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Mondial Blue Cup Track Car



Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Track car is all well. Should be collecting this weekend fingers crossed!!! Can't wait to collect it and get run in.

Need to look at track days now. Will be Brands or Lydden.
 

Jekyll

ClioSport Club Member
The iceberg looked a great car and I'm sure the new owner (@djp66?) will be more than happy. I think iceberg is a underated colour personally and they look great on the cups with silver turinis.

Good news on the track cup too.
 

chris blue

ClioSport Area Rep
  172 Ph1 2001
Need to look at track days now. Will be Brands or Lydden.

my nearest 2 tracks- have to meet for a little blast ;-)

Brands full day mid November my next, just done Lydden 2 week ago
G.... Lydden eats yer tyres. Lucky to get 2 track days outta AD08 on the nearside front, and 3 offside
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Yep can't agree more. The track is so abrasive! Very suited to Clios though!
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Track car is back!! Engine build looks excellent. Block, head, sump all powder coated. Done about 200 miles in it now and feels like it has loads of torque. No oil leaks anymore.

Using it daily to get some miles on the engine. By end of next week should have done in excess of 500 miles and will do an oil change.

Exhaust is really noisy and I will either have the ktec stealth modified that is currently for sale or I will have a silencer welded into the custom system.

First time I have driven it properly since fitting the solid mounts too. They are pretty harsh combined with solid exhaust mounts. It is a track car though and once run in I will not be using it daily!

Will get tracking done and give a good check over. Just need to get some track miles in now! And a PMS shifter ?

Looking to Brand's Hatch on 31/10 or 12/11.
 

MrBlonde

ClioSport Club Member
Sounds good mate,would love to get an engine refresh build done.
With the exhaust,i have fitted the super quiet ktec system and still bit loud but not to bad.But then the cup does not have the sound deading in and being yours is a track build it may have the interior out?.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Not much to hide the noise ?

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Have done over 500 miles in the last couple of weeks. Work journey every day, kids football, school run ?. The exhaust noise has been a bit much if I am honest. It has a custom powerflow stainless steel system with no center silencer and a small rear silencer.

I did have a K-tec silenced Stealth system for sale to fit a 172. I did not think it would fit the car as it has a 182 manifold and decat fitted. However I tried today and it does!!! The decat must be shorter than the 182 cat and does not have the silly 182 olive joint on. Well chuffed ?. Might be a bit quiet now. At least I don't have to worry about noise at track days. I may try and get an un-silenced center section. I will order a new manifold gasket and 172 cat to center pipe gasket as it is blowing a bit.

I have replaced the Speedo sensor on the gearbox. The old one did not even clip in the gearbox correctly and was all loose. I got a cheap one off eBay for £8 and so far so good. With the Speedo intermittent it did not seem to run as well as it should, so that is now sorted.

I have an annoying knock from the rear and the front O/S wheel catches on a bit of metal inside the front arch when turning. This is due to the car being so low. I don't want to start chopping into the metalwork, so will raise the height on the coilovers a little. Not sure what the rear knock is, but only does it over small bumps. Will have a good look this week. Everything is tight. I don't think it is the rear beam hitting the exhaust, but again due to the ride height it may be this.

Have booked a track day at Lydden Hill on 10/11 and Brands Hatch on 12/11 as I want to get some use out of it before the weather gets too bad. I may book Brands in December too.

Only thing I would really like to get done is the geometry. Tracking is slightly out, so would be nice to get it all sorted.

I am going to fit a stereo too and some front speakers into the track day door cards. I am quite enjoying driving it every day, especially now the Speedo is working again! Will get some more up to date pictures. Only one I have is of the new exhaust system for now.

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MrBlonde

ClioSport Club Member
I had a knock on the rear to mate,i think it was down to the exhaust or rear shocks if i can remember.I have changed the exhaust a few times,now have a ktec super quiet system but with custom rear tailpipe.I couldnt figure it out as the exhaust was solid with no movement at all.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
I had a knock on the rear to mate,i think it was down to the exhaust or rear shocks if i can remember.I have changed the exhaust a few times,now have a ktec super quiet system but with custom rear tailpipe.I couldnt figure it out as the exhaust was solid with no movement at all.

