Waitey
ClioSport Club Member
Alpina D3, AC Cobra
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If I were you, I'd have tried to get a small flexi in the downpipe (vertically), and then made a bracket linking the downpipe to the gearbox. Will reduce the chances of cracking the exhaust manifold and blowing turbo gaskets regularly.
The flexi I've got will fit on the straight bit of the downpipe, and probably JUST fit between the chassis/gearbox, as that was the plan originally. I might just do it and then worry about it if it starts knocking. If I do that I guess its only worth bracing the top (turbo side) of the flexi to the gearbox?
The other guys hose came yeah, it will do the job for now - cheers though.
The other guys hose came yeah, it will do the job for now - cheers though.
A standard setup has a mount from the turbo elbow to near the sump, and a mount from the very back of the downpipe to the gearbox. Key is to ensure the exhaust system is moving in relation to the engine, hence mounting to the block and box.
On my system, the only supports I have are from the head/mani flange to mani/turbo exh inlet flange, and the back end of the downpipe to the box. This and a flexi, pretty much the accepted method for aftermarket bits.
On my system, the only supports I have are from the head/mani flange to mani/turbo exh inlet flange, and the back end of the downpipe to the box. This and a flexi, pretty much the accepted method for aftermarket bits.
So basically the top of the downpipe (well pre flexi) just needs bracing to the box then... As putting a brace after the flexi will pretty much achieve nothing as the flexi wouldn't be doing anything? The manifold/flanges have their own bracing already, so I just need to make one for the downpipe and it should be set.
They're all braced post flexi, or have no flexi at all. It seems to work anyway, as pointless as it sounds. A post flexi mount would work too though. The manifold brace is built in aye.
what's involved in refitting your cast manifold? I was just wondering whether it's feasable to stick the bits in your spares box when you go to the track?
Manifold isn't a quick job, few hours at least.
I could probably do it in an hour or so, there isn't much in the way on the E30. Will see what happens once it drives...
Another bit of news - After sending more measurements to Gaz they seem to think there is a manufacturing fault with the front coilovers. They have made me a new pair from a different set of hubs which are going to be sent out as soon as they receive my front two back early next week.
The other issue they noticed is 9" springs had been supplied instead of 6". They confirmed that a standard 15" BMW E30 wheel should fit without spacers no issues, its only the 14" E30 wheel that needs a small spacer. Confirmed from another couple of people that the standard wheels should fit fine also.
Hopefully will have the new ones mid week and it will be the end of the issue......
Another bit of news - After sending more measurements to Gaz they seem to think there is a manufacturing fault with the front coilovers. They have made me a new pair from a different set of hubs which are going to be sent out as soon as they receive my front two back early next week.
The other issue they noticed is 9" springs had been supplied instead of 6". They confirmed that a standard 15" BMW E30 wheel should fit without spacers no issues, its only the 14" E30 wheel that needs a small spacer. Confirmed from another couple of people that the standard wheels should fit fine also.
Hopefully will have the new ones mid week and it will be the end of the issue......
Sunflower Ph1 172
That should set that 'tard on E30z straight then. Glad it's getting sorted, fingers crossed its a fault their end.
Modified the downpipe to include the flexi now. I was going to run the flexi at the start of the center section, but after the above I thought I would try and make it fit in the gap. After a bit of measuring and cutting, managed to get it sat in the right place - along with making a brace to one of the gearbox bellhousing bolts..
Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of it off the car, as I just got it done and bolted it up to the turbo with a new gasket. The end of the downpipe still comes out in the same place, so I'm happy with that and just need an exhaust making now.
After the downpipe was done I made a new hole for the throttle cable above the servo (as moving the servo has blocked the old hole). Fitted the throttle cable (Mk1 Clio item) and checked I could get full throttle, which was fine. Last job before fitting the master cylinder to the servo was to make up a pin for the clevis/pedal as the original BMW item would not work now due to moving the servo over. An M10 bolt was modified and fitted.
I then bolted up the master cylinder and cut the hoses from the Mk2 Punto reservoir to the correct length. I also fitted the clutch line to the 3rd outlet which runs back inside the car to the clutch cylinder. Just needs a bracket/mount making for the reservoir, which I will have to get round to doing sometime this week.
