Ashers' BG 182

[Ash J]

Hi guys

Been on this forum for a while, but have never owned a Clio, or in fact any kind of Renault before.

I have wanted a Clio 172/182 for ages, and have always kept my eye on the market. Anyway, a very tidy Clio 182 with low miles came up, in Black Gold and with both Cup packs (FF model). It also had a nice extra in the way of Trophy Recaros. So as an excuse for something to do a few weekends back, I went up to see it on a Saturday. Which then resulted in me going up the next day to pay for it and drive it back home. It was a bit of an impulse buy, as I certainly hadn't planned on looking at any cars that weekend, let alone buying one!

So anyway here is a couple of pics of her as she was advertised and when I picked her up (sorry for all the crappy phone pics)...

Second day of owning her, battery light and STOP light both came on. Dead battery next morning. Turned out to be faulty alternator, so this was replaced for a brand new Valeo unit under warranty (car bought from dealer with 6 month warranty). I also had the Cambelt and Dephaser Pulley changed whilst the alternator was being replaced.

Next on the list was to change the wheels, always liked Turinis. Got in touch with a guy who had a set that he said was anthracite and were all in superb condition still after a refurbish last year. Exchanged a couple of emails, and then drove up to Bristol to collect them...

They aren't technically anthracite. After managing to track down and get in touch with the guy who sprayed the wheels, it turns out they were sprayed in a Honda Grey (can't remember the code but he did tell me it). Doesn't show in pictures, but they have a slightly blue tint to them, and have some fleck in the wheels. They look the nuts if I am honest, need to be seen as camera can't pick it up. Reason I got the paint code from him is if/when I need them redone at some point in the future. Anyway, here they are on the car (again sorry for crappy quality of the pics, only pics I have at the moment!)...

I have also carried out the following in the last week or so...

Pipercross air filter element
New pollen filter
Honda Type R aerial
Aero wipers front and rear
Oil and filter change with Fuchs Titan Race Pro S
New style 'RS' rear badge ('Renault Sport' and 'Clio' removed)
New set of genuine RenaultSport mats from my local dealer
Swapped over my Alpine Bluetooth head unit from my last car

Don't have any pictures of any of the above apart from the new RS rear badge which tidies up the rear end a treat in my opinion...

I have just received a set of dash trims, gear knob insert and steering wheel insert, which will all be sent off to SprayShack at some point to have sprayed gloss black. I will also order a set of smoothed bullets from them too at the same time, in anthracite with black '2.0 16v'.

I also have another steering wheel which should be here next week, which will be getting retrimmed by Royal Steering Wheels (I appreciate Snappy's work is also very good, but I have seen a wheel which was done by Royal, and I want it pretty much the same).

Have a set of genuine plugs which I will change over next weekend, once I have ordered a replacement inlet manifold gasket, and also once my Magnecor leads arrive as will fit these at same time (never realised plug change was a manifold off job).

Took it for a drive this morning and went to the Supercar Sunday breakfast club meeting at Goodwood. Wasn't a bad morning considering the weather wasn't all that great! Anybody who went this morning will understand why the car is now looking like this (the pics honestly make it look clean)...

One last thing, I picked up an exhaust system today which I will be getting fitted next weekend, along with all new mounts and a pre-cat lambda sensor. Took a trip up to Gatwick to collect it.

I will put this teaser pic up of it all wrapped up in bubble wrap, with just the end of the pipe sticking out which connects to the centre pipe. Can anybody guess what system it is from the pic?! Looking forward to getting it fitted!

That brings me right up to date. I will try to keep this updated as I go along, but I enjoy driving her too much!

Ash

 

[Carlv8415]

Nice to see a fellow BG owner

 

[Sunglasses_Ron]

Car looks great! Nice result getting one with Recaros!

Any plans to lower it?

 

[flebay]

Can anybody guess what system it is from the pic?! Looking forward to getting it fitted!

BTB exhaust
otherwise known as a cherry bomb

 

[Ash J]

Car looks great! Nice result getting one with Recaros!

Any plans to lower it?

I would like to lower it a tad yes. Long term I'd like to source a pair of Trophy Sachs dampers and pair them with Mark Fish springs. But considering they go for around £500 in a condition where they need a refurb (when they come up that is), and then needing a refurb, I'd be looking around £1,000 for the dampers alone. I plan to save so that I can get a pair though. But in the meantime I'll be buying a set of new OE cup dampers and a set of Cooksport springs to bring it down a bit.

BTB exhaust
otherwise known as a cherry bomb

Correct, BTB exhaust. Read good things about them.

