Bumblebee 2 featuring LY R26

[Brigsy]

Updates.

Undertray was missing as per all of the plastics underneath thanks to previous rough owners. Ive reinstated all the rest apart from the undertray. Its not a massive issue but nice to have, to keep the crap out of the engine bay and promotes airflow through the engine bay and out the back of the subframe. Also catches the odd drip of oil and saves it going on my block paving as these f4r always leak from somewhere?!

Megane 2 rs has an engine brace and runs a half sized undertray, Our blue meg 225 still has it fitted. Anyway they are pretty much made of unobtanium 2nd hand now as they have all been ripped off and binned previously.

Pic of mk2 rs undertray off google

Compared pics of normal mk2 megane undertray and they are identical apart from about twice the length. 2nd hand oem commanded good money for what they are. Seen a cheap aftermarket one on ebay £30 new. Worth a punt?!

Wait a few weeks and it eventually arrives on the slow boat from wherever. Says manufactured in Turkey on sticker.

As mentioned above, it wont fit with the rs subframe brace. Marked line out and cut.

Offered up and the nutserts in the front subframe were knackered with original bolts seized in. Old ones pulled out and larger M8 nutserts fitted.

Fitted.

Subframe brace in situ.

Daft hours work. Should keep the shite off the underside of the engine bay.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Brigsy]

Updates.

First of all Happy new year all and all the best for 2024!

On the runup to xmas i didnt really use the r26 much, as all over with work and the one day i wanted to use it the mrs took it before i got chance

Went away to tenerife for a week and seen its spanish twin in Los Cristianos. Seen this approx ten years ago the first time i went, a few battle scars now but still hanging in there! No doubt worth a small fortune on the island as all cars are expensive compared to uk.

Survivor.

Used it a bit over xmas. Give it a clean as it had not been washed in a month or so and was starting to look a bit unloved. Also removed the R26 sticker from the back.

Clean.

Blending in.

Its had a chirp on the aux belt area from cold recently and what sounded like a noisy lifter if sat a few days (more on that later). Its had a head job and cambelt done not too long ago, but ive seen a few bits that i was not happy with so the decision was took to sort it.

It runs decent and seems to go well enough but before starting i comp tested it and had a look in the bores.

Sanity check. All around this and within 10%

Looks like a piston. Nothing to really note on any cylinders.

So with this in mind i dug out a spare set of lifters and cleaned/checked them. 3 seemed a bit weak but can make a good set up out of the current ones.

Diesel everywhere. Stinks

To be continued..

 

[Brigsy]

So after sitting about doing nothing for a few days got the R26 in the garage for surgery new years eve.

As i said above this had been in a garage and had the head off and new valves before i got it. It ran ok and it looked to have a recent cambelt on, but i was seeing bits i didn't like when looking. As its going in for a map soon and the ticky lifter i decided to bite the bullet and change lifters etc.

As seen in the last post i comp tested it which was actually just before i pulled it to bits. I found 2x loose spark plugs on cyl 1&2 so that will have been the ticking id imagine. Not uncommon for f4r that.

Id noticed when i first got it that the cam cover had the incorrect sealant and the inlet pulley nut looked slightly rounded which had me wondering if torqued right. Also all 4x locating dowels were missing, incorrect 5pk aux belt (doesnt really hurt just not right).

Gasket maker and no cam cover locating dowels

More gasket maker and pulley nut not looking too hot

Tensioner in the region but cant see tension mark for whatever reason, wrong nut non flanged.

Im no stranger to cambelts on these f4r engines and as usual got the cam slots somewhere near ready to pin the crank and was struggling to get the pin in. In the end i gunned the crank pulley off which was not mega tight, so could see the key slot and location compared to the oil pump case to check its in the correct hole - the timing was miles out on exhaust cam when crank pinned.

Silicone the world

Nice weld on cam cover, assume somebody has fcuked up and broke it when lifting engine.

Stripped, head looks ok journals good etc

Bit of a shitstorm really must have been having a bad day on this one.

 

[Brigsy]

I was almost at the point of pulling the head and binning it as was concerned that the lack of locating dowels was going to be a mismatched cam cover and the repaired corner. However journals and cams looked ok so decided to go with it.

Repair - not great but flat and doesnt leak

2 hours of picking silicone off

Clean finally, dowels robbed out of spare head and fitted.

I never planned on blinging this up but whilst cover was off give it a blast of vht aluminium to tidy up as only ten min job as id ultimately regret not doing it. Ive used this on the kangoo and its very durable so should last.

Looks tidier with minimal effort.

Bit of engine assembly lube on journals and correct anaerobic Locktite 518 cam cover sealant.

