The life of... SharkyUK's Trophy

[SharkyUK]

Did you see the nechrome Kics ones I had on mine?

Yes, and they look great... hmm... So much choice. When it comes to nuts I usually only have to choose between salted or roasted. *sigh*

Red would look awesome! but make sure you choose M12x1.5 not M12x1.25 and you will be fine.

I'm tending more towards the red at the moment. As long as they ARE red and not "off-red"... (i.e. pink, although that would match the rest of the car... LOL!) Cheers, I've made a note of the size as I may well place my order tomorrow. Thanks for the recommendations.

 

[SharkyUK]

This is getting beyond a joke now... I just had a great weekend away with my other half and the car was driving beautifully. This morning I set off for work, stop for petrol and then cannot find a gear. I eventually 'forced' into first gear and limped home (fortunately only a mile away from home) in first. The annoying thing is that gearbox fluid levels are fine and I've had no problems at all with either the clutch or the gearbox. *sigh*

 

[Silent_Scone]

Might just be the cable matey. That car really doesn't like you at the moment does it lol

 

[JamesT87]

This is getting beyond a joke now... I just had a great weekend away with my other half and the car was driving beautifully. This morning I set off for work, stop for petrol and then cannot find a gear. I eventually 'forced' into first gear and limped home (fortunately only a mile away from home) in first. The annoying thing is that gearbox fluid levels are fine and I've had no problems at all with either the clutch or the gearbox. *sigh*

Jack it up and drop the exhaust heatshield maybe the bolt has dropped out. or the cable as SS said.

 

[SharkyUK]

Might just be the cable matey. That car really doesn't like you at the moment does it lol

You're not wrong. Do you reckon it's trying to tell me something?!

Jack it up and drop the exhaust heatshield maybe the bolt has dropped out. or the cable as SS said.

I managed to get the car shipped over to my mate's garage courtesy of a very kind AA man. He was parked at the side of the road on his lunch so I pulled over (in my other half's car) and asked if he could take my car over to my mate's garage! LOL! He rang it in as an official job - which it is/was - and, thanks to my full AA membership through work, got my Trophy over to the garage for a closer inspection. It restores my faith in humanity!

 

[keechy]

Not having much luck are you? Hopefully its not too bad and gets fixed quikly!

 

[SharkyUK]

Not having much luck are you? Hopefully its not too bad and gets fixed quikly!

Cheers, keechy. I'm remaining upbeat as I think it might be something as simple as a cable / linkage issue (as the guys above suggested). Famous last words! LOL!

 

[Fletcher]

Fingers crossed it'll be a easy fix Andy.

 

[SharkyUK]

Fingers crossed it'll be a easy fix Andy.

I hope so, Fletch. It's in the garage today and being looked at so hopefully I'll know more soon (although it certainly seems to be clutch related).

 

[SharkyUK]

UPDATE:

My gearbox has been stripped out and all appears ok. However, the clutch isn't so healthy. The clutch spring has broken on the clutch plate. A new clutch is on the way and hopefully will be installed tomorrow. Another tight month ahead I fear...

 

[Stefan.]

jesus you must of had the runt of the trophy line sorry to say, but you have spent some £££££££ on yours. still love/hate relationship i guess. i can only guess whcih one of the two it is right now :/

 

[SharkyUK]

jesus you must of had the runt of the trophy line sorry to say, but you have spent some £££££££ on yours. still love/hate relationship i guess. i can only guess whcih one of the two it is right now :/

I'm starting to think that way, mate! Very much the runt of the litter despite the fact that it gets an awful lot of attention and TLC. As for the love/hate relationship... it's very borderline at the moment! That said, I still couldn't be without it. On those rare occasions when it is healthy then it takes some beating to be fair. I'm hoping that this is the last issue for a while so that I can enjoy a summer of unadulterated driving pleasure! LOL!

 

[JamesT87]

Oh Bloomin hell! Not a cheap month! TROPHY TAX!

When are we having the meet?

James

 

[SharkyUK]

Oh Bloomin hell! Not a cheap month! TROPHY TAX!

When are we having the meet?

James

Damn Trophy Tax... I didn't realise the chancellor had put that up as well!

As for the meet, your guess is as good as mine. As soon as I'm mobile again and visiting my family I'll drop you a line; will be good to meet up and check out your Trophy. I expect I'll be up that way in the next month or so, mate.

