Clutch Pedal Position Sensor Replacement PITA!!!

[CamaroCracka]

The CPPS on the vert has been getting worse for years, but I knew it would be a real pain to replace so I have been putting it off until the other day when it acted like it was not going start at all, i.e. it was only turning over on 1 of 3 tries. The GM part was only $16 on Amazon, but the price of the part is no indication of the level of effort. All in it only took a few hours, but if I did not have a scope, I don't think I would have been able to do it.

The first pic shows the tools involved.



The first thing I did was use a scope I purchased this past summer to get a better view of what I was dealing with. For those of you who have installed a CTAP, you will be familiar with this plug at the very top of the clutch pedal mount. I don't know why I waited so long to get a scope, but they are definitely worth the money. I paid $100 for this one off Amazon because I saw a guy making YouTube videos with one and he made a lot of videos with lots of views so I figured it should be decent. I've seen guys on here say they had good luck with $10 units off Amazon, but that was not my experience.



The third pick is of the white clip that comes out before you can remove the plug. I was able to get my thumbnail under one side and then use a small, short flattip to pop the other side (I cannot imagine any human who would be able to get two hands into this space at once). (small flat tip is not in tool pic) In hindsight, I should have left the wire connected because it gives you something to hold on to when you go to pull the sensor out.



In order to get to the area I need to, I had to remove some of the interior trim. These pics are of the trim and the location of the sensor.



The previous pic shows the 7mm bolt and locating pin on the sensor. Here is pic of the old one with bag the new one came in as well as a pic of the other side.



I don't have huge hands, but there was a harness I had to loosen up in order to get my hand in there in any useful manner. I popped a zip tie clip out of the dash frame and loosened the connector on the left side of the foot well which provided just enough room.






Next, I removed the 7mm bolt. The finger ratchet was not absolutely necessary, but it did make the job easier. Once the bolt was out, I spent the next 10-20 minutes trying to fish the old sensor out with only the plug to grab on to (leave the wire connected). I ended up using a flat tip to push the sensor up to a point where could get a good grip on it with my fingers and wriggle it out. I did most of this work sitting on the ground with my right arm snaked up into the dash. for some of it, I did have to put my back on a creeper seat so I could get my head under the dash. Some guys suggest pulling the driver seat, but I'm too lazy for that. Here is how I had the creeper seat set up.



On reinstallation, I connected the new sensor to the wire first and installed the connector lock.



This pic shows the orientation of the sensor when you put it back. Probably don't need this pic as it will be obvious from taking it out.



Holding on to the wire and plug of the sensor I somehow performed the magic trick of getting the sensor correctly into place, starting the bolt and locating the pin. I tried locating the pin first, but that did not work well and the white fork comes of the pin it needs to go over very easily. Somehow I was able to get the fork aligned and push the sensor toward the firewall to back of the clutch mount. When I put the scope up there, I could see the brass insert was almost perfectly aligned, certainly some form of divine intervention there. Once I got the bolt started I used the gap in the dash under the steering wheel to be able to see the locating pin while I move the sensor around until the pin was where it belonged. This took multiple tries and the pin and or the fork would come out of position requiring me to frequently check their location with the scope. Finally, I wedged a long 1/4 inch flat tip behind the sensor that limited movement and allowed me to finish tightening without having to relocate the pin and fork. I would suggest wedging the flattip as soon as you get the bolt started.





With all that done, I still need someone with a better scanner than I have to run the CPPS relearn, but at least I don't have to worry about someone taking shortcuts underneath my dash because the switch is hard to get to.

I probably should have done a YouTube video too, but I'm too lazy for that too and most of the hardcore GenV folks I run into are on this site, so this is a good place to store the information. Hopefully, it helps someone.

[The Flash]

Thanks for your kindness, and the extra time you devoted from what was already a time consuming task, to take and share this pics.

I sincerely hope that I don't have to tackle this job for a long, long time!!!

All the best,

The Flash