BIGASH/FF-Racing X85 Clio Cup Racer Project

[dinger]

I love Cadwell in a small hatch, Its got just the right combination of medium length straights and lots of tight twisty technical stuff, My last race there was in 2006 with the 750 mc,

I disagree that it is only a bike circuit but definitely not for a larger salon

I may join you guys for the trackday,,,, would certainly put the willys up the usual javelin drivers, lol

 

[BIGASH]

Does look fun! I've got 2 days there in Novemeber lol so hope I like it

Yes you should Dave! Javelin dislike me anyway lol

 

[Adam G]

You should come to Cadwell in November that will be my first time round there quite interested to see what its like

Is that Sun 3rd James?
I might but just to say I've driven it and if we have a race there next year, at least I won't be a total virgin to it.

There's a couple of date's at Oulton, that I can do I think in November.

 

[BIGASH]

Yes Adam the 3rd Would be good! I'm only going for a pootle round and see what I think to it!

 

[dinger]

Lol,
They tried banning from furure events for doing this all day!

 

[Adam G]

Yes Adam the 3rd Would be good! I'm only going for a pootle round and see what I think to it!

I doubt you're capable of pootling. Oh go on then, I'll risk it.

 

[dinger]

Just checked my roster and I'm off that weekend so will book it for the 3rd.

 

[BIGASH]

Lol,
They tried banning from furure events for doing this all day!

Haha It was just too wet though not your fault.... lol

I doubt you're capable of pootling. Oh go on then, I'll risk it.

Me? Never :rasp: Will be good fun mate!

Just checked my roster and I'm off that weekend so will book it for the 3rd.

Great stuff Dave Looking forward to it!

 

[BIGASH]

Right just had a dig around for more info on the Birkett 6hr relay race.

The entry fee is £1450 + £20 club membership per driver. Minimum of 3 cars/drivers, Maximum of 6 cars/drivers. So entry including plenty of quali time and 1hr of race time would be as little as £266.66 including the cost of club membership. It works as a relay race so one car and driver comes into the pits and another is already in their car ready to set off as soon as the other car stops. The winner is the one with the most laps but there is also a handicap system to make it fairer for the less powerful cars. I think the Clio's could do really well especially with the handicap system. If anyone is interested let me know and we can start building up a team. It is also possible to have 6 drivers and for there to be more than one driver per car so don't even have to have a suitable car if you can share with someone else. Also you don't have to do the full 1 hour stint at one go as it can be split if wanted. If we don't get 6 drivers then i'm happy enough to do 2 hours if needs be

1. BIGASH (FF-Racing)

 

[NorthloopCup]

Does it have to be a full on prepared race car or can I enter in my mighty diamond? Cba to google it. Being bone idle tonight. I'd be very interested if I'd be allowed to enter.

 

[Tony Hunter]

Does it have to be a full on prepared race car or can I enter in my mighty diamond? Cba to google it. Being bone idle tonight. I'd be very interested if I'd be allowed to enter.

Unlucky, full race rules and not even a novice sticker is allowed out. It can be very hectic out there.

 

[BIGASH]

Been a busy few days on the Clio getting it ready after Mallory. A few problems to contend with which i'm just working out a solution for at the moment. I was getting oil surge in the race round the slow hairpin corner so looking at baffling the sump at the moment, aiming to get that complete tomorrow and i'll drop the old sump Monday after it's been for geo. The oil pressure was getting right down to VERY dangerous levels so time to sort it now rather than potentially scrapping the engine.

Also the gripper diff which has to be one of my favourite additions to the car seems to be causing my gearbox oil temps to go through the roof and is spitting lots of gear oil out of the breather. What are other peoples experiences of the gripper diffs? I don't know if the issue has just been magnified as it has the really slow speed hairpin where it will have been working over time. Does anyone run a gearbox oil cooler on the JC5? I was thinking about adding one but it's extra weight, space and mainly cost.

