The everlasting ph1 ITB Build **GREEN-BUILD STARTS AT PAGE 100**

[Gus]

and the nice surprise, well our new neighbours.

It turns out that our next door neighbour is an engineer specialising in aluminium products for motorsport, working with a lot of F1 teams machining products such as brackets but also producing heads and forged/flowed stuff. He also decent friends with a few of our friends from the other side of the country (randomly) and also knows quite a few of the people behind various companies in the clio "scene" being an ex-omex guy.

He sounds like someone who is very handy to have next door and is already showing an interest in the project, i am not going to argue, not when he has had quite a helping hand (and also gets to regularly drive) this: 600bhp, and apparently it is pretty scary (coming from someone who has been in quite a few decent builds).

best get finishing the garage and get the car back here.

hold up, Is your neighbour this guy:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18527080
Did his car catch fire recently?

 

[Nafoff]

hold up, Is your neighbour this guy:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18527080
Did his car catch fire recently?

nah thts not my neighbour i don't think, can't really see anything from that link

 

[Nafoff]

The garage has been up for a while, but up until today i hadn't actually tested to see how well the car fitted.... call it nerves perhaps. Luckily i have another clio to use to test fit.

so it was reassuring that it fits quite nicely, its a bit of a fiddle negotiating in (tight alley way at the back, and a relatively tight doorway although it is standard size). However once in there is a nice amount of room all around the car, doors can be opened with decent room etc. HOWEVER....

... the car did groundout on the wood trim on the doorway floor on the way in and out. Only on the drivers side, however the concern is this is standard height and the track car is lots lower, perhaps i am going to need to think of something, or potentially try driving in rather than reversing. We will see, either way i am getting more excited to get the project in here

 

[Daniel]

Boner, what was the reason behind taking it off the road?

What was wrong with how it was?

(You may have mentioned it before but I CBA to scroll through pages and pages)

 

[Nafoff]

Boner, what was the reason behind taking it off the road?
What was wrong with how it was?
(You may have mentioned it before but I CBA to scroll through pages and pages)

the main thing was the split in the airbox, that got removed and sent away, i picked up the passat and then because i had a second car i just decided to get a bit more silly with it...hmmmmmmm

 

[Daniel]

A split in the airbox and you stripped the whole car??

 

[Nafoff]

A split in the airbox and you stripped the whole car??

just found these for your readings dan. weird looking back through

Re: No Compromise ph1 ITB build (Fastcar, BTM, TDF, RS Fab) - ITB update p77
again thanks again guys...sorning the car and having the passat to run around in has opened up the possibilities for the clio, i no longer have to rush to get stuff done, i can take my time and get things perfect

Re: No Compromise ph1 ITB build (Fastcar, BTM, TDF, RS Fab) - ITB update p77
the love came back...i loved the car... it had no problems during and after our EPIC roadtrip, very happy. however i went out to it this morning and it appears my car doesn't like england, a very sticky (dangerous) accelerator pedal meant i could drive it today, because of this and some other bits i want to sort i think the car is being taken off the road as of today, after such a high of last week..its a shame. but it will come back stronger

Re: No Compromise ph1 ITB build (Fastcar, BTM, TDF, RS Fab) - ITB update p77
well its the end of an era for mine, but will be heading elsewhere....
now the passats about the clio can get a little more silly....so an hour with Danlp6 and the car was half of what it use to be....

it will soon be going to a friends unit were it will stay for a fair while whilst the overhaul continues....

 

[Nafoff]

So over the past few weeks i set myself the task of wiring the garage for electrics. I am no electrician and it has taken me some time and a steep learning curve. But its all wired and awaiting an approved electricians sign-off (2-3weeks time). Very happy with the layout with lots of thought going into it and how it will suit having the car in there.

Hopefully it will get sign-off and i can get the car in there within the next 6-weeks (then the project can get back on track, slowly)

 

[Daniel]

Great update pics...

You f**king loser.

