G
Guest
Quite a common question, this is a guide on how to change your clutch or gearbox using the subframe lowering method. This is the easiest method imo, unless you have access to a crane.
First things first, place the front of the car on axle stands and remove the battery.
1) Remove bonnet
4x 13mm bolts - Can be attempted on your own, but much easier with an assistant to hold the bonnet up
2) Remove front bumper
1x 13mm bolt on either side of the bumper, under the arch liners
2x 10mm bolts at the bottom that secure the bumper to the subframe
1x 10mm bolt behind the front numberplate
3) Remove grill
Not necessary, but stops it getting scratched whilst leaning in to the engine bay
This varies between phase 1 and 2. Phase 1 is 2x T?? Torx bolts
4) Remove front hubs
For each hub:
2x 18mm bolts securing the caliper to the hub
2x 18mm bolts securing the hub to the strut
2x 16mm bolts securing the ball joint to the wishbone
1x 16/17mm nut securing the track rod end to the hub
1x 30mm nut securing the driveshaft (this is the hubnut)
A ball joint splitter will most likely be required for the track rod end
The calipers can be held up afterwards by securing them to the struts by one of the strut bolts
To remove the hub nut, the hub/brake disc/driveshaft needs to be prevented from rotating. This can be done with the car on the ground and the handbrake on, or by having an assistant press down on the brake pedal or by wedging a screwdriver into the brake disc between the calipers - this only works for models with vented from discs (i.e. 16v/williams etc...)
The brake disc can be removed from the hub if required with a T45 Torx bit, but is not necessary.
For models equipped with ABS, the plug can be disconnected about 45cm up, behind the arch liner. It is not easily possible to remove the plug from the hub without damaging it
5) Drain the gearbox oil.
1x 7mm square sump plug key.
Gearbox oil capacity is approx 4-5 liters, so have a container suitable to hand.
6) Remove driveshafts.
Not strictly necessary, but useful to gain access and to help the gearbox move.
The N/S (passenger side) driveshaft can be removed by undoing the 3 13mm bolts on the gearbox diff. casing.
The O/S (drivers side) driveshaft can be removed by tapping out the 5mm pin from the near the inner end of the driveshaft with a suitable punch.
7) Undo steering rack pinchbolt
This 10mm bolt is located at the bottom of the steering column, beneath the rubber guards. It can be accessessed (albeit very tightly) from inside the cabin or from the engine bay via the OS wheel arch
Undo subframe to chassis supports
1x 13mm bolt either side.
This is the metal support which goes from the wishbone to the chassis leg
9) Remove lower engine mount
2x 16mm bolts.
This is commonly called the dogbone mount or the rear engine mount.
The way Renault put the bolts in, require the removal of the exhaust downpipe in order to remove these bolts. This can be avoided in future by placing the bolts the other way round where there is plenty of room.
10) Undo gear linkage
1x10mm bolt securing the linkage to the gear selector.
This bolt can be found under the protective rubber gator underneath the gearbox (the driptray may have to be removed if still attached).
It's normally covered in grease!
It's better to undo this bolt than it is to undo the one on the linkage itself, as it can be tricky to re align!
11) Jack up the engine
Jack up the engine by using a trolley jack with a big piece of wood on the sump. The engine only needs to go up very slightly to remove the stress on the gearbox upper mount.
12) Remove gearbox mount and battery tray
4x 13mm bolts securing the battery tray to the chassis
3x 13mm bolts securing the mount to the top of the gearbox
1x 13mm bolt connecting the securing strap to the gearbox (2 for Williams).
Also, if a R19/172 4th/front mount has been fitted, this will need to be removed. (Details to be added)
13) Remove exhaust manifold.
This stage isn’t necessary, but I do find it makes removing the starter etc.. a whole lot easier.
8x 10mm bolts securing the manifold to the head. These can be got at using a combination of spanners and ratchets with extender tubes attached
1x 16mm bolt securing the rear of the manifold to the bottom end
2x 13mm bolts holding the downpipe to the manifold (as well as springs)
Try not to damage the long studs holding the downpipe on, as they are about £10ea. from Renault!
14) Remove starter motor.
3x 16mm bolts securing the starter motor to the gearbox
1x 10mm (I think) bolt holding a wire to the starter motor (not sure which?)
