2008 Renault Sport Megane 175
Discussion
Final update
I'd planed up getting a remap at some point, so I figured it'd be worth doing it all at once to get it out of the way.
A (slightly) larger turbo (GTA1749LV vs GTA1549LV). This is a 0 mileage unit from a new engine (from a Scenic) which was an absolute bargain.
I couldn't find an off-the-shelf decat (I have since though!) so I had to have one made up. I bought a standard cat and had it posted to a company in Portugal to have it copied. It took a while, and I was starting to think I'd made a big mistake and I'd either get left empty handed, or with some incorrect piece of junk coming back but amazingly it all came back perfect at a great price.
Having tried to fit this on my own, I gave up and got Mark Black (Midlands Renault Specialist) to do it. The speed at which he removed all the bits was incredible.
This shot is with the whole front subframe removed (which in itself is quite a big job). You can now see the cat attached to the flexi, but hopefully you can see why it is so difficult
Out with the old turbo
In with the new
Shot from below with decat fitted
I also had a Ktec DPF delete fitted at the same time. Considering how expensive it is for a straight pipe with one bend in it, it's quite poor it is missing the brackets the standard DPF has. I was worried the weight of it would damage the flexi over time (especially as my decat is missing a support also) so made an adjustable bracket with an exhaust clamp and some metal
All gaskets and bolts were replaced also - Binx locking nuts were used on the turbo to cat studs as they have a tendency of coming loose if not careful, elsewhere stainless bolts and washers with copper nuts.
After some gentle running and an oil change, it was down to RS Tuning for a remap.
Unfortunately, things didn't go to plan... I fitted an EGR blank to blank off the EGR valve, but while on the dyno it was bending and causing issues. The standard pipe was at home so nothing I could do but go home - on the journey home it got much worse and was smoking all over the place. Having swapped the part back over, the car was still too smokey which suggested the map needed tweaking.
Back at RS Tuning again and...
199 HP & 350 ft lb torque (vs a claimed 171 HP / 265 ft lb standard).
Not sensational figures, and certainly much less than I expected based on claims from various forums, but from talking to Paul at RS Tuning it seems right on the money.
I think my wallet needs a break now. On that note, average over the last 10k ish miles has been 47.6 MPG brim-to-brim which I think is very reasonable.
I'd planed up getting a remap at some point, so I figured it'd be worth doing it all at once to get it out of the way.
A (slightly) larger turbo (GTA1749LV vs GTA1549LV). This is a 0 mileage unit from a new engine (from a Scenic) which was an absolute bargain.
I couldn't find an off-the-shelf decat (I have since though!) so I had to have one made up. I bought a standard cat and had it posted to a company in Portugal to have it copied. It took a while, and I was starting to think I'd made a big mistake and I'd either get left empty handed, or with some incorrect piece of junk coming back but amazingly it all came back perfect at a great price.
Having tried to fit this on my own, I gave up and got Mark Black (Midlands Renault Specialist) to do it. The speed at which he removed all the bits was incredible.
This shot is with the whole front subframe removed (which in itself is quite a big job). You can now see the cat attached to the flexi, but hopefully you can see why it is so difficult
Out with the old turbo
In with the new
Shot from below with decat fitted
I also had a Ktec DPF delete fitted at the same time. Considering how expensive it is for a straight pipe with one bend in it, it's quite poor it is missing the brackets the standard DPF has. I was worried the weight of it would damage the flexi over time (especially as my decat is missing a support also) so made an adjustable bracket with an exhaust clamp and some metal
All gaskets and bolts were replaced also - Binx locking nuts were used on the turbo to cat studs as they have a tendency of coming loose if not careful, elsewhere stainless bolts and washers with copper nuts.
After some gentle running and an oil change, it was down to RS Tuning for a remap.
Unfortunately, things didn't go to plan... I fitted an EGR blank to blank off the EGR valve, but while on the dyno it was bending and causing issues. The standard pipe was at home so nothing I could do but go home - on the journey home it got much worse and was smoking all over the place. Having swapped the part back over, the car was still too smokey which suggested the map needed tweaking.