 

[Nafoff]

Great update pics...
You f**king loser.

i'll text you some pictures of wires to jerk off over

 

[Nafoff]

UPDATE: And so it begin's... (AGAIN)

Saturday the wiring in my garage was finished, all sockets and lights are now working. Not wanting to waste anymore time the car was moved back yesterday.
It now sits in my own garage that was pretty much specifically built to home it. I am stoked and can't wait to get going on it again. There is loads of space to move around the car to work on it, and i have already got it nice and high on the axle stands so i can work on the underneath also...

So 7 years on from when i originally purchased it, the project is actually moving in a forward motion again.
(pictures for @Daniel )

 

[Nafoff]

The car now sits nicely high up in the air, on axle stands giving me loads of room to work. Working from the OSF i started to clean the car up from the storage grim/dust/dirt it has collected over the past few years. Along the way straightening the mangled drivers side sill, currently i have got to the NSR and am really happy with what i have found so far - the paint is in really good condition with only some tiny rust points at the bottom rear 3/4, meaning the whole car may not need painting, just a few panels - that may save some cash and speed things up.

I have also started looking at weld-in cages, probably 6-point with door bars, nothing too overkill (keeping weight down) but safe and race ready, any pointers on who to speak to greatly accepted.

 

[NorthloopCup]

The car now sits nicely high up in the air, on axle stands giving me loads of room to work. Working from the OSF i started to clean the car up from the storage grim/dust/dirt it has collected over the past few years. Along the way straightening the mangled drivers side sill, currently i have got to the NSR and am really happy with what i have found so far - the paint is in really good condition with only some tiny rust points at the bottom rear 3/4, meaning the whole car may not need painting, just a few panels - that may save some cash and speed things up.

I have also started looking at weld-in cages, probably 6-point with door bars, nothing too overkill (keeping weight down) but safe and race ready, any pointers on who to speak to greatly accepted.

Custom cages clubman cage is what I've got. X door bars and also has a harness bar.

 

[Nafoff]

Custom cages clubman cage is what I've got. X door bars and also has a harness bar.

That was what i was looking at, £490 +VAT unfitted or £1025 +VAT fitted by them.
seems to be exactly what i described.

 

[NorthloopCup]

That was what i was looking at, £490 +VAT unfitted or £1025 +VAT fitted by them.
seems to be exactly what i described.

Yeah it's a good cage tbh mate. I fitted mine myself and all the ends came profiled and none required any alteration. When I got mine it was classed as a CL4 kit and they've since added the x door bars and harness bar. I had to make and fit those myself, but it wasn't an issue as I wanted the x door bars removeable. Just to make access easier if I needed to be working inside the car for whatever reason.

 

[Nafoff]

Yeah it's a good cage tbh mate. I fitted mine myself and all the ends came profiled and none required any alteration. When I got mine it was classed as a CL4 kit and they've since added the x door bars and harness bar. I had to make and fit those myself, but it wasn't an issue as I wanted the x door bars removeable. Just to make access easier if I needed to be working inside the car for whatever reason.

sounds good, i will probably add a dashbar, maybe some gussets, but will see. do you have any pictures?

 

[NorthloopCup]

sounds good, i will probably add a dashbar, maybe some gussets, but will see. do you have any pictures?

Yeah here's mine mate.

Not the best pics, but you get the idea.

 

[Nafoff]

Yeah here's mine mate. Not the best pics, but you get the idea.

I didn't know it picked up the rear turrets, even better
also you didn't need boxes at the bottom of each upright, just a strengthened area?

 

[NorthloopCup]

I didn't know it picked up the rear turrets, even better
also you didn't need boxes at the bottom of each upright, just a strengthened area?

Yeah that's one of the reasons I opted to go with this cage mate, as I knew I would be going to rear coilovers.
Yeah they come with some preformed plates for the cage to sit on. No boxes at all. You have to drill holes in the floor pan for the tubes to pass through though so it can be fully welded. You then lift it up and slip the plates under and weld them in place.

 

[Nafoff]

Yeah that's one of the reasons I opted to go with this cage mate, as I knew I would be going to rear coilovers.
Yeah they come with some preformed plates for the cage to sit on. No boxes at all. You have to drill holes in the floor pan for the tubes to pass through though so it can be fully welded. You then lift it up and slip the plates under and weld them in place.