The lower the car is at the rear, the closer I think the beam is to the exhaust system. I will have a good look over everything at the rear, anti roll bar, shocks, beam etc. I have only driven the car up the road since fitting the ktec system, so will see if that has made any difference. With it being all stripped out everything seems to rattle though ?
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
New decat to center pipe gasket fitted with a bit of paste just to make sure it sealed. I have also replaced the poly center exhaust mount with a new genuine Renault replacement.

Been driving the car today and is a much nicer place to be! A lot of the vibrations are gone and I can hear myself think again.

Before Lydden on Saturday I just need to do oil and filter, raise the front ride height a bit, check everything is tight and if I get time Thurs/Fri will get the tracking checked.

I have been sorting through a few of my spares and got a scenic shifter out that I should have fitted ages ago. I will try fit this before the weekend. If not will over next couple of weeks.

Fingers crossed all goes well Saturday as booked Brands on the 12th also.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Been working long hours so all my days have morphed into each other! It is actually next Saturday I am at Lydden.

Managed a few hours on the car this morning. Fitted the scenic shifter and short shift.

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Temporarily removed the rear ARB to try and identify the knocking from the rear. Checked everything is tight. Raised the coilover height a bit at the front.

Think I have identified the catching from the front as the metal where the corner of the bumper mounts. It was sitting a bit low, so bent it back where it should be and so far so good.

Fitted a new manifold to cat gasket. It came from ktec originally and is shocking! Must be a pattern one. I have ordered a genuine one to fit.

Drove the car to work and ran around in it. Does not seem to be knocking, but time will tell. It is not catching on nearside bends and seems to be sitting quite well. I am really impressed with the scenic shifter. I just need to adjust the linkage a bit. Much better height. I will in time get a PMS one, but as I had it lying around was worth fitting.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
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Oil, oil filter and gearbox oil changed. New genuine manifold clamp kit fitted and Evol dog bone mount from @Digger90. I did have camber bolts fitted, but the BC coilovers have elongated holes so they are not needed. Found this out from @Somnambulist who I purchased them from last year. Have replaced with the original bolts.

Fingers crossed I will get the tracking done tomorrow. Drives in a straight line, but had a lot of work done since it was last checked.

Having had and seen a few injectors fail recently I have ordered four new genuine injectors from Renparts this afternoon and they should be here Friday. Have bitten the bullet and got new ones as the aim is to eliminate as many potential issues as possible so the car is reliable..........hopefully.
 

MrBlonde

ClioSport Club Member
Worth while thing to do changing the injectors and to get oe ones.Will make it run so much nicer and more reliable.I did mine a few years ago,easy job to do aswell.Good part of maintenance to the engine
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Sick of changing the odd one, when it starts running poor! Most other parts have been replaced so makes sense. First time I have had a new set so will be interesting to see how it runs once fitted.

I have a couple of white tow stickers for the bumpers too, just in case!!!
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Lydden Hill was wet today!!! Car was faultless and had a really good day. Six sessions of fifteen minutes. No obvious issues and I just need to adjust the gear linkage a bit to make it a bit easier to find the gears ? I did the first session with my nephew as passenger. He had a good time but, felt sick after and didn't go out again. The next session I did was the fourth as both my brother-in-laws drove too.

The rainsports did well and for once at Lydden not too much wear. This was mainly due to the amount of water on track! Got a few pictures. There were a couple of other Clios there too, all of which were going well. The small circuit seems to suit the clio well. They were all out running some quite expensive machinery. Roll on Monday at Brands and hopefully a slightly drier day.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Did Brands Hatch yesterday. Car ran faultless all day. Open pit lane and we were out all day with sufficient breaks between sessions to let the car cool down. Just one of my brother-in-laws was able to make yesterday's track day and we had a fairly equal amount of time on track.

Due to the weather we left the wets on which are uniroyal rainsport 3 all round. Coilovers were set to soft and we currently have no rear ARB fitted. Pressures set to 26psi and maintained all day. Car felt awsome. Could really drive it pretty hard in the wet weather with a degree of confidence. Engine felt really strong through the gears.

Although the briefing was busy the weather put a fair few off going out or people ended up going off including a brand new M3 into the wall off one of the bends. Many had turned up on dry tyres, which was causing many sideways moments! No real queing to get out all day and general track etiquette was good from most. Really enjoyable day.

Was good to meet @chris blue, @Cullen0406 and @djp66. Thanks for adding the pictures you took. My brother-in-law purchased the pro pictures so will try and upload some on here.