 

[Luke...]

Lovely car mate, some nice mods so far aswell. Look forward to hopefully seeing it around as not far from you

 

[Jekyll]

Drop it a tad, add a few spacers and that's perfect.

 

[flebay]

Correct, BTB exhaust. Read good things about them.[/QUOTE]
I had one it was too loud, made peoples heads turn just driving slowly to work. Also it stank like a morris minor when the windows were down or the air vents blowing, because you cant use a cat.
bought a RS192 and don't feel like a helmet anymore.

 

[GavC]

Honda Cosmic Grey is the paint name Got my 182 cup wheels resprayed the same colour!

 

[Ash J]

Drop it a tad, add a few spacers and that's perfect.

Thanks mate. Not the biggest fan of spacers so doubt I will put any on, but have seen a couple with spacers and it does look good aesthetically!

I had one it was too loud, made peoples heads turn just driving slowly to work. Also it stank like a morris minor when the windows were down or the air vents blowing, because you cant use a cat.
bought a RS192 and don't feel like a helmet anymore.

Had mine fitted this weekend, spot on. Sounds perfect, and I don't like loud exhausts. Sounds just right and isn't overly loud. Also my cat is still in place and it is a cat-back system, so am not sure if you have got confused with what system you had fitted. As for smelling like a Morris Minor... no such thing with mine. Anyway really happy with it, quality piece of kit.

Honda Cosmic Grey is the paint name :smile: Got my 182 cup wheels resprayed the same colour!

Good choice. It is a lovely colour :smile:

 

[Ash J]

So I had this lot turn up during the week, ready to be fitted with my BTB cat-back exhaust system this weekend...

Do not have any pics of the system on the car yet, but will get some later. It is an awesome piece of kit, very happy with it.

Ordered an inlet manifold gasket from local Renault dealer and picked that up yesterday, so am now just waiting for my Magnecor leads to turn up, then job for next weekend is to change the plugs and leads.

Car is also booked in for a new set of boots on Friday, chose 205s as opposed to the 195s that are currently on the Turinis.

Lastly, hoping to get the car booked in with a local detailer this weekend for a paint correction, just to get rid of all the swirl marks from bad washing over the years by previous owners. Then I'll wax it and seal it to keep the paintwork protected for a while!

They are the only updates so far!

Ash

 

[Stay Puft]

I want your recaros

 

[flebay]

Had mine fitted this weekend, spot on. Sounds perfect, and I don't like loud exhausts. Sounds just right and isn't overly loud. Also my cat is still in place and it is a cat-back system, so am not sure if you have got confused with what system you had fitted. As for smelling like a Morris Minor... no such thing with mine. Anyway really happy with it, quality piece of kit.

This is the one I bought from btb silencer replaces the cat hence smell.

Thanks mate. Not the biggest fan of spacers so doubt I will put any on, but have seen a couple with spacers and it does look good aesthetically!





Good choice. It is a lovely colour :smile:

 

[Ash J]

Update time. As already mentioned, had BTB exhaust fitted last weekend so it's been on a week. However, noticed a blow on the join between cat and centre box today, so that will be something I rectify this weekend. Just ordered a brand new genuine centre box clamp, so once that has arrived I can hopefully get that sorted.

This weekend, had the inlet manifold off to do a plug change, and also to fit my Magnecor leads. Upon refitting manifold, I fitted a new genuine upper inlet gasket, and a new seal on the underside of the manifold. Unfortunately no pics of any of this work, I didn't think to take any until after I had put it all back together!

I also fitted my new plates which I ordered from FancyPlates. Just a standard rear, and 3/4 size at the front. Took a while to get all the old sticky pads off underneath the old plates, but was worth the effort. New plates really tidy up the car. Pics further down.

Saturday morning, went and collected a gear knob/shifter from a Ph1 172 as per pic below. Thanks to @sj2112 for this, really good condition. Top bloke as well! Now I just need to get a few bits ordered from Yanoo (stiff shift and bushes etc) and then can get it all fitted together along with a gearbox oil change too.

My K-Tec braided brake hoses also arrived Saturday morning, so I will soon be ordering a set of genuine rear discs and pads, a set of front Brembo discs, Ferodo DS2500 pads and some ATE brake fluid. Then this can all be fitted at the same time.

After fitting the plugs and Magnecor leads on Saturday, I gave the girl a well deserved clean in the evening. This was followed by a mini detailing session on Sunday.

Started with a clay bar session which resulted in this. As you can see, certainly needed it!

