rear spheres

ginger dave · Post by **ginger dave** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 7:55 pm

Like to introduce myself.Have owned a BX16 RE for about 7 years.Car had 1 previous owner and has covered about 58 k miles.Its not been used on the road for some time and i want to start using it again.Its been run and moved around on a regular basis so brakes are fine.Needs new rear spheres which i have,question after releasing the hydraulic pressure im struggling to undo the spheres even with a large oil filter strap,dont want to pull too hard incase i brake something.Any suggestions?.Also the steering gaitors[manual steering] are split are these available anywhere.Im sure im going to find other problems as i go along and i hope i can get help from like minded folk Cheers

retrodriver · Post by **retrodriver** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 8:07 pm

The way I did it was to crack them off a quarter turn with the engine running and in high, saves strain on other components. then lower the car and release pressure to fully remove...I bought the proper sphere tool off eBay, one of the best investments ive made for this car and it was only £14.50, makes the job dead easy.

mountainmanUK · Post by **mountainmanUK** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 8:48 pm

yep....what Alex said!!

You are best to crack the thread on each sphere very slightly BEFORE releasing pressure in the system. This will help prevent the actual rear cylinder (strut) from twisting, and probably breaking the pipework!!

Treat yourself to an eBay "Sphere Removal Tool" and you can swap both rear spheres in around 15 minutes!

Another tip......make sure that the rubber seal is correctly in place before tightening up the new spheres. No real need to use the "tool" on refitting. They dont need to be very tight. A good, firm, hand-tight is enough.

Post by **docchevron** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:29 pm

Good lord, a new member that can actually type and spell and everything!
Welcome!

Anywhere near Bristol or Stroud per chance?
If so, save yourself <£20 and dap over, I have sphere removal tools.
If your miles away then, yeah, what they said!

DavidRutherford · Post by **DavidRutherford** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:39 pm

docchevron1472 wrote:Good lord, a new member that can actually type and spell and everything!

.. and even asks sensible questions! How remarkably refreshing!

As above really, just with the standard warning about working under a BX on high, ensure you have survival space just in case it falls. To change the rear spheres, a set of drive-on ramps will do just fine.

I also have a Sphere removal tool, which does make the job easy. That said, if you're fitting new spheres, you can use a hammer and chisel/bolster and hit the sphere on a tangent to free it.

When you put the car in low, be absolutely sure that all the pressure is gone before you remove the sphere, otherwise you're looking at a facefull of LHM, which is moderately unpleasant!

ginger dave · Post by **ginger dave** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:54 pm

retrodriver wrote:The way I did it was to crack them off a quarter turn with the engine running and in high, saves strain on other components. then lower the car and release pressure to fully remove...I bought the proper sphere tool off eBay, one of the best investments ive made for this car and it was only £14.50, makes the job dead easy.

Thanks for all the replies,ive ordered a sphere tool.Any help on steering gaitors?

ginger dave · Post by **ginger dave** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:57 pm

docchevron1472 wrote:Good lord, a new member that can actually type and spell and everything!
Welcome!

Anywhere near Bristol or Stroud per chance?
If so, save yourself <£20 and dap over, I have sphere removal tools.
If your miles away then, yeah, what they said!

Thanks matey but im in deepest Essex.The car though is in deepest France!

Post by **docchevron** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 11:13 pm

Blimey! Thats a long walk!

Steering rack gaitors are readily available from the likes of GSF, AEP, ECP etc, or if you're feeling flush, even Citroën themselves.
Happily, since you dont have PAS then it's a doddle of a job!

citronut · Post by **citronut** » Sun Jun 21, 2009 3:30 pm

one more importent point (bad spelling and all), is before re/fitting the sphere/s dip your finger into the LHM in the end of the susp unit, and smear it around/on the matting face of the seal, otherwise when you screw the sphere on you will almost certainly chew up the seal , then you will have a constant weep of LHM from the joint

regards malcolm

DLM · Post by **DLM** » Mon Jun 22, 2009 10:02 am

You probably know this already, but if your car is a UK 16RE model, it's what was sold as a BX15 in France, should that make any difference when buying plugs or ignition parts there. Probably of academic interest only.