Clutch centering on Renault 4CV and Dauphine
Effective and economical homemade tool
If you are rebuilding the engine of any car one of the unavoidable steps is to correctly center the clutch disc before closing the assembly with the flywheel and pressure plate. In the case of a Renault 4CV or a Dauphine (in our case a Gordini), the problem sometimes is that, due to the small diameter of the primary shaft and the size of the disc, the commercial centering devices are usually too big and do not work for this type of vehicle.
Which tool do I use?
If you look in the official manuals of the time the clutch centering tool appears in the technical manuals under different names depending on the country:
Renault France: Reference Mot. 1354
IKA Renault (Argentina): Reference EMB.02
But something tells me that in no Renault dealer you will find it already in 2025 :-).
After unsuccessfully trying some generic ones (in all of them the smallest bushing size was too big for this motor/clutch), I opted to make a homemade one with easily available materials.
The result is more than satisfactory, and can help you to mount the clutch accurately and smoothly.
Materials needed
All of them can be found in DIY stores, hardware stores or similar:
- Aluminum or copper tube of 12 mm outside diameter
Acts as a guide shaft and fits perfectly into the bushing housing in the flywheel. - Solder sleeve for soldering 12 mm copper pipes
This (plumbing) sleeve is mounted in the area of the clutch disc. Its outer diameter fits snugly into the disc spline, with a slight acceptable clearance.
- Bronze crankshaft centering bushing (optional)
This bushing is the one that goes on the flywheel (reference Renault 6045759) and costs 5.55 € at Arnaud Ventoux:
https://www.arnaudventouxpieces.com/fr/bague-de-centrage-du-pignon-a-queue-dans-volant-moteur-ref-6045759-572.html
Assembly and use
- Insert the 12 mm tube into the flywheel housing. You can lightly grease it if desired.
- Slide the copper sleeve up to the area where the clutch disc is located. You will see that its thickness matches the inside diameter of the disc teeth. It doesn’t snap in, but it centers nicely.
- Use the bronze bushing, if available, as a back stop to support the sleeve and push it firmly.
- Once mounted, the disc is centered and you can tighten the clutch assembly with complete peace of mind.
Details in images
Here are a few images of the tool and its use. You can click on each of the pictures for additional details.
Practical note
Although the sleeve leaves a slight clearance inside the spline, it is minimal and does not affect functional centering. If you want to tighten it even more, you can wrap the sleeve with a layer of metal or body tape. But then you have to pay attention that the tape does not alter the “roundness” of the stem. In short: In view of the result, you really won’t need to supplement any of the parts.
Conclusion
This improvised tool has allowed us to mount the clutch of the Gordini with total precision, without resorting to professional centering devices designed for modern cars. It is a practical and cheap solution that you can reuse every time you work on a 4CV, Dauphine or derivative.
I hope you find it useful!
