Clio 182 Turbo

[npt]

You make a good point. However, I’m currently working 60+ hour weeks, studying for a Masters and juggling all that with trying to spend time with my 4 year old. It’s the car that loses every time 🙁.

When I first turbo’d it, it got loads of use. It’s done just under 5k including a good few months of daily use. I’d be off up over hartside pass and pissing about up in the moors most weekends when it was first done. In some ways with the noise and silliness it’s more fun than the m3. It’s a bit slower too, so also much less license losey which is a positive 🤣.

We’ll see come MOT time, I’ll run it for a bit and see how it goes!

Yeah it's hard juggling life, I feel your pain, but you'll need something to do once the masters is out the way and the little ones at school 😂

 

[Yarp]

The Clio popped out for a wash today. It was about a foot thick in dust and shite from the garage. I still love how these look 😍.

I cancelled the MOT in amongst the drama of the 530d going bang the other week. I’ve also since realised the M3’s MOT ran out a fortnight ago so that’s in first. Once that’s done I’ll sort the Clio but I’m tempted to daily it again for a bit to save pasting the miles and winter use on the M3. I dailied it post turbo conversion for a couple of months in early 2022 so happy to do so again. The only downside is that it stinks with no cat.

Anyhoo, pics:

At some point in time the battery charger had tripped in the garage and the battery has died. It jumped the other week when I moved it and it’s been left on charge since but wouldn’t start today so looks like it’s killed it. I’d have to look back over the thread but I’m sure it’s only 18 months old so that’ll be going back to Halfords. I left it running for about 40 mins when I washed it and it wouldn’t start again by itself. On the upside, there are no oil/coolant leaks anywhere so it seems happy enough. It’s now tucked back up in bed

 

[Yarp]

Clio hasn’t had a legit test since 2017. What could possibly go wrong….. 🫣

It needed a new battery to get it there. As we all know, dead batteries = spun bearings so thought it best to change. Cheap as chips at £37 on trade at Halfords.

The tracking is all over the shop and very notable in the wet. The track rod ends are minging so they are being replaced and the alignment done.

Aside from that the little b*****d was great on the drive up. It’s so much fun. The wife followed me up to the garage and tried to have a bit sport on, on the way. She wasn’t remotely impressed at the 20 year old shitbox pulling 500 wagon lengths on her 😂

 

[Yarp]

And would you look at that😍. Tracking is being done today and then it’s good to go.

 

[Yarp]

Picked the car up this morning and it made the commute. Taxed it when at work and got a warning message saying the DVLA enforcement team may be in touch given I didn’t SORN it and it hasn’t been taxed since 2022 😂.

The wastegate is stuck open so it’s lacking in boost but was far too hot to fiddle with. I’ll tickle it with a hammer once it cools down. The wipers were shot so I was guessing where I was going, they have now been changed. The key battery had died so had no central locking so sorted that too. Aside from it being a bit of a workout with no PAS the drive was spot on and it behaved very nicely 👍.

Here it is looking absolutely filthy at work pretending to be an EV to trigger team electric bay

 

[Yarp]

Gave it a wash when I got in and got some pics when dropping the post off. Got some great reflections with the sun starting to dip.

Irritating the wastegate is sticking. I popped the pin off the actuator rod and it moves but it sticks again in the middle unless it gets a wiggle. The actuator pushes down onto it slightly which seems to help it stick. I’ll try to put a little shim under the wastegate arm to push it up and stop it sticking but not sure it’ll work. Are there any other suggestions other than removing the turbo to attack it?

Anyway, here it is just sat having a chat with its pal

 

[Yarp]

I had an argument with the wastegate today. It’s stuck as in the picture below at part open.

I blasted it with a bit of brake cleaner and then applied a bit of spray grease. It moves nice and freely if you gently pull it up when moving but as soon as that pull is lifted it sticks. I don’t think there’s enough of a gap under it to wedge in any form of a shim. It feels like it’s sticking on something inside the turbo which is odd because there’s nothing there! Any suggestions on anything else I can try before I have to take the turbo off because I really can’t be arsed with that job 🤦‍♂️?

Edit: this is an earlier pic of the exhaust side with the wastegate open. I can’t really see how it could be catching, there’s nothing there!

 

[Brigsy]

Is it binding on the downpipe flange? Looks to be witness marks on the edge of the penny.

 

[Yarp]

Is it binding on the downpipe flange? Looks to be witness marks on the edge of the penny.

This is very true. However, I can’t guarantee it wasn’t me that did them by accident when enlarging the wastegate port.

It could be the flange or thinking about it, it could be the turbo gasket too as there’s some level of play in the holes.

Whatever it is, it’s changed at some point between the couple test drives and going to the MOT centre. It was fine for maybe 40 miles and then started to stick.

