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replacing rear beam bushes on axle stands?



  clio 172 ph2
I recently bought some whiteline rear beam bushes as the car is still on the original ones and i figured they could use a change.

Im wondering how (im)possible it is to change them on axle stands without taking out the whole rear beam... Leaving brakelines and stuff in place.
Is there a hidden guide on how to replace them. I have found lots of info on here but it seems like most of them are with the beam taken out.

All tips and tricks are welcome :)

Thanks!
 

Crayola

ClioSport Club Member
Easy enough

The trickiest bit is getting the old bushes out, drill them, then hacksaw the outer race to take some of the pressure off then knock them out, knock the new bushes in
 
  clio 172 ph2
Easy enough

The trickiest bit is getting the old bushes out, drill them, then hacksaw the outer race to take some of the pressure off then knock them out, knock the new bushes in
alright, thats giving me some hope! Am i wrong in saying the best way to approach it is by taking out the springs and keep the beam hanging on the shocks?
 

Crayola

ClioSport Club Member
alright, thats giving me some hope! Am i wrong in saying the best way to approach it is by taking out the springs and keep the beam hanging on the shocks?
Aye mate but I just drop the shocks and leave a jack under the beam so you can lower and lift it/pull/push it slightly

You can get a fair bit of movement without even stressing a brake line or ABS sensor
 

Crayola

ClioSport Club Member
Youwot?

Go on then, do you drop the whole mounts and pray the captives don't spin?

Cos f**k that I'll always drop the tank and then just remove the bolts through the bushes themselves. So much easier.
Clean the threads on the rear beam mount bolts, spray em with WD, then get in the back seat, stick some molegrips on the round head and caged nut and use a windy gun to nail em off. I've never had an issue with any clio I've stripped or done this with. I've done well over 15 rear beams
 

Crayola

ClioSport Club Member
Aye I usually just lift the full shell off the floor, windy gun the nuts halfway and chop the bolts and let the beam drop. Only had to ever do that once on a car from Scotland which looked like it had spent it's life in a canal 😂

Any other time you can get a hold on the heads easily enough
 
  clio 172 ph2
Cleaned all the bolts on the mounts and the bushs with a small wirebrush and soaked them all in WD-40. Lets hope they play along tomorrow
 

Djw John

Scotland - South
ClioSport Area Rep
Aye I usually just lift the full shell off the floor, windy gun the nuts halfway and chop the bolts and let the beam drop. Only had to ever do that once on a car from Scotland which looked like it had spent it's life in a canal 😂

Any other time you can get a hold on the heads easily enough

Almost all the cars I work on in Scotland are in Scotland. The rust life is real.
 
  clio 172 ph2
Finally had an hour to do some work. car on stands and springs are out. Shocks loosely attached again.
IMG_20210118_222313.jpg
 

Louis

I Park Like a C**t
ClioSport Club Member
@bloke Did mine. Said they were one of the easiest he had done as all bolts came out fine and then he just chucked a strap around it to hold it still on the car.
 
  clio 172 ph2
Beam mounts are lose! 5 of the 6 bolts went super smooth. Until the last one...
2hours and an angle grinder later it was out.
IMG_20210119_185014.jpg


Any recommendations on what type of bolt that can be used to replace these with?
 

DomP182

ClioSport Club Member
  ph1 172, Arctic182
Beam mounts are lose! 5 of the 6 bolts went super smooth. Until the last one...
2hours and an angle grinder later it was out.
View attachment 1516527

Any recommendations on what type of bolt that can be used to replace these with?
I used high tensile m10 capheads with a washer to spread the load and a washer and nyloc on the underside

120mm from memory
 

JamesBryan

ClioSport Club Member
  Titanium 182
Measure the length of one that you have removed, as Dom says they're 110-120mm M10 from memory.
 

DomP182

ClioSport Club Member
  ph1 172, Arctic182
Unless you're a bolt pervert dont waste your money on genuine Renault bolts, I priced them and the nuts up at something like £65!

kayfast on ebay I got the capheads etc for circa £15
 

haimsey

ClioSport Club Member
  ph2 172
@Tomotek did a list in his project thread for all the bolts. This is something I want to do on my car so happy to know I could do it without removing the whole lot
 
  clio 172 ph2
I used high tensile m10 capheads with a washer to spread the load and a washer and nyloc on the underside

120mm from memory
Measure the length of one that you have removed, as Dom says they're 110-120mm M10 from memory.
Unless you're a bolt pervert dont waste your money on genuine Renault bolts, I priced them and the nuts up at something like £65!

kayfast on ebay I got the capheads etc for circa £15
Cool thanks! I guess grade 10.9 should be fine?

@Tomotek did a list in his project thread for all the bolts. This is something I want to do on my car so happy to know I could do it without removing the whole lot

Yeah its not that bad of a job! I find it to be easier then doing the wishbones. atleast so far. I still have to get the original bushings out and get rid of the sleeves
 
  clio 172 ph2
Unless you're a bolt pervert dont waste your money on genuine Renault bolts, I priced them and the nuts up at something like £65!

kayfast on ebay I got the capheads etc for circa £15
does anyone have a link to some good known bolts? i cant seem to find any with enough thread on them... thanks!
 

DomP182

ClioSport Club Member
  ph1 172, Arctic182
  clio 172 ph2
  clio 172 ph2
Wait what😂 Just get any old bolt and bash it in there ffs😂😂
I know, i know, haha. The only bolt i found in the hardwarestore that are long enough and have enough thread on them are only grade 8.8... they probability are fine but im a wus and i don't trust them for some reason 😂
 

haimsey

ClioSport Club Member
  ph2 172
There will be plenty of suppliers in the UK. Don't know where you are in the country but we always used BAPP (West Yorkshire) if they didn't have it they'd get it.
 

Touring_Rob

ClioSport Club Member
You can lower the tank to get access to the bolt and leave beam brackets in place. I just undid the rear tank bolts and dropped the tank by an inch or so.

I would personally just have the beam out - if they are the OEM brake hoses and lines I would put money on them being basically done by now too. I used the threaded rod and cup puller set you get on eBay, it removed the bushes quickly (no cutting or burning required lol) and got the new ones in. With the beam out the car its a 20min job with the set.

Doing it on stands you might even need to undo brake lines anyway to get the front end of the beam low enough for tools/pullers so at that point you may as well have just spent the 10mins removing the beam :ROFLMAO:
1611949222955.png


1611949255923.png
 
  clio 172 ph2
To be honest, its not that bad of a job to do on the ground. Sure taking the beam out would be easier but if you dont want to undo you brakelines and stuff its possible.

Getting the bushes out was easy enough with some taps with a hammer, no burning or cutting needed. i guess mine were done...

IMG_20210119_214538.jpg
IMG_20210119_214940.jpg


The sleeves on the other hand... get youself some proper tools if you want to takle this but doing with a hacksaw and a chisel also worked.
IMG_20210120_174358.jpg
IMG_20210120_195333.jpg


New bushes in. Still waiting for the new bolts...
IMG_20210120_211320.jpg


Just remember to undo this bracket where the the brakelines pass through. Otherwise you will not be able to lower the beam far enough.
IMG_20210119_200631.jpg



sorry for all the pictures and the long post but I guess this couldbe usefull for others trying to do the same.
 


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