 

[SharkyUK]

It's been a fun few days... just to recap (more for me than anyone!)...

As some of you may already be aware (from reading the above), I had another problem with the Trophy last Monday. I was on my way to work and pulled in for some petrol. Filled her up and then got ready to drive away. But no, I couldn't get a gear. I couldn't find any gear at all. I eventually forced it into first and limped the mile or so home in first gear!

Back at home I couldn't get into reverse so ended up pushing the car into place! :lol:

My good lady kindly let me borrow her car so I dropped her off at work (having arranged to try and get my car to my mate Rob's garage in Cardiff). My car wouldn't get into gear so I didn't really fancy driving it by forcing home the gears... but I had a stroke of luck. On the way to drop my other half off there was an AA man parked up. So, after dropping her off, I returned back to the layby and pulled in front of the AA van. I was a bit cheeky and asked if he could get me over to the garage! LMAO! I'm a member with the AA and have a full membership so he rang it in as a new job, finished his lunch break and took me and Trophy over to Cardiff. I left the car with Rob and returned home... via public transport. It wasn't pleasant.

I then got a call yesterday (Tuesday) from Rob stating that he had checked the gearbox and all was well. However, the clutch was knackered. The clutch spring had broken on the clutch plate. A new clutch was needed so he took the details of what was required and a new clutch was ordered. Thankfully this was speedily delivered earlier today (Wednesday).

I then got a phone call only a few hours ago - Rob had the car ready at his place for picking up. My other/better half kindly offered me a lift to collect it and - I'm happy to say - all is well again.

It's taking some getting used to, though. The clutch has always been heavy on my Trophy... but now it's feather-light in comparison. I nearly put my foot through the footwell on several occasions whilst driving home.

Hopefully that's the last of the problems for a while!

 

[rollerdan]

If you dont mind me asking how much did the clutch replacment cost you mine needs doin asap

 

[Russ_16v]

Ah poo dude, it has been a tough past year, but at least you have changed pretty much everything so fingers crossed its all good now!

I know its hard not to get down hearted but yours is a stunning example, and drives sooooo well, keep with it mate

 

[SharkyUK]

If you dont mind me asking how much did the clutch replacment cost you mine needs doin asap

Hi fella - I got this done at "mate's rates" for a very good price so I don't think it's going to be a fair reflection of what you might have to pay...? My good friend had a new clutch replaced a fortnight or so ago and he got it done (all in) for £395. I was lucky and got it for a fair chunk cheaper than that. I would be expecting to pay around the £400 mark give or take. Just don't go to Halfords as they were after... £745!!!

Ah poo dude, it has been a tough past year, but at least you have changed pretty much everything so fingers crossed its all good now!

I know its hard not to get down hearted but yours is a stunning example, and drives sooooo well, keep with it mate

Cheers, Russ. It's certainly been a s**tter for the Trophy over the past year but I'm sticking with it. As you say, it's practically new now so hopefully there'll be no more serious issues for a while. And thanks for the kind words - glad you like it and you're more than welcome to take it for a spin again sometime (now it's healthy and the Sachs have been rebuilt!) LOL!

 

[Russ_16v]

Ooh yes please! as i said after the last time, the shockers couldnt handle quick steering input, plus the knocking over bumps was annoying lol so should be a good difference now

 

[SharkyUK]

Ooh yes please! as i said after the last time, the shockers couldnt handle quick steering input, plus the knocking over bumps was annoying lol so should be a good difference now

No probs, Russ - will get it sorted over the summer I'm sure.

The difference is 'significant' in terms of the rebuilt Sachs - and that's not a biased comment from a trumped-up Trophy owner! Being a daily driver I wasn't aware how badly they were degrading over time (I say badly although she still handled better than a lot of things on the road). Jumping back behind the wheel immediately following the rebuild was... enlightening. I can't ever recall it handling so well if I'm being honest. I also opted to have them rebuilt fully adjustable so should I feel the need to alter it for fast-road / track / etc. then I now can.