Lifters changed/set made up. Cams back in, cam cover refitted and torqued to spec. Tested cams and moving ok with cover locating dowels fitted so all OK. Tried a new breather cover gasket from autodoc see how that goes.

Bling

Breather plate fitted and torqued.

Uniform bead of 518.

Had to call it a day at that. Sump off next as ive seen a couple of bolts missing and tons of silicone so want a look in.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Yarp]

Some effort that mate! Bloody hell. That escalated quickly 😂.

Seriously though, are there any correctly timed F4Rs floating about? It seems like all of them have been molested by ham fisted oafs at some point in their lives.

 

[RSRowe]

What a complete bodge that’s been in the past!

 

[Brigsy]

Some effort that mate! Bloody hell. That escalated quickly 😂.

Seriously though, are there any correctly timed F4Rs floating about? It seems like all of them have been molested by ham fisted oafs at some point in their lives.

Cheers mate. Yep loads of bodged f4rs out there sadly.

What a complete bodge that’s been in the past!

Indeed mate. Previous owner spent a few quid at a specialist too. Bolts missing the lot, s**t show.

 

[Brigsy]

Weekend update

Started off with installing new cam seals.

Ching spec mandrel doing the business.

Dug out the homemade crank puller.

Easy work.

That took a whole half an hr max. Onto sump removal next. Im no stranger to the etorx bolts holding them on and how soft they are. 5 bolts were missing and some loose so all was going well, until found out that previous bodger had rounded off 5 and no amount of burring the heads would get a good bite on the bolts. Typically one of the deep bolts at the flywheel side was causing issues which was a major problem and didnt want to.take gearbox off for access. Nearly give up at this point and pulled engine out but 4 hours laid on my back with cold chisel and long drill bit and its off.

5 bolts that can royally fcuk your day up.

F4r sump fully drained by plug and oil left, never fully drains, better off using vac pump. Silicone all over, old gasket was stuck to the block.

Sump had suffered a little in the process, was not the worst and would have went again. However i have a few in stock so changed it.

Good used meg sump cleaned and ready for use.

Oil pump closing plate gasket replaced and new crank seal installed. Again a couple of bolts were missing.

Reinstalled sump with new gasket which went pretty smoothly. Cracked on and fitted new water pump, tensioners and cambelt using gen renault tools and torqued to spec.

Mot 1801 in use.

Looking more complete.

Its not far off now, handful of jobs left to do. Ran out of time with the sump issue taking ages so will be back on with it next weekend.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Krarl]

Some proper bodge-it and scarper c**t has been working on that!

 

[Djw John]

Some proper bodge-it and scarper c**t has been working on that!

@Krarl

 

[Adey.]

solid work, remember when it was just going to get a little tidy up..... it feels good to tinker

 

[Yarp]

Those sump bolts are the absolute pits! A handful of mine were rounded off when I dropped the sump but luckily all the easy access ones. In the end I sacrificed the sump and drilled round them as the sump was much softer than the bolts and replaced the sump. Went with just normal hex bolts as a replacement.

Theres been some top quality bodgery done on that in the past!

 

[Mr Underhill]

Lovely work Jon

 

[Donny_Dog]

Mega updates.
When's it for sale?

 

[Brigsy]

Some proper bodge-it and scarper c**t has been working on that!

Its horrendous mate. The more i looked the more bodges ive seen.

solid work, remember when it was just going to get a little tidy up..... it feels good to tinker

Cheers mate. I recall thinking this was a quick project couldnt leave it mate i reckon it would have went wrong at some point.

Those sump bolts are the absolute pits! A handful of mine were rounded off when I dropped the sump but luckily all the easy access ones. In the end I sacrificed the sump and drilled round them as the sump was much softer than the bolts and replaced the sump. Went with just normal hex bolts as a replacement.

Theres been some top quality bodgery done on that in the past!

The sump bolts are terrible. I done similar and chain drilled the flange off the bolt and eventually got them moving once tension was off. Awful job, shite falling all over when drilling underneath. So many bodges sadly.

Lovely work Jon

Cheers mate. Hopefully give good service after this freshen up.

Mega updates.
When's it for sale?

Cheers mate. You buy now and save me any more pain

 

[VenomUK]

Could you not use an alternative fastener when it comes to the sump bolts? Ones that aren’t so soft and perhaps a different head on them?

Have you got the soggy carpet at the back of the engine bay with the weather seal on it or mocked up something else in its place?

 

[Brigsy]

Could you not use an alternative fastener when it comes to the sump bolts? Ones that aren’t so soft and perhaps a different head on them?