I noticed in the afternoon a small amount of movement and creaking in the solid top mounts. They were second hand when fitted and bearings have probably seen better days. I have ordered a rebuild kit for them from ktec today. I have also ordered a pre cat lambda sensor as I think this is causing slight uneven idle. It won't hurt to replace it anyway. I will complete another oil and filter change following the two track days and the engine being newly rebuilt. Also purchased a new expansion tank just to tidy the engine bay a bit more.

I have wanted a recessed exhaust for the track car for some time. I noticed that @djp66 had removed the one I sold with the road Cup after having a bit of welding completed on it. The system is custom made with a small center silencer and rear box with slash cut tip. I know roughly what the system sounds like and really like the look of it. It has all been cleaned up and looks fantastic. I shall update with some pictures prior to fitting. Well pleased with it so thanks again @djp66.

Few random pictures....

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Great stuff! Its nice when it all comes together, I had mine corner weighted yesterday and its such a nice feeling when you know things are working how they should! Even on the road when mine wasnt setup felt good in the wet, think its a good attribute that is overlooked.
Im in kent from next week for a while so whenever you have time for the pedals Im free
 

Cullen0406

ClioSport Club Member
  182
was good to meet you pal, was a good day out on track apart from a few moments with people being caught out by the track, your car was going very well, what coilovers are you on? I meant to ask yesterday.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
was good to meet you pal, was a good day out on track apart from a few moments with people being caught out by the track, your car was going very well, what coilovers are you on? I meant to ask yesterday.

They are BC BR coilovers. Fully adjustable height and damping front and damping adjustable rear with separate spring that sits on different included platforms for height. I just set them soft generally for road use and wet conditions. In the dry I will be playing around with the settings a bit to see what works best. So far for the money I am very impressed. I was lucky enough to get them second hand, but almost new from on here.

If I upgraded in the future I will look to get some AST's as they are fully adjustable front and rear and get rid of the separate spring. For the moment I am happy with the current set up and want to enjoy the car before spending too much more money!

Long term I will probably look to get a gripper or quaife diff fitted. That is some way off though!!
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Got a phase 1 shifter complete with yahnoo stif shift fitted and brass bushes to go on from @Mertin The play in the Megane shifter I fitted is what is causing the gear change to be a bit sloppy I think. Will fit the shifter as it is just to see and then probably use the best bits with the Megane shifter as I like the height of it.

Oil, filter and new expansion tank is here from Euro car parts so ready to be fitted as is the Ktec top mount rebuild kit. Exhaust System all ready to be fitted, I just need a morning off work to get it all done! I have purchased a Pure Motorsport carbon fibre exhaust surround from @Andy P so looking forward to getting that fitted too. Picture of the new exhaust system fitted to my old Cup to give you an idea of what it looks like.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
As usual, I have been useless with updates! Been slowly doing bits as time allows. Exhaust system is all fitted complete with cut out and carbon surround. Really happy with the sound and look of it for the track car. Need to take it for a proper drive, but so far seems good.

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While the exhaust was off fitted the PH1 shifter with stiff shift. I opted not to use the brass bushes as they were too stiff and origional ones were fine. Took a while to get the linkage set up correctly, but think it is now sorted and feels good.

Yesterday I removed the front suspension to change the top mount bearings in the K-tec solid mounts. I got a rebuild kit from K-tec. Came with new bearings, plastic cover and clip. Used an old socket to drive the old bearing out and then press the new ones in. I could feel the movement in the old bearings so on the car with weight on would have been exaggerated a fair amount. Cleaned and greased everything. All fitted and back together. I have some standard top nuts, but think it should have some tapered ones, which go into the bearing. Will phone ktec as can't find a picture of just the nuts on the internet.

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Old vs new
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All back together.
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Car all cleaned. Will do a quick oil and filter change following the two track days because of the new engine. I do not think it ticks over as well as it should. I have replaced most ignition parts during the build, so will look at cleaning the throttle body and a couple of other bits. Need to book a mapping session in the new year as with the various modifications, I can't imagine the current 98 Ron map makes the most of the engine. Will also highlight any issues.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Exhaust looks good mate,whats the Ph1 Shifter?,ive been looking at maybe changing my shifter/gearstick etc later on in the year

Pretty similar to the standard one, but has a different and much nicer gear knob. The one I have fitted also has the yahnoo stif shift fitted and takes a lot of the sloppiness out of the standard shifter when the bushes are worn. Will get a picture for you.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
The rebuild kit has made a real difference to the feel of the steering and no more knocking! I had to buy two new top nuts from ktec as they are made specifically with a chamfer for the inside of the bearing. Not cheap though at £40 the pair!!!

