M100CUP goes hardcore

[David Stuart]

Anyone following Graham’s old thread on M100CUP will know the history of this car and that he recently sold it. I thought I would start a thread of my own to update on any changes to the car and record how I’m getting on as a relative newbie to hillclimbs as sprints.

Let me start by setting out how I came about buying the car.

I bought my first clio sport in 2016 to prove to my brother that you don’t have to spend a fortune to go fast. Done a couple of open resting sessions at Forrestburn hillclimb and Kames sprint track local to me. Even in fairly standard trim the car went well.

Since then I decided to enter the Scottish sprint and hillclimb championship this year. I’ve competed in 4 events and really got the bug. Came last most of the time but always improving. Around July time I was certain I wanted to downsize my car collection and put some more money into racing the clio. I had a 1990 Mini Cooper RSP which I wasn’t using much (only 500 miles last year). Lovely car but a garage ornament so I reluctantly decided to sell hoping I wouldn’t regret it. Here is he last picture of it before it went to its new owner.

The intention was to sell the RSP and put the money into upgrading my own car. While it was up for sale I remembered graham mentioned he was possibly going to sell his clio on. With a lot of the upgrades I planned (coilovers, diff and more power) I decided to see if graham was indeed ready to sell and over the course of a few weeks we came to a deal.

Here is M100CUP arriving at mine after travelling the length of Britain from Devon to Scotland.

I was very keen to try it out. So took the first opportunity to go to a track night a knockhill. The car is fully committed to A2 hillclimb class so this was a bit different for me but interesting non the less and it confirmed to me a few of the changes I wanted to make (you can prob guess from the title its not staying how it is). More in the next part.


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[David Stuart]

So here comes the interesting bit.

As soon as I purchased the clio. My mind turned to what I might do to the car. It had a load of upgrades vs my old car so the only immediate things were.

Do I keep the seats or swap my bucket seats. Answer. Keep the seats. Much more comfortable than the corbeau club sports.

Do I keep the steering wheel or swap. Answer. Swap. The OMP in the clio was a fake Chinese thing that you could flex at the top. My sparco was much better.

Once I swap the wheel I went for a track night at knock hill. A one thing stood out.

The steering felt totally different. Much more understeer and it would have to be looked at.

First thing I wanted to try to address this was fit lighter wheels. I know it should affect how the car steers but it did feel very odd in the heavy speedlines.

I had some TD1.2s with soft R888s so those went on.

The car was already looking more aggressive with black wheels.

I then fitted a white line ARB which came up second hand locally. I know reviews are mixed on this. I made sure to drive the car on a test run before and after. The steering definitely feels a lot more neutral now.

The car is looking pretty decent underneath actually.

I also decided to remove the fog lights and carbon canister.

Next was to fit some door squares. I prefer my numbers like this. The car will only be used for sprints and hillclimbs so no point pretending it’s a road car.

Final step was to whip the carpets out and go to my next hillclimb. I had a great day and managed to take 2s off my best time in my old car at Forrestburn. Unfortunately with the level of competition in the A2 class I still finished last by 0.4s

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[David Stuart]

And now on to the rest of the upgrades.

When I removed the carpets you could see the cage wasn’t designed for motorsport. Probably ok in most road applications but ideally I wanted something that has a harness bar and would keep me safe if the worst happened.

Luckily a local guy was breaking his track car with RO17 full cage at a decent price. So I’ve done a buy there and started installing it. To be honest I’ve very totally over the top as well (I did have a long weekend after all).

So as well at installing the cage I decided to strip as much weight as I am allowed out of the car. With the cutting and welding required had to remove a fair amount of the interior anyway.

Old cage out.

Interior stripped and some sound deadening removed.

Started fabricating the 3mm steel spreader plates.

And that’s as far as I got. The plan is to finish the job this weekend. Fab up and weld into the car.

Finally I’ll be painting the full floor and boot racing blue to tidy it all up. Progress pics to follow.




