305 Estate/Van rear axle bearing kit

[305derv]

Anyone know where I could get some bearings to rebuild my 305 rear axle?

[oldpug]

Contact Dean Hunter www.peugeotparts.co.uk I would be surprised if he cant help. . or www.serie04.com or www.franzose.de

[305derv]

I actually live in the next village to dean hunters peugeot garage, but I tend to leave him as a last resort as he tends to be very expensive

[farmerpug]

I recently discovered that the 305 shares most of the back axle components as the citroen C15 van, the handy thing about that is that the C15 spare parts are still readily available from ebay as it stopped production as recently as 2006.
Although just take your time when buying the parts, i still havent bought any as i need to get the 305s body sorted before i turn my attention to the back axle.

Dean most likely will have the parts, but i also find that the prices can be quite expensive and as I'm from northern ireland the postage is another cost to add. However the service and availability of spares is very good.

[305derv]

Yeah I am actually running a c15 axle at the moment although I have modified it slightly so my car is a lot lower than standard

I plan on refurbishing a spare c15 beam I have as opposed to my spare 305 beam as the mounting points to the body are a lot stronger designed and in better condition, although i think I will fit the 305 springs as I beleive the c15 ones are higher rated than the 305 ones?

[farmerpug]

I havent actually got round to removing any parts of the axle yet, my cousin also removed his from the van he is working on, the springs look a bit tricky to get off, did you make up a tool to compress them or is there any particular way to remove them?

[305derv]

I have messed about with the rear axle but only to lower the car.

I had a c15 van a few years ago and to lower the rear I compressed the rear springs best I could with some cheap compressors, then cut off a couple of coils with a gas axe. However this was not ideal

When I bought my 305 it was already lowered and on closer inspection the previous owner had done exactly the same thing!

The way I have lowered my car at the moment is by removing the metal collars which sit underneath the spring seat. To remove these (I did it with the axle off the car) I got a friend to put his weight on the trailing arm to compress the spring slightly whilst I knocked the collars out with a hammer and chisel (don't expect to use them again!) this then took the compression out of the spring enough to be able to remove it without compressors. It also meant the car was at a perfect ride height for me but still retained some support!

[farmerpug]

This is the closest thing i have read with regards a guide on removing the rear springs:
visaforum.freeforums.org/c15-rear-axle-t486.html

The tool that was made up doesn't look too hard to build.

[305derv]

Thanks yeah I've seen that a few times

The spare axles I have are bare now so luckily I don't need the tool! Plus because the axle I'm building will be slightly modified so the car sits lower I won't have to fight the spring to put it all back together!

I'll check those chrome trims this weekend if I get chance

Cheers

[305gtx]

When I did the ones on my estate I got them from GSF. they were made by SKF and cost about £25 a side but it was a few years ago. Not having a welder I used a dremel to weaken the outer bearing shell so that it could be drifted out. Looked in a similar state to the ones on that link!

With the C15 axle are the mounts the same? Mine are looking a bit worn and I haven't been able to find any.

Cheers

[farmerpug]

I seen the 305 rear spring tool appear on ebay and bought it, looking at it the thing doesn't look at all hard to make so i will get it drawn up into cad if anyone wants to try and build one. But i have a question about removing the springs, if they have been compressed i see that the end of the shock has a ball type of joint that goes into the arm, but the arm doesn't move back far enough to pull the spring or shock out. am is there something I'm forgetting to do?

[305gtx]

There is a hole the other side of where the balljoint goes in. You need to use a drift to knock the balljoint (it has a taper) out of the housing. It should then come apart after that.

[farmerpug]

Yep that worked, the tapered bit was rusted in place and took a bit of persuasion with the hammer. The spring compressor really made the job much easier, i finished drawing it up into CAD so if anyone wants to have a go at making their own spring compressor here is the drawings:
drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B5UstL2jIkcjNVYyNERTRFphT2s&usp=sharing

All you need is there, Solidworks part files, assembly files, and the drawings in both the solid works and PDF format.

[foad]

Does anyone know if the c15 trailing arm bearings/bushes fit the 305 axle? I'm having difficulty finding a pair of the bearings for a 305 for cheap but have found c15 bearings readily available.