Took someone out for a drive in it as they wanted to see how it would fair up as a daily runner. Think he has decided against stripping his all out. On the drive it started misfiring, which was rather annoying.

Plugs and injectors are all new. No lights on dash. On initial inspection it appeared cylinder 4 was the culprit. Leads are silicone so the only thing I had not replaced was the coil pack. Started taking everything off to inspect and had trouble getting the lead off the plug in cylinder 4. This turned out to be full of water that had frozen and causing me trouble getting the lead out. Dried it all out and reassembled.

Then I discovered another issue! The engine was rebuilt with the head from a 182. My current inlet manifold is for a 172 and although only slightly different, it does not bolt down both sides at the rear or fit quite right causing an air leak. I have also had a slightly uneven idle. In all my spares I had a 182 inlet manifold lying around so fitted that.

All bolted back together. I was impressed when I got it back after the rebuild. It now drives even better! Much more induction noise than before too. Well chuffed.

As a result I saw @Sam Linssner had some 182 matched inlets and throttle body for sale that had just been completed by MS Engineering. I know there are mixed reviews on matched inlets, but they look smart and they probably make a small difference. Means I have a spare throttle body now too.

Just need to book a dyno session at Engine Dynamics to get the most out of all the modifications and out of interest to see what power it makes.

Only picture I have of the inlets from the advert. Will update once all fitted.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Been busy, but rubbish at updating! I currently have a 172 Cup undergoing an engine change(not out of choice and I will created a mini build thread for the work on this) and a pearl black 172 I intend to keep as a daily, which has undergone a fair amount of work! When i get a chance will create a sperate thread for this.

Fitted the new inlets and throttle body last weekend. Really pleased with them. No idea if they make any difference!

Have picked up a pair of Cup doors today complete with perspex windows that have sliders on. Custom door cards and a TRS 6-point harness in blue. Hope to get the doors fitted this week. Only bought them because they look so cool ?

I know it's a track car, but I do like it to look tidy. I am going to change a few of the bolts for stainless ones and the engine mount and fuel rail guard are soon to be powder coated to match the inlets.

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  Clio f1 r27
Looking really good. I looked at the advert for your silver cup when I was looking for a Clio to track, was to nice to rip apart.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
New doors with perspex windows and sliders unloaded from the van this morning ready to be fitted when I get a chance!

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Had a couple of hours this morning so fitted the doors! When removing the old ones and fitting the new it was quite noticible how much lighter they were without all the electric windows and glass in. I noticed on removing the door cards to connect the mirrors up that part of the inner door has been cut out also.

The passenger door has seen some paint before and is a slightly darker shade of blue. Don't look too bad and I must remember it's a track car! If it plays with my OCD I do have a spare passenger door I can transfer all the bits over too. I will be changing the mounting on the inside of the windows similar to what @Tomotek has done with his. What an inspirational track build thread that is!

I will be storing the two doors I have removed as they are. The track day door cards @Track-car-doorcards are smart and do away with the standard door pull. Drove the car to work today and they are quite noisey ? Cool from inside though!

I will be selling my old track day door cards as no longer needed if anyone is interested. They are as new and ready to fit.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Fitted the TRS six point drivers harness this afternoon. Removed the drivers seat and drilled a 10mm hole in the middle of the floor underneath. Fitted the eylet with spreader underneath and then bolted everything back up. Harness is really smart, I would like a matching passenger one now.

I have also started removing a bit more of the interior wiring, mainly for the air bags as they are all removed and it's not needed. Has really tidied up the drivers side of the car. Removed the aerial wiring too. I am going to remove the aerial, but will need to find something to put in its place.

Will get some pictures tomorrow as was dark when I finished. The passenger door colour is annoying me so I am going to swap all the bits over at some point to a spare passenger door I have in mondial blue.

Hopefully get a track day booked in the next month!
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Currently still have the airbag ECU connected, but have turned off and removed all airbags/sensors. I have removed aerial. I intend to remove all unneeded wiring and will then wrap the loom back up. Currently deciding what to do with the dash. I would ideally like to remove all the lower part, but retain the upper. I also want to keep the heater as it's a nightmare trying to clear condensation out the car when it rains.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Lydden tomorrow. My brother-in-law booked it in the week. Gives the car a run out and them a chance to drive it as I have done a fair amount since they last drove it.