Back at RS Tuning again and...
199 HP & 350 ft lb torque (vs a claimed 171 HP / 265 ft lb standard).
Not sensational figures, and certainly much less than I expected based on claims from various forums, but from talking to Paul at RS Tuning it seems right on the money.
I think my wallet needs a break now. On that note, average over the last 10k ish miles has been 47.6 MPG brim-to-brim which I think is very reasonable.
Good thread and stealing some ideas, particularly the speakers as they really are complete crap as standard. Do your windows open fully still and where did you get the waterproof enclosure things?
Reading your posts reminds me what a massive pain in the arse mine is to work on. New engine mount this week for mine so I'll probably snap the turbo off or something. Will have to see if mine has a rear ARB when I get home too.
Reading your posts reminds me what a massive pain in the arse mine is to work on. New engine mount this week for mine so I'll probably snap the turbo off or something. Will have to see if mine has a rear ARB when I get home too.
StoatInACoat said:
Good thread and stealing some ideas, particularly the speakers as they really are complete crap as standard. Do your windows open fully still and where did you get the waterproof enclosure things?
Windows open fine - there's not a whole lot of room between the speaker aperture and window glass (when the window is dropped) so you need to be careful with the speakers (or at least measure first). By complete fluke mine were a perfect fit with a couple of mm clearance.The enclosures are called "DEI Boom Mat" - I went for the slim 5.25" ones. Were about £14 off eBay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172599916344
Jakg said:
Windows open fine - there's not a whole lot of room between the speaker aperture and window glass (when the window is dropped) so you need to be careful with the speakers (or at least measure first). By complete fluke mine were a perfect fit with a couple of mm clearance.
The enclosures are called "DEI Boom Mat" - I went for the slim 5.25" ones. Were about £14 off eBay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172599916344
Spot on. Will buy the enclosures then measure when they turn up. The enclosures are called "DEI Boom Mat" - I went for the slim 5.25" ones. Were about £14 off eBay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172599916344
Paintwork update
Picked up some damage on the rear bumper so thought I'd have a go at a DIY smart repair.
First off, masked up up and wet sanded it back.
Couple of layers of paint and then some lacquer
As you can see - not the best piece of work!
Deliberately chose to start somewhere not very visible so if it looked awful it wasn't the end of the world.
Too much paint area up to the masking tape has left straight edges.
Some work with a DA later and it looks better but still visible from some angles. But better than before. And I think I've learned my limitations...
I had another issue to deal with - the car has a clear vinyl guard over the rear arches form the factory to protect from stonechips.
Years of abuse and it was starting to discolour so I thought I'd replace it. Unfortunately, when peeling off the old one, all the lacquer came off too, leaving the base coat only (!). To say I was annoyed was an understatement, but I knew I'd need to do something about it.
Wet sanded the edges back, sprayed a couple of layers of lacquer and then some work with the DA, followed by a new vinyl protector
Difficult to tell in the wet, but it came out very well which was a complete surprise!
I have another area of lacquer peel which I might try to the same technique on... unfortunately it's in the middle of a panel so that might be a bit too far.
I need to go over the rest of the car with the DA really and then perhaps I might get some decent pictures
Considering that (I think!) the car is a bit... interesting, I always thought it was a bit plain on the outside.
Renault made some "Renault F1 Team" commemorative decals, and someone from the Facebook group has reproduced them for an affordable price.
Never fitted anything like this before but I think it looks quite good. Unfortunately the first one I fitted has bubbles as I wasn't aware of the best technique (for reference - cover surface in soapy water, then install and get rid of the bubbles while it's still mobile on the surface).
Picked up some damage on the rear bumper so thought I'd have a go at a DIY smart repair.
First off, masked up up and wet sanded it back.
Couple of layers of paint and then some lacquer
As you can see - not the best piece of work!
Deliberately chose to start somewhere not very visible so if it looked awful it wasn't the end of the world.