I might just get it into stuck position and hit it with a hammer a few times to see if that moves whatever it’s sticking on out the way.

If that doesn’t work I’ll buy a new turbo. For the sake of £150 it’s not worth risking removing it then refitting it just to realise it’s still broken just to have to do it all again. Especially given the downpipe bolts have to come out too. It’s just too s**t a job to do voluntarily 🤣

 

[Yarp]

Boost issues are sorted. Gave the actuator arm a bit of graphite lube and a few knocks with a little toffee hammer. Took a few taps but whatever it was sticking on it isn’t any more 😂.

Boost is probably holding a bit low now at around 6psi. Not sure if it’s because I’ve widened the wastegate and it’s managing boost better or if there’s a bit of a leak somewhere. I’ll check it out this weekend either way and if it’s determined to stick there I’ll refit the boost controller and turn it up that way.

Theres some serious vibration coming through the dash when on boost too. The gearstick shifts back so need to have a look at the dogbone mount and see if that’s moving and the turbo is hitting the bulkhead a bit under load. All easy fixes though!

 

[Mr Underhill]

Haha the old toffee hammer. When I worked at RS Ford my Mk1 was playing up. I’m at the petrol station and our RS techie walks out. “Nick, I think the turbos gone on this” “Pull the bonnet lad”. Toffee hammer out, tip tap. “There you go”.

I’m like

 

[Yarp]

Haha the old toffee hammer. When I worked at RS Ford my Mk1 was playing up. I’m at the petrol station and our RS techie walks out. “Nick, I think the turbos gone on this” “Pull the bonnet lad”. Toffee hammer out, tip tap. “There you go”.

I’m like

View attachment 1683824

Honestly, this hammer must be a thousand year old. I pinched it off my dad cos it was the only thing small enough to get into the starter motor on my Astra. He in turn pinched it off his dad at some point to fix something s**t.

It’s the starting point on the hammer scale before things get out of hand and broken 😂.

 

[davo172]

I bet most others who have owned a clio turbo over the years have wanted to hit them with a MUCH bigger hammer!

Over and over again!

 

[Yarp]

I bet most others who have owned a clio turbo over the years have wanted to hit them with a MUCH bigger hammer!

Over and over again!

I think that’s just Clio ownership in general tbh. It was parked in the garage for 3 years and came out with everything broken 😂.

Aside from getting it running right in the first place which was an issue pre-turbo conversion it’s been spot on since. The downpipe snapping was the only real issue it’s had. The other bits have just been general wear/tear

 

[Mr Underhill]

I think that’s just Clio ownership in general tbh. It was parked in the garage for 3 years and came out with everything broken 😂.

Aside from getting it running right in the first place which was an issue pre-turbo conversion it’s been spot on since. The downpipe snapping was the only real issue it’s had. The other bits have just been general wear/tear

I've never driven a turbo Clio before. Is the power manageable, i.e., torque steer? What is the boost like? Are they hard on driveshafts, etc.?

I've attended plenty of track days where turbo cars were present, and they certainly leave us N/A (naturally aspirated) guys for dead. However, they often end up having to retire after a few laps due to heat. My new one has ITBs (I'm giving it a proper test at Croft soon), and from the limited seat time I've had in the car, the power delivery seems very smooth and linear. It's certainly nothing to write home about, but from what I understand from others, it's a more expensive yet reliable way of gaining a few more ponies and being kinder on other components.

 

[cjgower]

I've never driven a turbo Clio before. Is the power manageable, i.e., torque steer? What is the boost like? Are they hard on driveshafts, etc.?

I've attended plenty of track days where turbo cars were present, and they certainly leave us N/A (naturally aspirated) guys for dead. However, they often end up having to retire after a few laps due to heat. My new one has ITBs (I'm giving it a proper test at Croft soon), and from the limited seat time I've had in the car, the power delivery seems very smooth and linear. It's certainly nothing to write home about, but from what I understand from others, it's a more expensive yet reliable way of gaining a few more ponies and being kinder on other components.

Heat was the biggest issue with mine. With an OEM radiator, my coolant temperature gauge was rising as fast as my speedo along the long straight at Snetterton. If I did it again, I'd keep it NA (which I am). Boost is a LOT of fun though. Particualrly in such small, lightweight cars. After about 4 years with the ED kit, the head of my engine started to tear itself apart. I think the excessive cam and head wear was likely brought on sooner by the extra stresses from the turbo kit.

 

[Yarp]

I've never driven a turbo Clio before. Is the power manageable, i.e., torque steer? What is the boost like? Are they hard on driveshafts, etc.?

I've attended plenty of track days where turbo cars were present, and they certainly leave us N/A (naturally aspirated) guys for dead. However, they often end up having to retire after a few laps due to heat. My new one has ITBs (I'm giving it a proper test at Croft soon), and from the limited seat time I've had in the car, the power delivery seems very smooth and linear. It's certainly nothing to write home about, but from what I understand from others, it's a more expensive yet reliable way of gaining a few more ponies and being kinder on other components.