15) Lower the subframe
This is a combination of 16/17/18mm bolts.
2 At the front and 2 at the rear
16) unbolt loom from gearbox
Disconnect any earths left on the gearbox (usually with a 13/16mm bolt) as well as the earth strap between the chassis and the gearbox (16mm bolt)
17) Unbolt gearbox bolts
This is a series of 16mm bolts around the edge of the gearbox which connect the gearbox to the bottom end
There is also a bolt in the area where the starter motor sits that needs to be removed.
The clutch cable can also be removed from the clutch arm if not already done.
1 Remove the gearbox
The gearbox should now slide off the spline. A bit of wiggling (technical term there
) might be required.
There should be enough remove to either remove the gearbox completely or just to slide it to one side to access the clutch
Clutch
The clutch is held on by 6 6mm hex bolts. I found that allen keys tend to round off easily when trying to undo these bolts, so a good 6mm hex bit is a must (I used a halfords one with no problems)
Once these are undone, the old clutch will just fall off.
Alignment of a new clutch can be done using a 3/8" extension tube with a suitable amount of electrical tape wrapped around the end, whilst the 6 bolts are still fairly loose, allowing movement. You can align it by eye.
The 6 bolts can then be tightened back up.
A new release bearing should be used when refitting the gearbox (and pivot bush)
Refitting
In order to aid refitting the gearbox, remove the locating dowels on the gearbox and engine. The gearbox should just pop back on, but is near impossible without removing these first. They can be placed back in afterwards.
Then it’s just a case of following this guide backwards to refit everything!
Related Jobs
Now is also a good time to consider adding a widetrack (link coming soon) as half of the work is already done!
It might also be worthwhile taking this time to fit a R19/172 4th Gearbox mount (link coming soon) to reduce engine movement.
It is also a good opportunity to clean up a lot of items and repaint others too to keep the engine bay looking smart. Old bolts and bearings can also be changed at the same time.
The brake system can also be overhauled, with attention paid to calipers, discs and pads (link coming soon)
This is just a rouge guide off the top of my head. There are still a few bits I need to add as well as some pics!
if anyone has any to add to this (bolt sizes, steps ive missed, part numbers, torque settings etc...) please let me know!
First things first, place the front of the car on axle stands and remove the battery.
1) Remove bonnet
4x 13mm bolts - Can be attempted on your own, but much easier with an assistant to hold the bonnet up
2) Remove front bumper
1x 13mm bolt on either side of the bumper, under the arch liners
2x 10mm bolts at the bottom that secure the bumper to the subframe
1x 10mm bolt behind the front numberplate
3) Remove grill
Not necessary, but stops it getting scratched whilst leaning in to the engine bay
This varies between phase 1 and 2. Phase 1 is 2x T?? Torx bolts
4) Remove front hubs
For each hub:
2x 18mm bolts securing the caliper to the hub
2x 18mm bolts securing the hub to the strut
2x 16mm bolts securing the ball joint to the wishbone
1x 16/17mm nut securing the track rod end to the hub
1x 30mm nut securing the driveshaft (this is the hubnut)
A ball joint splitter will most likely be required for the track rod end
The calipers can be held up afterwards by securing them to the struts by one of the strut bolts
To remove the hub nut, the hub/brake disc/driveshaft needs to be prevented from rotating. This can be done with the car on the ground and the handbrake on, or by having an assistant press down on the brake pedal or by wedging a screwdriver into the brake disc between the calipers - this only works for models with vented from discs (i.e. 16v/williams etc...)
The brake disc can be removed from the hub if required with a T45 Torx bit, but is not necessary.
For models equipped with ABS, the plug can be disconnected about 45cm up, behind the arch liner. It is not easily possible to remove the plug from the hub without damaging it
5) Drain the gearbox oil.
1x 7mm square sump plug key.
Gearbox oil capacity is approx 4-5 liters, so have a container suitable to hand.
6) Remove driveshafts.
Not strictly necessary, but useful to gain access and to help the gearbox move.
The N/S (passenger side) driveshaft can be removed by undoing the 3 13mm bolts on the gearbox diff. casing.
The O/S (drivers side) driveshaft can be removed by tapping out the 5mm pin from the near the inner end of the driveshaft with a suitable punch.
