Gearbox Worries for a Novice!!

[Weegie182]

Hey all,

this is my first post on the site and sadly it comes as something of a necessity rather than a luxury

My Clio 182 has developed a horrible rattling noise when I am in gear and decelerating. Iv since had it into the garage (was due a service anyway) and they told me it would have to go away to a specialist to have the gearbox stripped out and checked over as he thinks the bearings may have gone.

This is going to cost between £600-£800!! I can't afford anything near that amount... I can't sell it in its current state (not that id want to anyway), I'm not keen to lose it to a breaker or scrappy yet I can't afford to fix it!!!
So I am here hoping you guys have any tips/solutions?

Please bear in mind that although I love my cars my technical knowledge may be limited so in layman's terms would be best!!

Thanks in advance

Weegie

 

[Scadden182]

would be cheaper to get a 2nd hand box, and get that fitted...contact Cliospares they sorted me out with a box, and i had it fitted for just over £500 all in. that is if its the box lol.

 

[Dave..]

Ask if some one with a bit more knowledge about the car, could come out and have a look. I'm sure there'd be plenty of local people on here, willing to come out and try to sound knowledgable.

 

[Tony Hunter]

Based in Worcester, Agency have specialised in automotive gearboxes and transmissions for over 40 years. Able to offer repairs, full rebuilds and exchange units. We found their services to be exceptional.

Agency Transmissions
Unit 17k Shrub Hill
Worcester
WR4 9EL
tel: 01905 24896

 

[p@blo]

You/theyve definitely ruled out the cheap easy stuff like heatshields/front wheel bearings/cv knuckles?

Is there any other noise or handling issues?

Fingers crossed this doesnt cost too much to get sorted.

 

[Weegie182]

Thanks for your posts guys.

I think the problem lies in that we won't know exactly what's wrong with the gearbox until the garage has had the chance to take it all out and strip it down. I could be wrong but I think this is where the cost comes from i.e. the cost of labour as opposed to the parts themselves?

P@blo- there are no other handling issues with the car and no other noises apart from the usual clio (French Car rattle) soundtrack! I'm unaware of what sound faults that you mentioned would make but I do know that the noise goes away when I press the clutch which leads me to believe it is indeed the gearbox. Also the mechanic that took the car out guessed at faulty bearings.

Any thoughts? Once again I appreciate you taking the time to read and reply

 

[DMS]

Get it to a specialist. They'll probably have seen the same issue many times already, and will be able to offer more advice on what's wrong.

 

[Weegie182]

Thanks for the post mate- really stupid question I know but when people refer to a specialist are they meaning a Renault Garage or just someone that specialises in Gearboxs or performance cars?

 

[caister]

Somebody who specialise's in Renault Sport cars, even some of the dealers don't have a clue what they are doing. I've been to a Renault dealer and was told they didn't do a 2.0 clio....

Tell us what part of the country you live and someone will recommend a specialist to you

 

[Weegie182]

haha Renault don't do a 2.0 clio eh?! Love it!

Well I'm from Glasgow (hence the Weegie name!) but I'm working and living down in a place called Bromley near London at the minute (Kent) Would you know of any near there? Also do you think they would be willing to come to the car as opposed to me driving to them? I'm scared if I drive it, i'll make it ten times worse...

 

[mat-nos]

if it does it on deceleration i think its more likley to be a flywheel/driveshaft problem as there are the same loads on the gear box with aceleration.....
if it is a flywheel its unfortunatly still a time consuming job as the gear box has to come out, drive shafts on the otherhand is an easy quick job!!!
are you an aa member?? get them to take it to a specialist!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Keep an eye on ebay, gearbox's can be had for circa £200 and its only a 2 day job for a complete novice! Make sure you replace the clutch and release bearing at the same time!

 

[Weegie182]

Once again thanks for your posts gents- appreciated.

So I think the best thing for me to do would be to source a Renault Sport specialist in the Bromley, Kent area and have him check it out. Would anyone know of any round this part of the country? If not I think it might be a good idea for me to ask the garage if he can recommend one or call one in? Once they have established the problem I can then look to buying in the required parts from ebay etc

What do u lot think?

mat-nos: the noise comes mostly on decelaration but I think I could still hear it, albeit a quieter version, on acceleration (its been over two weeks since iv driven it now!)

 

[caister]

Your not too far from JMS who are in Uxbridge

 

[Budgie]

You really need someone with experience/one of the specialists to have a look, as it's a multitude of things that it could be.

I really would recommend the drive to JMS, and by the sounds of it, as long as you take it easy the car should be fine.

So, does the noise happen under hard acceleration? what about on idle? All the time in gear, or just when off the gas/slowing?

I have a box for sale, btw.

 

[Weegie182]

Ok thanks- I have looked up JMS tuning. Its just made me want to tune up my car even more now- even though its gettin older and I should maybe be looking to sell it haha! Ill fire them off an email tonight and let you know what they say.

Budgie- the noise comes as I accelerate (not necessarily harshly) but not while idling and the noise is loudest whilst slowing down/off the gas. As soon as I put the car in neutral the noise goes away.
Does this give you some idea of the problem?

 

[mat-nos]

it could be anything to do with the drivetrain, ie flywheel, clutch, gearbox driveshafts, cv joints ect...
unless you know what to look for get it to a specialist so they can check over the above and advise of the best/cheapest way to fix it depending if you want to keep it or sell it on.....