Next up was a machine polishing session to remove some of the very light swirl marks from bad washing over the years. I used some Zaino polish and a DA machine. No pictures of this process I'm afraid.

After that, I went over with some Auto Glym Ultra Deep Shine to give a nice finish.

Finally, was coated with two layers of Dodo Juice wax for a bit of protection.

The wheels were cleaned with some CarPro Iron X. Awesome stuff, highly recommended....

And the end result below. I will probably give it more of a thorough going over in a couple of months with a slightly more aggressive cutting compound, but she is looking good for now, much better than she was anyway. And please excuse the puddle in the centre of my front bumper, my windscreen washer fluid seems to be leaking out of the front left headlight washer and running down and across the bumper! A job to sort in the coming weeks!!

You can also see how the BTB exhaust fits in these pictures, and the new number plates (3/4 size at front).

That is how she is sitting at the moment.

Finally, this arrived in the post today, so I shall be fitting it one evening this week.

That's it for now! Cheers for looking.

Ash

 

[Stefan.]

Nice work ash

Pics dont do it enough justice, lovely motor

 

[GavC]

Shes looking mint in those photos after the DA polishing and layers of wax

 

[dann2707]

Lovely.

 

[Ash J]

Thanks for the kind comments!

I am now selling the Ph1 Shifter which I mentioned in my last post. This is because I stumbled upon another Ph1 Shifter which already has the gear knob in black (which I wanted to do) and also has the Yanoo stiff shift kit fitted which I also wanted to do. Just waiting for it to arrive (pic from sale advert below), and then I will get that fitted along with some new gearbox oil.

Had a new set of tyres fitted this weekend. Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3s. Highly rate these tyres, had them on different cars years ago, wasn't aware they were still available as they are no longer actually made and haven't been for a while. They came from Germany so I guess it's just the remaining stock over there...

Also got my ITG Maxogen fitted this weekend too...

Last but not least, just bought a set of Trophy Sachs dampers which should arrive next week. Will be getting these refurbished by BG Motorsport, and then fitting them along with a brand new set of Sachs rear dampers and a set of Mark Fish springs, so they will be the next purchases. Can't wait to have these fitted!

Ash

 

[Ash J]

So a few more bits turned up today.

Firstly, two pairs of Silver Vision bulbs which should tidy the front and rear up nicely.

Next up was my Phase 1 Shift and Gear Knob which also arrived. Already fitted with Yanoo Adjustable Stiff Shift, and his brass bushes and stiffer ball insert. Well made piece of kit. Just need to get some gearbox oil and then can get this fitted.

Last but not least, my Sachs dampers turned up today. I unwrapped one of them just to see how they look. I then wrapped it straight back up again and put it back in the box it came in, as they are already booked in with BG Motorsport for a refurbish next week, so they will be sent straight back out in the next day or two. Nothing special to look at at the moment, but they should be back in a couple of weeks all freshly powdercoated and refurbished. Yay!

Ash

 

[dann2707]

Awesome stuff, you do know that you can fit the gearstick without having to change the gearbox oil though right? Or just wanting to do it at the same time for efficiency?

 

[Ash J]

Awesome stuff, you do know that you can fit the gearstick without having to change the gearbox oil though right? Or just wanting to do it at the same time for efficiency?

Yeah sorry, the way I worded it makes it sound like I was waiting to get gearbox oil in order to fit it. It is purely the fact of wanting to replace gearbox oil anyway, so thought I might as well do it at the same time.

Another present arrived today! Almost too nice to have them fitted to the car!

 

[Stefan.]

Jeez ash you dont mess about lol!!

 

[just-that-ek]

You've got way to much money ash.

Ever fancy a blast drop me a message mate

 

[Jack-C]

Great progress on this. Lovely car

 

[Ash J]

Jeez ash you dont mess about lol!!

Nope lol! Few more parts to order pretty soon as well!

You've got way to much money ash.

Ever fancy a blast drop me a message mate

Lol I think it's more a case of I don't do anything else lol so most of my money goes on my car for now!

Yeah probably better to PM me your number mate and then I'll drop a text if ever I'm about or fancy a spin.

 

[Ash J]

Went and collected a parcel on Saturday from my local post office. It contained some alcantara interior parts and some smoothed bullets, many thanks to @cazzy for the parts from her Monaco that is sadly being broken. The alcantara parts were done by @Austin-182 really nice job! Sadly he no longer does this anymore, which is a shame as I need a matching gear gaiter!

Got it all fitted today. Some pics of it all fitted...