Now that the top hose was sorted I decided to run the engine upto temperature with coolant in it - thankfully its very smooth, with no oil or coolant leaks
From that I knew the wiring was all OK, so had a few hours on it this afternoon fitting it all into the correct location through the original E30 bulkhead grommet, and mounting the ECU inside out of the way. Just need to wait for the suspension to come back from Gaz during the week now so the front brakes can be fitted.
Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of it off the car, as I just got it done and bolted it up to the turbo with a new gasket. The end of the downpipe still comes out in the same place, so I'm happy with that and just need an exhaust making now.
After the downpipe was done I made a new hole for the throttle cable above the servo (as moving the servo has blocked the old hole). Fitted the throttle cable (Mk1 Clio item) and checked I could get full throttle, which was fine. Last job before fitting the master cylinder to the servo was to make up a pin for the clevis/pedal as the original BMW item would not work now due to moving the servo over. An M10 bolt was modified and fitted.
I then bolted up the master cylinder and cut the hoses from the Mk2 Punto reservoir to the correct length. I also fitted the clutch line to the 3rd outlet which runs back inside the car to the clutch cylinder. Just needs a bracket/mount making for the reservoir, which I will have to get round to doing sometime this week.
Now that the top hose was sorted I decided to run the engine upto temperature with coolant in it - thankfully its very smooth, with no oil or coolant leaks
From that I knew the wiring was all OK, so had a few hours on it this afternoon fitting it all into the correct location through the original E30 bulkhead grommet, and mounting the ECU inside out of the way. Just need to wait for the suspension to come back from Gaz during the week now so the front brakes can be fitted.
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TTRS & V50
Sounds incredibly smooth, nice one.
Lets hope the new Gaz's sort the problem susp wise.
Lets hope the new Gaz's sort the problem susp wise.
Well, the Gaz's came back on Friday along with the 'complementary' top mounts due to all the messing around. Although, they still aren't right. They have just been supplied with 6" springs and helpers now instead of the 9" single spring. So yeah, the spring platform will be higher to miss the tyre, but if I want to wind it down il be back to square one.
Fitted both sides to the car and wound the coilovers to around 25 threads up to see how it went. Also bolted up the top mounts in a pretty neutral position.
I went on to fit the brakes before testing the height... so 4pots and DS3000s with VW Corrado discs..
Then got the wheels on both sides and checked the clearance..
Yep, it now clears by quite a bit, but obviously it would as the spring is shorter. Completely pointless having helpers on there also as they are 100% compressed even set at this height, so need removing really. I let it down onto the floor and its about 20mm (if not more) too high than the height I wanted to start with.
Now if I wind it down that amount, the spring platforms will be on the tyre again. I may gain 10mm of space removing the helper (i.e not having to wind it down the full 20mm), but its besides the point, I may aswell just be running springs and shocks. So I'm going to have to get back in contact with them again, brilliant! Anyway, I got on with some other bits instead..
710N recirc fitted and tidied up..
Over the past week I have moved all the wiring inside to its final position, mounted the ECUs to the side of the foot well and incorporated a Clio (engine side) fuse box, as it only has a few slots and is ideal for what I need. After getting it all mounted, working and tidy I got on with some other electrical bits..
Picked up a 12" electric fan for the radiator and fitted it..
I ran some wiring back inside along with the MAF/GReddy solenoid wiring, then set up a fused relay that the ECU can trigger to turn the fan on and off. After I was happy with that I ran the car up to temperature and made sure the fan came on and switched off when the ECU wanted, which it did!
The loose wire above the top radiator hose is for an additional coolant temperature gauge (to run an aftermarket gauge), thought it would be wise to add in while I was running wires! Next up was the rev counter. I picked up an Autometer Tacho from another forum, as I am only going to run a rev counter, coolant temperature gauge and AFR for now. I mounted it on top of the steering column bracket, and wired it into the feed that the ECU outputs for RPM..
