My RB 197

[massiveCoRbyn]

Not sure how much of a project this is, but thought I would put something on here. Bought it last August as I needed a new daily. I wasn't particularly in need of another hot hatch, but I was bored of the dreary Vectra estate that had been performing tow car duties for a while, and when it shat it's gearbox, I sold it and needed something to get about in.

The Clio came up locally and had 11 months MOT, so it was purchased after a quick test drive. It isn't perfect, but the body is pretty tidy, and I like the colour. It was standard when I bought it, other than an unknown make of stainless steel exhaust and the rear windows are tinted.

Here's some pictures from the original ad:

The dealer I got it from had some quite nice cars in stock too...

A couple of pictures of the Clio on the day I picked it up:

It's pretty basic spec, don't think it has any options. Someone has painted the wheels black (badly), and the interior isn't brilliant, but it'll do.

I don't really have plans as such. I might modify a bit, but it depends on what happens with my work situation, as I am thinking of going overseas for a couple of years.

Will continue with some bits shortly...

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

The first few months were just spent driving it. It did act as a van, shifting a load of stuff when I sold my Escort rally car:

The brakes were rather rusty and grim, so I gave them a clean up and paint. Going to redo the fronts though, as they didn't come up very well. Need to get some new stickers for the front too. You can also see how crap the front dampers are The rear springs and dampers look pretty new. Not sure what I'm going to do with that yet.

Might be a bit of a long shot, but does anyone have any idea what exhaust this is? Not found any branding on it so far:

Removed the Clio badge from the boot...

More to follow...

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

I fitted a Powerflex insert to the low torque mount. I should really replace the whole thing at some point, because it's a bit grim. Will do the upper at some point too.

I also had new track rods and ends fitted, then did the anti-rotation and drop links. No pictures of any of this, but it's not very exciting anyway.

Did a 12-Car rally in October...

...which made the car rather dirty:

I bought an R3 Maxi air box a while ago. Not fitted it. Debating having a mould taken off it in case anyone else wanted one...

In March, I finally had it cleaned for the first time 😂

A friend of mine also has a 197 as a cheap track car (I've posted pictures of it on here before). He's part of the reason I bought mine actually. We've both had 172s in the past. He bought this about three years ago and, having driven it quite a few times, I became quite taken with them. Here I swapped a faulty indicator stalk for him, as he isn't really mechanically inclined:

More to follow...

 

[Ocsltd]

Do love an RB! Something pretty cool about them being that filthy, almost rally-esq.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Another purchase; six Speedline R3 wheels with AD08R tyres. Decided to test fit them as the lock means not much need to drive. The guy I bought them from supplied some wheel nuts with them, but I don't have studs, and the standard wheel bolts seem to fit fine. They're 17x7J, ET41. They sit well in the arches I think...

It definitely needs lowering. Not sure if I am going to keep them yet, as the covid nonsense isn't helping my job situation much. If they go on permanently, I'll sell the AD08Rs and put on something a bit more all-weather.

Since I've owned the car, the lock buttons on the door handles haven't worked. I bought some new micro switches from a guy on Clio197.net ages ago, along with some spare door handles as mine were a bit scratched/worn. Rather than doing them in silver or black, I decided to colour-code them to the car:

I fitted them last week and, while I was doing that, I obviously had to take the door panels off. The front speakers are a bit pathetic aren't they?

Anyway, handles fitted and now the keyless works properly! I've bought some more switches, so I'm going to repair the handles that came off the car to put onto my mate's silver 197, as his has the same problem. Will then fix the handles off his car too and sell them.

One more...

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

And that brings us up to date. Last week I decided to tackle the rusty radiator support, so the car was jacked up, the front bumper removed and the support taken off:

Removed:

It was definitely rusty 😄

I decided that, rather than repairing it(!), I would go Cup racer style and just cut it down and clean up what's left:

Painted:

And back on:

Back on the deck:

The only real pain was that the rear bolts for the under tray go into the rad support. I've held it in place with cable ties for now, but will try and find a better solution at some point. The rear brackets are held on by the same bolts as the front of the sub frame, which is a bit annoying. I guess the Cup racer must have had a spacer in there. Something to look at for the future, but for now the rust is gone, which is good.