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[Djw John]

Did you buy that cage from Jamie/yeecup?

 

[David Stuart]

Did you buy that cage from Jamie/yeecup?

From dougie Robertson in Clackmannanshire


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[Djw Dave]

Excellent write up, Looking forward to seeing how the car develops.

I've an RB cup spoiler in the garage if you were interested?
Or is that a fiberglass spoiler?

 

[imprezaworks]

I would have guessed this was ready to rock and roll. Surprised ref the steering wheel being fake lol

 

[David Stuart]

I would have guessed this was ready to rock and roll. Surprised ref the steering wheel being fake lol

It is very good. I didn’t see the car before buying. Done everything remote with a Skype call with graham. They way I seen it was I got some major upgrades all in one go.

ITBs and cams (210 bhp) on a engine with one 5k miles.
Gearbox with a Diff (although the less track focused option with the ATB)
Willwood brakes.
Coilovers.
Pms shifter
Choice of bucket seat and harnesses.

Graham was always very honest that he had the car comfortable enough to drive on the road with carpets etc still in the car.

My future plans are as follows.

Get the cage finished and keep as much weight out of the car as my class allows.

Sort out the gear shift. I had some issues with selecting second during the last hillclimb.

Looks at some lightweight panels. If anyone has fibreglass or even better carbon fibre boot or bonnet for sale let me know.

Refine settings on the suspension and try some new tyres next year. I really want to try the R5 compound extremes but waiting on the 2020 tyre list.

Future future plans I’m not commuting to. I think with what I have and gradual improvements the biggest limiting factor is me. I’ll be looking to get as much time as possible at practise sessions.

They might include changes to the coilovers and a plated diff / new gearbox. That can all wait until I’ve got really competitive times.





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[David Stuart]

Excellent write up, Looking forward to seeing how the car develops.

I've an RB cup spoiler in the garage if you were interested?
Or is that a fiberglass spoiler?

It’s definitely lighter than a factory cup spoiler. Pretty sure it’s fibreglass with a carbon effect but will only find one when I take it off.

Half a mind to paint it RB. Sometimes looks like someone has put a standard black plastic trim on a sport. That’s assuming it is lightweight otherwise I would take you up on that offer.


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[Big P Dog]

Great thread. Doune next weekend?

 

[David Stuart]

Great thread. Doune next weekend?

Absolutely. And Kames in October. Will you be there?


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[yeecup]

Did you buy that cage from Jamie/yeecup?

no. I still have it. was contemplating selling it but changed my mind. been busy with selling the e46 and getting a new car the cup has taken a bit of a back seat for now.

 

[David Stuart]

So quite a big update for this. I’ve been holding off posting this since mid September as I wanted to make sure of the direction I was going with the car before sharing.

14th sept. First time at doune. Arrived the Saturday morning for the final Doune of the year and my first time. I was really excited, this place has a reputation for being the best in the calendar. Plus with it being a round of the British championship there were some really quick cars there.

I was in the road going under 2.0l class with some other clios. Photo from the paddock.

Some others courtesy of Paul Hunter and his better half.

And finally how I ended the day. Touching the grass into meadow I was fighting oversteer and then understeer into east brae and went through the wooden barrier. I’ll post the videos up just now which are quite dramatic.

Thankfully I was ok and walked away with just a sore neck. My initial thoughts were that the car would be totalled. But taking the car home and getting a good look under it the damage wasn’t too bad. Total damage as follows.

Obviously bumper bonnet wings and headlights.
Subframe was bent.
Rad burst in half
Chassis legs were ok but the very fronts were crumpled.
Engine mounts cracked.
Bottom balljoint snapped
Steering arms bent.
One of the allow wheels were cracked.
Power steering pump cracked.

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[David Stuart]

And here are the videos. (All runs on YouTube if you are interested).

First let’s start on a positive. My second practice which would have had me towards a second in class for the weekend.




And the in car from the crash.



And the external footage.