It’s got no PAS so it’s a bit lively on boost. It pulls about a bit but it’s predicable.

Never tracked it but heat would be an issue I’d imagine. If it was going to be tracked I’d be fitting an oil cooler and bigger rad but on the road it’s fine as it is. I think the routing of the turbo water return makes a difference too. I had mine going straight to the header tank and it always seemed to run hotter like that. It now goes via the heater matrix (turbo out to matrix in) and it’s better that way. You can drop the windows and turn the heater to max if the the gauge does start to rise and it drops it pretty quickly. You’ve got to really try to make that happen though.

It’s absolutely hilarious though. It’s not as fast as the m3, probably not even really that close but with how small it is, the noise it makes and how fast you go through the gears it feels really quick and really fun. It’s a great little toy for blasting about on a weekend.

 

[JimF]

My new one has ITBs

It's certainly nothing to write home about

That's pretty disappointing! Unless I've misunderstood. I suppose if you've bought it as a completed car you can be a bit more objective than those who have built their existing car. I'm probably doing the right thing leaving my engine standard, as tempting as it is.
Apologies for the thread hijack!

 

[Yarp]

Apologies for the thread hijack!

Aside from about 4 others we’re basically the only ones left on the forum with a Clio 😂. Chat away haha!

 

[jonzink]

I've never driven a turbo Clio before. Is the power manageable, i.e., torque steer? What is the boost like? Are they hard on driveshafts, etc.?

I've attended plenty of track days where turbo cars were present, and they certainly leave us N/A (naturally aspirated) guys for dead. However, they often end up having to retire after a few laps due to heat. My new one has ITBs (I'm giving it a proper test at Croft soon), and from the limited seat time I've had in the car, the power delivery seems very smooth and linear. It's certainly nothing to write home about, but from what I understand from others, it's a more expensive yet reliable way of gaining a few more ponies and being kinder on other components.

Depends on the cooling for sure, mine has a 20v turbo of an Audi TT in it and when the previous owner did the conversion he cut loads of holes in front bumper, my intercooler is a lot bigger than this threads one and I don’t even have an oil cooler, but engine never over heats and I can do 25mins on track flat out no problem. I have a lower temp thermostat and use water wetter to be safe but no issues

 

[jonzink]

It’s got no PAS so it’s a bit lively on boost. It pulls about a bit but it’s predicable.

Never tracked it but heat would be an issue I’d imagine. If it was going to be tracked I’d be fitting an oil cooler and bigger rad but on the road it’s fine as it is. I think the routing of the turbo water return makes a difference too. I had mine going straight to the header tank and it always seemed to run hotter like that. It now goes via the heater matrix (turbo out to matrix in) and it’s better that way. You can drop the windows and turn the heater to max if the the gauge does start to rise and it drops it pretty quickly. You’ve got to really try to make that happen though.

It’s absolutely hilarious though. It’s not as fast as the m3, probably not even really that close but with how small it is, the noise it makes and how fast you go through the gears it feels really quick and really fun. It’s a great little toy for blasting about on a weekend.

Obviously as mentioned above my Clio has a different turbo engine in it, but a surprised it’s not as quick as M3? May be power it running as mine was 250bhp & 400nm of torque very low down before fitting bigger boost pipes now its around 300bhp with boost still capped around 400nm and easily passed V8 M3 on straights at Bedford GT circuit mine is stripped of a lot of weight though

 

[Yarp]

Obviously as mentioned above my Clio has a different turbo engine in it, but a surprised it’s not as quick as M3? May be power it running as mine was 250bhp & 400nm of torque very low down before fitting bigger boost pipes now its around 300bhp with boost still capped around 400nm and easily passed V8 M3 on straights at Bedford GT circuit mine is stripped of a lot of weight though

It could be to be fair. Took it out today and even with a sticky waste gate it was at about the same speed to the bridge on my test track slip road. The torque is way lower than that though. Pistons, rods and gearbox would leave the chat well before 400nm on a F4R 😂

 

[Yarp]

Went for a drive again today and the wastegate is back to being sticky. It did the commute without argument yesterday so clearly the fix isn’t permanent.

The turbo a ball ache to refit so I’ll order a new one so if the reason isn’t apparently obvious when it’s off I can swap it. If it is obvious the new one can go back.

It’ll be another eBay wuhan whistler so the question is which one?

Do I go with another GT28 style one https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/39409536...v2OSf5rJnO0L2lA6jbzLjqHHQ7CT|tkp:BFBMgI2KiMlj

Or do I go smaller and get a gt25? It might free up a bit of space behind it and move it away from the bulkhead slightly.

