Clutch Clinic
Rob Hawkins visits AES near York to follow them replacing the clutch onCM’s ex-project Astra J that’s equipped with a five-speed manual gearbox.
There’s not a huge amount of engine bay room in the Astra J when it comes to removing the gearbox to change the clutch, so the best approach is to remove the front subframe. With this out of the way, there’s plenty of space to remove the gearbox from underneath, but it’s essential to support the engine with a transmission jack, and it helps to support the gearbox with one too, instead of trying to lift it out.
The work involved in changing the clutch on this sixth generation of the Vauxhall Astra isn’t too complicated, but corroded fastenings can easily slow down the job and lead to frustrating disasters. There are also some annoying aspects, such as having no drain plug on the gearbox, so either the gear oil has to be sucked out via the filler/inspection hole, or clean cloths can be used to bung the holes where the driveshafts are fitted. Inevitably, a little oil will be lost, so it will need topping-up afterwards.
The following steps were completed at AES near York on our ex-project 2011 Astra, which has a 1.6-litre ecoTEC petrol engine under the bonnet.
1 The vehicle battery is in the nearside of the engine bay. Disconnect its negative terminal, then detach its larger positive terminal that has several wires connected to it and move this assembly aside.
2 The ECU is located in front of the battery, so carefully pull it upwards with its two wiring plugs still attached, then move it over to the top of the slam panel – unclip the wiring loom if it’s secured to anything.
3 Release the metal clamp that’s 3 fitted over the battery, then lift the battery out of the engine bay and place it carefully aside for refitting once the job has been completed. The battery needs to be removed to access the top of the gearbox.
4 Remove the battery tray, which is secured with three 13mm bolts. These can corrode and seize, so if they look rusty, spray over them with penetrating fluid first.
5 Detach the reverse sensor from the top of the gearbox and make sure its wiring isn’t attached to it. Look around the top of the gearbox for other wiring that may be attached and unclip it.
6 Clamp the hydraulic hose routed across the top of the gearbox
