General Panda major repairs!

[Enzo]

Hi all...I've not been posting here for many months, maybe because my Panda is still running fine...or nearly!Now it's time to do some important repairs, as both the outer joints sound bad and the clutch is starting to slip .I have already done the joints' boots so no problem there, but can anyone give me clues about doing the clutch?Are the Porter's pages enough for that?

 

[Alan.D]

It's not difficult but fiddely and you need to remove the gearbox. To remove the gearbox you need to remove the joints you've just done or the inner drive shafts on their own if you could get away with it but the inners have to be removed in any case remove the started motor, remove the gear linkages, spedo & clutch cables, drop both gearbox mounts and make sure the engine is cradled (held in position) getting it off is easy, putting it back on is greatly helped if you have another person to help you line it up on the spline. I would give myself about 4-5hrs if doing it myself and 3-4 with help.

 

[Enzo]

Thanks for the quick reply...I know the "flow" of the operations to be done but my doubts are related to some things like:do I need a jack to place under the gearbox and onther one under the engine?do I need an alignment tool for the driven plate or can it be done in another way?Then I suppose I will need to unbolt the bits where the inner driveshafts boots are secured to pull off them, right?

 

[Alan.D]

You can put a jack under the engine and one on the gearbox but there are a couple of problems there, first you would need to put the jack on the sump which can cause added pressure to the sump gasket and the sump itself and it can be very slippery if you have any oil leaks. Then using a jack on the gearbox makes it very difficult to split it's alright as you are removing the mounts and housing bolts but then get someone to help and just lift it off. It's very light in comparison with bigger cars, even with the 4x4 i reached through the engine bay with the box on the floor and lifted it in position whilst another helped align it. Another problem with putting a jack on the gearbox is when you do manage to split it from the engine the akward shape of the box will make it fall to the floor (trust me on this one).

One of the best ways to keep the engine in place to stop it from moving is a tool simmilar to a strut brace and goes from one wing to the other It shows it in the porter manual then once it's held and all the ancilliaries are off remove the mounts & bolts & lift off and on.

I never used any alignment tools for the plate but to be perfectly positioned you could do.

 

[pandafan]

When you REALLY need to jack under the sump, use a square of thick marine ply to spread the load.