Shed money Clio 172
Discussion
darkyoung1000 said:
That suspension top mount sounds like a pain in the backside. I see that the struts are out from your photo, is it now refusing to release the top mount from the shock as there’s nothing for it to brace against? Have you got a friendly local garage you could run them down to so that they could assist with the removal if it came to it?
Good news on the engine, gearbox and sky painting at least….
They're back on for now. Good news on the engine, gearbox and sky painting at least….
The issuse is that the 17mm nut that holds it all together is a. Only half width and b. Made out of cheese. Probably brie.
They're properly stuck. There is a torx socket in the end of the strut to stop the shock from rotating, but that also means you can't get an impact on it. Having rounded the nut, i hammered a 16mm round spanner on, which also rounded. So when I've got more time the plan is to wind the adjusters all the way down, hacksaw off the rubber doughnut and get a nut splitter on what is left. Or get a blowtorch to heat it.
An import lesson in using copper grease when assembling stuff.
Kaveney said:
Cambs_Stuart said:
Oh yes! First one for six months. Will you be there too?
No have not boked anything yet but looking at the end of the summer i think and it is 19 Months from my last unsuccessful track day at Goodwood so cant wait to get back .Cambs_Stuart said:
I'm genuinely nervous about this one. Not sure why, could be because I've not been on track for a while, and brands is not a place i know very well, it might be because I've had a few issues with the car. Or a combination of the these.
You will be fine just take it easy for the first few laps and show Paddock hill respect as it can bite .
Well, i completed the trackday. I'd swear this clio runs better flat out on track than it does running around town. It may be the helmet blocks all the rattles and clonks.
I did have a few jobs to do before heading off. Top up all the fluids, clean the air filter, and replace the power steering switch as it was leaking again. £8 from Amazon and I've got another cheap replacement that i suspect won't last long.
I also gave the clio a quick wash, the dry weather and a lot of building work had left it a dusty brown. I gave this stuff a go.
It appears to be magic. Incredibly quick to apply and gives a brilliant finish. Harder work to buff off of glass, and definitely don't apply in blazing sunshine.
The track day was a mixed bag. It was really busy, started late, and had a lot of red flags, some of which lead to long delays; a car had to be recovered from deep gravel at clearways with a broken ball joint, another dropped fluid all down the hill to graham hill bend.
This meant it was always fairly busy on track, and meant there wasn't much time when I wasn't looking over my shoulder waiting for GT3s, caterams and M3s to come past.
But i did get a few clear laps to enjoy myself and eventually found a couple of other cars running at a similar pace to me. I also met a few other owners of silver 172s. Both caged, cammed, stripped, and equipped with BC coilovers (and with much better drivers), this is as close as i got all evening!
The advantage of being in a garage with better drivers is just picking up little tips that make a big difference. Changing up to 4th on the cooper straight and going flat out through Surtees was scary first time, but really helped. Turning in later to paddock and clearways, plus changing up earlier gave a big boost to my exit speed and felt much smoother.
I did have a few jobs to do before heading off. Top up all the fluids, clean the air filter, and replace the power steering switch as it was leaking again. £8 from Amazon and I've got another cheap replacement that i suspect won't last long.
I also gave the clio a quick wash, the dry weather and a lot of building work had left it a dusty brown. I gave this stuff a go.
It appears to be magic. Incredibly quick to apply and gives a brilliant finish. Harder work to buff off of glass, and definitely don't apply in blazing sunshine.
The track day was a mixed bag. It was really busy, started late, and had a lot of red flags, some of which lead to long delays; a car had to be recovered from deep gravel at clearways with a broken ball joint, another dropped fluid all down the hill to graham hill bend.
This meant it was always fairly busy on track, and meant there wasn't much time when I wasn't looking over my shoulder waiting for GT3s, caterams and M3s to come past.
But i did get a few clear laps to enjoy myself and eventually found a couple of other cars running at a similar pace to me. I also met a few other owners of silver 172s. Both caged, cammed, stripped, and equipped with BC coilovers (and with much better drivers), this is as close as i got all evening!
The advantage of being in a garage with better drivers is just picking up little tips that make a big difference. Changing up to 4th on the cooper straight and going flat out through Surtees was scary first time, but really helped. Turning in later to paddock and clearways, plus changing up earlier gave a big boost to my exit speed and felt much smoother.
Edited by Cambs_Stuart on Thursday 15th June 13:58
Kaveney said:
Looks like a good day and the Clio held up well .
I have done Brands Hatch Indy a few time but all ways find it very busy .
Still an ace track tho .
What is the next track outing going to be for the Clio ?
Any day you can drive to the track, hammer round and then drive home again is a good day in my book. I have done Brands Hatch Indy a few time but all ways find it very busy .
Still an ace track tho .
What is the next track outing going to be for the Clio ?
I've not got anything booked, but I'd love to have a go at Donnington as I've not been there before, and cadwell as I've not been there for over a year.
I have to say, I've been impressed with Opentrack. Having used a few TDOs, they've always been competitive on price, well marshalled days, free tuition, make really easy to cancel and re-book (if your car is dripping brake fluid). Plus they provide a barbeque in the evening, snacks during the day and the photographer they use is really good.
The rear of the clio was still clunking over bumps, and given the state of the roads, that is a lot of noise.
I can't feel any play in the bearings, struts or beam but the exhaust is very close to the rear subframe, so that's the prime suspect.
There's not much more adjustment at the rear, unless i get a blowtorch and start modifying the hanger. However, i spotted that the Renault center bush is a bit feeble, although it's in ok condition.