Lower arms are next on the list, as well as some paint correction, as it's a bit swirly.

 

[imprezaworks]

Looks a tidy little car.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Looks a tidy little car.

It's not too bad. It's had a little paint, but the body is ok overall. Seats are fucked though lol

 

[mossyv6]

Always liked the 197 in racing blue and yours look great and good work so far 👍

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Always liked the 197 in racing blue and yours look great and good work so far 👍

Thanks man. It would look awesome with the Speedlines and a slight drop, but will have to see how it goes.

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

Looks epic, that shot of the front arch (taken from the rear) just makes me want a 197 or 200.

Best bit of owning a Clio has to be the Renaultsport trackdays - do they still do them?

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Yeah they do sit nicely, and the arches are definitely the nicest feature of the 197/200.

I don't know if they do the track days anymore. The R.S. range is a bit light these days.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Had a delivery this morning, new set of Asymmetric 5s to go on the R3 wheels:

They had basically new AD08Rs on them, but I didn't really want to run those as a road tyres, so will sell them on.

Need to fit the Speedlines onto the car, but debating new wheel bolts. Should probably buy something to seal them with too, as the white will soon start to look grubby no doubt.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

he Speedlines now have new Asymmetric 5s on them. I put some wheel sealer on them this afternoon, so they're ready to go:

Ordered new front dampers, top mounts and lower arms from RPD too, as they all look a bit rough.

I think the battery is beginning to suffer from lockdown now, as had to jump it earlier. Hopefully it just needs a charge, as I don't really fancy buying a new one at the moment!

 

[imprezaworks]

What colour are the wheels?. White/grey ISH.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

What colour are the wheels?. White/grey ISH.

They're white

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

The overhaul has begun!

Managed to find a set of Cooksport springs for a good price, which turned up a couple of days ago. Seemed silly not to give it a bit of a drop if I was taking it apart anyway. The 200 Cup front shocks, new top mounts and new lower arms arrived from RPD earlier this week.

Yesterday afternoon I thought I would do the rears, as well as giving the brakes a lick of paint.

Crappy standard spring:

No spring:

Comparison:

Cooksport fitted:

I noticed that one of the rear brakes was sticking a little, so I took the caliper off for a look. Both rears were replaced by the garage before I bought the car last summer, so I didn't think that was the problem. It looks like one of the sliders in the carrier has seized up. I couldn't get it to budge, so have ordered another one.

Anyway, back down and Speedlines fitted to the rear:

The offset fills the arches perfectly:

Started the front this afternoon, but haven't got that far yet. It's a bit of a ball ache compared to the rear. Whoever decided that pinch bolts were a good idea at the bottom of a damper should be shot in the face 😂Should look decent when it's done though.

 

[Krarl]

If you want to sell the AD08's then let me know a price

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

If you want to sell the AD08's then let me know a price

I've sold most of them now, but got two 205/45 left, basically brand new

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Front done now too:

Fitted the Powerflex upper torque mount bush:

And back down on the deck with all four Speedlines on for the first time. Desperately needs a clean, but you get the idea:

Got a new caliper carrier for the right rear, as it had seized, and also need to sort a battery clamp, as it doesn't seem to have one.

 

[tomsteer]

Wheels look perfect on it, sits well on the cooksports too.

 

[Sir_Dave]

Damn. Those wheels, with that colour combo are

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Thanks chaps. Got lucky with the wheels really, as they're pretty pricey new, so probably wouldn't have bought them otherwise.

Pleased though. As @Dr Jekyll has proved on his 182, RB and white seem to work well together, so definitely a bit of inspiration from there. Just got to keep the wheels clean now 😂

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Time for an update. First up, now it's all settled and done some miles, I must say I'm really happy with how it sits on the Speedlines and Cooksport springs. It's just what I wanted. It's a touch stiffer than I hoped it would be, but you can't have everything I guess. Need to fit new rear dampers at some point, but putting it off for now.

