Clio 2 RS undercarriage on 1.2 16V

[BOBI904]

Hi all
As strange as this might sound I started to think about replacing whole suspension/undercarriage (and bodykit in the future) on my Clio from standard 1.2 16V to an RS172 or RS182, but id want to keep the original 1.2 16V engine.
You might ask why would I want to do such a stupid thing?
Well there are 3 main reasons:
1. It's my first car, and I absolutely love it
2. I want to improve handling and braking
3. I'll probably buy an actual RS in the future that will be the same colour as this one so people that don't know me won't know if they have been overtaken by a regular Clio or RS one

So here is basically the question I have:
What custom modifications would I need to do to fit the RS parts on 1.2? I know it has discs in the rear instead of drums and mine also has electric steering assist instead of hydraulic one, but doesn't have ABS yet.
My main concern is drive shafts and steering rack, other stuff should just bolt on.
Has anyone done anything similar before?
Thanks for any help in advance
Bobi

 

[Torvalds]

Hello mate , i kinda done same thing as you but without the exterior bits , converted from drums to rear brakes , Gaz coilovers , front lower arms and brake from 172 but i ve used the engine subframe from my clio and not the 172 one , used my hubs so i can keep my drive shafts and not the 172 ones , i got electric steering too and im ok with it , regarding abs it even better the sensors are kinda expensive and barelly find them ... need more info pls ask .

 

[BOBI904]

Hello mate , i kinda done same thing as you but without the exterior bits , converted from drums to rear brakes , Gaz coilovers , front lower arms and brake from 172 but i ve used the engine subframe from my clio and not the 172 one , used my hubs so i can keep my drive shafts and not the 172 ones , i got electric steering too and im ok with it , regarding abs it even better the sensors are kinda expensive and barelly find them ... need more info pls ask .

That's awesome, but I still have a few questions if you don't mind
For example do bigger front brake calipers fit on regular 1.2 knuckle/hub?
And also since 172/182 has wider wheelbase did driveshafts had any play, or is subframe the part that makes it wider and not the lower arms?
And did you change steering rack for the 172 as well or did you use your original one?
I probably have a lot more questions but I'm currently just gathering information and not actively working on the project yet, so once I start putting it apart or back together I'll probably ask a few more questions
Thanks for the information
Bobi

 

[Torvalds]

That's awesome, but I still have a few questions if you don't mind
For example do bigger front brake calipers fit on regular 1.2 knuckle/hub?
And also since 172/182 has wider wheelbase did driveshafts had any play, or is subframe the part that makes it wider and not the lower arms?
And did you change steering rack for the 172 as well or did you use your original one?
I probably have a lot more questions but I'm currently just gathering information and not actively working on the project yet, so once I start putting it apart or back together I'll probably ask a few more questions
Thanks for the information
Bobi

I ve used the 172 hub because the gaz suspension has the spacing for 54 mm , the holes where lower wishbone mount for 172/182 they are closer to the edge of those eyelets compared to stock 1.2 or 1.4 , also the lower arms have a different shape and the bolt joint is further out , i used my original steering rack and i ve found that a lot of people do conversions to electric one . Hope that it helps and on my thread i detailed some of the stuff .