Started the car and let it warm up again, although the idle will not drop below 1100rpm. Checked for any vacuum leaks, checked the boost pipework, all the usual stuff, yet it still refuses to drop. However, if the feed for the ICV is removed and blocked off, it sits at 800rpm. With the ICV pipe connected upto the inter cooler cold pipe the idle goes back to 1100rpm. Very weird! Hopefully a few posts on a few SR based forums will shed some light. Even at 1100rpm its very smooth, so not too much of an issue as of yet.
A few other bits were tidied up, mainly wiring and adding braid to parts of the loom inside and out. Only 3 relays are now present - ECU Power, Fuel Pump and Radiator Fan. The fuse box just needs mounting above the ECU and then all the wiring is pretty much hidden!
The next major job is to get the front end to fit again, the metal valance will require some trimming to fit around the inter cooler. Happy that the grills fit without modification though!
and lastly...
More soon!
Fitted both sides to the car and wound the coilovers to around 25 threads up to see how it went. Also bolted up the top mounts in a pretty neutral position.
I went on to fit the brakes before testing the height... so 4pots and DS3000s with VW Corrado discs..
Then got the wheels on both sides and checked the clearance..
Yep, it now clears by quite a bit, but obviously it would as the spring is shorter. Completely pointless having helpers on there also as they are 100% compressed even set at this height, so need removing really. I let it down onto the floor and its about 20mm (if not more) too high than the height I wanted to start with.
Now if I wind it down that amount, the spring platforms will be on the tyre again. I may gain 10mm of space removing the helper (i.e not having to wind it down the full 20mm), but its besides the point, I may aswell just be running springs and shocks. So I'm going to have to get back in contact with them again, brilliant! Anyway, I got on with some other bits instead..
710N recirc fitted and tidied up..
Over the past week I have moved all the wiring inside to its final position, mounted the ECUs to the side of the foot well and incorporated a Clio (engine side) fuse box, as it only has a few slots and is ideal for what I need. After getting it all mounted, working and tidy I got on with some other electrical bits..
Picked up a 12" electric fan for the radiator and fitted it..
I ran some wiring back inside along with the MAF/GReddy solenoid wiring, then set up a fused relay that the ECU can trigger to turn the fan on and off. After I was happy with that I ran the car up to temperature and made sure the fan came on and switched off when the ECU wanted, which it did!
The loose wire above the top radiator hose is for an additional coolant temperature gauge (to run an aftermarket gauge), thought it would be wise to add in while I was running wires! Next up was the rev counter. I picked up an Autometer Tacho from another forum, as I am only going to run a rev counter, coolant temperature gauge and AFR for now. I mounted it on top of the steering column bracket, and wired it into the feed that the ECU outputs for RPM..
Started the car and let it warm up again, although the idle will not drop below 1100rpm. Checked for any vacuum leaks, checked the boost pipework, all the usual stuff, yet it still refuses to drop. However, if the feed for the ICV is removed and blocked off, it sits at 800rpm. With the ICV pipe connected upto the inter cooler cold pipe the idle goes back to 1100rpm. Very weird! Hopefully a few posts on a few SR based forums will shed some light. Even at 1100rpm its very smooth, so not too much of an issue as of yet.
A few other bits were tidied up, mainly wiring and adding braid to parts of the loom inside and out. Only 3 relays are now present - ECU Power, Fuel Pump and Radiator Fan. The fuse box just needs mounting above the ECU and then all the wiring is pretty much hidden!
The next major job is to get the front end to fit again, the metal valance will require some trimming to fit around the inter cooler. Happy that the grills fit without modification though!
and lastly...
More soon!
Last edited by a moderator:
Sunflower Ph1 172
Mcaff
ClioSport Club Member
legend loved your clio before this, awesome work enjoyed the read so far.
looking forward to seeing this in action!
loved your clio before this, awesome work enjoyed the read so far. looking forward to seeing this in action!
Well its booked in to have its exhaust made on the 2nd December, and then off to Oulton on Saturday 3rd December
Started on the seat bars earlier, hopefully have those finished in the next couple of days while I wait for the brake lines to arrive. Should get it driving under its own power later in the week I hope!
Started on the seat bars earlier, hopefully have those finished in the next couple of days while I wait for the brake lines to arrive. Should get it driving under its own power later in the week I hope!