Other than that just been the boring jobs of cleaning the car, swapping tyres around and just got to sort a passenger seat and footwell for the Renaultsport trackday next week

 

[mi16chris]

I really can't see it making ur gear oil heat up that much that's odd I've never used a gripper but used cusco lsds in a few road cars and never had a problem with gear oil getting too hot ,is it possible it might have been over filled ?

 

[Hoofy]

We've looked at the Birkett relay and realllllllyyyyy wanna do it, but it won't be until next year for us. I think we're all still on 3 signatures so it'll be next year unfortunately!

 

[IcemanUK]

Been a busy few days on the Clio getting it ready after Mallory. A few problems to contend with which i'm just working out a solution for at the moment. I was getting oil surge in the race round the slow hairpin corner so looking at baffling the sump at the moment, aiming to get that complete tomorrow and i'll drop the old sump Monday after it's been for geo. The oil pressure was getting right down to VERY dangerous levels so time to sort it now rather than potentially scrapping the engine.

Also the gripper diff which has to be one of my favourite additions to the car seems to be causing my gearbox oil temps to go through the roof and is spitting lots of gear oil out of the breather. What are other peoples experiences of the gripper diffs? I don't know if the issue has just been magnified as it has the really slow speed hairpin where it will have been working over time. Does anyone run a gearbox oil cooler on the JC5? I was thinking about adding one but it's extra weight, space and mainly cost.

Other than that just been the boring jobs of cleaning the car, swapping tyres around and just got to sort a passenger seat and footwell for the Renaultsport trackday next week

What oil are you using in the box Ash?

 

[BIGASH]

I really can't see it making ur gear oil heat up that much that's odd I've never used a gripper but used cusco lsds in a few road cars and never had a problem with gear oil getting too hot ,is it possible it might have been over filled ?

When I come in off track the gearbox is too hot too touch yet I can touch the sump of the engine so its definitely getting pretty toasty lol! No unfortunately not as it did it first time at Mallory too and then had the oil dropped and replaced to the level was checked and also checked it a few time on the day it was happening

We've looked at the Birkett relay and realllllllyyyyy wanna do it, but it won't be until next year for us. I think we're all still on 3 signatures so it'll be next year unfortunately!

Thats a shame guys Hope all is well with you all! Donington?

What oil are you using in the box Ash?

Hi Mark, Castrol B373 is what gripper advised me to run

 

[Hoofy]

Thats a shame guys Hope all is well with you all! Donington?

Yes buddy, we'll be there. Not gonna be competing for the win like you though! You got a 2nd driver or you doing it on your tod?

 

[BIGASH]

Yes buddy, we'll be there. Not gonna be competing for the win like you though! You got a 2nd driver or you doing it on your tod?

Ahh great stuff I think i'm doing it on my own

Look forward to seeing you all next weekend!

 

[Kenny.s]

When I come in off track the gearbox is too hot too touch yet I can touch the sump of the engine so its definitely getting pretty toasty lol! No unfortunately not as it did it first time at Mallory too and then had the oil dropped and replaced to the level was checked and also checked it a few time on the day it was happening

Have you got an infrared thermometer? Would at least give you some idea what temperature it's actually running at, or put a few temperature strips on it.
Not sure what the operating limit is on B373 but if its spitting oil out the breather it sounds like its possibly frothing up so must be pretty hot, its a mineral based oil too so possibly not as resilient at dealing with extreme heat.

For the relatively small amount of weight it'll add, an oil cooler might be the difference between the gearbox surviving or dying.

 

[BIGASH]

Have you got an infrared thermometer? Would at least give you some idea what temperature it's actually running at, or put a few temperature strips on it.
Not sure what the operating limit is on B373 but if its spitting oil out the breather it sounds like its possibly frothing up so must be pretty hot, its a mineral based oil too so possibly not as resilient at dealing with extreme heat.

For the relatively small amount of weight it'll add, an oil cooler might be the difference between the gearbox surviving or dying.

