[Ledner]

Hi,
A mechanic recently fitted a clutch kit to 2008 i30 petrol model without dropping the motor.
Is this good practice?
We now have oil leaking from the gearbox and it is back in the workshop.
What sort of hours are now involved to replace the damaged seals?
Opinions will be appreciated.

[Pnut]

Engine doesn't usually need to come out, only car I have needed an engine out for the clutch was a 70's Aussie assembled Escort which had a weird oversized bellhousing compared to the NZ ones. Front wheel drives are usually easier to just drop the box on its own from the ones I have done, less mucking around with the engine bolt ons.

Seals are a box out again so will cost the same in labour as the clutch did. The crank seal is fairly easy to get to and change usually, just means pulling the clutch and flywheel off to get to. If it is leaking from the gearbox input shaft it may be a little more difficult, i am not familiar with anything specific to these vehicles though just going off past experiance with other cars i have worked on.

[Ledner]

Engine doesn't usually need to come out, only car I have needed an engine out for the clutch was a 70's Aussie assembled Escort which had a weird oversized bellhousing compared to the NZ ones. Front wheel drives are usually easier to just drop the box on its own from the ones I have done, less mucking around with the engine bolt ons.

Seals are a box out again so will cost the same in labour as the clutch did. The crank seal is fairly easy to get to and change usually, just means pulling the clutch and flywheel off to get to. If it is leaking from the gearbox input shaft it may be a little more difficult, i am not familiar with anything specific to these vehicles though just going off past experiance with other cars i have worked on.

This will not cost anything. The leaky seals are not related to the motor but rather  the gearbox through faulty workmanship when the clutch kit was done.
It had better be covered under the mechanic’s warranty. I have a feeling this particular model needs the motor removed to effectively carry out the work.

[Pnut]

Interesting, though I dont see how they could damage much, the only seals in the gearbox you "touch" when doing the clutch are where the axel/CV slides in. Any other seals would involve cracking the box open, which isnt needed for the clutch unless they have something special hidden in there.

[Ledner]

Interesting, though I dont see how they could damage much, the only seals in the gearbox you "touch" when doing the clutch are where the axel/CV slides in. Any other seals would involve cracking the box open, which isnt needed for the clutch unless they have something special hidden in there.

The leaks probably relate to the trans axle seals. Guess we find out when the job is done.
Mechanic told me he didn’t realise the motor should have been dropped. He did it a different way, hence probably why he has it back.

[sundiz]

Not sure about petrol, but what factory manual says about diesel engines is that the engine should not be dropped. Only transmission. There should be no reason to drop the engine. I would guess petrol engines have similar instructions.

[Ledner]

Not sure about petrol, but what factory manual says about diesel engines is that the engine should not be dropped. Only transmission. There should be no reason to drop the engine. I would guess petrol engines have similar instructions.

How to change a clutch on a Hyundai i30 - Professional Motor Mechanic
Maybe I am confused with what all this means. Can the clutch kit replacement be done without dropping gearbox?

[sundiz]

Gearbox has to come off. The clutch is between the engine and gearbox. But in the first message you wrote about dropping the engine. Engine can stay in, gearbox has to come out. Some mechanics do not take the gearbox fully out as it saves a lot of time and effort. If there is enough space you could just remove gearbox off the engine and  push it to one side and change the clutch from the small gap between engine and gearbox.

[Ledner]

Gearbox has to come off. The clutch is between the engine and gearbox. But in the first message you wrote about dropping the engine. Engine can stay in, gearbox has to come out. Some mechanics do not take the gearbox fully out as it saves a lot of time and effort. If there is enough space you could just remove gearbox off the engine and  push it to one side and change the clutch from the small gap between engine and gearbox.

I guess the mechanic’s comment about keyhole surgery was his way of telling me he had moved the gearbox aside and worked  in the space as you described.
I am aware I was mistaken with my comment about removing  the motor rather than supporting it when the gearbox was removed.
Taking this shortcut is probably the reason it is back in the workshop.
A very erroneous action if that is  the case.

[sundiz]

There should not be any technical reason why clutch could not be changed the way mechanic has done it. Driveshafts still needs to come out depending which method to use. It could be possible to damage seals while doing that or while putting the shafts back in. Not sure if it is even possible to leave them connected. Maybe if they were removed only from the hub, but I would think moving the gearbox with driveshafts would be a big pain in the butt.

But I am fairly sure your mech will be able to sort this out.

[Ledner]

There should not be any technical reason why clutch could not be changed the way mechanic has done it. Driveshafts still needs to come out depending which method to use. It could be possible to damage seals while doing that or while putting the shafts back in. Not sure if it is even possible to leave them connected. Maybe if they were removed only from the hub, but I would think moving the gearbox with driveshafts would be a big pain in the butt.

But I am fairly sure your mech will be able to sort this out.

Seals replaced. Now looking for source of knock/rattle somewhere in front suspension that wasn't evident before.

[sundiz]

Does the knock happen on bumbs?

[Ledner]

Does the knock happen on bumbs?

Mechanic says issue has been resolved. Not sure exactly how.
 Something to do with incorrect placement of mounting bolt causing exhaust to knock on chassis or engine knocking on exhaust.?

[Ledner]

Does the knock happen on bumbs?

Mechanic says issue has been resolved. Not sure exactly how.
 Something to do with incorrect placement of mounting bolt causing exhaust to knock on chassis or engine knocking on exhaust.?

Case closed. Thanks for the opportunity to post.