Oil and filter change. Euros had 50% off in the week so bough some Mobil oil. Had a check over of the car and noticed the front pads were almost down to the metal on the N/S. Changed them for some Mintex Pads off the 182 I broke recently. They will be fine for Lydden.

Have loaded the car up and will be leaving early in the morning!

Tempted to do Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in May. Flippin expensive though!!

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Lydden went well today. Car felt awsome. Rain held off and was able to run the Toyo R888r's. The Mintex pads held up well and I was quite impressed with them. Still plenty of life left in them. Was quite a few other Clios on track. Got some good footage from my second run so will try and upload tomorrow.

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Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Mot today as realised it had expired and doing Lydden Sunday morning. Straight through with sports cat fitted that I purchased off here a couple of weeks ago. The test station I use are well aware of the exemption the Cup has on the rear brakes as I have taken so many there!!

Will clean and check it over during the day tomorrow and should be good to go.

Will do Lydden with the current Mintex Pads I have fitted. I keep reading a lot of people are running PBS pads so will look into a set of those for the front. I do have some DS2500 pads, but they seem to have all broken up, which is a bit odd.
 

Cullen0406

ClioSport Club Member
  182
I keep reading a lot of people are running PBS pads so will look into a set of those for the front. I do have some DS2500 pads, but they seem to have all broken up, which is a bit odd.
I am running PBS pads and been impressed with them, have to get them working first, but a couple of braking sections on an outlap and they have been good, done brands 3x on them so far plus 12,000 road miles never had fade or any issue, they do squeal normal driving though but as its a track car for you not really an issue.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Cleaned and checked the car over today ready for Lydden Hill tomorrow. Must of been filthy as it looks really clean now. Will get some pictures tomorrow.

The carbon cannister was still fitted in the wheel arch so have removed that. Have left the sports cat fitted following the mot. Had a new lambda sensor, which I have also fitted post cat.

Six twenty minute sessions tomorrow and one of my brother-in-laws is with me, so 3 sessions each.

Just in the process of fitting a tow bar on the transporter so hope to start going further afield with the car without the worry of it breaking and then trying to get it home.

After this track day will be changing discs and pads all round. Will prob go for PBS from the feedback. Thanks to @Cullen0406 for the above feedback.
 

Mbeau

ClioSport Club Member
  Clio 172
Awsome day at Lydden with my brother-in-law. Car was fantastic. Definately the quickest I have been round the track. Dry weather, Toyo R888r's and the BC coilovers set to hard all round. Grip was immense. I would highly recommend the BC coilovers.

Only had a couple of minor issues. After the first session the exhaust managed to come out of the rear hanger. I currently have a janspeed stainless twin silencer system with sports cat fitted as sick of worrying about noise levels on track days. Sounds lovely. The old school twin exit tip is not to everyone's taste, but the system was a bargain. Anyway that was an easy fix.

In the second session my brother-in-law had a running issue and the line symbol came on in center of dash. As luck would have it I had taken my code reader with me. This pointed towards a TPS fault. Quick look in the engine bay and the main plug to the throttle body had come loose. Cable tie round it and all good again ready to go back out.

I ran the tyre pressures at 28 PSI most of the day. I am really impressed with the wear levels on the tyres as Lydden is a very abrasive surface and they are lasting well. I had been running five turns from hard damping all round.

For the last session I set the suspension to hard all round and tyres to 26 PSI. Car felt amazing. So so pleased with it. Still got the Mintex Pads in from last time and they are holding up well. I was braking very late at times and felt no fade.

Lydden Hill is very different to other tracks as they let you overtake on both sides and round corners. I know this is not to everyone's liking, but I love it! Makes things a bit more exciting at times, but you do need to be very careful and respectful. Lydden is a great track for the Clio. Both sessions had at least four Clios in.

Before the next track day I plan to do probably discs and pads all round with a fluid change. Good check over and that is about it. Brands open pit lane next, maybe an evening session.

I will also read up on suspension settings. Should I run the damping harder at the rear and softer at the front or vice versa. I do have a RARB which is not currently fitted. Due to the suspension hight and adjustable damping, would the RARB make much difference.

At the moment I basically set the damping soft in the wet and fairly hard in the dry. This seems to be working well!

Anyway couple of short videos and some photos of the car.

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