Too much paint area up to the masking tape has left straight edges.
Some work with a DA later and it looks better but still visible from some angles. But better than before. And I think I've learned my limitations...
I had another issue to deal with - the car has a clear vinyl guard over the rear arches form the factory to protect from stonechips.
Years of abuse and it was starting to discolour so I thought I'd replace it. Unfortunately, when peeling off the old one, all the lacquer came off too, leaving the base coat only (!). To say I was annoyed was an understatement, but I knew I'd need to do something about it.
Wet sanded the edges back, sprayed a couple of layers of lacquer and then some work with the DA, followed by a new vinyl protector
Difficult to tell in the wet, but it came out very well which was a complete surprise!
I have another area of lacquer peel which I might try to the same technique on... unfortunately it's in the middle of a panel so that might be a bit too far.
I need to go over the rest of the car with the DA really and then perhaps I might get some decent pictures
Considering that (I think!) the car is a bit... interesting, I always thought it was a bit plain on the outside.
Renault made some "Renault F1 Team" commemorative decals, and someone from the Facebook group has reproduced them for an affordable price.
Never fitted anything like this before but I think it looks quite good. Unfortunately the first one I fitted has bubbles as I wasn't aware of the best technique (for reference - cover surface in soapy water, then install and get rid of the bubbles while it's still mobile on the surface).
marc12 said:
I’ve been looking at an LSD option, but not coming up with anything so far...
This is on my list, too... It uses the same PK4 gearbox series as the Megane 250/265/275, and the Cup models of those have an LSD. Simplest way is to buy a complete gearbox and send it off to a gearbox refurbisher and get the differential swapped over, but still not cheap.Mini update
Never liked the cloth interior, and with the seats gone the final bit was the door cards. Not only were they cheap and nasty, but had cigarette burns too. Nice.
Arranged to get some leather ones, made the two and a half hour journey to find... we'd got the days mixed up and the seller wasn't there!
I then refined my search to something a bit closer and eventually got lucky again. Not only are these leather, but they are from the earlier phase 1 model which means they have red/orange stitching which I think it quite fetching.
I wasn't aware that the rear leather door cards (from a lux model) have additional sound deadening fitted, too.
Unfortunately one of the door pockets is broken, no idea if I will be able to track one down for a reasonable price
Another difference was that being a non-lux, my car doesn't have any puddle lights, but the lux ones do. I managed to take the door looms at the same time which are plug and play.
duds100 said:
Well done on a great read. Out of interest, how does the standard clutch cope with the 350lb ft?
It's only been about 10k, but nothings exploded yet. At 100k i'm expecting it'll probably need a new clutch in the next couple of years.I've seen owners running more power without major issues, although I remain skeptical about many other owners power claims...
Got home one day and heard a "hissing" noise from the rear of the car... first puncture in 9 years of driving. Felt a bit deflated (buddum-tish).
On goes the spare:
I do have a full-size spare, but the tyre is dead, so the space saver was handy!
Interestingly although it's a space saver, it's a 185 section tyre with a max speed of 78 MPH so you can barely tell it's on, was very impressed.
Rear tyres were nearly dead budgets anyway, so popped on some Vredestein Ultrac Vorti's. Couldn't find any Sessanta's to match the fronts unfortunately. Downsides are that lift off oversteer is significantly reduced!
Swapped the front dash cam for something a bit more discreet, just need a 90 degree USB cable to finish it off.
I also fitted one to the rear after being rear-ended last year
Virtually invisible from the outside (it's below the hi level brake light)
This one is a bit marmite.
I've always thought that the interior was very drab, black, grey and the odd bit of silver.
On my last car I found painting the interior trim really helped liven it up
So I did the same again
Doesn't "fit" as well but it certainly brightens it up a lot. I like it. I think I could do with a couple of other highlights in the interior to balance it a bit more.
Another small change was the steering wheel. The standard one looks a bit dated.
The steering wheel from a Clio 197 is a straight swap and is a bit chunkier. Not a massive difference, and the replacement is not perfect, but a nice upgrade for £30.