 

[FR_Team]

awesome trophy

 

[Evandim*]

Sorry to hear you've had even more problems but I'm sure there cant be much more to change/replace now if any???? Glad to hear my lovely friend Rob was able to help you out even tho he was going to add some mods to my car before my track day.. lol I did say you need is greater then mine I've told him I should get commission after all the people I've recommended him to

 

[SharkyUK]

awesome trophy

Thanks mate

Sorry to hear you've had even more problems but I'm sure there cant be much more to change/replace now if any???? Glad to hear my lovely friend Rob was able to help you out even tho he was going to add some mods to my car before my track day.. lol I did say you need is greater then mine I've told him I should get commission after all the people I've recommended him to

Yeah... I don't think there's much more left to replace now! LOL!

I've got to be honest, it was a VERY good day when you first introduced me to Rob. Top bloke and he's saved me a small fortune over the years (probably a similar story for you, too). I'm sorry if my car took precedence in this case but I appreciate you stating that mine was a greater need! I'm all over the place at the moment and to be without wheels would be a bit of a pain in the ass. I hope you are still able to get all the bits done for the forthcoming Rebel track day.

As for Rob and his commission 'payments'... I'm not getting into it... he's a handsome fella though LOL! If I were female and 10 years younger...

 

[SharkyUK]

May 2012 - Minor Update

This isn't much of an update as it's been pretty quiet recently in terms of Trophy related mod's and suchlike. However, I have done a few minor bits recently.

First up was an oil / oil filter change, along with a coolant flush (I've got loads of the stuff!) and fresh brake fluid.

To compliment the brake fluid were new discs and pads.

And to protect my head (hopefully, should the worst happen) at future trackdays, a new helmet.

As I say, there's not much more to report at the moment as all is running well (apart from the minor oil leaks). The misfire has gone, she's pulling like a train and she sounds angrier than ever. It's been a real pleasure to get in her and to take her for a good thrashing. The other weekend I took a drive through my local forest; which I should do more often seeing as I'm only a mile or so away from it. Here's a few snaps (sorry if you've already seen this in the Clio Media section):

20120520_forest01 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest02 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest03 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest04 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest05 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest06 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest07 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest08 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

20120520_forest09 by SharkyUK, on Flickr

The only other item of news at the moment is that I have just purchased some rather tasty bits of metal that will, at some point, be installed. Why?

BECAUSE SCHRICK CAMS! I'm a little excited. Shame I'm not due a cambelt change for thousands of miles... I might have to hurry that along a bit!

 

[Russ_16v]

 

[SharkyUK]

June 2012 - BurpSpeed Trackday @ Llandow

Early June saw a day out courtesy of a BurpSpeed-organised trackday at Llandow circuit. With it being local I couldn't really say 'no' and was grateful when able to acquire a place; especially as they were all taken up so quick.

The weather was, well, cr4p if I'm being honest and I certainly didn't envy the guys who had travelled down the night before and camped. Wet, windy and miserable was the weather and wet, windy and miserable was how I arrived at the venue! I won't go into detail but I was suffering with a dodgy stomach and I'd hit a half-brick (or what I believe to be a half-brick) on the way to the circuit and something didn't quite feel right afterwards. The stomach was kept in check early on but the steering wasn't quite as it should have been following the collision. The Trophy simply was having an issue turning right, which was a bit of a headache with Llandow predominantly being a clockwise circuit...

In the paddock it was commented on that the alignment looked out simply by casting an eye towards the front wheels. Even so, I decided to take it out for the first session to see how it fared and I'm happy to report that - once on track - the steering issue was hardly noticeable. Feeling a bit more confident that everything was ok I started to enjoy the day and did so right through until the mid-afternoon at which point I was too ill to risk another outing onto the circuit. Fortunately, Russ was on hand to take care of business and very kindly took my Trophy out for another few good sessions... cheers, Russ! Judging by the grin on his face I daresay he enjoyed the experience, along with Ben who grabbed a passenger lap with him for one of those outings.

This was the first time I'd really been able to give the T a good thrashing since all the work I'd had done and all the problems of last year. And - I've got to be honest - I was blown away. Even in the less than ideal conditions the car was amazing fun. The grip was fantastic, the balance spot-on, the braking was great and the spread of power perfect for the chassis and track. I don't think I'd have had much more had it been dry. It's not very often I get photos of myself on track (I'm usually the one taking the photos) so I'm extremely grateful to Dan for braving the elements and grabbing the following pics (cheers, Dan!)

