Cars where performing a task that's usually a piece of piss but on this car it's actually a total pain in the arse

[RayMK]

I had a Citroen CX GTi Turbo 2 in the 1990s and decided to give it an oil change.  It took me 15 minutes to find the oil filter on the engine and the next 35 minutes discovering that it was impossible to reach with any of the tools (or arms) I had.  Shortly afterwards, the clutch felt as though it might be slipping on full throttle.  I enquired about the cost of having the clutch replaced:  16.5hrs labour + parts was the horrific answer.  I promptly sold it to a non-dealer Citroen specialist.

Replacing brake shoes and cylinders on my 1975 2CV6 inboard front drum brakes.  It took me a whole day and wasn't exactly easy, but after removing the front mudguards (easy job on these) and disconnecting the driveshaft (again easy on these), the whole job was done in relative comfort sitting on the front wheel.  I later bought a Haynes manual which said the way I had done the job was impossible unless lots of other stuff was removed first.  

Focus Mk1 nearside headlamp bulb replacement is difficult because the battery makes access very poor.  At least it does not require removal of the bumper first.

[Metal Guru]

First time I ever did an oil change. The car was a 1.6 Ford Orion. Nothing to difficult but the container I used to catch the old oil was way too small. 
Oil change, 20 minutes. Cleaning up the drive way (parent’s house) , the rest of the day!

[Mr Pastry]

1 hour ago, RayMK said:

Replacing brake shoes and cylinders on my 1975 2CV6 inboard front drum brakes.  It took me a whole day and wasn't exactly easy, but after removing the front mudguards (easy job on these) and disconnecting the driveshaft (again easy on these), the whole job was done in relative comfort sitting on the front wheel.  I later bought a Haynes manual which said the way I had done the job was impossible unless lots of other stuff was removed first.  

The disc braked ones are not much better.   GS calipers used upside down, great idea.  In theory the pads "just" unclip and come out downwards.  In real life they don't because lip on the disc, no easy way of retracting the pistons, and you can't see what you are doing anyway.  OK, just whip the calipers off.  However- the two bolts which hold the caliper to the gearbox also hold the two halves of the caliper together.  Cue LHM all over everything,  especially the brake discs.  Which are not very accessible for  cleaning....  I just bite the bullet and do it now, but what a rubbish design.  I love my 2CV to bits, but I am not blind to its faults.

[EyesWeldedShut]

Glowplugs on PSA DV6 engines - esp the likes of the C4 with the engine buried under the wipers and stuff.

Headlight bulbs on pretty much every bloody car since 2010 (and a certain 2013 Boxer out the front).

[Barry Cade]

Alfa 147/GT. There's a wee plastic bush at the gearlever that wears, and makes the change a bit wooly. Its part of a section of the transmission tunnel that bolts to the floor.. from underneath... drop the exhaust, all the Heat shields, remove gear cables then drop the whole lot to the floor. 

EVERY Alfa GT has damaged sills. The actual flange (fnarr obv.) Is higher than the bottom of the sills, so when its put on a 2 poster, the leg of the ramp crushes the sills before the rubber pad touches the jacking point. Its why most of them are scrapped.

New Defender towbar fitting.. FFS. If its a commercial with mudflaps.. treble FFS. But still not as bad as a VW T6, or 6.1. I was annoyed enough to send a nasty email to VW. 

[Low ontime]

8 hours ago, Imhotep said:

Fuel filter on a GT86/BRZ requires you to partially remove the exhaust (apparently). 

Rear bank of plugs on anything with a transverse V6. Notably Mondeos and Rover 75s.

Plugs in general on cars with Boxer engines.

Astra H(?) headlight bulb is front bumper off iirc. Might be Astra G that. Definitely one of them.

Starter motor on 6 pot diesel BMWs 

Fuel pump on a Mondeo mk3

100% Astra h is bumper off, utter misery when bumper fixings are rounded / rusted on then it’s wheel off and grinder time. The hatch in the wheel arch for bulb change is optimistic 

g is awkward but can be done from the engine bay… 

 

[Low ontime]

Seem to remember metro and mk2 golf gti exhaust down pipes being an utter sod to do..

[Barry Cade]

12 minutes ago, Low ontime said:

Seem to remember metro and mk2 golf gti exhaust down pipes being an utter sod to do..

Mini's were worse.. those VW "C" clips were like a bullet going off if they slipped.. 

[Low ontime]

1 minute ago, Barry Cade said:

Mini's were worse.. those VW "C" clips were like a bullet going off if they slipped.. 

and if the VW copy tool was near ruined…  

[Barry Cade]

5 minutes ago, Low ontime said:

and if the VW copy tool was near ruined…  

I just used to stretch them in a vice and put a bolt in, fit them over the lugs, hit them with a hammer and run..

[MantaGTE85]

Pre-2010 Grande Punto front bumpers - they never seem to go back on straight, once they've been off.

[Barry Cade]

25 minutes ago, MantaGTE85 said:

Pre-2010 Grande Punto front bumpers - they never seem to go back on straight, once they've been off.

Fiat front bumpers in general, are a pain. Having to take them off to change a wishbone... mental.

[fatmanblue]

On 23/02/2026 at 20:20, Mr Pastry said:

The disc braked ones are not much better.   GS calipers used upside down, great idea.  In theory the pads "just" unclip and come out downwards.  In real life they don't because lip on the disc, no easy way of retracting the pistons, and you can't see what you are doing anyway.

It's the GS that has 2CV calipers on backwards. Adjusting the handbrake on a GS is the stuff of nightmares and I'm reliably informed that it was not unknown to scrap a car because it needed new handbrake pads. Thankfully the adjustment was totally sorted for the GSA, if not the pad replacement.

Whilst we are on GS/A, front exhaust replacement. The Haynes manual is a masterpiece on this. "You do not have to remove the engine to replace the front exhaust pipes, but if you should ever remove the engine for any other reason, it is worth renewing them on a precautionary basis" and "You will have to saw the branch pipe off the main pipe" followed by the ominous sentence "access for the saw is not good".  I could go on.

[Mr Pastry]

1 hour ago, fatmanblue said:

It's the GS that has 2CV calipers on backwards.

Not sure about that.  The 2CV only had discs from about 1980, surely the GS was already in production by then?  Agree about the handbrake adjustment though.  What did they do differently on the GSA, I wonder if it could be applied to the 2CV.

 

[Talbot]

5 hours ago, Mr Pastry said:

Not sure about that.  The 2CV only had discs from about 1980, surely the GS was already in production by then?  Agree about the handbrake adjustment though.  What did they do differently on the GSA, I wonder if it could be applied to the 2CV.

 

The Ami 6/8 and dyane 6 had front disc brakes from the late '60s, which is where the caliper comes from.  GS then used them in '70, and then the 2CV in '81

To say they are one particular vehcle's caliper doesn't really work.  They're just a design that Citroen had available and was modified to fit* a range of vehicles.

I have to say, I don't quite see the issue with these calipers:  having seen the owner of the racing 2CV drop a set of hot pads out in about 3 seconds, and then shove a new set in, in a similar time, surely the design can't be that bad.

[fatmanblue]

5 hours ago, Mr Pastry said:

 What did they do differently on the GSA, I wonder if it could be applied to the 2CV.

 

https://ecas2cvparts.co.uk/products/handbrake-speedy-adjuster-set-fits-2cv-dyane-etc

I agree with @Talbot in that changing pads on 2CV is easy with the right technique and practice to pull the clip out of the way and push the pistons back. Have a couple of M10 nuts about if you need to unbolt a caliper (as per Haynes).