General Clutch Change

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General Clutch Change

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Jul 31, 2013
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Exeter
I'm in the process of changing the clutch and following the manual as closely as possible, I'm a novice mechanic and not fully aware of what I'm doing.

Has anybody out there done a Barchetta clutch and can offer some advice?

The manual tells me to;

1. disengage the right hand side drive shaft and disengage wheel hub from suspension strut - I can understand why I have to do the left hand side to get to the gearbox bell housing but why the right hand side?

2. I can't see the starter motor which the manual says has to come off, is this at the back of the engine and hidden from view? Will I have to take off the throttle housing to get to it? Why can't the starter motor just stay on and come out with the bell housing?

3. The manual says to take off the the first section of the exhaust from the mainfold down to the first connector plate - from what I can see this is out of the way of the gearbox bell housing - does this really need to come off as well?

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks,
Stum
 
Someone I know who is very good with repairing cars replaced the clutch on his Barchetta and he said he would never do it again as it was a tough job. My clutch was replaced by a mechanic and it took him about four hours and I know that as he did it outside my house, in the pouring rain!
If as a novice mechanic you take the job on then you are a much braver person than me!
 
So I've been under the car tonight and now understand why the right hand drive shaft and front section of exhaust has to come off - to allow access to the flange which connects the central portion of the drive shaft transffering power to the right wheel. So have done except can't release the bolts on the shock strut as they're rusted on, looks like they'll have to be cut off maybe and i do have a question;

the exhaust has a sensor and next to it is a nut, if I undo the nut will it release the sensor?

Being right under the car is bloody scary though! But at least its in a garage and dry not like Richpeas poor old mechanic forced to work outside in the road and in the rain, !

Still any more advice...anyone?
 
So I've been under the car tonight and now understand why the right hand drive shaft and front section of exhaust has to come off - to allow access to the flange which connects the central portion of the drive shaft transffering power to the right wheel. So have done except can't release the bolts on the shock strut as they're rusted on, looks like they'll have to be cut off maybe and i do have a question;

the exhaust has a sensor and next to it is a nut, if I undo the nut will it release the sensor?

Being right under the car is bloody scary though! But at least its in a garage and dry not like Richpeas poor old mechanic forced to work outside in the road and in the rain, !

Still any more advice...anyone?
 
Hi Stum

I have to jump in here with no specific advice other than go slow and steady. Moral support is what I offer.

I've done, over the years, clutches on a number of Fiats, but not thus far (although I we have a 'B' on our fleet) had to do a clutch change on a 'B' (Barchetta).

As always getting the box off is a "journey of investigation and experience". The reason why it is always good practice to strip everything off ( shafts, starter, etc.) and get other stuff out of the way is that when you come to mate the gearbox spline back into the new "centralised" clutch plate you will find that lifting, holding, jiggling, etc. is often required. Not a real problem (if you have used a clutch alignment tool) OTHER than in my experience only 5% to 10% of cases does the gearbox slot and slide back on with zero time and effort. For the other 90% of cases a little patience is required as one jiggles the gearbox during the mating process. And this is where most problems arise. Basically you will find your muscles and agility stretched to the limit. You will have around 3 to 5 minutes of power and agility before the arms etc. begin to give up. Once this point is reached STOP. Take a long long break.

My advice is to use a trolley jack, or platform of wood blocks to build the gearbox up into the best position you can so all that is required is a sideways shift/jiggle to mate the gearbox to the engine.

Based on my past experience "DO NOT PANIC". The mating could take several attempts. (once I got the splined shaft inserted into the clutch plate Ok but could not get the dowels aligned. Had to pull it all apart again and recentralise the clutch plate.)

Don't force the mating process and don't allow the gearbox splined shaft to hang on and bend/twist/flex the clutch plate.

If you are sensible and sensitive then you will instinctively know when everything is going to plan.

Don't panic, stay cool and take your time.
 
Richpea..I forgot to say..myself and family are coming out to the Gets on the 19th Aug, staying close to Montreal,

Montreal is a great place and not far from me. I hope you have a good time but I guess if you are coming with your family it will not be in the Barchetta.
 
Many thanks for the moral support there s130 as well as the tips on how the bell housing goes back on (got to get it off first though), you're right about patience and staying calm and that';s how I'm approaching it, if I run into a problem I generally stop and come back to it next day and usually solve it or move onto something else for a while.

I have to say though that I'm really enjoying it peversely.

I have ambitions for myself and wife to drive to France with the B next year if I can get enough confidence in the reliability before then, seems like lots of expats have them out there as villa accessories - can't be bad!
 
Now I really do need advice on the clutch, separating the bell housing from the engine is proving a challenge. At the bottom it's beginning to separate but at the top there appears to be no separation at all.

Because the starter motor is impossible to access I've not taken it off, but I'm beginning to think it needs to come off so the two halves seperate. Can anyone tell me whether this is correct?

Has anybody tried to replace the starter motor?
 
It is quite normal for starter motor bolts to go throught the bell housing into the engine block as it is the motor to block strength and mounting and thus drive integrity that is required.

I'll say again I've not had cause to change the clutch on a "B" or even remove a starter motor. Accessibility is often a major factor and often lateral thinking and arms like an octopus and restricted access tools are required.
 
Thanks both Steve and s130. That starter motor is going to be a pain to get off, getting it back on again will be worse. The B is a lovely design but putting it in that position is not brilliant! Gave up this afternoon, needs thinking through, lateral thought like you say and maybe a search of the forum. Yep got the carpet down but then found that the trolley jack wheels wouldn't move on it!
 
I replaced my clutch about a year ago. Once you have removed the drive shafts place a trolly jack under the engine, remove the engine mount (drivers side) twist the engine forward until it nearly touches the rad. You can now get at the starter motor easier, it must be removed as a couple of the bolts hold the gearbox to the engine block. If you don't move the engine forward and down the gearbox wont clear the inner wheelarch. once everything is removed gently pull it out supported by your knees(its not heavy). When replacing the clutch also replace the thrust bearing. This was the only reason for doing my clutch was a noisy thrust bearing. One last thing, drain the oil from the gearbox, once you remove the passenger driveshaft, oil will run out when you tilt the box.
 
Hi bfaiers, brilliant thanks for the tips, can see how that will work. Yes have got plates and thrust bearing but I am wondering about the springs and whether they might need replacing as well. I've noticed a bit of oil coming out of the gap between the bell housing and engine so will drain it. Thanks again
 
Springs? are you referring to the pressure plate? If you are then this should be replaced at the same time. The components required are pressure plate, clutch plate and thrust bearing. I would not recommend using any of the parts that you remove.
 
It's been 3 weeks but back from holiday and today I managed to get the damn starter motor off and after that it wasn't too bad, bell housing came off ok, pressure plate and bearing slotted on easily and surprisingly hoicking the bell housing back on wasn't difficult either with an extra pair of hands from above. So next few nights will be replacing what I've taken off and hopefully get the B back on the road for a couple of quick blasts before the end of the month.

Although I do want to replace the alternator (aux) belt while I can get to it as it looks cracked and bad - anybody had expeirence of doing this? It looks awkward.

Stu
 
OK so I'm nearly there, everything is back together, it fires up and clutch works nicely and I can select gears and move....but there is an problem.

The gear lever is loose in the gate, feels like neutral and wobbles around all over the place. Also I can't select reverse. Obviously there is something amiss, anyone got any ideas and point out what the problem is? Thanks.
Stu
 
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