The bullets have been smoothed, painted in anthracite which match my wheels, and the 2.0 16v has been done in dark blue. Look really nice. So I then bought some ClioSport stickers in dark blue to match the writing on the bullets, and fitted these in my rear windows today too. It's the small details!

And my dampers were sent out yesterday to BG Motorsport, so all going to plan I should receive them back in about 2 weeks' time, 3 weeks max.

 

[Ash J]

Bit of an update on this then. Not done a great deal since last update, but a few things have been ordered.

First of all, I had a call from BG Motorsport on Friday to say my Sachs dampers are all done, refurbished and powdercoated. So they should arrive at work tomorrow, very excited!

I also called Mark Fish just over a week ago, and ordered a set of his Trophy springs, and a pair of rear adjustable Koni shocks. These should be here towards the end of next week or beginning of following week (about a two week wait for springs).

Then took a trip to my local ECP to collect a pair of Lemforder track rod ends (doing a whole suspension refresh when fitting springs and dampers).

As mentioned previously, one of my headlight washer jets is leaking, so I have ordered a pair of washer blanks from Simon at Spray Shack which will be painted in Black Gold. I also sent my aluminium Ph1 172 gear knob to him to have sprayed Black Gold as well, ready to be fitted in a couple of weeks. These should all be with me soon.

First parcel to arrive this week were my new brakes from @George@RTR_Parts and I couldn't recommend this guy enough! Customer service is excellent, really helpful guy and delivery was really quick with regular updates as to the status of my order, so thanks George If you need new brake parts, go to this guy! Everything in the pic was bought from RTR, apart from the KTR braided lines which I already had. Car is booked in with Mike at Rentech to have this all fitted on Friday 26th June.

Next to arrive was my gearbox oil from Opie. I opted for Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80, and I know you need 4L to be on the safe side. Currently on eBay, Opie are offering 5L of this gearbox oil for £41.10 including delivery, which is an absolute bargain! It's a fair amount cheaper than their website price too, so if you need gearbox oil then I suggest you get it now whilst the offer is on! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181245804731?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

Mike at Rentech will be doing a gearbox oil change for me, and fitting my shifter with the Yanoo stiff shift kit and Ph1 172 gear knob, at the same time as replacing all the brakes mentioned above.

Next up I ordered some TPI polarised wheel bolts and a set of lockers from sixonetwo. They look the absolute nuts. Haven't fitted them yet, but will get that done pretty soon.

Also ordered various new bulbs to freshen up the look of the car, and get rid of that yellow tint on the sidelights. I went for:

Osram Nightbreaker Unlimited H7 - Main Beam bulbs
Osram Cool Blue Intense 501 - Sidelight bulbs
Osram Diadem 581 - Front and Rear Indicator bulbs

They were all ordered from PowerBulbs. Again, cannot recommend enough. Super quick delivery, and they also offer a club discount.

Managed to get them all changed over today, really happy with the results. The hardest part was changing the sidelights over, not much room! But they look much better with the Xenons now. The indicator bulbs also look really cool in my eyes (I appreciate not everyone might like them) and there is the added bonus that they should match the new wheel bolts I have once I get them fitted!

Yesterday my new rear number plate light lens arrived. Just waiting for my LED bulb to arrive now, and then they can both be fitted together.

Last but not least, I ordered some Powerflex bushes from @Antony@OD which should arrive soon. Took advantage of the 20% club discount currently offered on Powerflex bushes, and went for the following:

Inner Anti Roll Bar Bushes
Outer Anti Roll Bar Bushes
Steering Rack Bushes
Ream Beam Bushes
Rear Shock Top Mounting Bushes

These should be here sometime this week.

That is it for now. Big update will come once all my suspension parts arrive, at which point the car will be booked in again with Mike at Rentech to have everything fitted (Trophy dampers, Koni rears, Mark Fish springs, AST adjustable front top mounts, Powerflex bushes, new genuine wishbones, new track rod ends, Eibach camber bolts). Should be quite a setup!

 

[Stefan.]

Nicest BG on this site imo

 

[Stay Puft]

Car looks fantastic mate. I have alcantra pillars too, makes a big difference. What are those orange things from a few posts ago?

 

[Stefan.]

Car looks fantastic mate. I have alcantra pillars too, makes a big difference. What are those orange things from a few posts ago?

Top mounts

 

[Ash J]

Nicest BG on this site imo

Car looks fantastic mate. I have alcantra pillars too, makes a big difference. What are those orange things from a few posts ago?

Thank you for the very generous comments guys.