Dramatic I think is the word. If you listen carefully you can hear at the end I’ve properly s**t my pants.


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[Darren61]

Shame about the car but at least you’re ok and it can be (fairly) easily fixed!

Looked good fun though! May have to try out a hill climb myself

 

[yeecup]

sad times. are you planning on fixing it up?

 

[David Stuart]

And now onto the rebuild. With the clio being so clean beforehand. I was pretty determined to rebuild the original shell if I could.

Another RB shell did come up local though. So I have bought that with two things in mind. Best case I could use the wings and bonnet. Worst case I could take all the good bits and resemble.

As I started taken the damaged bits off. I was surprised how little major chassis damage there was.

Once I knew there was no real spring / tension I cut the crash bar off.

Also very lucky the ITBs escaped without any real damage.

Engine mounts in bits. I think the fact that I hit the post right in the middle and these alloy cast items cracked stopped more potential damage.

Power steering pump pulley mountings were all cracked.

So I have removed all of the power steering lines and blanked the rack. I’ve just got manual steering now but will prob do an EPAS column later. Also a little electrics and a join in he bottom hose required.

And finally. With a second hand subframe (172 cup one) the bolt holes were very close. Using a hydraulic press to separate the chassis legs a touch and bolt the subframe up.

Now everything lines up I’ve cut back the front crash bar and welded in the crash bar from my old black 182 (this was being scrapped anyway). Black bumper sat on for the photo.

Next time I post it will be a road test once the rad is mounted and all the panels fitted.




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[David Stuart]

Double post.

 

[David Stuart]

Double double post

 

[frayz]

Ouch, that was a pretty impressive "off".
Good job youre okay and im sure youll fix the car to fight another day.

The love and war of motorsport eh.

 

[David Stuart]

sad times. are you planning on fixing it up?

Yes. Hoping to have it out on the road this week.


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[Djw Dave]

Excellent effort on the rebuild Dave.

Glad you’ve managed to get the car back together

 

[yeecup]

nice to see it being fixed would of been a shame to see it getting broken for bits.

 

[David Stuart]

Oh. And if anyone has an RB front bumper to save me painting this black one give me a shout.


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[shiftspark]

Thats a fair old bump, as said glad your ok.

 

[David Stuart]

I don’t plan on doing this again. But on the advice of many people I seen straight after HANS required for next season.


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[shiftspark]

I thought you had to use a HANS if you had a full cage or are road going exempt ? good idea to get one though.

 

[jp_lcr]

Ouch, glad you are ok, that's main thing. And secondly that car can be saved.

 

[David Stuart]

I thought you had to use a HANS if you had a full cage or are road going exempt ? good idea to get one though.

Not mandatory in the road cars. Pretty much every other class you require one.


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[paul-h]

Good progress! Yours is actually closer to whole than mine and I didn’t crash!! 🙈

 

[Darren S]

@David Stuart - such a thread of extremes - glad you came out unscathed, other than the impact on your wallet!

I'm hoping that in-car footage exaggerates how close you are to the barriers on the hill climb? Constantly looks very narrow indeed.

 

[David Stuart]

@David Stuart - such a thread of extremes - glad you came out unscathed, other than the impact on your wallet!

I'm hoping that in-car footage exaggerates how close you are to the barriers on the hill climb? Constantly looks very narrow indeed.

It’s 12 foot wide all the way up to the meadow. Very tricky course.


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[paul-h]

@David Stuart - such a thread of extremes - glad you came out unscathed, other than the impact on your wallet!

I'm hoping that in-car footage exaggerates how close you are to the barriers on the hill climb? Constantly looks very narrow indeed.

No exaggeration, really quite narrow! 😳😂

 

[jp_lcr]

Dont know if you'd seen but on Ktec's Facebook they put some photos up of old project cars from a show. You might recognise this one from its turbo and big wheel days...

 

[David Stuart]

So I’ve finally finished rebuilding the car to a state where it can be used. I’ve got a test day tomorrow at Kames. Should let me see how it’s handling after the rebuild.