No I don't Kenny but I will get one

Yes I just spoke with Gripper and they said the same thing about it frothing

Gripper are thinking along the same lines as me that its working the diff hard coming through the hairpin at Mallory. I'm at Oulton next week so i'll see how it goes there and i'll also sort the breather so it goes into the catch tank

It's not just the weight it's the looms that need to be changed and also lacking space for the cooler, oil pump and stat. But yes I agree it wont do any harm

​Thanks

 

[IcemanUK]

When I come in off track the gearbox is too hot too touch yet I can touch the sump of the engine so its definitely getting pretty toasty lol! No unfortunately not as it did it first time at Mallory too and then had the oil dropped and replaced to the level was checked and also checked it a few time on the day it was happening

Thats a shame guys Hope all is well with you all! Donington?

Hi Mark, Castrol B373 is what gripper advised me to run

I ran Motul in mine buddy. Will check what type.

 

[Kenny.s]

Some temperature strips would be useful too, not expensive either.

I'm sure it would be possible to come up with a fairly compact system, the oil pumps aren't much bigger than a fuel pump, simple temperature switch to control it and a small cooler. But I appreciate no matter what, its still another lump of stuff to fit in somewhere.

 

[shiftspark]

James I will give Russ a text, I am not aware of any problems with his and we do lots of very tight stuff but also dont run as long as you roundy round chaps

 

[dinger]

James,
Running mine at Snetterton I experienced no gearbox heat problems at all, and that has a similar high speed entry into a tight harpin, was out on track for 30 mins at a time, I'm using Castrol Syntrax.

Was the mainshaft shimmed right when it was put together? If it isn't then with heat it will put pressure on the end bearing creating heat, When I fitted mine there was no off the shelf shimm from Renault that would suit and had to get my original machined down, We took more off than was recommended by the Renault repair manual for expansion due to additional heat involved with racing,

The gripper itself should not produce any more heat

 

[mark123]

I was just going to echo what others have said about your box over heating while others don't under similar circumstances. I'd be looking for an underlying problem rather than trying to hide symptoms.

And I'd say the same about the oil pressure at Mallory. I just looked at my video and I can see the pressure drop on the hairpin but I think it is just down to it being the place on the circuit with the lowest revs. How low was your pressure going? I don't think mine dropped below 2 bar.
​

 

[BIGASH]

I ran Motul in mine buddy. Will check what type.

Thanks Mark much appreciated

Some temperature strips would be useful too, not expensive either.

I'm sure it would be possible to come up with a fairly compact system, the oil pumps aren't much bigger than a fuel pump, simple temperature switch to control it and a small cooler. But I appreciate no matter what, its still another lump of stuff to fit in somewhere.

Yes I will get some ordered, should have a laser temp gauge arriving in the morning

Yes I agree mate just would rather not run it if possible!

James I will give Russ a text, I am not aware of any problems with his and we do lots of very tight stuff but also dont run as long as you roundy round chaps

Thanks Colin Spoken with him tonight! You need to come and try the roundy round stuff

James,
Running mine at Snetterton I experienced no gearbox heat problems at all, and that has a similar high speed entry into a tight harpin, was out on track for 30 mins at a time, I'm using Castrol Syntrax.

Was the mainshaft shimmed right when it was put together? If it isn't then with heat it will put pressure on the end bearing creating heat, When I fitted mine there was no off the shelf shimm from Renault that would suit and had to get my original machined down, We took more off than was recommended by the Renault repair manual for expansion due to additional heat involved with racing,

The gripper itself should not produce any more heat

I can't say to be honest Dave, I certainly presume so as it was done by Martin at Agency who has a very good reputation and he seems to know his stuff

I was just going to echo what others have said about your box over heating while others don't under similar circumstances. I'd be looking for an underlying problem rather than trying to hide symptoms.

And I'd say the same about the oil pressure at Mallory. I just looked at my video and I can see the pressure drop on the hairpin but I think it is just down to it being the place on the circuit with the lowest revs. How low was your pressure going? I don't think mine dropped below 2 bar.
​

Yes Mark maybe I will see how Oulton goes and go from there!