Hello, I've just read your thread and really enjoyed it. Any updates since February? Have been the owner of a completely stock 175dci LUX in Red for two years and I'm currently thinking of selling it. However this has made me think twice now!
Edited by Sancho410 on Wednesday 23 May 19:29
Sorry for the lack of updates, been juggling doing up my house and arranging a wedding which has meant the car has taken a back seat.
Got to try the car out in the snow, unfortunately was much worse than I thought it'd be. Not sure why - my last car had the same tyres in virtually the same size and was much better. Winter wheels & tyres are now in the list!
From one extreme to the other - hottest day of the year and the electric window packs up.
Common Megane fault - normally the regulator. Stripped it down to have a look, but found all it needed was some contact cleaner in the connections on the window motor. Cheap fix, but a pain to strip down - especially when it was 29 degrees outside!
My number plate lights have yet again stopped working. This is a common fault where the connectors on the end of the loom allow in water and then corrode.
I replaced these last year with a second hand one which has died again. The one I pulled off the car wasn't original either, so not a durable part. This time I spent £50 on the new Renault part.
To remove the loom, you need to remove the rear plastic tailgate trim
Then the wiring just pulls through
£50 for a piece of wire that long - I was robbed!
Still, all works now
Last year, I replaced all the calipers with second hand ones I rebuilt. Unfortunately since then I've been getting a horrible noise from one rear corner when reversing, which I've long suspected was a sticking caliper, but have been deliberately ignoring.
Finally felt I had to do something about it - definitely sticking. Seeing as I'd already replaced the seals and piston before, I figured whatever was wrong was something more serious and beyond me, so I bought a new caliper. As I'd painted them red, I couldn't be bothered to do it again so spent a bit more on a genuine red one from Renault.
The sticking caliper has also worn the pads down quite a lot, I felt a bit bad putting the old pads back on. However I only replaced them late last year so am annoyed they are nearly gone, but also the discs would probably need replacing too - the brake discs feature an integrated wheel bearing and are £150 for the pair so will run them to the limit to get my moneys worth.
Also noticed that the rubber covers on the caliper sliders have disintegrated after only a few months so replaced them too.
After replacing the caliper, I bled the system but the pedal feel was horrible.
I gave it a day and then bled it again, but barely any better.
I then waited a week and gave several ABS activations before bleeding a third time before finally getting the pedal feel back to where I wanted it.
Pollen filter is down as a 12k service item - seems way too often for me so I stretched it out a little. Came out looking ok so might leave it longer next time.
I took part in my first autosolo, too - for those who aren't aware, it's a timed motorsport around a course laid out with cones. Speed is low (30 MPH max) so risk and cost are very low (£35 entry), but it is competitive.
I've been wanting to do some kind of motorsport for a while, but I've been put off trackdays due to the cost of the day, cost of worn tyres / brakes, stonechips and potential for getting crashed into by other drivers. I figured that autosolo would have none of these risks.
Unfortunately, I was very, very wrong! Although the speed is low, there's lots of wheelspinning etc so still hard on the tyres. Because it's all low speed, hard on the clutch. And because it's timed, you have to push very very hard - on a poor surface (potholes etc).
You can see one run here - https://youtu.be/6ERu0yYmtPk
Got to try the car out in the snow, unfortunately was much worse than I thought it'd be. Not sure why - my last car had the same tyres in virtually the same size and was much better. Winter wheels & tyres are now in the list!
From one extreme to the other - hottest day of the year and the electric window packs up.
Common Megane fault - normally the regulator. Stripped it down to have a look, but found all it needed was some contact cleaner in the connections on the window motor. Cheap fix, but a pain to strip down - especially when it was 29 degrees outside!
My number plate lights have yet again stopped working. This is a common fault where the connectors on the end of the loom allow in water and then corrode.
I replaced these last year with a second hand one which has died again. The one I pulled off the car wasn't original either, so not a durable part. This time I spent £50 on the new Renault part.
