205 Jobs That You Hate Doing

[Daviewonder 533 3 Cars]

Hello all

 

 

Working in the motor trade I'm constantly hearing "s*it french cars, horrible to work on" but I have to say that I don't find working on 205s bad at all but I have noticed over the years a couple of jobs that I really dislike doing and leave to the last minute at all costs.

 

One of these is undoing/doing up those annoying 11mm nuts that keep the R/H driveshaft bearing in place. I absolutely hate doing it, I can happily work on a 205 all day long but for some reason I put off working on this part for as long as possible.

 

The only other thing I hate doing is seperating the wishbone ball joints. I can never seem to get the lever bar to sit anywhere without it slipping out resulting in me punching the driveway and I cant seem to get a good hit with the hammer to knock the arm down either due to restricted space.

 

 

Anyone else have any jobs they really dislike doing on there 205?

[peter 20]

trying to slide the gearbox back on while lying on your back is probably the most frustrating, espcially on a turbo'd car, or those two 10mm bolts on the down pipe can be a tw@ if there rusty and you dont have new ones to replace them.

 

pfft at the 11mm drive shaft nuts its a 2min job

[Anthony 1,003]

The two obvious ones that spring to mind...

 

• Separating sleeve fit (Phase 1) exhausts as you can guarantee that it's going to be a complete b**tard of a job
  
• Refitting a gearbox with the engine still fitted gets tiresome - literally - when you're trying to bench press the 'box back into place and it stubbornly refuses to locate the input shaft in the splines of the clutch plate while your strength saps and arms turn increasingly to jelly...

I need to do the later this weekend... joy of joys

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

Exhausts in general

Brake lines

Gearbox in situ

Lifting a rear beam by yourself

Gearbox oil draining The smell....

[peter 20]

its even worse if you dont line the clutch plate up i bet theres been alot of swearing of that one!

[Strictly_Derv 34]

I know what you mean. People always say that about pug's but they'r really not that bad.

They don't rot and get rusty bolts like those 'reliable' jap and german cars. And they'r very simple most of the time.

 

I think it's renault that give french cars a bad name IMO they are really badly designed and made!

 

Hard jobs- those 2 10mm zorst bolts bolting it to the turbo on a T.D

[Daviewonder 533 3 Cars]

I need to do the later this weekend... joy of joys

 

 

I had to do the clutch on my 1.6 gti out in the road on Guyfawks night due to needing to have the car ready for a trip the next day. Did the job on my own with a hand held torch for light. I started at about 6 and finished at midnight in the pooring rain. Still not sure if I've got over the trauma.

[damien 22 1 Cars]

i found the gearbox a PITA with the engine out so i'll hate to think what its like with the engine in, i had to check 3 times to make sure i lined the clutch/plate up.

the broken bleed nipples on calipers have got to be high up on the list.

[SurGie 54]

The two obvious ones that spring to mind...

 

• Separating sleeve fit (Phase 1) exhausts as you can guarantee that it's going to be a complete b**tard of a job
  
• Refitting a gearbox with the engine still fitted gets tiresome - literally - when you're trying to bench press the 'box back into place and it stubbornly refuses to locate the input shaft in the splines of the clutch plate while your strength saps and arms turn increasingly to jelly...

I need to do the later this weekend... joy of joys

 

 

I developed a way of fitting the gearbox into the flywheel.

 

I had enough holding the gearbox, so i gave the box a little wiggle in and hey presto it went straight in, done it that was ever since wiping a tiny bit of grease around the splines also helped it to wiggle in

 

Fitting the alloys is one annoyance but that can be made easier when using a single stud like on 406's.

 

Welding on the french take away foil body

 

HTH

[welshpug 1,657]

bodywork! and fitting 4 branch manifolds to 16v engines in 205's

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

4 branch's are easy to fit, takes a few seconds normally

Gearbox's are easy too, Mind I do use a lift now which makes life very easy and no strain, I get my strength from carrying my Daughter around now

 

Job's I hate, Well dropping the fuel tank to weld the floor's up, Exhaust system's (no matter what car) and that's about it.

