Pug 206 SW, 172 CUP
When i was watching my dad go round in our 182 it was suprising how soft the standard springs seem to be but in practice it works well. The roll helps it c**k that rear wheel along with the way the suspension is setup to aid turn in and the softer springs with properly setup dampers help the front wheels get traction instead of skipping and then spinning away what you have. These things were the exact reason the old 16v was a favourite with autocar, why they rated it over the very stiffly sprung RS1800 and why all the clios since have been popular drivers cars. Its also why they ride reasonably well compared to other hot hatches. Renault have been very good at reducing understeer without ending up with something as angry and quick to bite the unwary in response to the throttle position as a certain very popular independent torsion bar rear setup. Don't be so quick to dial out what renault did in the first place. The car rolls at the track but it's not like your gonna fall out the seat like other cars i've driven.
I've always been a fan of getting a suspension package that includes settings that have been properly tested. I've had plenty of ball ache over the years with a mix and match approach. The times don't lie and i've been disappointed more than once dispite me thinking things were better. Less roll feels nicer in the car but it didn't initially give me a faster time in my first couple of cars and in several places i was actually a few mph slower at the end of straights due to bumpy surfaces and a lack of traction. Old airfields and hard suspension just don't go together!
The car i had before the clio was a honda CRX that was standard apart from some yoko A048R's. They made the car roll more than the standard tyres so we fitted some Eibach lowering springs before the next season. I went half a second faster but i think i was actually slower overall because the year before we had a nice fat head wind down the main straight and i was getting a good 5mph more. Made the car horrible to drive to and from events as well as CRX's aren't that soft to begin with
I'm not saying you should take it back to standard but maybe just tweek what you have (as it's a pretty standard upgrade route you've taken on here) with some settings that some of the more experienced on here can vouch will give you a solid base. You can then stop worrying about the car and concentrate on you. Then when your settled you'll be in a better position to confidently tweek the car to respond to your inputs if you still think it's not right or even ditch the clio if it's handling balance just isn't what you've been striving for.
Good luck its all a learning curve. Just do it the other way round to me so your driving is the first thing you sort! I could have had soooo much track time in place of the money i spent on mods over the last decade.
I've always been a fan of getting a suspension package that includes settings that have been properly tested. I've had plenty of ball ache over the years with a mix and match approach. The times don't lie and i've been disappointed more than once dispite me thinking things were better. Less roll feels nicer in the car but it didn't initially give me a faster time in my first couple of cars and in several places i was actually a few mph slower at the end of straights due to bumpy surfaces and a lack of traction. Old airfields and hard suspension just don't go together!
The car i had before the clio was a honda CRX that was standard apart from some yoko A048R's. They made the car roll more than the standard tyres so we fitted some Eibach lowering springs before the next season. I went half a second faster but i think i was actually slower overall because the year before we had a nice fat head wind down the main straight and i was getting a good 5mph more. Made the car horrible to drive to and from events as well as CRX's aren't that soft to begin with
I'm not saying you should take it back to standard but maybe just tweek what you have (as it's a pretty standard upgrade route you've taken on here) with some settings that some of the more experienced on here can vouch will give you a solid base. You can then stop worrying about the car and concentrate on you. Then when your settled you'll be in a better position to confidently tweek the car to respond to your inputs if you still think it's not right or even ditch the clio if it's handling balance just isn't what you've been striving for.
Good luck its all a learning curve. Just do it the other way round to me so your driving is the first thing you sort! I could have had soooo much track time in place of the money i spent on mods over the last decade.
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