Changing the front bearing (with press) on Clio II

Chock and lift the vehicle

Here the vehicle will be on a bridge

Remove the wheel

In this tutorial we will show the change of a right front bearing (but it is the same principle for the left)

Unscrew the two brake caliper screws

Remove the brake caliper once the screws are unscrewed.

Put a wire on the shock absorber to be able to put the brake in the air so that it does not hinder us during maneuvers.

Be careful that it does not touch the disc and that the brake hose is not too twisted/tight.

Lock the pivot using a suitable tool that you can make yourself.

CAUTION : Do not block with a screwdriver placed in the ventilated disc!!

Using a 30 socket, loosen the steering nut (it is tightened to 28 so you can use an extension)

Note : When reassembling, use the new nut provided in the kit.

Unscrew the ABS sensor (10 key)

Then put it up high like for the brake

Using a 17 socket, unscrew the steering ball joint nut.

Once the nut is unscrewed, you will need to use a ball joint extractor to be able to dislodge it from its location.

CAUTION : If you have to take pressure on the screw or nut, put another nut on to avoid damaging the original nut!

Once the ball joint is free, you can unscrew the nut (you will need to press on the ball joint underneath because otherwise the ball joint may turn at the same time as you unscrew the nut)

Unscrew the 2 screws that hold the disc on the hub (star tip)

Removed the disk

CAUTION : Avoid putting grease on the disc

(In my case, removing the ball joint was not very practical while the pivot was mounted. So I decided to remove the fixing ball joint altogether so that I could then remove it later on the workbench.)

The lower ball joint nut is located below under the universal joint boot.

Unscrew the nut with a 17 socket.

Then, use a pin punch or use an old nut of the same thread to be able to tap on the screw and dislodge it without damaging the thread too much.

Once the screw is removed, I take care of fixing the ball joint to the steering triangle.

You just need to remove the two nuts.

Then, by leveraging between the cradle and the triangle, we can remove the ball joint from the triangle.

ATTENTION : The 3rd image shows the ball joint removed but there are intermediate steps, this is just to show you that the screws can be left in place.

Unscrew the 2 pivot screws on the shock absorber leg (18 nut)

Once removed, you can swing the pivot towards you.

CAUTION : When removing the shock strut screws, be careful that the strut does not damage your CV boot!

The universal joint should easily come off the pivot, or tap it a little to get it to come off.

Since you have already removed the lower pivot, you will be able to remove the complete pivot.

CAUTION : When removing the universal joint from the pivot, be careful not to dislodge it on the other side, the engine side! It is less serious on the right side but be careful on the left side, the gearbox side!

Once the pivot is removed, take measurements and check that the bearing you have is the correct one.

A recap of what was done:

In red: the hub that will need to be extracted

In green: the lower ball joint, as well as the locking screw that we removed. We will remove the pivot just after

In blue: the location of the ABS sensor

In yellow: the 2 screws that go on the shock absorber leg

In black: location of the steering ball joint

The ball joint can now be removed from the pivot without any problem, using a chisel to enlarge the opening and remove the pivot.

This can be difficult if the pivot has rusted a little.

Properly wedge the pivot to use the press.

the pivot must be well wedged and flat, otherwise there is a risk of damaging the pivot

You will need to make shims with cutouts so that the shims fit correctly under the pivot as in the photo

The arrows indicate where we had to cut a little on the shims to make the pivot stable and straight.

Use a socket of the correct diameter so that it is wedged on the lower diameter of the pivot (do not press on the bearing!)

Using the press, push out the hub

The hub is removed, but a piece of the bearing remains on it

Same for the pivot, a piece of bearing remained inside

We will have to find a solution to extract them...

In blue, the hub axle

in red the piece of bearing that will need to be removed

With an extractor, there is no possible grip, and with a hammer and a desk, there is a risk of damaging the hub.

So the solution is to grind the bearing diagonally WITHOUT going so far as to touch the axle

you will therefore have to be very careful to leave just 1mm of thickness

Once you have made a notch, to finish it, put a flat chisel at 90° and tap so as to remove pieces of bearing.

Repeat the grinder/chisel operation until the bearing is completely split.

Once split you will be able to slide it off and remove it from the hub.

Note : The bearings are made of hardened steel, so they are hard but "brittle", which is why you can use a chisel even if there is 1mm left.

First, remove the circlip that blocks the extraction of the bearing (with a screwdriver it is enough)

Then, wedge the pivot correctly to be able to use it with the press (straight)

Find something that is exactly the diameter of the bearing to be removed so that the press can take support

here I used an old bearing (red arrow), and a bushing (blue arrow) to be able to press

The remaining piece of bearing begins to come off.

We continue with the press until it is completely removed

Then we check that there are no deep scratches in the pivot and the hub.

In any case, it is best to clean the 2 parts with very fine sandpaper before reassembling the bearing.

After checking the dimensions of the new bearing, place the bearing on the pivot using the press.

Again, the ideal is to have another bearing of the same diameter to rest on the OUTSIDE of the new bearing.

Red: new bearing

blue: old bearing

yellow: metal part for the press

Once the bearing is placed up to the groove, all that remains is to replace the new circlip supplied with the kit.

To put the hub back with the press, always stand straight, and find an imprint that fits exactly on the INNER ring (in blue) of the bearing.

If we take the outer ring, it will not work because on the other side, the hub will force on the inner ring, and risks coming out and/or being deformed.