BTT motorsport offer a poly bush for the center, which is basically a polyurethane brick with a few holes drilled in it. However, crude as it may be, it holds the exhaust higher...
While i had the car up on stands i gave it a quick look over. The PFC pads still have a trackday or two left. However, looking for replacements suggests that PFC no longer make them for the clio 1*2, so I'll have to try something different soon. Hopefully I'll find something a less dusty but still as effective. PBS? Mintex M1155?
And my favourite tool is having issues. The battery in my cordless impact no longer holds charge overnight. Which is annoying.
I can't feel any play in the bearings, struts or beam but the exhaust is very close to the rear subframe, so that's the prime suspect.
There's not much more adjustment at the rear, unless i get a blowtorch and start modifying the hanger. However, i spotted that the Renault center bush is a bit feeble, although it's in ok condition.
BTT motorsport offer a poly bush for the center, which is basically a polyurethane brick with a few holes drilled in it. However, crude as it may be, it holds the exhaust higher...
While i had the car up on stands i gave it a quick look over. The PFC pads still have a trackday or two left. However, looking for replacements suggests that PFC no longer make them for the clio 1*2, so I'll have to try something different soon. Hopefully I'll find something a less dusty but still as effective. PBS? Mintex M1155?
And my favourite tool is having issues. The battery in my cordless impact no longer holds charge overnight. Which is annoying.
A little update on the clio.
It had felt a but like it had lost a bit of zip from the engine. I'd been using a washable Ramair panel filter, and washing it every year. But I suspected this could be the reason, so for now I've replaced it with a good quality OEM.
Just to mention, the filters for my legacy are £7 and need 2 clips undoing to fit to fit. This was £23 and needed 7 torx head screws to open the Airbox.
For my last order on opie I needed a small thing to get my order into "free delivery" category, so I've replaced the air filter. I enjoyed picking all the leaves and spider webs out of here far too much.
But the main reason for getting the tools out was to have Another Look at the rear. There is still a clunk, from the drivers side. I've checked that I put the fuel tank back in the right place after changing the beam bushes, and made sure there is no play in the new bushes, taken the spare wheel and tool kit out, made sure all the seats are clicked into place, tightened everything, used a pry bar on all the moving parts, checked the caliper, wheel bearing, made sure the exhaust isn't hitting anything and the strut bushes/mounts. As a last resort I've swapped the B14 shocks on the rear for my old cup versions. It's made absolutely no difference.
I'm confident nothing is about to fall off, but I'm grinding my teeth trying to get to the bottom of this.
It had felt a but like it had lost a bit of zip from the engine. I'd been using a washable Ramair panel filter, and washing it every year. But I suspected this could be the reason, so for now I've replaced it with a good quality OEM.
Just to mention, the filters for my legacy are £7 and need 2 clips undoing to fit to fit. This was £23 and needed 7 torx head screws to open the Airbox.
For my last order on opie I needed a small thing to get my order into "free delivery" category, so I've replaced the air filter. I enjoyed picking all the leaves and spider webs out of here far too much.
But the main reason for getting the tools out was to have Another Look at the rear. There is still a clunk, from the drivers side. I've checked that I put the fuel tank back in the right place after changing the beam bushes, and made sure there is no play in the new bushes, taken the spare wheel and tool kit out, made sure all the seats are clicked into place, tightened everything, used a pry bar on all the moving parts, checked the caliper, wheel bearing, made sure the exhaust isn't hitting anything and the strut bushes/mounts. As a last resort I've swapped the B14 shocks on the rear for my old cup versions. It's made absolutely no difference.
I'm confident nothing is about to fall off, but I'm grinding my teeth trying to get to the bottom of this.
Kaveney said:
Does the knocking happen at speed or when you are slowing on the brakes .
I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
It's mainly at low speed on rough roads (most of them in cambridge). I'll try to work out if it gets better or worse under braking I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
It’s a strange question, but does your fuel gauge work? There is a random knocking in the AX caused by something in the fuel tank (presumably the sender to the gauge) floating around on the fuel and banging on the plastic. It was driving me mad, and took weeks to work out what it was.
I identified it by jumping up and down on the sills with the door open eventually!
Good luck hunting it down.
I identified it by jumping up and down on the sills with the door open eventually!
Good luck hunting it down.
darkyoung1000 said:
It’s a strange question, but does your fuel gauge work? There is a random knocking in the AX caused by something in the fuel tank (presumably the sender to the gauge) floating around on the fuel and banging on the plastic. It was driving me mad, and took weeks to work out what it was.
I identified it by jumping up and down on the sills with the door open eventually!
Good luck hunting it down.
Well, I haven't run out of fuel, but the noise is from that general area. I can't replicate it when the car is on the driveway, so I'll give the enhanced sill test a go...I identified it by jumping up and down on the sills with the door open eventually!
Good luck hunting it down.
Cambs_Stuart said:
Kaveney said:
Does the knocking happen at speed or when you are slowing on the brakes .
I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
It's mainly at low speed on rough roads (most of them in cambridge). I'll try to work out if it gets better or worse under braking I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
Jumping up and down on the sill didn't replicate the noise, which makes me think it's not related to mechanical bits banging around.
Cambs_Stuart said:
Cambs_Stuart said:
Kaveney said:
Does the knocking happen at speed or when you are slowing on the brakes .
I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
It's mainly at low speed on rough roads (most of them in cambridge). I'll try to work out if it gets better or worse under braking I had a rear end knock on my old 172 when braking and it was the rear caliper that was partially seized so it wasn't applying an even braking pressure on the rear disk causing it to knock .
Jumping up and down on the sill didn't replicate the noise, which makes me think it's not related to mechanical bits banging around.
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