 

I know about Renault's as I jokingly said I;d replace the engine on a mates son's 1.6 Megane, What a s*it job

[Baz 421]

With the right/handy tools no job on a 205 is that difficult in theory. Still doesn't stop me having trouble though...

 

Get an 11mm ratchet spanner, keep the bolt threads clean/lubed and you'll have the 11mm shaft nuts undone in a minute or so.

[Fox 3]

I was going to say that Baz!

 

Mine has to be the same offending drive shaft, when it becomes seized in the bearing housing, no where to hit it or lever it from!

[Cameron 16]

Definitely gearbox!

 

2nd most hated is probably taking a beam apart for the first time.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

One of these is undoing/doing up those annoying 11mm nuts that keep the R/H driveshaft bearing in place.

 

Air ratchet and 11mm deep socket = 30 sec.

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

2nd most hated is probably taking a beam apart for the first time.

 

I like the challenge and it's rewarding when it's apart. Bastard though if the tubes ovalled, wasted effort for a few spares.

Or if its a xsara beam and you gotta cut the bars as its soo seized together

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

The amount of times i've spent trying to get the box on struggling for about an hour, then just about to give up and it slides on.

[Cameron 16]

Yep my worst was the most recent one on the Miami, I had the engine resting on a pot of paint with my mate steadying it and had to lean over the wing to lift it in to place. Bastard just wouldn't go on and it took me about 6 attempts!

 

Beams are the worst because you have the combination of seized torsion bars, corroded bolt threads meaning you need a breaker bar the whole way, rust and mud in the eyes etc etc.

 

Getting one on / off the car is easy though, I just use my trolley jack.

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

I did a beam once by bench pressing up to the car (as a mate had my jack) and the only person to help put the nuts on was the mother.

 

f***ing women are useless

[allye 530 3 Cars]

Putting the rear beam on by yourself is an arse, those 11mm nuts on the driveshaft are tricky. Putting in a gti6 engine by yourself with g/box and both manifolds is fun, alot wider than the actual engine bay! Putting dash back together/taking it apart without braking it!!?

[Cameron 16]

I did a beam once by bench pressing up to the car (as a mate had my jack) and the only person to help put the nuts on was the mother.

 

f***ing women are useless

 

You should have fired it up there with an old airbag!

Edited August 25, 2011 by Cameron

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

When I was 'less' experienced with working on the 205, I used to hate doing anything on the brakelines particularly the unions under the arches. Being a novice, I couldn't tell when the spanner was about to slip on the solid unions, hence my fists going straight into the inner arch, plastic liner and side of engine and getting cut up!

 

For now, got to agree with gearbox. Had to do it on the 306 the other day when changing the clutch and repairing a shagged selector lever. Ended up wiggling the box on from the top with me hanging over the passenger wing. Total twat of a job, got it on though after 30mins off puffing and swearing.

 

The other is cambelt changes on 16v 205s. Whilst relatively straight forward a job, I always end up with skinned knuckles as space down there is a premium.

 

Oh, and anything with Torx heads on them I do 'wince' at.......copious amounts of Rocol and impact tool

[Carbs4me 45]

i hate trying to get the exhaust manifold off... i used to have a 4-2-1 on my old Gti, and for some reason it would go in easy but would get stuck on it way out! Annoying.

 

I also know what you mean with those driveshaft bolts. they are a pain in the arse.

[Ryan 99]

Anything that involves removing plastic trim/interior parts.

 

Is it clipped on? Or is there another bolt I can't see? If I pull hard will it come off or snap?

[BERTMAN 40 1 Cars]

i dont mind doing gearboxes, or rear beams... i find anything to do with exhausts a pain. And i HATE fiddly interior plastics like the glovebox surround with the screws that go in upside down, or the centre console nuts where you scratch your hands to shreads