I've got a Toyosport manifold to go on, hopefully in a couple of weeks, as I'm fed up of the standard one blowing. I would have liked to go down the Ktec/PMS route, but redundancy is looming, so that was off the menu unfortunately. This will stop it blowing at least, which is something. I might get the ARB bushes done at the same time, as it makes sense while the subframe is coming out.

As you may have read earlier in the thread, I bought an R3 Maxi air box to fit but, with the job situation, I decided to sell it on. A shame, but need to be sensible really. Anyway, I still wanted some more induction noise, but I now didn't have an R3 air box, and wasn't going to fork out for the Ktec induction kit. Instead, I decided to go all Blue Peter and fashion something myself.

I ordered a 70mm 90deg alloy bend, a posh Ramair filter (it was reduced and was the right size), some flexible ducting, and got to work.

To try and reduce potential heat soak, I decided to make a heat shield too. Really this should have been aluminium, but I ruled that out, partly because I had a load of 1mm steel sheet, and also because I can't weld aluminium. I don't think this setup really weighs anymore than standard, so it's all good.

I knocked up a basic heatshield, and added a port so that I could utilise the existing cold air feed:

I then painted it black, along with the (extremely) cut down alloy bend:

For final fitting, I removed the battery tray, and fitted some of the flexible ducting over the standard cold air feed:

I then loosely put the heatshield in, so I could attach the ducting:

Battery and tray refitted, air filter in and hey presto, one custom induction kit:

I've not been out to test it yet, but hopefully it will work ok. I'm sure it will have basically zero impact on performance, but if it adds a bit of extra theatre to the driving experience, then it's done it's job. And it owes me fifty quid, rather than over £200, so I'm cool with it I've left the acoustic valve in place for now, as I'll see how this setup works out first but, if it's ok, I'll get rid of it.

Next job is a gearbox oil change before it goes in for the manifold.

 

[Krarl]

That cold air feed and filter ducting looks wicked mate!

I'd be dead chuffed with myself if I made that

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

That cold air feed and filter ducting looks wicked mate!

I'd be dead chuffed with myself if I made that

Cheers mate. It didn't come out too bad. Need to work on my welding a bit though 😂

I've just been out in it. Sounds ok, don't know if it's as loud as a Ktec kit with the standard inlet hose, but it's definitely added some aggression.

 

[Krarl]

Cheers mate. It didn't come out too bad. Need to work on my welding a bit though 😂

I've just been out in it. Sounds ok, don't know if it's as loud as a Ktec kit with the standard inlet hose, but it's definitely added some aggression.

Tbh the first time I tried welding it looked like chernobyl pigeon s**t

I've not welded anything in that long that anything I attempt to do now will look dogger😂 Dont use a Ramair filter if you can, they're s**t and its essentially a bit of foam around some chicken wire

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Yeah this was the first thing I've done for over a year. It could have been worse.

I've used Ramair before and they're ok for the price. This is a posh gauze one so should be fine lol

 

[Krarl]

Swapped my Ramair for an AEM dryflow. I found with the dryflow that the MAF was getting dirty quickly and it wasnt really filtering a lot of the smaller stuff

Need to make a good enclosure like you have

 

[LB197]

Like the wheels, was thinking about doing my handles RB as well, but didn't know if it would look good, are they easy enough to get off? or would you reckon it would be easier to just mask them up?

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Like the wheels, was thinking about doing my handles RB as well, but didn't know if it would look good, are they easy enough to get off? or would you reckon it would be easier to just mask them up?

Getting the handles off isn't too bad. There is a good guide on Clio197.net which I followed. You have to take the door card off (just a few screws really), and it's not too bad after that. I stripped the handles down totally as I was fitting new keyless buttons at the same time, which made painting easier.

