole opening is only 3/16" (half the size of the ball stud), so that small hole opening of the pedal has to expand/flex out TWICE it's current size, to accept the ball of the ball stud and allow it to pass through and into the hole,...also measuring from the top side of the counter sink hole opening - to where the small hole opening inside opens up into the larger 3/8 opening inside the pedal =  is 3/16" deep....looks to me like it would be the splits just waiting to happen :).

I would expect a little rubber treatment slick-em (like Mcguiars, etc...) would be smart to help things slide into place...anyway 

any feedback from folks whom have dealt with this - would be greatly appreciated....(the rubber of the pedal seems to be in great shape and the pedal doesn't show any signs of having ever been installed. When I say the rubber is hard, it's not cracked anywhere, it's just a very high density, super firm type rubber, I can take a finger nail and press in on it and see it give a bit, to try and be more descriptive), since obviously the condition of the rubber material would be key as to this working successfully as Walter originally designed and intended it to work......just trying to head off any variables that might have occurred over the years,...

wondering if it would be wise to try and open those inner 3/16" holes up a bit so they wouldn't have to flex so far when installing and removing this pedal ?

Many thanks

Steve 

Edited September 10, 2017 by 3046moparcoupe

[greg g]

I believe you want to set the studs in the floor pan so they are level and lock them down makinsure they are projecting enough to assure the pedal will fully seat when pressed into place. Then heat and cold are your friends.  Put the pedal in a water bath about 100 degrees or so, and put some ice in bags around the studs.  A little rubber eaz couldn't hurt as well.  When the pedal holes are warmed, and the ball studs are chilled, position the pedal, and using a block of wood as a buffer, use a light hammer to tap it down over the studs.

[Andydodge]

Yep as Greg says bolt the studs down first then try a little soap around the ball and/or the rubber opening and tap a block of wood or a firm push........andyd

[3046moparcoupe]

Thanks Andy & Greg for the input....I was with ya on the attaching to the floor pan 1st thing....I'll be drilling new holes thru new sheet metal, so I've visualized in my head the need for a bit of exactness in getting the hole locations drilled...it was the thought of that rubber having to expand that far that really had me seeing the splits,.....the reminder about hot and cold is excellent, ( not in just that the heat will expand things a bit, but also it will soften the material up some) ... 

I do still have what's left of the old pedal ( which is an exact match for the one I just got ) - and the only grommet hole left in it, is the hole at the top of the pedal where the linkage going through the firewall attaches. On that old pedal - in that one remaining grommet, the small hole is quite a bit larger than all the small entry holes in this new pedal....(which would stand to reason that it's that way due to wear),...but one never knows. 

I would be the guy that gets this nice, nos, old original, gas pedal for a reason, like maybe it was defective at the time of mfg , etc...so I also thought it might give me a bit of insurance if someone had possible experienced something similar..

the 3/16 measurement of the smaller entry holes does also match the diameter of the small part of the neck on both the ball studs and the linkage, so I see how it will be a snug, interference type fit....probably what ya want non your accel pedal

Steve

[greg g]

Don't forget to account for floor mat and underlayment thickness when setting ball height above the floor.

Where did you find the pedal??  Mine has seen better days.

[bobostski]

There are gas, brake and clutch pedals on ebay all the time at different prices.Most are after market. I would just swatch for a while and you should get a good deal.Check to see what Andy gets for them and look for some cheaper. That's what I do for many parts.

[Mark D]

Thanks for publishing the ball stud part number! Appreciate that.

[dpollo]

WD 40 works well on the rubber.  It makes it possible to attach the pedal with  a light bump from a fist  or better still, a rubber hammer.

[3046moparcoupe]

Greg , I'll send you a PM.....S.