 

[Weegie182]

Hi Budgie,

Just considering all my options here. This gearbox that you have for sale- how did you manage to get hold of it? Did you strip it out from your old 182? Is it re-conditioned? How much would you look to sell it for if I decided it would be best for me to buy one?

Cheers

 

[Budgie]

Hi mate. Well, that one I had has sold, but I should have another pretty soon. Ie, tonight. Will assess condition and report back. Thanks.

 

[Weegie182]

OK so I thought I would give you an update on the situation. Have contacted a specialist and he has quoted me £795. Breakdown as follows:
Labour for removing and refitting the gearbox - £400.00 (8 hours at £50.00 per hour)
Gearbox rebuild costs - £320.00
Gearbox Oil - £75.00

For those with experience- does this seem reasonable to you? I know that the local garage was looking to charge nearly double the price...

Also, the garage has suggested replacing the clutch for £190 (inc labour) Would anyone recommend this? I know it is the sensible thing to do as the car is apart already but money is seriously tight at the minute...

 

[Fred@BTM]

£75 for geabox oil is expensive! I think i charge £45 including labour to change it

a clutch change is a must, technically they should only charge you the cost of the part (no more than £120 for a genuine one!) so they're chraging best part of £70 for undoing 7 bolts and doing them back up which is a bit OTT!!!

 

[Weegie182]

£75 for geabox oil is expensive! I think i charge £45 including labour to change it

a clutch change is a must, technically they should only charge you the cost of the part (no more than £120 for a genuine one!) so they're chraging best part of £70 for undoing 7 bolts and doing them back up which is a bit OTT!!!

Hi Fred,

The specialist mentioned that the labour associated with changing the clutch is free as the car is apart anyway so they are only charging me for a Renault Original Clutch kit at £190.00

Do you also own a specialist garage that would be able to work on my car?

 

[Tony Hunter]

I would say,yes and yes.Ring him.

 

[Rob]

Who was it you contacted mate?? Have they actually taken a look at the car? If I were you, before forking out silly money (and if you haven't already) get it down to JMS and see what they diagnose the fault as.

Companies like JMS, who only deal in the Renault sport range, often have a much better idea of what's going on.

I'm not far from you buy my mechanical knowledge is somewhat lacking, lol. If you want someone a bit closer than JMS, there's a very good Renault specialist in Dartford called Two Techs, who are genuine, stand up guys.

 

[ripp]

OK so I thought I would give you an update on the situation. Have contacted a specialist and he has quoted me £795. Breakdown as follows:
Labour for removing and refitting the gearbox - £400.00 (8 hours at £50.00 per hour)
Gearbox rebuild costs - £320.00
Gearbox Oil - £75.00

For those with experience- does this seem reasonable to you? I know that the local garage was looking to charge nearly double the price...


Also, the garage has suggested replacing the clutch for £190 (inc labour) Would anyone recommend this? I know it is the sensible thing to do as the car is apart already but money is seriously tight at the minute...

50£ per hour? OMFG what a difference, around here (outside uk before you ask..) you'll never find any garage above the 20£/hour mark, even renault

regarding your problem maybe it's best to have a second hand box and a buddy to get the job done. 400 ? jesus..

 

[Budgie]

Hi Fred,

The specialist mentioned that the labour associated with changing the clutch is free as the car is apart anyway so they are only charging me for a Renault Original Clutch kit at £190.00

Do you also own a specialist garage that would be able to work on my car?

Get down to Euro Car Parts, and supply the clutch to the garage! You're only looking at £85 for a Sachs one, or approx £105 for a Valeo OE one. It literally will take them five minutes to swap it, so shouldn't charge any extra labour!

I would say,yes and yes.Ring him.

Fred or JMS. Get them to look at it before you pay anything, mate.

 

[Tom@JMS]

Hi Chaps, it was us that provided the above quote, and it has also highlighted some mistakes on my part!

£75 for geabox oil is expensive! I think i charge £45 including labour to change it

£75.00 is our standard gearbox oil change using Renaul/Elf box oil.

We carried out a similar job last week (clutch imploded and we removed the box completely for the job) for a member on here (mark_54_182 IIRC) and he was charged £40.00 for the gearbox oil change as the labour is non existant.

The above pricing error is my fault.

technically they should only charge you the cost of the part (no more than £120 for a genuine one!) so they're chraging best part of £70 for undoing 7 bolts and doing them back up which is a bit OTT!!!

That technically is not true, we quoted Renault original parts, not OE equivalent; where the clutch kit has a retail cost of £210.49 inc VAT, we can now buy the same kit at a trade price of £190.10 Inc VAT - which we simply pass onto the customer, hence the above pricing.

I hope that all makes sense.

Can I just ask, has the car had it's engine mounts checked - as the noise you describe does not 'sound' bearing related?

 

[Andyman]

Bit risky fitting a 2nd hand box. Nothing to say that wont be screwed either! Far better to have a full refurb of your current one.

 

[Weegie182]

Ok guys- well 2 months and a few trips to JMS later and my car is officially fixed!!

Turns out it was the gearbox all along; the bearings were gubbed and the rotating mechanisms within the gearbox (in the 2nd and 3rd chamber I think I was told) were also in need of repair.
Overall it cost me just over £950 but within that price I got a new clutch fitted (Valeo OE Spec) as well as the reverse switch (causing my reverse lights to fail) fixed.

So all in all then I am just glad its finally done. The boys at JMS are cracking and totally stand up guys. I will almost certainly be back to them for servicing/tuning work in the future.
Cheers all for your help and comments here.