1.8 16v tuning

[benny_dub]

alright chaps, was thinking about what car to get next and I just want something fast.

it can't be too fast as I'm only 18 and cant afford insurance on much, but I've decided on either a Rover 620 ti or a Clio 1.8 16v.

At the moment I'm preferring the thought of the rover as its faster and less to insure than the clio, but I do like the idea of having a little car that'll handle.

What're the best options for tuning the 1.8? any ideas what sort of power levels are achievable if i spend about a grand on it?

cheers

 

[TheJesus]

Dunno what power or how fast the Rovers are, but a 1.8 16v Clio's not a particularly fast car, but for a grand you could EASILY throw a 2.0 Megane/Williams bottom end in it (get a Megane one, newer, lower miles, therefore better) and you'd have a seriously quick car.

 

[Sami]

gd luck getting insurance for a good price on either of those @ 18! the rover is insurance group 17, clio is 13.

 

[TheJesus]

should be able to insure the Clio I'd have thought and the Rover. There's a kid by me that cant be much older than 17 with a 620ti... nothing to really shout home about, they should come with an ASBO as standard from the factory... f**king hideous grandad wagons

 

[Sami]

IG 17 when you're only 18... yes you could insure it but would cost a couple grand at the very least!

 

[TheJesus]

true, but most kids are stupid enough to pay that these days lol

 

[Sami]

lol so true, also tbh likely to kill yourself driving cars that 'fast' at 18

 

[TheJesus]

yeah, that's also a point that deffo holds some water. I had an XR2 on 45mm carbs as my first motor and almost killed myself a few times lol

 

[benny_dub]

yeah the reason the clio and the rover are top of the list is insurance really, the rover may be group 17 but for some reason i can get quoted 1300, which to me seems very reasonable.

im still 17 and paying £2000 a year for my rover 220 SDi, again, bought that just for the speed.

I was thinking of getting for the clio a fast road cam, enclosed induction, performance cat and straight through exhaust, what do you reckon that would give me.

i was thinking 160-170bhp, is that a bit optomistic?

 

[-TA-]

and i thought 950 was alot to pay!

2k a year on insurance is mad!

 

[TheJesus]

having had a valver and a Williams and experience of both you are better off finding a 2.0 bottom end, trust me. No matter what you do to the valver engine unless you turbo it or run bodies, you will literally spend load on cams, exhausts, remaps and it will only be just as quick as a 2.0 bottom end hybrid... but far less drivable due to the peaky nature of the engine. Do the same to a 2.0 and you have something capable of hanging onto some seriously quick cars.

 

[benny_dub]

how hard is it to find/afford/fit the 2.0 bottom end?

 

[TheJesus]

it's a straight swap, you can even use the valver head. you can get a complete Megane engine for £300-500, I paid £500 for one on 22k, FRSH and including fitting.

Speak to 2 live off here and on www.williamsclio.co.uk, he's the engine swap daddy and knows these cars and engines better than anyone. He helped me out no end on my Williams and can do it probably cheaper and certainly faster than anyone else.

 

[benny_dub]

thats awesome cheers dude, hopefully in a few months I'll be running a seriously quick clio.

the rover is very fast and very cheap to buy and insure but to be honest it handles like a bag of crap so the clio is looking more and more inviting...

 

[Sami]

^^Least you'd get discount for all the headgaskets ud have 2 buy

 

[TheJesus]

tbh benny Clio's going to be much more fun than the Rover and even just a 2.0 bottom end it will certainly be at least as quick, if not quicker. Just remember, you can make a valver into a Williams pretty easily, 2.0 it, put the Williams wide track on, strip it and then go hunting Scooby's and Type R's

 

[benny_dub]

lol yeah might just keep the exterior completely standard, apart from maybe some nice little 15s or something, maybe lowered a bit.

best thing about my little rover, its obviously not THAT quick but everyone underestimates it, seen off a few golf gti's in my time lol

 

[TheJesus]

go sign up on Williams Clio and have a look at some of the cars in the members bit... may need to pay for membership, but tbh the advice alone is worth it and it will give you a load of ideas on what works best etc. The yellow hybrid on there that belongs to my mate Gaz is a great example for spec, 2.0, cams, headwork, remap and usual breathing mods and it's just over 200bhp and insanely quick. It's stripped but will keep up with mine.

 

[benny_dub]

yo just had a thought, instead of swapping the bottom end for a 2.0litre one, wouldn't it be better and easier just to swap the whole engine for a 2.0litre?

 

[edde]

yo just had a thought, instead of swapping the bottom end for a 2.0litre one, wouldn't it be better and easier just to swap the whole engine for a 2.0litre?

Got to find a Williams one which can be difficult/expensive.

 

[Ollyb16v]

sorry to highjack this post, but i'm also thinking of changing my valver's bottom end for a 2lt, once i've found one. How much difference is there with the williams wide track??

 

[edde]

sorry to highjack this post, but i'm also thinking of changing my valver's bottom end for a 2lt, once i've found one. How much difference is there with the williams wide track??

Williams wide track is superb its not cheap though if your thinkg about both you can find selling and getting a proper Williams better value but then again it won't be brand new stuff.

 

[2 live]

well.i was faced with the same dilemna a few years ago. i had a valver, black met, mint. loved it. was about the quickest 1800 around at the time, but i kept getting my arse kicked by the 2.0 novas etc. which of course, just wont do lol.

i priced it up, the cost of buying the engine and susp bits, and all that goes with the conversion, and adding that to the value of the car at the time, i ended up with a figure of roughly £4,500. now at the time..mint williams' were going for around the £5,500 mark, so figured i could get a williams for a grand extra. which imo was a bargain. and i havent looked back.


things can be done a lot cheaper now tho. lol. but id say if you can afford the insurance on a willy, better to go out and get 1 than convert the valver tbh.


but if you do want to do the conversion, my last 2.0 lump meg btm end 35k miles, williams head, just needed cams, set me back the princely sum of £200 and a headset.

there are a few things that you would be better of renewing tho as the engines out, cam belt, clutch etc etc which should be included into the cost of converting as well imo.

suspension wise, williams bottom arms, can then go coilovers or new struts, and id go for new driveshafts too, which again are expensive.

 

[Ollyb16v]

Just got fk coilovers, valver is mint too, so think conversion will be a winner. Who did you get to do all the work???

 

[2 live]

myself.