Have you got the soggy carpet at the back of the engine bay with the weather seal on it or mocked up something else in its place?

The fasteners arent too bad, was just the monkey that had been there before sadly. Luckily have a load of used ones so made a set up.

Engine bay sound deadening is about shagged on it. Needs replacing really but i dont think its possible to find a good used one.

 

[VenomUK]

The fasteners arent too bad, was just the monkey that had been there before sadly. Luckily have a load of used ones so made a set up.

Engine bay sound deadening is about shagged on it. Needs replacing really but i dont think its possible to find a good used one.

I haven been looking in the scrappy for ages. They are all shagged. I don’t fancy paying the price of a new one either. Have been looking at making my own

 

[Brigsy]

Updates.

Used stock 14t turbo bought as i suspected the seal was leaking on this one as slight oil whiff on idle after changing seals. Was absolutely correct diagnosis when removed.

Chra/cold side easy to remove.

Rear seal leaking oil, oil on core can be seen.

Turbo fitted, finished the last couple of bits off.

Complete again.

New spark plugs ngk bcr8es gapped to 0.6mm, fresh fluids in. Cheap halfords 5/40 in initially to flush out assembly lube on cams and any other potential s**t floating about. Primed the oil system with injectors and coils unplugged. Plugged everything back in and hit the switch and fired straight up, new lifters noisy until they were pressured up with oil, soon settled down to quiet. No belt chirping from aux area anymore.

20 mins of running seems fine.

Bumper back on and out.

Quick ten mile test run and all was fine, boost pressure all good 18psi peak as before. Came back home, dropped oil out and replaced with fresh valvoline 5/40 and purflux oil filter.

Went to Newcastle and back in it lastnight to get a few miles in around 120 done. Noted mpg is a lot better now cam timing is correct, also coolant temps more stable, i guess egt's were higher with the exhaust cam so far out.

Apart from that nothing to report, no oil leaks or fumes, works as intended.

Ive asked for availability for a mapping slot at Efi, will hopefully get it in soon.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Clio_fool]

"I've picked up an R26 as a quick project" you said to me at csf😂. Shame it exceeded expectations but great work sorting it all out. Are you still resisting a clio 200 refresh? 😂

 

[Krarl]

If it's got a diamond on the front and back then Brigsy can't help himself but rebuild it🤣

 

[Brigsy]

"I've picked up an R26 as a quick project" you said to me at csf😂. Shame it exceeded expectations but great work sorting it all out. Are you still resisting a clio 200 refresh? 😂

I was expecting to turn it around in a week but yeah soon realised it was pretty much scrap. ill pass on rebuilding another one for now ive had enough pain for a few month

If it's got a diamond on the front and back then Brigsy can't help himself but rebuild it🤣

Usually have no choice as always scrap my mate rocked up in his bm yesterday and said i need to move away from the diamond. Hes right too one day ill see sense

 

[Clio_fool]

Usually have no choice as always scrap my mate rocked up in his bm yesterday and said i need to move away from the diamond. Hes right too one day ill see sense

Nah, that diamond is car aids that can't be cured. 😂

 

[Brigsy]

Give the engine cover a spruce up today with some silver wheel paint and new stickers. Quick rub over with scotchbrite and panel wipe down then blast over. Turned out OK.

Before

During

After

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Brigsy]

Had a reply from Efi and i should be able to get in on Thursday for mapping.

Cant wait, not expecting massive figures, just a good safe tune on stock turbo. Be interesting to see if it can be ran up on current map to see what it makes as is.

 

[VenomUK]

@Brigsy where did you get the replacement engine cover stickers from?

 

[Rojer]

If only we had someone on this forum who makes stickers for a living...

 

[chazza114]

@Brigsy where did you get the replacement engine cover stickers from?

They're £6.99 from this spot:

Zen Graphics - Renault Megane Sport 225 / 230 RS Engine Cover replacement Stickers / Decals

shop.zengraphics.co.uk

 

[Yarp]

They're £6.99 from this spot:

Zen Graphics - Renault Megane Sport 225 / 230 RS Engine Cover replacement Stickers / Decals

shop.zengraphics.co.uk

That website is awesome!

If ever you need stickers for old stuff this site is great. Loads of random old bits but only goes to 2001

https://www.repro-vignette-auto.com/renault/

 

[Brigsy]

@Brigsy where did you get the replacement engine cover stickers from?

£2.99 off ebay mate. Whole refurb cost around £8 after buying paint.

Pardon our interruption...

 

[Brigsy]

Updates.

Trip to Efi yesterday. Weather turned to shite early hours of Thurs morning typically.

