Throttle Bodies vs Low Boost Turbo Conversion

[N11YFE]

After deciding not to get a 225 Cupra R I am looking to do something with the 172 Cup!

With the price of Turbo Conversions a lot cheaper than they were along time ago it does seem very appealing!

Now the car is my daily driver, for myself I only do 10 miles to and from work so filling up with V Power more often and MPG affected doesn't really matter for myself.

For reliability wise etc which is the better choice? Turbo will put more strain on the box due to the torque compared to N/A Power from a set of Throttle Bodies. People with Turbo Clio's have you had any problems with the gearboxes and clutches or anything else for that matter? I have seen a few people that have had trouble with some clutches.

Engine Dynamics is only an hour away from me so not a million miles away, compared to EFI Parts which is around 3 hours away.

Does anyone know what a healthy Cammed, Throttle Bodied Clio is like against a Low Boost Turbo Clio?

Any information would be highly appreciated.

 

[bozothenutter]

low boost starts @230Bhp
NA ends @230Bhp and costs about double

 

[leeds_182]

I prefer bodies over boost but if you want to go fast then boost is a no brainer.

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

Turbo will likely give you more power if that's what you're bothered about. It would probably be more useable on the road too, as you should have a nice versatile torque spread if it's done properly.

I can't say a turbo Clio appeals to me though. Not really what they're about for me. If I wanted a turbocharged car, I think I'd probably just buy one.

 

[green]

My high comp throttle bodied Clio kept up with a 2017 Audi S3 hatch back...nothing in it. S3 is 306bhp..mine is stripped 201bhp. Admittedly a stripped s3/ clio would be quicker but just thought I'd share my bodies Vs turbo.

 

[Turbo steve]

low boost.... 230bhp and 230ftlb reliable and nice to drive
Bodies.... 200 ish bhp and 170ish ftlb not so relaible and horrible in trafic to drive
no brainer for me

 

[Christopher]

For me, I'd go ITB. Boost just doesn't appeal.
Boost would be easier, cheaper and probably more reliable though.

 

[Coops Mk1]

turbo everytime for a road car for me

 

[green]

I've had my bodied Clio coming on 4 years now...Just as reliable as a standard car, even in the depths of winter! It's all down to good mapping... Ktec did mine!! 🙈 I am running standard cams at the mo, so reliability may change when I get cams and head done this winter
Turbo may well be cheaper but I'd do bodies any day over turbo.. just for the noise alone.

 

[SharkyUK]

I love NA and went the ITB route. Twice. Both ended in failure (the first attempt was a 'mild' ITB setup with the K-Tec DTH setup and the second attempt was a more expensive high-comp, fully-forged, cams, head work, etc. affair). This time I'm going high-boost. Get the right people to do the work, don't skimp on parts and use a reputable mapper... and build in some headroom so you aren't running the car at it's absolute limits every time you take it out... and you hopefully should get some good mileage out of it. For me it's a no-brainer though; despite my love for NA I would go low-boost on the Clio F4R every time now.

 

[scotiamr2t]

This debate will go on for ever as everyone has a personal preference as to whether they want the noise of ITB's or performance of a turbo. Reliability is the same on either turbo or ITB providing they are built and mapped properly. I would break it down as below

If you want noise and a little extra perfomance > ITB
If you want outright power/perfromance > Turbo

For me with the comparable costs it doesn't make sense to go ITB for the small gain it will give

 

[McGherkin]

 

[Darryl_1983]

I don't think the clio needs more power, certainly not on the road anyway. I guess on track is a little different if you want to compete with M3's etc down the straights, but that isn't what the clio is about

I've always preferred N/A over turbo, but the cost to power/torque gain isn't worth it on the clio to go with ITB, cams, standard alone ecu. Turbo makes the most sense for output and engine reliability from what I've read online. But the Gearbox, clutch, drive shafts, diff, etc would all worry me considering these are considered the weak points on a standard car. Adding 70ftlb of torque is going to cause added issues.

Megane engine and gearbox swap is probably the safest route if that is a option for you, not a simple swap on the 1*2. But i believe the 197/200 is a bit easier.

Other than that, just buy a nice stage 1 R26, and strip it out if you want to go faster. By far the cheapest and most reliable option. Can always go hybrid turbo if you want to push the internals a little more. 300bhp, 300ftlb is about the limit without opening up the engine. but that should be more than enough in a stripped car.

 

[Fletcher]

Itb's > boost imo.

 

[Daz...]

I can see the benefits of both, my personal preference would be cams and ITBs.

 

[N11YFE]

View attachment 191876

I do have a Rotrex C30-94, would need a different pulley to run on the clio but the non replaceable parts do worry me sometimes that I would have to fork out for another charger if it was ever to go wrong :expressionless:

 

[McGherkin]

For me it's worth it to have the linear and instant response similar to an NA, but the power (almost) of a Turbo.

 

[Andyman]

I do have a Rotrex C30-94, would need a different pulley to run on the clio but the non replaceable parts do worry me sometimes that I would have to fork out for another charger if it was ever to go wrong :expressionless:

Internals can be repaired. Saw it on a different website where someone listed bearing part numbers and info on the main shaft

 

[SharkyUK]

In addition to my post earlier... I think that, when considering this level of modification, you're asking for trouble if you're at the limit of your budget and expecting NO issues. Sure, some people have faultless builds and fair play to them, but many will have niggles to some degree or other. I always budgeted extra so that bills and fixes to said niggles could be addressed without additional financial concern. Case in point, the current build I'm having done I expect the clutch, gearbox and driveshafts to have a significantly shorter lifespan than on a standard vehicle, even with upgraded parts. Hence I have kept pennies aside for a couple of gearbox rebuilds, replacement parts, etc. Paying for the work to be done is only part of the story... it's the ongoing costs that can really hurt.

 

[Chris_Beer]

Do either right and have minimal problems tbh unless your using it for competition