7) Undo steering rack pinchbolt
This 10mm bolt is located at the bottom of the steering column, beneath the rubber guards. It can be accessessed (albeit very tightly) from inside the cabin or from the engine bay via the OS wheel arch
Undo subframe to chassis supports1x 13mm bolt either side.
This is the metal support which goes from the wishbone to the chassis leg
9) Remove lower engine mount
2x 16mm bolts.
This is commonly called the dogbone mount or the rear engine mount.
The way Renault put the bolts in, require the removal of the exhaust downpipe in order to remove these bolts. This can be avoided in future by placing the bolts the other way round where there is plenty of room.
10) Undo gear linkage
1x10mm bolt securing the linkage to the gear selector.
This bolt can be found under the protective rubber gator underneath the gearbox (the driptray may have to be removed if still attached).
It's normally covered in grease!
It's better to undo this bolt than it is to undo the one on the linkage itself, as it can be tricky to re align!
11) Jack up the engine
Jack up the engine by using a trolley jack with a big piece of wood on the sump. The engine only needs to go up very slightly to remove the stress on the gearbox upper mount.
12) Remove gearbox mount and battery tray
4x 13mm bolts securing the battery tray to the chassis
3x 13mm bolts securing the mount to the top of the gearbox
1x 13mm bolt connecting the securing strap to the gearbox (2 for Williams).
Also, if a R19/172 4th/front mount has been fitted, this will need to be removed. (Details to be added)
13) Remove exhaust manifold.
This stage isn’t necessary, but I do find it makes removing the starter etc.. a whole lot easier.
8x 10mm bolts securing the manifold to the head. These can be got at using a combination of spanners and ratchets with extender tubes attached
1x 16mm bolt securing the rear of the manifold to the bottom end
2x 13mm bolts holding the downpipe to the manifold (as well as springs)
Try not to damage the long studs holding the downpipe on, as they are about £10ea. from Renault!
14) Remove starter motor.
3x 16mm bolts securing the starter motor to the gearbox
1x 10mm (I think) bolt holding a wire to the starter motor (not sure which?)
15) Lower the subframe
This is a combination of 16/17/18mm bolts.
2 At the front and 2 at the rear
16) unbolt loom from gearbox
Disconnect any earths left on the gearbox (usually with a 13/16mm bolt) as well as the earth strap between the chassis and the gearbox (16mm bolt)
17) Unbolt gearbox bolts
This is a series of 16mm bolts around the edge of the gearbox which connect the gearbox to the bottom end
There is also a bolt in the area where the starter motor sits that needs to be removed.
The clutch cable can also be removed from the clutch arm if not already done.
1
Remove the gearboxThe gearbox should now slide off the spline. A bit of wiggling (technical term there
) might be required.There should be enough remove to either remove the gearbox completely or just to slide it to one side to access the clutch
Clutch
The clutch is held on by 6 6mm hex bolts. I found that allen keys tend to round off easily when trying to undo these bolts, so a good 6mm hex bit is a must (I used a halfords one with no problems)
Once these are undone, the old clutch will just fall off.
Alignment of a new clutch can be done using a 3/8" extension tube with a suitable amount of electrical tape wrapped around the end, whilst the 6 bolts are still fairly loose, allowing movement. You can align it by eye.
The 6 bolts can then be tightened back up.
A new release bearing should be used when refitting the gearbox (and pivot bush)
Refitting
In order to aid refitting the gearbox, remove the locating dowels on the gearbox and engine. The gearbox should just pop back on, but is near impossible without removing these first. They can be placed back in afterwards.
Then it’s just a case of following this guide backwards to refit everything!
Related Jobs
Now is also a good time to consider adding a widetrack (link coming soon) as half of the work is already done!
It might also be worthwhile taking this time to fit a R19/172 4th Gearbox mount (link coming soon) to reduce engine movement.
It is also a good opportunity to clean up a lot of items and repaint others too to keep the engine bay looking smart. Old bolts and bearings can also be changed at the same time.
The brake system can also be overhauled, with attention paid to calipers, discs and pads (link coming soon)
This is just a rouge guide off the top of my head. There are still a few bits I need to add as well as some pics!
if anyone has any to add to this (bolt sizes, steps ive missed, part numbers, torque settings etc...) please let me know!
