Differential Circlip

The differential circlip in the JB3 gearboxes (found on 16V 19's and Clio's) can be destroyed or merely popped out. This causes loss of drive.

It usually happens when you dump the clutch for a quick get away, but can happen when changing gears swiftly. When it pops once it can continue to pop out and it needs less strain on it to do so.

What happens is you dump the clutch, the drive gets to the sunwheels and the nearside wheel grips the thrust washer and holds onto it tightly, thus curling it thus popping out the circlip.

Damage varies from bent thrust washer, to snapped thrust washer and circlip.

Some damaged circlip pics





A lot of the time people assume the clutch has gone when in fact it's the differential circlip. Easy way to tell is start the car and look at the speedo, if it's moving then the circlips gone, if you stick it in 5th gear and rev it and the speedo shoots up, then it's definitely the circlip.

The other method to make sure it's the circlip, and not say a snapped driveshaft at the inner CV, is loosen the 30mm hub nut then push the shaft in. Start the car, the speedo should not move, select a gear and try to move the car, it will try to move then you will get a clunk.

So what you need to get is go to Renault, the scrappy or the spare 'box you have lying around and get a thrust washer and circlip.

77 00 720 854 WASHER DIFF £3.19 --- 3 x 1 Thrust Washer
77 00 113 257 CIRCLIP DIFF £2.23 --- 3 x 1 and the Circlip

Sadly the thrust washer is on available in one thickness and the washer and circlip are the same on all boxes.

So you change it by draining the gearbox oil and removing the passenger side driveshaft. The broken clip and thrust washer normally shoots inside the inner gaiter, you need to push the sunwheel back into the diff properly, then put the washer in. Then with needle nosed pliers or circlip pliers, get the circlip in. This either goes in right away or takes about 50 attempts and 3 hours.

If it happens again and again the only remedy is a new differential or a new gearbox.

I now have a few pictures and wasn't sure where to add them so I will do it here at the end.

When you remove the driveshaft this is what you will see, note there is no circlip in this box!



this is what the circlip holds in, this pops out when the clip goes and the result is no drive



this is inside the diff and you can see where the drive takes place and that the gears just turn if the clip goes



this is the circlip groove, its not very deep at all which is a factor in the problem!