2004 Renaultsport Clio 182 Cup - Racing Blue
Discussion
After saying goodbye to my Megane 250 a couple of months ago, there has been a very big Renaultsport void in my life. James and Dan got me hooked three years ago when I started working at PH and in that time I've had a 182 Trophy, 172 Cup, R26 Megane 230 F1 and most recently my 321hp Megane 250.
I've decided to run a Readers' Car thread opposed to PH Fleet articles so I can be a bit more detailed on work this time, update the thread more frequently and not bore people to death on the homepage who've had enough of seeing my other articles! With my 208 GTI long termer handed over to Matt, I needed a sensible daily for my 110-mile round trip to the office. I stupidly bought an extremely dull Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo 1.6TDI which I sold within two months after I found this beauty of a 182 Cup. Obviously, a 14-year old Clio with a stiff clutch (they're all like that sir) is very sensible for covering motorway miles and sitting in traffic on the M25.
Now my third Clio and fifth Renaultsport, I had always wanted a Racing Blue 182 Cup from the start so I just couldn't resist when this came up. 70K miles, completely original and had been with its previous lady owner for 12 years.
I've got it to use as a daily, but also a project to tweak and refresh and I'm sure it'll slowly become more track focused. It had the Gordini stripes from the factory, but they were very tired and cracked so that was my first job. Took about two hours to get them off the boot and bonnet with the roof still to go, with a hair dryer, old credit card and tar remover. As expected the paint discolouration is fairly obvious but I'm hoping this will detail out, otherwise I'll be putting a fresh set of stripes back on.
To start I've ordered new rear discs/pads as one of the rear bearings is quite noisy (these are integrated in the discs), new OEM suspension dampers, top mounts and Cooksport lowering springs. Amazingly it's still on the original exhaust which has cleaned up fairly well, although it's knackered as the internals have fallen apart and are rattling around like a piggy bank so that needs to go too. More to come soon!
I've decided to run a Readers' Car thread opposed to PH Fleet articles so I can be a bit more detailed on work this time, update the thread more frequently and not bore people to death on the homepage who've had enough of seeing my other articles! With my 208 GTI long termer handed over to Matt, I needed a sensible daily for my 110-mile round trip to the office. I stupidly bought an extremely dull Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo 1.6TDI which I sold within two months after I found this beauty of a 182 Cup. Obviously, a 14-year old Clio with a stiff clutch (they're all like that sir) is very sensible for covering motorway miles and sitting in traffic on the M25.
Now my third Clio and fifth Renaultsport, I had always wanted a Racing Blue 182 Cup from the start so I just couldn't resist when this came up. 70K miles, completely original and had been with its previous lady owner for 12 years.
I've got it to use as a daily, but also a project to tweak and refresh and I'm sure it'll slowly become more track focused. It had the Gordini stripes from the factory, but they were very tired and cracked so that was my first job. Took about two hours to get them off the boot and bonnet with the roof still to go, with a hair dryer, old credit card and tar remover. As expected the paint discolouration is fairly obvious but I'm hoping this will detail out, otherwise I'll be putting a fresh set of stripes back on.
To start I've ordered new rear discs/pads as one of the rear bearings is quite noisy (these are integrated in the discs), new OEM suspension dampers, top mounts and Cooksport lowering springs. Amazingly it's still on the original exhaust which has cleaned up fairly well, although it's knackered as the internals have fallen apart and are rattling around like a piggy bank so that needs to go too. More to come soon!
Edited by BenLowden on Thursday 16th August 18:27
Excellent choice! That looks very clean indeed.
Definitely the best colour for the 182s and good ones are getting rare now. Here's mine which has just ticked over 52k miles and is standard apart from an RS192 exhaust and Cooksport Springs:
You might be able to get the paint under the stripes sorted with a good machine polish, but as you're probably aware the paint on these clios is exceptionally hard, so it might take a couple of goes.
What are your plans to make it more track focussed?
Definitely the best colour for the 182s and good ones are getting rare now. Here's mine which has just ticked over 52k miles and is standard apart from an RS192 exhaust and Cooksport Springs:
You might be able to get the paint under the stripes sorted with a good machine polish, but as you're probably aware the paint on these clios is exceptionally hard, so it might take a couple of goes.
What are your plans to make it more track focussed?
AndrewGP said:
Excellent choice! That looks very clean indeed.
Definitely the best colour for the 182s and good ones are getting rare now. Here's mine which has just ticked over 52k miles and is standard apart from an RS192 exhaust and Cooksport Springs:
You might be able to get the paint under the stripes sorted with a good machine polish, but as you're probably aware the paint on these clios is exceptionally hard, so it might take a couple of goes.
What are your plans to make it more track focussed?
Thanks! And yours looks lovely – there are so many stripped or badly modified cars out there now that it's hard to come by a nice clean one. In terms of track prep, they don't actually need that much as they're so good out of the box. I managed to boil the fluid in my Trophy within 20 minutes at Spa and the pedal feel was horrible, so I'll be fitting braided lines and ATE Type 200 fluid as I have on all my others.Definitely the best colour for the 182s and good ones are getting rare now. Here's mine which has just ticked over 52k miles and is standard apart from an RS192 exhaust and Cooksport Springs:
You might be able to get the paint under the stripes sorted with a good machine polish, but as you're probably aware the paint on these clios is exceptionally hard, so it might take a couple of goes.