Nafoff
ClioSport Club Member
with your fab skills i am surprised you haven't contemplated raising the strut tops to rectify your problem...lol
Nafoff
ClioSport Club Member
with regards to the seat mount bars, they are pretty simple to make right?
i am re-evaluating my approach with the 172
i am re-evaluating my approach with the 172
My Clio (Mk1) ones were quite a bit more complicated than the BMW. Its easy this time as both sides of the car where they mount are pretty much vertical. I have opted to use roll cage tube again with brackets for the sidemounts to bolt to. Basically its as 'simple' as just making plates for the shell to spread the load/give it more strength, then the bars weld to that...
Nafoff
ClioSport Club Member
cool, i will re-evaluate with the guy that would be doing the welding...lol
cheers mate
hope you sort the suspension
cheers mate
hope you sort the suspension
Quite a lot done since the last post. I changed the way that the seats were going to be mounted, simply because with 40/45mm bar welded across the floor pan the seat would be rather high, I wanted to keep them quite low and just use the holes on the sidemounts if I ever wanted to raise them up.
These are the same seats I had in the Clio, one is a standard width (drivers) and one is GT width (wider). After a bit of measuring I realised I would be able to retain two of the factory threaded holes in the floor for the GT width seat. I could only keep one of the threaded holes for the narrower drivers seat.
I did a bit of reading on various sites/other E30 projects to get an idea of how people usually mount them, and ended up doing it the same way (retaining the holes as above). I put the sidemount as close to the exhaust tunnel as possible retaining the factory threaded hole (rear bolt) and it worked out well that the front hole would be on a flat part of the chassis. I used 3mm plate and welded it over which should be sufficient. For the outside, I used 3mm plate again which was bent to 90degrees, then profiled to follow the shape of the floorpan (slopes down to the back of the car). Because the drivers seat is narrower, I could not retain the outside rear threaded hole, so I drilled and welded an M10 nut on the back before welding the whole thing to the car.
With the passenger seat, I managed to retain the factory threads for both rear holes which was useful. Next job was to trial fit them and check the position - both were spot on and perfectly level which I was happy with..
As mentioned in the previous update the suspension was still to high, and I was going to remove the helper springs. I have since removed them and it dropped 20mm without having to touch the adjuster rings - so its usable for now, but I will be getting in contact with Gaz once again after Oulton to see what the actual issue is, as its pointless having coilovers if I cant adjust the height!
Now I had the seats in position, I could check where the hydraulic handbrake and bias valve needed to be mounted. After trying a few positions I got it where I wanted and marked it up. Drilled through the chassis (I managed to retain one of the rear threaded holes already in the exhaust tunnel) then bolted it down. I also mounted the Tilton bias valve to the side of the handbrake frame..
Once it was mounted I could run the line from the master cylinder to the rear T-piece above the diff. I used standard copper pipe for ease, and wrapped it with spiral wrap to make it look a bit tidier. The line goes into the bias valve, then into the handbrake, then out to the rear..
As you may have noticed the inside has been cleaned up and the rest of the sound deadening removed. Also gave the seat mounts a quick spray on both sides to stop any surface rust forming for now.
I had ordered four braided lines from Earls - Master cylinder to front caliper on both sides and T-piece to rear calipers on both sides at the back. They came next day so I got on and fitted those. Opted for banjo fittings on the rear calipers to keep it tidy and out of the way, same with the master cylinder end. I didnt get any pictures of the front but everyones seen braided lines before....
Also knocked up a quick bracket for the punto reservoir..
I put some fluid in and bled the clutch which works well. Filled up the gearbox oil with 75w90, and filled up the diff with some proper Castrol oil. I gave it a quick 'drive' on the axle stands to check the clutch was functioning, took it up to 4th gear and all seemed smooth. Just need to bleed the brakes (probably tonight) before I can try and drive it properly.
Lastly I finished off trimming the front valance to fit round the intercooler/pipework, and holesaw'd the front panel which is usually solid metal. Gave the bare metal edges a quick spray of black then mounted it onto the car..
Along with the MTEC front valance/trim, and freshly painted grills..