On the way home (driving sensibly at road speeds) the tracking issue was again more noticeable so I booked in for new tyres and tracking to be done the next day. This was done yesterday and, yes, the geometry was a little bit out! Having had it sorted the Trophy is driving fine again without any steering problems whatsoever. Funnily enough, it seems the thrash at Llandow may well have sorted a few oil issues too... The T has been using a load of oil recently but it didn't use hardly a single drop during the day at Llandow. Strange.

Anyways, thanks to Jay and Tony for organising the day and to all those who attended for making it a very enjoyable day out. Oh, and to Russ for looking after my baby!

 

[andywa]

Glad it wasn't anything major mate. What with all the other past problems this cold have finished you off.

 

[Ben197]

Looks lovely in the pics mate and the passenger laps were great!

 

[SharkyUK]

Glad it wasn't anything major mate. What with all the other past problems this cold have finished you off.

Thanks, fella - you're not wrong! Touch wood there won't be anymore serious issues to contend with and this is a sign of more good times to come. Despite the problems along the way it's finally 'come together' and the hassles have just about been worth it.

Looks lovely in the pics mate and the passenger laps were great!

Thanks Ben - I'm glad you enjoyed the laps in the Trophy (and, of course, thanks to Russ for being chauffeur!) Hopefully catch up with you at another one soon mate.

 

[Russ_16v]

Such a great car, and now the perfect package - it now has the power and brakes to match the chassis and drives so good!!

Thanks again mate, it did blow me away how much of a 'complete' car it feels, obviously I have driven it on the road, but on track it just comes alive

 

[SharkyUK]

Such a great car, and now the perfect package - it now has the power and brakes to match the chassis and drives so good!!

Thanks again mate, it did blow me away how much of a 'complete' car it feels, obviously I have driven it on the road, but on track it just comes alive

No problem, mate - more than happy for you to jump behind the wheel and enjoy a few sessions on track. It was interesting to hear your thoughts because a) you've had more than a fair bit of experience with Clio's in various states of tune and b) you've previously driven my Trophy on the road (let's not mention the M3!) and c) you've covered a load more track miles than I have. And for those reasons it was nice to get some feedback even though, at the end of the day, it's my car and I don't give a toss what anyone else thinks! LOL!

Joking aside, I'm pretty much of the same thoughts - i.e. it's currently setup great and I wouldn't be unhappy if it stayed as is. However - as you know - I still have a few more things on my to-do list that I'm determined to see through! I believe that, if I get the job done properly and by the right people, it can be even that little bit better still. That's the hope. But that's the hope of any petrolhead I guess... just one more mod, and one more, and one more...

 

[Keith185]

Great to see it on track . . . at last too

 

[KielT]

This has to be the one of the best write ups ever! Certainly made my day off ill bare able haha such a nice car, and the attention to detail and dedication is amazing! Hats off to you! Hopefully get to see it in person at FCS.

 

[SharkyUK]

Great to see it on track . . . at last too

I can only agree with you fella. It took some time but finally it got there. Happy days as they say!

This has to be the one of the best write ups ever! Certainly made my day off ill bare able haha such a nice car, and the attention to detail and dedication is amazing! Hats off to you! Hopefully get to see it in person at FCS.

Thanks for the reply, KielT. I'm glad it managed to fill part of your day off and I appreciate the feedback. Thanks for taking the time to read through! As for FCS, I'm still not sure if I can make it due to other commitments... although I'll certainly be trying my best to get there. Cheers!

 

[KielT]

Thanks for the reply, KielT. I'm glad it managed to fill part of your day off and I appreciate the feedback. Thanks for taking the time to read through! As for FCS, I'm still not sure if I can make it due to other commitments... although I'll certainly be trying my best to get there. Cheers![/QUOTE]

Thats ok mate, credit where its due defiantly, I hope day I could get my car to that stage, just hopefully without the same problems and issues ah that's fair enough, never seen a trophy in person to this day so would of been good to see your with those bodies

 

[SharkyUK]

Thats ok mate, credit where its due defiantly, I hope day I could get my car to that stage, just hopefully without the same problems and issues ah that's fair enough, never seen a trophy in person to this day so would of been good to see your with those bodies

Well... sadly I definitely can't make FCS. I suppose it would have been a bit inappropriate going along as it does fall on the same weekend as my parent's 50th Wedding Anniversary! LOL! I'd be happy to show you around it so maybe our paths will cross at some other event. Good luck with your car and I hope you don't get on a run of bad luck as you start on the modifications...

