I have an old American car (1950 Ford) that I used to keep in
storage most of the time. I read somewhere that you should take
the pressure off the clutch plate to keep it from sticking, so
I always blocked the clutch pedal down with a piece of wood braced
against the back of the dashboard. With hydraulic linkage, you
would have to block the lever at the clutch, either with a piece
of wood, or by holding the lever with wire. The clutch never
stuck on the old Ford (but the valves did).
This has the disadvantage, I guess, of keeping the clutch pressure
plate springs compressed. I don't know if this would weaken them
seriously or not. Of course, the best thing to do is drive a car,
not store it. Now that the Ford is in good shape and insured and
all, I try to drive it once or twice a month even during the winter.
I figure it wipes the rust off the brake drums and the flywheel.
BTW I completely rebuilt the brake system and filled with DOT 5.
I haven't had any problems at all, but I haven't had any reason to
open up a cylinder yet, either.
Jim Beckman AT&T, Middletown, NJ att!mtqub!jeb
[A-H 100 back on the road real-soon-now-I-promise]
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