 

[Yarp]

I took the turbo off tonight to see if I could work out why the wastegate keeps jamming. I’d not refitted all the nuts for the downpipe when putting it back together been a genius last time and left the impossible to access bottom bolt off.

As a result, turbo was off and out in about 20 mins with no need to split the downpipe from the rest of the system and avoid having to do those frigging nightmare bolts on the joint 😁

It appears the problem is an inadvertent consequence of widening the wastegate. Removing some of the material on the side closest to the arm has removed the smooth surface the penny slides over and if the angle is just right it catches on a bit of a lip. Did not see that one coming 🤦‍♂️. This is how it sticks, hence the lack of low rpm boost!

And this is the lip it catches on. I’d taken maybe 1mm too much off on that side which has allowed it to catch. You can kind of see that below

The issue could be sorted by fixing the penny in place but it needs to be able to move to fully open. The only option was to try to fully remove the lip. It took some doing but got there in the end. I rounded the edge of the penny a bit too. Not the tidiest but it’s not like I’ve got to look at it 🤣

I’ll hopefully get it back together before I go on holiday and see if that’s sorted it. If not then it’s new turbo time

 

[Yarp]

Didn’t have time to get it sorted before I went away so today was the day to get it together.

I got it all back together pretty quickly. Theres been some vibration through the dash so I moved the turbo slightly higher on its bolts and put some more heat wrap around the downpipe where it passes through the subframe. All joined back up nicely

I’ve never managed to get the ring back on the fuel tank 100%. This has been ok but a bit of a bodge really. I decided when I was on hol that I don’t want to be on fire if I crash so ordered a collection of new rings. I drained the tank using a very special method thanks to the fuel return 👌

I’m not the smallest of people and trying to get into the back to get to the sender is always tricky. I decided the easiest way would be just to take the whole interior out to get proper access

I got the ring sat perfectly eventually. Took it for a drive and there’s not a drip. I’ll stick another mountain of window sealant round that cap and I’ll be perfect.

Another plus on the drive was my vibration has gone. The additional heat wrap and/or tweak of how the turbo sits has worked a treat.

However… I now have no boost at all. Not even trying 🤣. The boost pipes are all fitted as they should be, actuator arm is on properly so can’t really see why. I’ll pull one of the hoses off the turbo tomorrow to make sure the compressor is spinning. Can’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be working 🤷‍♂️

 

[Yarp]

This turbo has had its day. If I want boost I have to wind it up with a screwdriver first 🤣. Ignore the rally idle, it doesn’t idle from cold.

It now only makes 3 psi which is a smidge shite. However, that’s still more than enough to blow the doors off some VW tall electric rectangle that tried to push me up a slip road!

Upshot is I need a new wuhan whistler. Space is ultra tight down the back of the block. Do I stick with the gt2860rs or go smaller? I’ve seen a few people running GT2554R turbos. Would there be any benefit/drawback to going smaller? It’s got to be a t25 fitment/5 bolt outlet. There’s not the space for adapters or any other business.

 

[Louis]

Garret 2560

 

[Donny_Dog]

I was going to say, stepping down to the 25 range might be better.

 

[Yarp]

Cheers! I’ve ordered a 25. Let’s see how that goes 👍

 

[Yarp]

New wuhan whistler landed today courtesy of maxpeadorods. It’s the biggest GT25 I’ve seen 😂

Wastegate port is comically small. This time to save f**king the turbo up with bits of swarf like the last one, I stripped the exhaust side off and started enlarging it. Again, this time making sure not to touch the side the penny closes onto. The size/setup of this one makes it much easier. I was using a stepped bit with the drill on a pillar mount but because I’m a lazy mong the battery died and the other one was also flat. Got this so far, will do a bit more tomorrow then it’s good to fit

 

[Yarp]

Had some spare time tonight with the wife being on child collection duty.

I got the old turbo off to swap the bits over. The new one is absolutely not a GT25 of any flavour. It’s bigger than the current one 😂.

That would just be quite funny if it wasn’t for the lack of any space. I negotiated it into the gap and it was hard against the bulkhead in a couple of places

Not any more, have some of that you c**t 😂

The pictures don’t really show it too well but there’s now a bit of space around it which is good. It would be lovely if I could just pull the whole engine forward by about an inch. Don’t think that’s possible without some serious effort unfortunately

Loads of room 👌

At that point I got hungry so that’s me for the night!

 

[The Chubby Pirate]

“Have some of that you c**t”

Beautiful😂😂😂

 

[Yarp]

“Have some of that you c**t”

Beautiful😂😂😂

It had me so wound up 😂. Can’t move the engine forward but sure as hell can move the bulkhead backwards haha!

I’ll do it properly and tidy it up in a couple of days when I’m not as angry 🤣