Iceberg Phase 2 172- Bit of a Hooligan

[papps]

Hello,

After having a fantastic ownership of a standard R26 Megane as me enterance to the world of RenaultSport ownership, which I modded quite heavily (255BHP, AST5100, Rear welded cage,buckets, airbag removal etc etc) which I sadly sold on 3 years ago..

and in action:



R26 at Knockhill



I then needed to scratch an itch that I had ever since they came out, which was owning a Porsche Cayman S, which I was fortunate to do so, it was a cracking car, lots of luxury, an incredible sounding engine, but it wasn't as much of a hooligan as a renaultsport was, this one was too clean as well with only 20k on the clock, and I was scared of stone chips etc etc, so it had to go - still glad I did it though...

Anyway, with a house move on the card (pre covid 19 of course), and needing a new performance car in my life, there was only really one option, a nice mk2 Clio.

Luckily one of my brothers friends was selling his, due to owning too many cars, and due to it being to clean for him to track it.

Its an Iceberg 172, with a Ktec exhaust and only 93k on the clocks, its had about 1,800 spend on it in the last few years in maintenance and is very clean.

It also came with 2 sets of wheels, which is excellent.

Due to it being a friend of my brothers and the current situation, I didn't even view it, just wired the money across (a very reasonable price!) and collected it hands free.

So here she is in all her glory:

 

[papps]

 

[papps]

Things to do:

The car has 2 Conti's and 2 Rainsports on the std alloys, and 4 * Rainsports on the Turini's - so I will need to get some summer tyres sorted out, probably either AD08R or PS3's.

The car is on some kind of non-oem dampers that are red in colour, so getting some OEM CUP shocks on the car will be a priority.

The brakes are good and there's a good pedal feel, but being used to really aggressive brake pads (has DS1.11 on my megane) I'd quite like something a little stronger on the car, but nothing that will squeal as no plans for serious track work, so something like mintex 1144 on the front probably

The gearknob has some kind of carbon fibre look sticker on it, so I'd like to change to something different maybe

The steering wheel is in great nick - so no plans to mess around with that for the time being...

First Impressions:

The car is an animal, a total hooligan, the steering feels so pointy and so tight its fantastic.

The car is a little loud for my liking, even though its not been decatted, it has some kind of Ktec exhaust, so once I get it jacked up to change over the wheels I'll have a further inspection.

The car is ridiculously good on fuel, like I can't believe how economical it is, far more economical than the R26 was - the porsche struggled to get more than 22mpg - this will easily get 35mpg.

The engine is so smooth, especially when cold, and pulls evenly across the rev range, so we think that it may have one of Henk's 98 RON files on it - happy days.

Everything that everyone says about these cars is correct - they are sublime, and certainly can't be beaten at this price point.

I don't know how long I'll own this, but it will be getting anything needed with no expense spared like my R26 at Rentec Autocare in Edinburgh, and it'll be taken around some of Scotland's finest country roads to be enjoyed fully in the meantime!!

Thanks for reading....more to come in the future no doubt!

 

[Cads]

I knew the car looked familiar, then when you said Scotland the penny dropped. When I was looking a few months ago this was for sale and the price kept dropping. I felt for the seller as it looked lovely, just so far away from most folk.

Congratulations mate. Enjoy!

 

[djp66]

Nice and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I've been on a similar journey Silver Cayman S to an Iceberg 172 cup..

 

[Martin_172]

lovely, love a nice standard looking iceberg. reminds me of my first one. Good being an early one you have no ESP to worry about (one less warning light 😂 )

good call on the cup dampers, make a nice difference especially when the old ones are worn/crap lol Kam racing have a great deal at the moment on genuine cup dampers and Grams springs, ive just received mine, not fitted them yet though https://www.kamracing.co.uk/car-tun...rams-cup-suspension-kit-172-renaultsport.html

Also worth fitting a set of cup lower arms so you gain the extra front castor, that mixed with the cup setup dampers will make a world of difference to the turn in!

also if its got a ktec stealth exhaust you can get either the sport which has a centre section silencer or the supersport which doesnt, if its got no centre silencer you can buy the sport centre section on its own from them and that should quieten it down a little

 

[Kosy]

Cracking car and right decision to purchase. Lucky we are up north and too far for some to travel!

Lots of happy times ahead with two clios in the family!

 

[Armchairracer]

The Turinis totally change the look of the car , looks great .

 

[papps]

I knew the car looked familiar, then when you said Scotland the penny dropped. When I was looking a few months ago this was for sale and the price kept dropping. I felt for the seller as it looked lovely, just so far away from most folk.

Congratulations mate. Enjoy!

