Clio 1.8 16v RWD

[ScottRWDclio]

Hi I’m new to the forum, just bought my second ever mk1 valver. Used to have one around 15 years ago and loved driving it. I wasn’t really looking for another one as already have another car but bumped into a friend I hadn’t seen in a while that said he had a project I might be interested in. He had got it off someone he knew and it had sat in his garage for 5 years without him doing anything to it!
Long story short the price was way too cheap to turn down and I bought it on the basis of a couple of pictures. My friend even dropped it off for me to my other friends barn where it now sits.
So it’s an early 1995 1.8 16v with a difference. It used to have a Renault 5 gt turbo engine in the front but the previous owner decided to cut the rear floor out and for the engine in the back driving the rear wheels! It looks like he has done an amazing job of it fabricating front strut towers into the rear and using a modified front subframe in the back.
Unfortunately he sold the engine so at the moment its a rolling chassis.
This is where the project starts, it’s still filthy and there’s various parts all over the front seats. Next week I will go and give it a good clean and get some better pictures then make a very long parts list! Need to decide which engine to go for too.
Should be a fun project but will be very long term as time and cash is tight!

 

[16v_paddy]

I'm loving the roof mounted intercooler

There's a thread on here somewhere of someone's 172 with the engine in the back that might have useful info in it.

In the pile of parts, see if you've got the R5 engine mount brackets, those will make it easy to mount the engine onto the subframe and they can also be used on a Valver, Williams, Megane F7R or 1*2 F4R engines

Then get these mounts, I have them in mine & there's nothing as good or better for mounting an engine to these subframes

 

[Sheila’s’ Wheels’]

Look forward to some clean pics and some detailed pics of the rear. It looks like an awesome bit of work tbf.

 

[Brigsy]

Im sure i remember this from years ago. Be interesting to see what engine you go for

A lad i know has a mk1 clio with a vr6 turbo lump in the back. Around 500hp from memory, from what he told me its a handful to drive

 

[ScottRWDclio]

I'm loving the roof mounted intercooler

There's a thread on here somewhere of someone's 172 with the engine in the back that might have useful info in it.

In the pile of parts, see if you've got the R5 engine mount brackets, those will make it easy to mount the engine onto the subframe and they can also be used on a Valver, Williams, Megane F7R or 1*2 F4R engines

View attachment 1711059

Then get these mounts, I have them in mine & there's nothing as good or better for mounting an engine to these subframes

View attachment 1711061

Thanks I will take a look in the project section will be useful to see what’s needed. Do you know if the valver and R5 subframes are the same?
Been looking at the turbo megane engine do they mount a similar way? Going to be a challenge getting the driveshafts to work etc.
those mounts do look good will have a look thanks.

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Look forward to some clean pics and some detailed pics of the rear. It looks like an awesome bit of work tbf.

Yeah hopefully next week I’ll get some better pictures. The bodywork is really clean looks like it’s had a quality respray at some point. The usual rust areas like the rear arches are like new. It does look like it’s been done to a high standard that’s why I couldn’t pass up on the project! 👍🏻

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Im sure i remember this from years ago. Be interesting to see what engine you go for

A lad i know has a mk1 clio with a vr6 turbo lump in the back. Around 500hp from memory, from what he told me its a handful to drive

You may well of done. I know of the guy that did the original build and used to see him driving it around where I grew up and spoke to him about the car. Must of been 15/20 years ago now though! It had a 300bhp R5 engine in the front with nitrous and a side exit exhaust. Still has the nitrous bottle holder in the car now and the switches on the steering wheel.

 

[16v_paddy]

Thanks I will take a look in the project section will be useful to see what’s needed. Do you know if the valver and R5 subframes are the same?
Been looking at the turbo megane engine do they mount a similar way? Going to be a challenge getting the driveshafts to work etc.
those mounts do look good will have a look thanks.