I wasn't sure what it would look like, but I like it now I've done it. The silver handles look a bit odd I think, as there isn't any other silver on the car. A lot of people go for satin or gloss black. I'm doing a gloss black pair for a mate at the moment, but I think I prefer colour-coded.

 

[LB197]

Getting the handles off isn't too bad. There is a good guide on Clio197.net which I followed. You have to take the door card off (just a few screws really), and it's not too bad after that. I stripped the handles down totally as I was fitting new keyless buttons at the same time, which made painting easier.

I wasn't sure what it would look like, but I like it now I've done it. The silver handles look a bit odd I think, as there isn't any other silver on the car. A lot of people go for satin or gloss black. I'm doing a gloss black pair for a mate at the moment, but I think I prefer colour-coded.

Ah right thanks, might have a go at that one saturday. With mine being a Lux packed one, its got silver bloody everywhere haha, ive wrapped the wing mirrors, but left the vents, but i agree the handles look better color coded like the MK2's

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Had the rear wheels balanced today:

Had the fronts done a couple of weeks ago as, ever since I fitted the Speedlines, there was a bad vibration through the steering. The fronts were 50g and 20g out and, while having them balanced improved it a lot, I could still feel some vibration through the car at 60-70mph. The rears were, unsurprisingly, out as well, so it turns out that National made a pig's ear of balancing the wheels when the tyres were done. Better now anyway.

In other news, a picture of it with my mate's 197 and another mate's 987 Boxster:

Also, it's going in next Tuesday to have the Toyosport manifold fitted, along with some poly ARB bushes. Will be nice to finally be rid of the blowing exhaust.

Booked a track day at Snetterton on the 1st of December too as it was only £89.

 

[Robbie Corbett]

I read the first few lines about it not becoming a project and knew that by the end of the page it would be haha good work!

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

I read the first few lines about it not becoming a project and knew that by the end of the page it would be haha good work!

I keep trying to resist, but I keep failing lol

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Car went in this week to have the manifold swapped out:

New and old:

Evidence of a previous repair:

It's better, but I do wonder if there is a bit of a blow from the join. Sounds a bit odd with the windows down. Will see how it goes for now. The guy at the garage said to just pop back in if need be.

Bit of a flat spot too (obviously), but will put up with that for now. Need to have a look at the air con or alternator really, as there's a bit of a whine. Don't really fancy buying a new compressor though lol.

Oh, they fitted Powerflex ARB bushes while it was apart too.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Not much has happened with this lately. Losing my job has put a stop to me having too much fun unfortunately. Decided to tick off a couple of jobs this weekend though.

I bought some 200 Cup dampers from RPD a while ago, but only got round to fitting them today:

Also finished sorting the dash trims. They were a bit scuffed and worn, so I repainted them into a similar-ish metallic grey. I hadn't fitted it all as I was also messing about with the head unit, which I had to replace after the old one packed up. Since doing that, the steering column controls hadn't been working, but it turns out that the plug was just slightly loose. Sorted that and refitted all of the trim:

I am going to redo the bit above the glovebox at some point, as the finish could be better, but it looks better than it did.

I really need to clean it inside and out, as it's pretty grim. I also replaced a number plate light bulb, but noticed that one of the lenses is cracked, so might try and sort some new ones.

Not much else planned at the moment. Waiting for new front/pads/pins to arrive from RTR, so will do them. May have to look at the alternator at some point too, as it's occasionally throwing up the low battery warning. Joy.

 

[LB197]

@massivewangers In regards to the numberplate lights. I ordered both numberplate bulb holders from euro car parts quite cheaply and was surprised to find that they sent genuine Renault bulb holders with bulbs.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

@massivewangers In regards to the numberplate lights. I ordered both numberplate bulb holders from euro car parts quite cheaply and was surprised to find that they sent genuine Renault bulb holders with bulbs.

That's good to know! One of the lenses on mine is broken.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Been a while since I updated this. Gave it a clean today and my friend took some snaps:

Probably be the last pictures of it sadly. A job overseas means I don't really need a car here anymore, so it will be sold soon.