 

[Stefan.]

anything new with the trophy

 

[SharkyUK]

anything new with the trophy

Heh heh - hiya mate.

In all truth it's been a bit quiet recently - I've simply been clocking up the miles so that I can get the cambelt changed quicker and hence get the other bits 'n' pieces I want done at the same time (and keeping costs down). In truth, the weather has been shocking too so I've not been able to get the Trophy out as much this 'summer' as I'd have liked to. Having said that, there are still a few things going on in the background. I'll post up the details later in the week as my new bits should be arriving sometime around Wednesday.

As of this moment, the car is still driving amazingly well but the ITB's are in need of a service. Literally over the last week or so I've noticed a degradation in performance and the butterflies are visibly out of line in the trumpets. Only marginally, but enough to make a difference. I've had a couple of issues with the ignition system, too, but I believe that to be down to a recurring problem I've had since the engine bay got drenched in a downpour. The new bits I'm getting later in the week will hopefully fix that once and for all.

Thanks for asking fella - sorry I don't have much more to report at the moment! Rest assured I still have many plans for the little pink shed...

 

[SharkyUK]

September 2012 - Update

It's all been a bit quiet on the Trophy-front over recent months. Bad weather coupled with an extremely busy time in work means that I haven't had as much opportunity to get out in the T as I would have hoped. However, the miles are still adding up and 100,000 miles isn't all that far away now.

Last Friday night (the night before the Forge Motorsport Action Day at Castle Combe) I decided to replace my coil pack with a new unit and to replace my HT leads with some decent red 8.5mm Magnecor items. Ever since 'the incident' a few months back (where the engine got flooded following a downpour of rain and my bonnet being open) I've had recurring misfire issues. The spark plugs looked fine, the HT leads looked ok and the coil pack appeared to be ok, too. However, as these (leads and coil pack) had never been changed on the car I thought it wouldn't hurt to order new bits and to replace them.

As the ITB's were also filthy I decided to take those apart and to give them a bit of a clean, too. The filter itself (not pictured) was quite dirty and definitely benefited from a good clean. Sadly I had run out of the ITG dust-repelling filter spray so that's something I need to do shortly. The trumpets and back plate were also a bit dirty (although this was to be expected as I hadn't cleaned them for a couple of months).

Dirty trumpets...

Dirty butterflies...

Dirty backplate...

As can be seen in the pic above, there was a little bit of oil / residue on and around the trumpets but nothing serious. I still have a minor leak or two (predominantly cam seals). At this moment in time it's not worth the time / expense getting them re-done so the plan is to wait until the next cam belt change.

Here's the engine bay with the trumpets and backplate ready for cleaning and with the old coil pack and leads removed.

An hour or two later and everything was back together and the ITB's were clean and gleaming. The only thing remaining was to fire up the ignition and to ensure that all was well. The first couple of attempts didn't go so well as the car turned over, popped a few times and then the engine died. Hmmm... Luckily it was an easy fix. A couple of the leads hadn't quite been fixed as firmly as needed so by simply undoing and refitting the connections, all was well when I next turned the engine over. Here's a pic showing the cleaned ITB's and the new leads and coil pack:

With everything back together I took the T out for a quick drive to ensure all was well. I wasn't expecting much of a difference to be honest so I was pleasantly surprised when the idle appeared to be a lot smoother and the acceleration noticeably stronger! This was probably due to the fact that there were no points of hesitation due to misfiring and the T happily pulled itself along at a healthy rate of knots. Happy days!

As mentioned above, the miles are adding up and I'm looking forward to the next cambelt change. Sure, it's not cheap but it means I can look forward to getting a few more bits done and to getting these bad boys installed! They've been sat on my desk for a month or two now. Just sat there, taunting me. I'm normally quite a patient guy but I really would like to get these in asap...

A tidy set of Schricks...

Mmmm, so photogenic!

 

[BIGASH]

Great update Andy Those cams do look great and will be really interesting to see what it makes!

I need to get a set of the leads as mine are past their best I think