1979 Renault 4

[Brunettebambi007]

I'm having trouble with horrible shaking when the car is put into 1st gear. The other gears are smooth. I thought it was a problem with motor mounts, but I replaced them. Still shaking to death in 1st gear.

 

[jcarruthers2]

Hi

You mentioned changing the engine mounts. Have you inspected the gearbox mount for wear? If not, this could be the cause. If the gearbox mount is ok,does the shaking (juddering) take place as you lift your foot off the clutch as you move off? If so, it could be a worn clutch pressure plate or a clutch centre plate which has been fouled with oil.

 

[Boozer]

I'm having trouble with horrible shaking when the car is put into 1st gear. The other gears are smooth. I thought it was a problem with motor mounts, but I replaced them. Still shaking to death in 1st gear.

Hello, I am sorry to jump in, but I am new and cant seem to find the place to list a question. I have a 1970 3 speed Renault 4, and I am looking to change the gearbox to fit a 4 speed. Would anybody have any information please?

 

[Andy McGhee]

Hello, I am sorry to jump in, but I am new and cant seem to find the place to list a question. I have a 1970 3 speed Renault 4, and I am looking to change the gearbox to fit a 4 speed. Would anybody have any information please?

Is there an identification tag on the gearbox? I ask because a 1970 R4 with a 3-speed gearbox would be rare, unless the box has been changed at some point (the change from 3 to 4 speed boxes took place in 1967).
Where do you have to put the gear lever to get the car in first?
This is the usual pattern for the early 4-speed box:

 

[benchseat]

I replied to ‘Boozer’ via a personal message (email via a mutual acquaintance) but here is what I said :

The 334 gearbox has the additional speed tacked onto the front of what is essentially a Type 328 three-speed box. This makes it longer. And to accommodate this the front chassis member (originally straight across) was redesigned with a bend in the middle to give a bit more space.

So if you wanted to put in a four-speed box you would need to cut out the existing chassis member and replace it with the newer version. Although I haven’t checked right through to 1992 I think the latter was then unchanged throughout, following the change to four-speed, so it might well be possible to get an aftermarket one from Melun or somebody.

But it sounds like a lot of work for not much benefit — I would guess that the gear ratio range in the 328 is similar to that in the 334 i.e. top speed probably would not be affected (although acceleration would).

One might also have to change the driveshafts as some had different splines on the inner joint.

You can see illustrations of the relevant bits in R4 Parts Book volume P.R. 808 pages 31.01 (328) and 31.03 (334), 50.04 (old chassis member) and 50.05 (new).

Incidentally ‘1970’ sounds a bit late for a three-speed vehicle. According to Album Renault 4 (Séjourné) the four-speed box came in in 1968. UK dealers might have had slow stock, of course.

Also, one should be aware that there is no synchromesh between 1st and 2nd gears on either the 328 or 334. Unless you double-declutch, changing from 1st to 2nd results in horrible graunching noises ( → possible damage to gearbox).

‘1968’ in the Séjourné book means the 1968 model year, which started in mid-1967. So Andy is correct in his date.

 

[angel]

Also, one should be aware that there is no synchromesh between 1st and 2nd gears on either the 328 or 334. Unless you double-declutch, changing from 1st to 2nd results in horrible graunching noises ( → possible damage to gearbox).

This is not true. All gears are synchronised on both 328 (late three-speed) and 334 (early four-speed) gearboxes. Early three-speed (313 type) lacked first gear synchromesh, but double declutching was still not necessary when shifting to 2nd.

@Boozer: Could it be that your gearbox is a four speed one and you haven't found the 4th gear because shift pattern is a bit odd?

 

[benchseat]

Hello ‘Angel’ : I’d always defer to your better knowledge (yes, really!), but I have owned two early R4s with 334 gearboxes and in both cases if one didn’t double-declutch between 1st and 2nd, horrible noises ensued. Other gears changed smoothly.

This might have been due simply to worn components, but based on this experience I’d certainly say that double-declutching between 1st and 2nd on 334s is ‘advisable’, if not necessarily ‘essential’. Especially as spares for 334s are these days presumably hard to get hold of.

 

[Boozer]

Hi Andy Your gear layout diagram may solve my problem.I brought the car non running assumed fourspeed and only found three but very low ratio.
The gearknob shows 4 but in a different layout,i then can only select 3 these are the same layout as your diagram and i can't select fourth.
I may have a 4 speed box with a problem with the selector for fourth many thanks i now have another option to look into

 

[Andy McGhee]

Hi Andy Your gear layout diagram may solve my problem.I brought the car non running assumed fourspeed and only found three but very low ratio.
The gearknob shows 4 but in a different layout,i then can only select 3 these are the same layout as your diagram and i can't select fourth.
I may have a 4 speed box with a problem with the selector for fourth many thanks i now have another option to look into

If your gearbox looks like this, it'll be a 4-speed. The blue arrow indicates a tag: 334 for 4-speed.
There's always a chance that the original gear knob has been replaced with a later one (with the conventional, rather than dogleg, arrangement indicated on top).
Hope you manage to sort the problem out!



Note that not all 334 boxes have the starting handle dog. The 1970 TL I had years ago had one...

More here: https://www.la4ldesylvie.fr/entrail...de-vitesse-334?highlight=WyJib2l0ZSIsMzM0XQ==

 

[angel]

Hello ‘Angel’ : I’d always defer to your better knowledge (yes, really!), but I have owned two early R4s with 334 gearboxes and in both cases if one didn’t double-declutch between 1st and 2nd, horrible noises ensued. Other gears changed smoothly.

This might have been due simply to worn components, but based on this experience I’d certainly say that double-declutching between 1st and 2nd on 334s is ‘advisable’, if not necessarily ‘essential’. Especially as spares for 334s are these days presumably hard to get hold of.

On both my '71 and a friends '72 shifts to 2nd gears are smooth and nice. A customer's '68 crunches badly when shifting to 2nd; the synchro is worn, or the synchro spring is broken.