They're probably very similar but the Valver subframe needs an extra hole drilling in it to accept the front gearbox mount
As for the Megane turbo engine, they're completely different so that'll be some clever fabrication needed to get it to fit in there, from a mounting the engine perspective, it'd be a lot easier to fit 1 of the other engines I mentioned & convert it to turbo plus there's the added bonus of having plenty of room to have a decent exhaust manifold instead of the usual log type and a lot more options for turbos to choose from

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Managed to get over to my friends unit to have a better look over the clio yesterday. Managed to give it a good clean and polish and the bodywork is as good as I thought 😊. The rear suspension turrets have been done really well too.
Decided to go down the vag 1.8 20v turbo engine route. My friend has a mk4 golf gti with a few mods and it’s pretty quick and reliable, sounds great too.
Nearly bought a complete golf gti for £600 but someone beat me to it! Thinking if I can get a complete car I can strip it for all the parts I need.
For the clio the first stage will be to make it look like a clio again and also water tight incase I ever have to move it out of my friends barn.
The main parts I need will be a front bumper, bonnet, N/S door striker and front window glass (or plexiglass glass like the rear).
If anyone has any MK1 clio parts they are selling give me a shout!

 

[Martin_172]

the fabrication in the rear looks amazing, what a job! Looking forward to seeing how this comes along! good luck!

 

[16v_paddy]

Where abouts are you?
I've got some door windows available but posting them isn't really viable

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Where abouts are you?
I've got some door windows available but posting them isn't really viable

I’m in Aylesbury Buckinghamshire. If you are close that would be ideal 👍🏻

 

[ScottRWDclio]

the fabrication in the rear looks amazing, what a job! Looking forward to seeing how this comes along! good luck!

Thanks. Will be a long term project as I’m sure there will be many hurdles to overcome yet! Yeah the rear fabrication looks decent but I can’t take the credit for that! 😂

 

[16v_paddy]

I’m in Aylesbury Buckinghamshire. If you are close that would be ideal 👍🏻

That's about 100 miles away from me
Could still probably sort something out though, there's a big group of us Mk1 owners (1 of them is actually from Aylesbury) doing a trackday at Bedford on the 11th of next month so I could bring the glass down & meet you there

 

[ScottRWDclio]

That's about 100 miles away from me
Could still probably sort something out though, there's a big group of us Mk1 owners (1 of them is actually from Aylesbury) doing a trackday at Bedford on the 11th of next month so I could bring the glass down & meet you there

That is a bit far 😂. Not a bad idea meeting you at Bedford. Would be good to meet some more mk1 owners too and have a look at some mk1’s. I’ll message you nearer the time 👍🏻

 

[16v_paddy]

Just checked & I've deffo got the front door glass

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Good evening/morning
I couldn’t sleep so thought I’d update on what’s happening with the clio. I’ve been busy gathering parts and looking into engine conversions. When I got the clio the main things missing were the front bumper and bonnet. Seems they are getting very difficult to find and people want crazy money for them! I eventually bought them from my friend for a good price off his old max power valver!
The bonnet had the “bad boy” extensions and the front bumper had a what we think is a mk 4 fiesta bumper modded to the bottom.
The bonnet extensions were cracked and one side was loose. I’ve took both sides off and sanded the bonnet down back to stock. The front bumper splitter was so badly damaged I decided to remove it and I’ve never seen so much filler in my life!
I also ordered front plexiglass windows around 8 weeks ago that should be arriving next week.
I’ve also managed to pick up a mk4 golf gti cheap! This will be my donor car and I’m in the process of removing the parts I need.
Also had a calk from my friend that rents the barn my Clio’s in. I need to move it soon as he’s moving to a bigger barn. As soon as the golf’s stripped and scrapped I’ll be bringing the Clio home to start the build!

 

[ScottRWDclio]

I’ve now managed to get the engine out of the golf, was a pretty simple job to be honest. Next will be stripping out the wiring loom, PCM, instrument cluster, gear linkage, fuel pump etc. Then any parts that could be sold will be on eBay and the shell will be scrapped.
Next stage will be bringing the clio home and see how I’m going to get this engine to fit!?! Should be fun!