Ha yeah it must be the same one, my brothers mate bought it around that time, and did a few jobs on it, mainly tidying up a few little bubbles of rust etc.
Thanks dude will do!!

Nice and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I've been on a similar journey Silver Cayman S to an Iceberg 172 cup..

Thanks buddy, the cayman is an unreal car don't get me wrong, but it is not geared for our B roads up here, it does over 65mph in 2nd and well over 100mph in 3rd (so I have been told), I love the way the renaultsport's are geared, and how fast they make you feel you are driving when you aren''t even going fast at all.

I started to have a bit of rust on the wheel arches of the Cayman, and that was it, I couldn't be doing with spending all the money and worrying about it rusting, it was time to go.

How long did you have yours in the end?

lovely, love a nice standard looking iceberg. reminds me of my first one. Good being an early one you have no ESP to worry about (one less warning light 😂 )

good call on the cup dampers, make a nice difference especially when the old ones are worn/crap lol Kam racing have a great deal at the moment on genuine cup dampers and Grams springs, ive just received mine, not fitted them yet though https://www.kamracing.co.uk/car-tun...rams-cup-suspension-kit-172-renaultsport.html

Also worth fitting a set of cup lower arms so you gain the extra front castor, that mixed with the cup setup dampers will make a world of difference to the turn in!

also if its got a ktec stealth exhaust you can get either the sport which has a centre section silencer or the supersport which doesnt, if its got no centre silencer you can buy the sport centre section on its own from them and that should quieten it down a little

Thanks Martin, some excellent info in there - greatly appreciated!!!

I was actually wanting the ESP, it got me out of jail once in the R26 when a road was being resurfaced without any warning signs and was covered in loose stone chips 🙈

I didn't know about the lower arms, will def get those done at the same time as the dampers and get the geo/alignment done as well - amazing how much of a difference it makes

Going to dig out the trolley jack tonight and have a look underneath to see what the exhaust is like!

Cracking car and right decision to purchase. Lucky we are up north and too far for some to travel!

Lots of happy times ahead with two clios in the family!

Yeah it will be good to drive yours again to see how they compare!!

The Turinis totally change the look of the car , looks great .

Thanks dude - yeah the turini's are amazing wheels for sure, but given how mint condition they are, I quite like the std ones as well actually, but once I get some proper summer tyres sorted out the turini's will be going on, no point sticking them on now with the rainports, given how dry it is, I'd ruin them in 3 or 4,000 miles 🤣

 

[papps]

Little updates on the car:

The car had non oem mats that were useless - moving around all the time etc, not good.....

So was having a look and noticed that the 'Renault Sport' branded mats were £57, but the 'Clio' branded mats were only £21, with the only difference being purely cosmetic, same materials, same fit. I must be getting old as I just went for the 'Clio' ones, and I'm very happy, they fit great and have a nice grip on your heel when driving

Sport Mats:

Normal Clio Mats:

Got them from @Kev@KAM Kam Racing, very pleased with the service and results:

While I was at it - it was time to get rid of the non-oem dampers on the car and get the full 172 CUP damper set up.

A total bargain at only £160, again from KAM racing, for the job lot

Part Numbers for those that may be interested:

Front CUP spec damper (54mm Bolt Spacing)
2 x Renault OE Damper (Front) - 8200681108 £69.34	8200681108		Ordered: 2
Rear CUP spec damper
2 x Renault OE Damper (Rear) - 8200681125 £65.86

Still to get those fitted, will be booking her in with my guys Rentec Autocare in Edinburgh to get them fitted, and give the car a good once over, and even stick the MOT on it, as its expiring soon (yes we have the COVID extension but it makes sense with the virus to try and get as many jobs done in one exposure, both for the garages and myself)

Tyres: 2 Conit's on the front currently, with rainsports on the rear, just going to get another 2 Conti's for the rear, they seem more than capable and have decent reviews vs Michelin PS3s - again may as well get those fitted when the car is in with Rentec.


The Hazard Lights aren't working, and I have an airbag light on, apart from that the car is behaving brilliantly, its ridiculously economical, so much fun at speed limit speeds and a car that you don't have to worry about getting stone chips on - boy have I missed the RenaultSports, you have to grab them by the scruff of the neck, but christ do they put a smile on your face..


Gearknob: Its got a tacky carbon fibre look sticker on it atm, but I do like the gearchange, its longish, but feels great and its nice and rewarding.

I was having a look at the new Zero Point One Options, but decided against as don't want to increase the length of the throw....they look nice though

So I'm either going to go for a Phase 1 172 Shifter....

Or just leave it as is, which I'm leaning towards -my brother has the Phase 1 shifter on his 172 CUP, and it is lovely and very OEM+ so we'll see.

As always, thanks for reading and hope you're all keeping well