406oc.co.uk

Hello,
just wondering if anyone might have a rough idea of how much a new clutch may set me back? In the run up to Christmas, the 406 Hdi 90 seems to have developed a few problems. Would be grateful if anyone can throw any light on the below:-
1) Clutch - When I put pressure on the clutch pedal I can feel a vibration and also hear a worrying noise (the car will still pull away in second gear, I heard somewhere that is a test for a clutch being OK) but, also, now & then difficult to select reverse gear. There is also a whirring noise when driving coming from the engine. I'm wondering if the clutch is on the way out, mileage is 136500 miles. Car is from 2003.
2) High pitch Screeching noise when starting up from cold and when ticking over when warm. Drive belt need to be tightened?
3) Steering wheel seems to give a slight groaning noise when turning it. I've not been able to get the cap off the power steering fluid reservoir to check it.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Your clutch release bearing is done with, and since the gearbox needs to come of in order to change that, the clutch should be changed at the same time.
Changing the belt is something you can do yourself, there are tons of diy videoes on the net.
About the steering. It is most likely the steeringrack that is worn. They dont spill oil, but the seals wear out, and all the oil will leak , once the gaiter is full it will burst, and you will know.
It is a big repair to change the steering rack, the subframe needs to come of. But it is off anyway for the clutch repair. You can buy a salvage steeringrack quite cheap.

Thanks for your reply, much appreciated, cheers.

The gearbox noise more than likely the bearing.
if your handy with the spanners the belt shouldn't take long iirc I think you need a 16mm spanner and a 4mm drill bit.
Before righting the steering rack off when you changed your springs ages ago did you replace the top caps and bearings? they rust and sieze up the groaning could be the start off it.

Hello,
thanks for your reply. I changed the original front springs back in Oct 2010 I ended up reverting to Peugeot OE parts & I had to change them again in Nov 2017 and then used parts made by KYB . Other than the springs, the garage where I had the work done in 2017, also added a Suspension Mounting Kit (Part No. SM1915). Is that what you mean by top caps & bearings? (sorry, I'm not the most clued up)

hi yep that's the cap and bearing I mentioned, on my 406 I had one seized solid and the other rusty and falling apart but it still moved but it used to make a weird noise like a metalised version of a creaky wooden ship kind off groan it's a hard noise to describe.
Other parts which have the potential to groan are anti roll bar bushes.