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[Djw Dave]

All the best for tomorrow fella

 

[David Stuart]

Well that was a reasonable first outing of the year. A little drama with a bit of a coolant leak that only decided to happen after the first run. I managed to keep on top of it all day topping up with water.

It looks like it’s coming from where to top hose joins the rad. I tried tightening the clamp but I think it’s a small split in the hose. Very much considering getting a new alloy rad anyway so I’ll start researching them.

Also had rather sore arms from having no power steering. I’ve got the old rack looped but you really feel it after a full day. I’ve already got the column and ECU. Just need to get my finger out and buy the £30 kit off eBay and fit it all.

On a plus note. The new throttle pedal and foot rest were good. I might adjust the throttle over just a tad as I was accidentally heal toe’ing a few times when I didn’t mean to.

YouTube video of the best run of the day.





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[David Stuart]

And the first practice of the year results in a bit of a an expensive week following.

I had a bit of a coolant leak which looks like it’s coming from the top radiator house join at the radiator. I’ve been considering a smaller alloy anyway so bought this.

Also played a lot of the suspension setup prior to Kames. Camber and toe where I want it to be but still finding the car understeers quite a lot. Played with damper settings as well and I don’t think it’s something I can work around with the current suspension. It’s running gaz GHAs with 275lb springs up front and it’s just way to soft. So the choice was to stick with these and buy some falkner springs. Would have been about £100 I think. But then I think these shocks are at least 5-6 years old. Possibly more. And also the rear would remain as soft as it is. Also the GHAs are right on the limit of what they can handle at 500lb springs.

So I’ve decided to upgrade to Gaz golds which I’ve speced with 500lb front springs and 300lb rears. New and can handle the heavier springs better.

I’ve sold my black clio that I purchased to my brother and done a deal to include my old Gaz GHAs to fund the new shocks. Considering what I paid for the clio and what I sold it for plus the old shocks the Gaz Golds only cost me £600 which isn’t bad.

I’ll update once they are fitted and all the alignment is done. Expect there will be a test day at the end of August to try them out.


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[David Stuart]

Booked into knockhill for a track day next Monday so starting prep for that.

New radiator fitted.

I’ve fitted a classic mini rad fan from a late model. Just need to wire it up now.

I’ve also swapped the wheels over. The r888s need replaced after kames. So I’ve changed to the ad08r tyres in the team dynamics wheels. Weighed them at the same time.

Wheel and tyre 21kg for the oz and Toyo r888 and 23 kg for the TD1.2 wheel and yoko ad08r.

Might paint the oz wheels while they are off. Think the car suits the black wheels better.

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[David Stuart]

Thought it was about time for an update on this. Not a huge amount has happened since the last post but I thought I would put together my thoughts for the winter.

Before I get on to that I did manage one last outing at a track day at Forrestburn hillclimb. Was nice they were able to put these events on at the back end of the year we have had. Fingers crossed there will be competitive events next year.

As for development of the car. I’ve got my new suspension on but with a slightly damp track and me being a bit rusty I’m not sure I see any major improvements. But the Gaz golds do seem good quality and the stiffer spring setup is helping a lot if body role. Also a lot more confident on the brakes since changing the front discs and fitting DS1.11s. So for performance I’m done. Just a new set of tyres at the start of next season, fit my fibreglass tailgate and I’ll be happy.

The only other improvements I’m planning are to sold mount the seats. They move slightly under load on the sliders and it’s very off putting. So I’ll be completing some solid MSUK spec seat mounts, finishing the front cage install and doing a better job of mounting the carbon fibre foot rest I’ve got. Once all that is complete I’ll paint up the interior to make it look a bit better.


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[David Stuart]

Oh and almost forgot. Electric power steering has been fitted and for general moving the car around and driving on the road it’s so much better. I think I prefer the hydraulic steering for feel but for the advantages I think it’s worth it. Plus my power steering pipes and pump took the brunt of the impact.

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