Mine went down to 13.1 psi (0.9bar ish) so definite starvation when looked at the traces of lat and long G

​

 

[Tony Hunter]

Glad I don't have a pressure gauge, don't worry about it then.

 

[sonny172cup]

Glad I don't have a pressure gauge, don't worry about it then.

​lol +1

 

[Msphotographic]

James i should have some temp stick on gauges in my car for work il grab them and give them to you wednesday

 

[BIGASH]

Glad I don't have a pressure gauge, don't worry about it then.

I can always turn the gauge off if I don't like what its saying lol!

James i should have some temp stick on gauges in my car for work il grab them and give them to you wednesday

Thanks mate Apparently i'm collecting and bringing you some carbon? lol

 

[MicKPM]

Once you see it though James it'll constantly be in your mind (plus I bet you've set an alarm trigger on the Dash2).

Have you found out why it happened yet?

 

[BIGASH]

Once you see it though James it'll constantly be in your mind (plus I bet you've set an alarm trigger on the Dash2).

Have you found out why it happened yet?

Yes it was just oil starvation mate, round the hairpin there is a drop in oil pressure which correlates to the G the car was subjected to. Making a baffled sump for it but i'm not going to have it done for Oulton or racing at Donny next weekend so fingers crossed

Lol I didn't have an alarm set before but yes set it to 20PSI now

 

[MicKPM]

Making a baffled sump for it

LoLz - is it going to be like the one on Freds wall if fail. Isn't there a Sodemo dry sump setup going atm?

 

[BIGASH]

LoLz - is it going to be like the one on Freds wall if fail. Isn't there a Sodemo dry sump setup going atm?

Haha cant say I've seen it but I hope not! Yeah but won't fit in the bay space.

 

[ian-speedy]

Haha cant say I've seen it but I hope not! Yeah but won't fit in the bay space.

if your still running the standard engine mounts the dry sump setup fitted to the inlet side of the engine might fit , don't think it will on mine as I'm running the racer setup where the engine is mounted to the subframe and the pump setup will foul my front offside engine mount , the sodemo engine I bought on the weekend had the dry sump system fitted to the exhaust side of the engine and would foul on the drive shaft , shame otherwise I would have fitted it as well

like this engine

http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56384

Looks like they have lifted the ports in the head on this engine and machined some plates to cover the old ports up , fancy stuff !

 

[mitsiman]

Nope, got a mate who ran a few cars in it last year and said it was really good! Might enter their team or you fancy getting a few clio's together and doing it? Ian too?

We are already entered for the Birkett with the Dirty Half Dozen(we won it last year so got to defend the title!) I will do it next year in a Clio only set up, I have done the Birkett about twelve times, its a great day out

 

[BIGASH]

if your still running the standard engine mounts the dry sump setup fitted to the inlet side of the engine might fit , don't think it will on mine as I'm running the racer setup where the engine is mounted to the subframe and the pump setup will foul my front offside engine mount , the sodemo engine I bought on the weekend had the dry sump system fitted to the exhaust side of the engine and would foul on the drive shaft , shame otherwise I would have fitted it as well

like this engine

http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56384

Looks like they have lifted the ports in the head on this engine and machined some plates to cover the old ports up , fancy stuff !

Thanks Ian, Yes I think that still wouldn't fit in my bay with the subframe, oil cooler and radiator. Looks an awesome bit of engine you have got yourself

We are already entered for the Birkett with the Dirty Half Dozen(we won it last year so got to defend the title!) I will do it next year in a Clio only set up, I have done the Birkett about twelve times, its a great day out

Yes it does look like a great way to end the season! The clio team doesn't seem to of had any interest so i'll just tag on with my friends group

 

[Tony Hunter]

I'm still interested in the Birkett, but that's over 1k away yet atm!!

 

[BIGASH]

Went a bit of the beaten track at Oulton today Had to withdraw from the Donington race on Saturday as won't get the car fixed but not much damage just have to remove the gearbox and engine but I'm working up till the weekend so no time to fix

 

[Martin.]

Went a bit of the beaten track at Oulton today

What happened??