What are your plans to make it more track focussed?
As it'll mainly be for road use to start with I'm going with Cooksport springs like you, although I did have BC Racing coilovers on my 172 Cup and they were incredible on track but a bit too firm on the road in honesty. Looking forward to seeing how the springs feel on their own with a fresh set of dampers. One of the best mods I've found is the Pure Motorsport top mount and strut brace kit, makes the front end really sharp and pointy so that's on the list at some point, along with a Whiteline RARB.
But for now my main focus is to tidy it up where needed and replace any tired OEM parts. I only ever made reversible mods so anything aftermarket that does go onto it will probably come off again when the time comes to put it back to standard. I had my Trophy detailed when I had it and I remember the chap saying how incredible hard the paint was, so should make it fun when it comes to working on the paintwork...
MRobbins1987 said:
Very nice, I’ve just gone back to a 182 after a few years away, got a few problems getting it started at the moment but they are brilliant fun on track.
My old RB
That looks great! Really struggling over whether to go for Turinis or 2118s for wheels. Hmm...My old RB
Jonny_gti said:
Looks great mate, What's been your favourite renaultsport you've had so far?
Cheers! Probably my 172 Cup for the value for money. I wouldn't buy another Trophy now as I just don't think they justify the premium. My 250 was absolutely sensational, but obviously a lot more money than a 1*2.If you're looking to spend £10-15K on a hot hatch then I'd thoroughly recommend a 250/265/275 and would have another in a heartbeat but in terms of bang for buck, you really can't beat an old Clio. Which is exactly why I've come back to another!
AndrewGP said:
Agreed 
2118s possibly better on track though being 15" rather than the 16" for the turinis.
Tyres are marginally cheaper on 15s too. But it's mostly down to personal preference, although I am leaning towards 2118s at the moment.2118s possibly better on track though being 15" rather than the 16" for the turinis.
ilovequo said:
How does it stack against a Trophy?
Are the big seats and dampers really worth a £5 or 6k premium?
Frankly, no. When I bought my Trophy, I paid £4,250 for it but there's no way I'd pay the premium now. You could pick up a set of Recaro Trendlines and the Sachs dampers for around £1,500 if you wanted to replicate it (Trophy rear spoilers seem to fetch around £400/500 too), but with the rebuild schedule/costs with the Sachs I think you'd be better off with a set of coilovers or some decent springs with a fresh set of OEM dampers.Are the big seats and dampers really worth a £5 or 6k premium?
Arguably my 182 Cup is rarer with only 371 made in Racing Blue compared to 500 for the Trophy in the UK. You're really just paying for the Trophy badge and of course there will always be those that want the exclusivity or the best in a model line up. I'll confess I'm one of them but having had one, I'd buy a standard 182 and spend the money on other things now.
Brad R26 said:
Good shout on the Clio Ben, great colour too!
Very similar to me except I went the Evo route after my 182 Trophy then came back to Renault with the R26.
I do like the Scoobs though, sound great!
Keep us updated.
Ps. Go for the 2118's
What Evo did you go to and how does the R26 compare, reason I ask is I have a R26 just now but considering going the other way.Very similar to me except I went the Evo route after my 182 Trophy then came back to Renault with the R26.
I do like the Scoobs though, sound great!
Keep us updated.
Ps. Go for the 2118's
Brad R26 said:
Good shout on the Clio Ben, great colour too!
Very similar to me except I went the Evo route after my 182 Trophy then came back to Renault with the R26.
I do like the Scoobs though, sound great!
Keep us updated.
Ps. Go for the 2118's
Thanks Brad! I do love an Evo and I'll maybe own one some day, but the Scooby was always the hero car for me. You're either one or the other really aren't you. That and Evo values seem to be climbing at a faster rate than the Impreza, so it was more affordable.Very similar to me except I went the Evo route after my 182 Trophy then came back to Renault with the R26.
I do like the Scoobs though, sound great!
Keep us updated.
Ps. Go for the 2118's
Haha thanks, I've pretty much got my heart set on 2118s as I've had Turinis before, so just need to wait until I can get a set at the right price.
BenLowden said:
Frankly, no. When I bought my Trophy, I paid £4,250 for it but there's no way I'd pay the premium now. You could pick up a set of Recaro Trendlines and the Sachs dampers for around £1,500 if you wanted to replicate it (Trophy rear spoilers seem to fetch around £400/500 too), but with the rebuild schedule/costs with the Sachs I think you'd be better off with a set of coilovers or some decent springs with a fresh set of OEM dampers.
Arguably my 182 Cup is rarer with only 371 made in Racing Blue compared to 500 for the Trophy in the UK. You're really just paying for the Trophy badge and of course there will always be those that want the exclusivity or the best in a model line up. I'll confess I'm one of them but having had one, I'd buy a standard 182 and spend the money on other things now.
also has a little more soundproofing etc ripped out, and is several kg lighter than the cup and the speedline alloys are lighter too, also the colour is nice too!Arguably my 182 Cup is rarer with only 371 made in Racing Blue compared to 500 for the Trophy in the UK. You're really just paying for the Trophy badge and of course there will always be those that want the exclusivity or the best in a model line up. I'll confess I'm one of them but having had one, I'd buy a standard 182 and spend the money on other things now.
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