To remove the loom, you need to remove the rear plastic tailgate trim
Then the wiring just pulls through
£50 for a piece of wire that long - I was robbed!
Still, all works now
Last year, I replaced all the calipers with second hand ones I rebuilt. Unfortunately since then I've been getting a horrible noise from one rear corner when reversing, which I've long suspected was a sticking caliper, but have been deliberately ignoring.
Finally felt I had to do something about it - definitely sticking. Seeing as I'd already replaced the seals and piston before, I figured whatever was wrong was something more serious and beyond me, so I bought a new caliper. As I'd painted them red, I couldn't be bothered to do it again so spent a bit more on a genuine red one from Renault.
The sticking caliper has also worn the pads down quite a lot, I felt a bit bad putting the old pads back on. However I only replaced them late last year so am annoyed they are nearly gone, but also the discs would probably need replacing too - the brake discs feature an integrated wheel bearing and are £150 for the pair so will run them to the limit to get my moneys worth.
Also noticed that the rubber covers on the caliper sliders have disintegrated after only a few months so replaced them too.
After replacing the caliper, I bled the system but the pedal feel was horrible.
I gave it a day and then bled it again, but barely any better.
I then waited a week and gave several ABS activations before bleeding a third time before finally getting the pedal feel back to where I wanted it.
Pollen filter is down as a 12k service item - seems way too often for me so I stretched it out a little. Came out looking ok so might leave it longer next time.
I took part in my first autosolo, too - for those who aren't aware, it's a timed motorsport around a course laid out with cones. Speed is low (30 MPH max) so risk and cost are very low (£35 entry), but it is competitive.
I've been wanting to do some kind of motorsport for a while, but I've been put off trackdays due to the cost of the day, cost of worn tyres / brakes, stonechips and potential for getting crashed into by other drivers. I figured that autosolo would have none of these risks.
Unfortunately, I was very, very wrong! Although the speed is low, there's lots of wheelspinning etc so still hard on the tyres. Because it's all low speed, hard on the clutch. And because it's timed, you have to push very very hard - on a poor surface (potholes etc).
You can see one run here - https://youtu.be/6ERu0yYmtPk
Edited by Jakg on Tuesday 18th February 20:37
MJ85 said:
Looks like you would have been better off on a track day. Well, unless you completely stacked it!
Having watched the video I was cringing with the state of that tarmac. I would literally only do that with a car I had no interest in, that was one MOT failure away from the scrapyard.I am surprised you are having so many issues with the car, I thought the Phase 2 Meganes were much more reliable? I have an 07 1.5 DCi which I bought as a shed and it has been faultless over the 11k miles I have owned it. It passed the MOT on Saturday with no advisories which makes it 5 in a row now.
By the way, how did you find changing the pollen filter, I found it impossible to do without breaking the plastic tabs along the edge.
Joey Deacon said:
I am surprised you are having so many issues with the car, I thought the Phase 2 Meganes were much more reliable? I have an 07 1.5 DCi which I bought as a shed and it has been faultless over the 11k miles I have owned it. It passed the MOT on Saturday with no advisories which makes it 5 in a row now.
Quite a lot of the "issues" are things that I could ignore, but just don't want to. I think my style of car maintenance is perhaps more suited to something more expensive where the car is still worth something when you come to sell it!Joey Deacon said:
Having watched the video I was cringing with the state of that tarmac. I would literally only do that with a car I had no interest in, that was one MOT failure away from the scrapyard.
Yes, it seems like I misunderstood the requirements somewhat - every other car was a bit of a state on the outside, but usually stipped and caged on the inside.Joey Deacon said:
By the way, how did you find changing the pollen filter, I found it impossible to do without breaking the plastic tabs along the edge.
I think (but can't remember) that some of the pollen filters have a plastic frame around the edge, but the Mann ones I use don't so you can just bend them in.It's one of the only jobs thats actually easier because it's RHD - you already have access so it's a 1 minute swap. Everyone else has to pull the glovebox out to do it.
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