Last thing to do is holesaw the actual front 'bumper' which goes round between the valance and grills, then that can be fitted. Not many jobs left on the list now so fingers crossed I'm getting there!
These are the same seats I had in the Clio, one is a standard width (drivers) and one is GT width (wider). After a bit of measuring I realised I would be able to retain two of the factory threaded holes in the floor for the GT width seat. I could only keep one of the threaded holes for the narrower drivers seat.
I did a bit of reading on various sites/other E30 projects to get an idea of how people usually mount them, and ended up doing it the same way (retaining the holes as above). I put the sidemount as close to the exhaust tunnel as possible retaining the factory threaded hole (rear bolt) and it worked out well that the front hole would be on a flat part of the chassis. I used 3mm plate and welded it over which should be sufficient. For the outside, I used 3mm plate again which was bent to 90degrees, then profiled to follow the shape of the floorpan (slopes down to the back of the car). Because the drivers seat is narrower, I could not retain the outside rear threaded hole, so I drilled and welded an M10 nut on the back before welding the whole thing to the car.
With the passenger seat, I managed to retain the factory threads for both rear holes which was useful. Next job was to trial fit them and check the position - both were spot on and perfectly level which I was happy with..
As mentioned in the previous update the suspension was still to high, and I was going to remove the helper springs. I have since removed them and it dropped 20mm without having to touch the adjuster rings - so its usable for now, but I will be getting in contact with Gaz once again after Oulton to see what the actual issue is, as its pointless having coilovers if I cant adjust the height!
Now I had the seats in position, I could check where the hydraulic handbrake and bias valve needed to be mounted. After trying a few positions I got it where I wanted and marked it up. Drilled through the chassis (I managed to retain one of the rear threaded holes already in the exhaust tunnel) then bolted it down. I also mounted the Tilton bias valve to the side of the handbrake frame..
Once it was mounted I could run the line from the master cylinder to the rear T-piece above the diff. I used standard copper pipe for ease, and wrapped it with spiral wrap to make it look a bit tidier. The line goes into the bias valve, then into the handbrake, then out to the rear..
As you may have noticed the inside has been cleaned up and the rest of the sound deadening removed. Also gave the seat mounts a quick spray on both sides to stop any surface rust forming for now.
I had ordered four braided lines from Earls - Master cylinder to front caliper on both sides and T-piece to rear calipers on both sides at the back. They came next day so I got on and fitted those. Opted for banjo fittings on the rear calipers to keep it tidy and out of the way, same with the master cylinder end. I didnt get any pictures of the front but everyones seen braided lines before....
Also knocked up a quick bracket for the punto reservoir..
I put some fluid in and bled the clutch which works well. Filled up the gearbox oil with 75w90, and filled up the diff with some proper Castrol oil. I gave it a quick 'drive' on the axle stands to check the clutch was functioning, took it up to 4th gear and all seemed smooth. Just need to bleed the brakes (probably tonight) before I can try and drive it properly.
Lastly I finished off trimming the front valance to fit round the intercooler/pipework, and holesaw'd the front panel which is usually solid metal. Gave the bare metal edges a quick spray of black then mounted it onto the car..
Along with the MTEC front valance/trim, and freshly painted grills..
Last thing to do is holesaw the actual front 'bumper' which goes round between the valance and grills, then that can be fitted. Not many jobs left on the list now so fingers crossed I'm getting there!
Christopher
ClioSport Club Member
Z4M
Brilliant!
Nafoff
ClioSport Club Member
nice work jord, liking the look of the front, nice work on the seat mounts too, super low.....
hmmm... getting more ideas...lol
hmmm... getting more ideas...lol
Sunflower Ph1 172
Looking forward to Satuday now!
Looks mean. Black FMIC for ultimate stealth mode BTW.
It's negligible at best. Maybe you'd notice running 800bhp.
Il probably do the cooler at some point, just been trying to get everything bolted together for now. As for the bump stop things nope, I was going to remove them, strip the damper out of them and just put the front part back on to mount the 'bumper' from, but not got round to it yet. Its on the list for over winter
Discounted 1*2 parts
awsome work as usual Jord, look forward to seeing the end result
TTRS & V50
Mega.