I already have strength plates in the front, and small boxes in the back fabricated by Caged Laser Engineering, but that can obviously be lost/re-used.
Think i will 100% be going for one of these though. unless a local fabricator can replicate it for a little less $$$$

 

[Dan@SJM]

Custom cages have gone bump.

 

[Nafoff]

Custom cages have gone bump.

ah what? kappuuttt? gone?

 

[Dan@SJM]

Yup. There was a thing on Facebook about a really badly fitted cage along with a back ground story about how he was attempting to take them to court but the company was in the hands of administrators

 

[Nafoff]

Yup. There was a thing on Facebook about a really badly fitted cage along with a back ground story about how he was attempting to take them to court but the company was in the hands of administrators

ah bugger... back to the drawing board then

 

[welshname]

Nice to see some progress in here recently! Keep it up.

Yup. There was a thing on Facebook about a really badly fitted cage along with a back ground story about how he was attempting to take them to court but the company was in the hands of administrators

Why is it always the case that traders start to do crappy work before they go bump. They can be a superb trader and do everything spot on and everyone recommends them for years, and then all of a sudden they lose the love for it, let it go to s**t and end up ruining their name before going bump. I wish they'd just move on as soon as they lost the love for it instead of ruining their reputation first.

 

[Nafoff]

UPDATE:
So @Gray kindly reminded me today that 4 years ago to this very day we removed the engine from the car... a good anniversary with no clear date when it may be going back in, ha. However i have had this week off work, and have a couple days next week also, between house DIY jobs, christmas shopping and spending time with the mrs' i have managed to get a good amount of time/wor in on the car (its so useful having it at the end of the garden in a decent sized garage.

I started off by finishing up the cleaning of the exterior bodywork (down the passenger side). this wasn't too bad but has added another panel to the list to be painted, the passenger door looks like it has been sanded down/flattened and i certainly haven't done it, but thats fine it has a few dents anyways. I also cleaned up the bonnet which came up good too so i pretty much know where i am with paint now and i will be doing my best to keep this cost down.

I then moved to the underside of the car and today i started off by removing all the heat-shields from underneath the car, the car won't be needing them, this also meant removing the gear linkage as it holds the last heat shield on

With them removed it leaves an array of screw mounts and plastic clips behind, next up was the removal of these front to back (this was mainly down the passenger side, the drivers side will clip the fuel line up), I also cut off/trimmed back any bad, loose or sh*tty look under seal as i will replace this anyways.

With the plan to seal/paint the underside and also the engine bay of the car i then had 2 choices, remove the rear swingarm or the front subfrmae, today i went for the subframe, this cam off nice and easy and has been put to one side to be cleaned up and refitted.

Next up will be the removal of the rear swingarm, then i can look at sealing/paining the underside and up into the engine bay, hopefully that can be the early part of next week. Things seem to be moving along pretty well again now, they probably will until i need to spend some decent $$$$. But there is always the reminder that it use to be on the road, and it will be again, bigger, better, faster, stronger.

 

[Nafoff]

oh, and it appears that Custom cages have not gone into liquidation, i best look into that soon just incase they do disappear, can i put a cage on the wedding gift list?

 

[NorthloopCup]

oh, and it appears that Custom cages have not gone into liquidation, i best look into that soon just incase they do disappear, can i put a cage on the wedding gift list?

Yeah do it! Lol!!

 

[Nafoff]

UPDATE:
More work today, and the car is going backwards to go forwards. After removing the front subframe last week, this week it was the turn of the rear arm. Just prior to removing that though the front subframe was cleaned up and stored back away.

The whiteline first up had to be removed from the rear arm and then the job of removing the rear arm, which pretty much went smoothly (accept for the drivers side pivot bolt, until i knew i had to drop the fuel tank a little). This was then stripped down into various parts, ready to paint and to allow easier access for work on the underside of the car.

I will probably look at replacing the rear arm bushings with some new items (unsure how long these have been on there), to fully update the rear end as the shocks are new as is the whiteline. Next up was the front corners, I had tried to remove the track-rod ends last week but they were being a proper pain, i started the day with spraying them in WD40 and the drivers side came out a treat, meaning the whole hub could be removed and put to one side.