They are adjustable front top mounts, as Stef mentioned

 

[Ash J]

So my Sachs dampers arrived today back from BG. Really happy with them, can't wait to get them fitted! Have to say, service from BG Motorsport was absolute A1, and turnaround was super quick even considering I mentioned that I was in no immediate rush for them! Would not hesitate to recommend their services. Anyway, pics....

 

[Stefan.]

Drool..

 

[Ash J]

So my new number plate LED bulb arrived earlier this week. Also got it fitted, with a before and after shot below. Much better!

Then a number of goodies turned up today...

First up, my RenaultSport Sabelt wheel, which has been retrimmed in black alcantara by Jack at Royal Steering wheels, with grey stitching. Perfect. Also with a K-Tec hub and a Ph1 stalk with the horn on the end. Hopefully get this fitted at the weekend. Always wanted a Sabelt wheel but never liked the standard blue/black mix (ok for a blue car I guess), so when this one came up I couldn't resist.

Then my Powerflex bushes turned up. Still waiting for the steering rack bushes to arrive as they are on a slight back order, but everything else is now here.

Just need to order a new pair of wishbones now, and wait for my Koni rear shocks and springs to arrive from Mark Fish, and then the suspension can all be fitted.

Finally, had some parts turn up from Simon at Spray Shack. Firstly, a pair of washer blanks painted in Black Gold. And my favourite part... sent off my Ph1 172 gearknob from my shifter to Simon to have sprayed Black Gold also, as the finish wasn't perfect before. Wow! What can I say! It looks a million times better than it does in the picture. And you can't really see the Black Gold in the pic, but it looks awesome! Very happy with all the parts, have to say the quality of Simon's spraying is top class!

 

[Stay Puft]

Quality little touches mate. That steering wheel looks gorgeous.

 

[pete_rawli]

Looks really good.

I'm been considering getting some alcantara pillars for mine, but I was wondering - how do you get the alarm sensors out of the old ones and into the new ones?

 

[dann2707]

Awesome update mate.

 

[Ash J]

Looks really good.

I'm been considering getting some alcantara pillars for mine, but I was wondering - how do you get the alarm sensors out of the old ones and into the new ones?

If you unclip the pillar from the car, you will see the wire from the alarm sensor which goes through the pillar and then you can follow it back. Turns out it runs just along the inside of the headliner where it meets the top of the windscreen. So I unscrewed the sun visors, pulled the headliner down very slightly, got the wire and cut it half way along (near to the rear view mirror). Pulled it through from the pillar end. Then when refitting my new pillars in alcantara, just drilled a hole like the original pillar, fed the wire through and back where it was before behind the headliner, and then used a butt connector to join the two wires. Simple. You will see how easy it is to follow the wire once you unclip the sensor. Have checked my alarm since and it is working fine.

 

[Ash J]

So I got the Sabelt wheel fitted yesterday. Popped down to my local Maplin first to pick up a couple of 3.9ohm resistors to keep the airbag warning light off, for a grand total of 78p! Wish all parts were that cheap!! Removed the old wheel, removed the Ph2 stalk, got my Ph1 stalk fitted with no dramas, and then bolted up the K-Tec hub. Fitted the resistors, and then the moment of truth to connect the battery and start her up, to see if the warning lights were on or not...

Result! I have to admit that when I went out for a drive after, I noticed the 'SERV' light and airbag light did come on for a short while. Then I unbolted the wheel again and had a play with the resistors again, which I think were not in far enough, and the lights have not been on again since, so fingers crossed that's all sorted now.

So, so, so much better to drive with! I've always maintained on all my cars, that a change of steering wheel can make one of the biggest differences to driving a car. Sad as it sounds, I'm finding any excuse to go for a drive just to have my hands around that wheel! Epic mod!

How it looks (looks even better in the flesh)...

Stupidly, I put all the trim back together around the steering wheel before checking the 'auto-cancel' on the indicators work. Which of course they don't, typically. Basically, there is a part inside the stalk that just needs swapping out from my Ph2 stalk and into the Ph1 stalk, pretty simple. Probably will be a job for today as it's a pain in the arse having to think about turning the indicator off!

Also my Eibach camber bolts turned up yesterday, eBay bargain at £10 delivered and they are brand new (no pic but we all know how they look).

 

[Ash J]

Oh, and yes I know there is a bolt missing in the steering wheel! I need to source another set unless I can find somewhere that sells one individually. Alternatively, if anybody on here has a single bolt they would be willing to sell me, or even a set, let me know!