Marty Roth Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 Could someone please provide a picture, and/or description of where to attach the return spring for the accelerator on a 1941 Cadillac? Mine is a Series 62 convertible coupe. Yesterday I found a spring lying loose in the engine bay, and a "dead" gas pedal. I've made a temporary attachment, but believe it is incorrectly mounted, and hope to correct it before driving a week long tour in Lafayette, Louisiana in a couple of weeks. Thanks in advance for any help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reynard Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 Sorry, I can't be of any help to you, but your problem brings up a story I hadn't thought of in many years. My parents, my brother and I were visiting out of town relatives one Sunday back in about 1949 or '50 in the family's 1941 Cadillac 61 sedan. My mother was driving. Traffic was routed through a construction site and over a very rough stretch of road. Half way along, the gas pedal fell flat to the floor and the engine just idled. Luckily, the Cad was equipped with a hand throttle knob on the instrument panel. Being a farm girl and having driven Model T's and tractors in years past, she calmly negotiated the rest of the bad road as well as about 75 miles back home, safe and sound, using mostly the clutch and gears to control speed. Don't let a little spring prevent you from enjoying your upcoming tour. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAKerry Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 Marty, I have no idea how it works on your caddy, but there might be a cable that is attached to the gas pedal that goes through the firewall. This may attach to a linkage on your manifold. The spring should attach to the anchor point on the manifold for the thottle cable and the other end of the spring should attach to the lever on the carb that controls the fuel flow. Without the spring there is no 'pullback' on the gas pedal, thus why it most likely goes flat to the floor. Sorry for the vagueness but this is how it works on later cars, may be the same principal. If its not I apologize for leading you down a rabbit hole. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted February 29 Author Share Posted February 29 @TAKerry Thank you. I have the front part of the spring attached to the correct part at the carburetor where the rod attaches to pull back on the lever going to the throttle shaft. I just can't see where the back end of the spring should go - basically in a straight line, and likely somewhere under/ behind the crossover pipe of the exhaust manifold. Currently I have the rear part of the spring hooked off slightly to the side, and it is operational, but still need to find the "right" attaching rear point. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 I believe the attaching point is somewhere on the distributor tower. Is your car standard shift or hydramatic? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted February 29 Author Share Posted February 29 5 hours ago, K8096 said: I believe the attaching point is somewhere on the distributor tower. Is your car standard shift or hydramatic? Thank you, @K8096 Actually, I had looked there but didn't see any appropriate place for the hooked end of the spring. My car is standard shift. I've temporarily hooked the spring to the rear edge of the bracket which supports the spark plug wires, but that is a bit off to the driver side instead of a straight rearward pull. It is driveable, but not ideal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Here’s the answer. I had forgotten about this. There’s a tab that is held on by the rear exhaust manifold cross over pipe bolt. It has a hole drilled in it for the spring. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted March 2 Author Share Posted March 2 2 hours ago, K8096 said: Here’s the answer. I had forgotten about this. There’s a tab that is held on by the rear exhaust manifold cross over pipe bolt. It has a hole drilled in it for the spring. K8096 Thank you, both for the update and for the photos. I hope to get back to my car later next week after a few days enjoying visiting family, and will confirm that the tab is in place. That location is surely ideal for the spring to exact a straight pull on the throttle shaft. If by some chance mine is absent, it looks straightforward to make and install., Again, thank for following up, and for sharing the detailed information. It is folks like you who help make our FORUM a great resource. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted March 16 Author Share Posted March 16 Follow-up, We made a tab and mounted as per photo provided by @K8096. Thanks to all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
46 woodie Posted March 16 Share Posted March 16 Marty, you might want to consider using dual springs as a safety factor. If the spring fails, you will have a back up. Many after market carburetors come with a "spring within a spring" as a safety. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted March 16 Author Share Posted March 16 2 hours ago, 46 woodie said: Marty, you might want to consider using dual springs as a safety factor. If the spring fails, you will have a back up. Many after market carburetors come with a "spring within a spring" as a safety. Thanks @46woodie , Yes, and I've been accused of wearing a belt AND suspenders ... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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