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Good evening!
Bit of an update on my clio project. At last I have my car home! Was stuck in my friends barn for way too long. Long story short it was hard work getting a day to collect the car set in stone between me, my friend with the barn and friend with the trailer. At last we managed it and the cars now sat on my drive!
Having the car at home gives me much more of a chance of actually getting on with it. So far I’ve fitted the front plexiglass windows into the original door rubbers and they fit really well after a bit of messing with. I’ve also block sanded the bonnet and given it a light coat of primer to stop the rust and fitted it to the car. I’m still messing with the front bumper but it needs a lot of work, also been thinking of ideas for front splitters (want a low race car type splitter). Sort of want the car to look like a fairly stock clio 16v untill you look closer.
I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do with the wiring. I was thinking if using the clio loom for the lights and switches but on closer inspection the clio loom is in bad condition and half of it is missing. Think my best option is to fit the complete golf loom and remove all parts of it I don’t need. I’ve removed most of the clio loom just need to remove the fuse box under the glovebox now.
After the loom is out of the car my next job is going to be to lower the golf engine into the back of the car (will be borrowing my friends engine crane). It’s going to be very tight getting it through the rear hatch and in! Once in position I will mock up my mounts in card then weld together some steel mounts.
I’ve also found a couple of options for the shafts so will measure them up and get them sent away. Engine will then come back out for a few parts before it’s finally fitted. I’ve removed the A/C and power steering pump from the engine and ordered shorter belt. I will need a new cambelt kit, clutch and exhaust manifold (possibly turbo for a bit more power).
I will update when I’ve made some more progress

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Had a free Sunday last weekend and as the weather was good too I thought it was about time I got the engine in the clio to see if it would actually fit!
After the removal of the tailgate and a lot of messing around with an engine crane and trolley jack it’s in! It’s only lowered in on the jack for now so I can get the driveshaft angles correct and mock up the engine mounts.
The driveshafts aren’t too far off, will just need the engine tilting back slightly to get the diff low enough for the correct driveshaft angle. Unfortunately the golf or Renault engine mounts aren’t going to work as where the golf mounts bolt to the chassis is exactly where the suspension turrets are. I still haven’t decided 100% but I’m leaning towards using a thick steel bar either side of the engine with a front and rear mount on each bar. This will give me 4 engine mounts and means I can mount the engine to the chassis legs in front and behind of the suspension turrets. Will also use a dog bone mount lower down to stop the engine rocking too much.
After the engine is properly mounted i will be sorting the driveshafts out then will be fitting the wiring loom. Still a long way to go but very pleased with how the engine fits and think it looks good in the back.
Will update with more progress soon.

 

[McGherkin]

Love proper projects like this. Great combination, going to go like a whipped whippet.

 

[16V F7R]

People like you on these forums are my heroes (gay I know!) but you grab a spare day to work on your car and it’s like, I am just putting an engine in the back of my Clio, casual as you like 👍

Must be hilarious trying to figure out what the neighbours are trying to fathom what is going in the back of that old Clio 😂

Watching with much interest 👌👌

 

[ScottRWDclio]

People like you on these forums are my heroes (gay I know!) but you grab a spare day to work on your car and it’s like, I am just putting an engine in the back of my Clio, casual as you like 👍

Must be hilarious trying to figure out what the neighbours are trying to fathom what is going in the back of that old Clio 😂

Watching with much interest 👌👌

Funny you should say that, that Sunday putting the engine in I think I’ve spoken to more of my neighbours than I ever have in the 7 years of living here! One guy I’d never met before nearly fell off his bike looking at it riding past and ended up chatting to him about cars for half an hour!
I work as a technician for JLR so let’s just say taking engines in and out is a daily occurrence 😂

 

[ScottRWDclio]

Love proper projects like this. Great combination, going to go like a whipped whippet.

Thankyou. Yeah should go alright! Bought the car from my mate that said it’s been remapped to 220bhp and seems to have the suppprting mods but won’t know untill it’s on a rolling road. May be changing to a bigger turbo soon too as the exhaust manifold is cracked so might aswell 😂