Baltic -3deg

As the snow rarely lays in Redcar, was expecting a bit on the roads and slow driving so set off 11am as had to be at Efi for 3.30pm.

Full tank of tesco 99

Set off and 5 miles down the road passing Middlesborough - no snow at all. Nothing all journey even m62 was decent so arrive an hr early.

Waiting for slot

When the car on the dyno before us was finished, Chris gets the meg on the dyno.

Ready for action

Chris runs it up on old map and it pulls 263/290 which is better than expected. Chris then tells me that he thinks the clutch slipped a bit on first run so i might have some work to do. Heart sunk at this moment to be fair as was not expecting this as its never slipped on the road.

Not bad

Also noted N75 duty was maxed out in the mid range so added more preload to the actuator.

Chris loaded up software and done the initial calibration. On first decent power run i noted a bit of wheelspin/tyre smoke. Chris said the slip he had observed on first run was actually wheespin and he had kept his foot in when it broke traction and it hooked up. Unsure if bit of s**t on the dyno rollers or tyres? After that heat cycle in tyres no issues so no expensive clutch job needed.

Rest of the tuning went well and done exactly as was expected. Seen 280hp on a few runs settling down to 273hp/298ft/lb.

Red overlay over original map.

Boost curve in red. So much better than the previous map in black which had all the boost low down falling off to nothing.

Quick test drive after tuning to confirm all good. Ready to set off home and it started snowing heavy! Had visions of getting stuck on the m62, but luckily nothing as soon as we got over the merseyflow so steady drive home.

Overall good improvements and fuelling is now optimal and boost control set up correctly.

Throttle response is superb. Previous map was opening throttle butterfly 100% at 40% throttle position to make it feel fast with loads of boost coming in hard, and resulted in loads of wheelspin. Now you can control the throttle far better its much more progressive.

Feels pretty quick on the road for a basic state of tune, with poor road conditions it hooks up great in 3rd gear and mpg is good noted 39mpg on the way back with steady driving. That will do me.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Brigsy]

Engine cover refitted today. Not bad for a quick blast over!

 

[Ricardos]

Probably the only car I'd let my Clio go for 😁

Excellent work as always mate, I wish I had the space like you have as it would lead to no pressure interesting projects 😁

 

[Brigsy]

Probably the only car I'd let my Clio go for 😁

Excellent work as always mate, I wish I had the space like you have as it would lead to no pressure interesting projects 😁

Cheers mate. Its been a nice easy bit of spannering this one, simply replace knackered parts and should be good for loads of use now.

It drives excellent on new map, mid 30s mpg on the street. Id say this is the perfect level of mods for a meg2. Nothing too extreme, goes well and handles great.

 

[Ian_R]

Need to clean the top of the battery now that cover is all shiny looking

 

[Brigsy]

Need to clean the top of the battery now that cover is all shiny looking

Great minds think alike i need to give the rest a rub with an oily rag

 

[Ian_R]

Great minds think alike i need to give the rest a rub with an oily rag

Best tyre shine that aswell 🫣

 

[Brigsy]

Working from home today and had a knock at the door.. 7.5t truck outside & Mr delivery man says your frame is here.

Sw motorsport clubman rear cage.

Looking forward to fitting this. Will get the mrs to give me a lift in with it on Sat if all goes well.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Brigsy]

Updates

Fitted the SW rear cage yesterday, pretty easy to fit.

Removed front seats for clearance which gained £2 that hidden under the drivers seat rails. Got the mrs to give me a lift in with it to save wrecking the car.

Quick hoover whilst seats out.

Seats and cage in.

Mrs trimmed boot mat to fit around rear cage legs.

Spreader plates fitted under front legs of cage as bolted through the floor. Sealed the edges of the plates to stop water ingress, a quick coat of bedliner paint followed by Bilt hamber dynax ub to prevent any rust forming.

Another bonus fix too. The drivers side recaro always made a clunk when getting in which i assumed was due to 134k worth of arse sitting in it. Had seat on its back checking the rails and a 5p coin fell out, nipped all bolts up on seat subframes and it is now gone which is another bonus.

Removed rear seatbelts whilst on with it which triggered airbag fault.

Seatbelt missing not airbag.

Can clip diagnosis and reprogram of airbag ecu. Took 5 mins.

Job done.

Took it for a blast out as the roads were dry and sensible temperatures. Goes well and handling is excellent. Perfect balance of power and handling for a meg without going too daft on the spending.

Just need to flush the brake fluid through for good stuff, fit ds1.11 pads up front and get some trackdays booked.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[Mr Underhill]

Get Croft booked on March 29th Jon. I’m out in the new toy with a few lads in their Megane 250.