I will potentially remove the coilover also but if i remember rightly the compomotive top mounts can be a proper pain to undo.

As for the passenger side, no such luck.. this doesn't seem to want to budge at all, i must of hit it so many times, in the end i gave up and soaked it in more WD40, hopefully it will loosen up tomorrow. Then i will remove the steering rack and plan my next attack.

 

[Mr R.]

You need to hit the side where the TRE goes through, this will shock it and it will fall out.
Its a taper fit.

 

[Nafoff]

You need to hit the side where the TRE goes through, this will shock it and it will fall out.
Its a taper fit.

so hit the underside?

 

[Mr R.]

so hit the underside?

No bud. Hit the side of the hub where the TRE goes through.

It will come out, 100%

 

[Nafoff]

No bud. Hit the side of the hub where the TRE goes through.
It will come out, 100%

thats no clearer...ha
i am going out and hitting it everywhere

 

[Mr R.]

Right, don't hit the end of the track rod end.

Hit the side, where it fits through.
The shock will break the taper.

 

[Nafoff]

Right, don't hit the end of the track rod end.
Hit the side, where it fits through. The shock will break the taper.

Sorry chap, not sure if i was being dim. ha. Turns out it was still an absolute ballache.
I looked at doing as you said but this didn't really make much difference, i must have tried for another 30mins after it had been soaking all night, but to no avail. I decided to remove the passenger hub assembly with the steering rack, once this was off the car i then managed to get the steering rack off the track rod end so i was left with the steering rack and the hub with the track rod in.

This then took about another hour of hitting at various directions, with a chisel/screw driver end at the ball side to try and push it out and it finally popped, however then needed to cut off the mangled bolt with a grinder, but hey it got done.

and now i am left with a nice clean bay to prep, perfect.

The last thing to come off is the front coilovers, as said above i am slightly concerned with getting these off without causing damage (as i want to re-use the top mounts), but i am being sent some adjustable C-spanners so this should help and then i can just undo the top mounts and drop the lot out in 1 go.

But thats it for a little while, back to work tomorrow, next up though really is paint and paint prep. looking forward to move it forward that way though

 

[Russ_16v]

Coming along nicely Wurzle

 

[Rubicon_]

Nice work!

Id love to strip mine back this far again, so much things id do better!

 

[Nafoff]

Nice work!
Id love to strip mine back this far again, so much things id do better!

it wasn't on the cards several months ago, but now its in the garage, and most money next year will go towards a wedding its not going to be complete in 2016, so time isn't an issue, and it will only cost me my time, some paint/underseal and sone elbow grease

 

[Gray]

it wasn't on the cards several months ago, but now its in the garage, and most money next year will go towards a wedding its not going to be complete in 2016, so time isn't an issue, and it will only cost me my time, some paint/underseal and sone elbow grease

Hold up.... So we aren't taking the Clio to Germany?

 

[Nafoff]

UPDATE:

So managed to get a little more time on it over the weekend, main aim was to get the front suspension/top mounts off. After soaking them for 24+ hours in WD40 and using this adjustable C-spanner it was apparent that they weren't budging, instead they were just damaging the softer material of the top mounts.

To loosen/tighten them is a terrible design and it was at this point i decided that once they were removed the top collars at least were not going back on, so a new tact was taken to remove them,

This worked quite well, I was very careful not to damage the thread on the inner collar, so once these need to go back on the car i will be speaking to my neighbour very nicely about potentially making up some new billet collars that have a different way of loosening/tightening them.

Next up i wanted to look at more metal work (ie removing more) there was a couple more places in the engine bay that could loose a few g's and then on the interior. This was quite well thought out rather than just putting holes anywhere. I know that in various race series they try to clamp down on lightening shells so i wasn't going to go too crazy, and once the cage is in and all is painted these shouldn't be that noticeable visually, hopefully all these little bits of weight add up though - The rear 3/4 panels drilled and then swaged for strength.

Now the car is pretty much totally bare i can look at underseal and paint, and then referring the various item that i need to refit at a later date.