The trials & tribulations of racing a Clio

[Stuiemc]

i've got a few tarmac rally cars and one forest car running them and they've been fine so far. only downside is you can't get a quick rack conversion for the dci rack.

Does your DCI rack self centre? I've fitted one to mine and it doesn't, it needs aligned but not sure how much difference this will make since the castor isn't adjustable.

 

[bloke]

Does your DCI rack self centre? I've fitted one to mine and it doesn't, it needs aligned but not sure how much difference this will make since the castor isn't adjustable.

Read this a few times and to be honest can't give an answer, only thing I've noticed with my phase 1 is on full lock it feels doesn't really want to come back but that could just be caster angle as not had it set properly tjough.

No one that I've fitted one for has said anything either.

 

[robzracing]

Does your DCI rack self centre? I've fitted one to mine and it doesn't, it needs aligned but not sure how much difference this will make since the castor isn't adjustable.

I would have thought all the self centering comes from the alignment not the rack. Camber will also have an influence on this. Unless the EPAS does it's own self centering through the torque sensor.
I've had a DCi rack with no EPAS and that always self centred.

 

[Stuiemc]

I'll report back after I've had it alligned, hopefully it will sort the issue.

 

[robzracing]

I'll report back after I've had it alligned, hopefully it will sort the issue.

Let us know!

Engine bay ready to receive engine now.

With the tight space I have to work in, a bit of organising is required to get the engine off the stand and onto the hoist ready to mate with the gearbox and drop in. Should be fun!

 

[Stuiemc]

It's getting booked in early next week so I'll try my best to remember. It actually annoys me how clean your car is btw haha do you spray everything yourself? Looks very professional.

 

[robzracing]

It's getting booked in early next week so I'll try my best to remember. It actually annoys me how clean your car is btw haha do you spray everything yourself? Looks very professional.

Ha Ha, thanks! I painted the engine bay myself and most of the smaller components and brackets I did myself. Engine parts and subframes etc were sandblasted and powdercoated by a company near me.

 

[JP83]

I really like this build. Are you still running the standard loom?

 

[robzracing]

I really like this build. Are you still running the standard loom?

Thanks. Yes, at the moment still a standard loom. Stripped out in places and the engine loom has been re wrapped and labelled. I have a new body shell waiting in the wings to be built up which will be significantly lighter and will then have a custom loom made up as part of that build. Just need to get a bit of racing done first!

 

[JP83]

Thanks. Yes, at the moment still a standard loom. Stripped out in places and the engine loom has been re wrapped and labelled. I have a new body shell waiting in the wings to be built up which will be significantly lighter and will then have a custom loom made up as part of that build. Just need to get a bit of racing done first!

How much do you reckon you can shave off, weight-wise?

I was just curious on the loom, as I spotted the bulkhead adapter. Looks really neat, and I love the labeling idea (my inner geek swooned).

 

[robzracing]

How much do you reckon you can shave off, weight-wise?

I was just curious on the loom, as I spotted the bulkhead adapter. Looks really neat, and I love the labeling idea (my inner geek swooned).

Ha Ha!
I had another Clio that I sold last year that was 850kg. But the inside looked like this!
But I'm also looking at doing a Carbon Fibre roof on the new one.

 

[robzracing]

Engine and gearbox finally reunited as the final push begins.

Bit tight for space in my workshop!

Remembered at the last minute to line up these marks from when the bottom end was ballanced.

Next step is the big one. Engine into the car and then a heap of wiring and plumbing to do.

 

[Chambers_RS]

That looks awesome.
Makes me excited to start sorting mine again

 

[R29TJR]

Love a clean engine.

Amazing work mate.

 

[robzracing]

That looks awesome.
Makes me excited to start sorting mine again

Thanks. I know what you mean, I rely on this forum to keep my motivation up!

 

[robzracing]

Love a clean engine.

Amazing work mate.

Thanks. Starting to take shape now.

 

[neil a]

Looking very good.

Where did you make the bulkhead penetration for the brake line looks to be low down from your pics.
Also on the rear did you add any extra clips in the arch as my hose sits very close to the tyre.

 

[robzracing]

Looking very good.

Where did you make the bulkhead penetration for the brake line looks to be low down from your pics.
Also on the rear did you add any extra clips in the arch as my hose sits very close to the tyre.

Thanks Neil. The brake line comes through the bulkhead just above the tunnel for the exhaust and below the heater.

To be honest I haven't looked that closely at clearance for the wheels at the back yet. Hopefully it will be ok because there isn't really anywhere to clip the hoses to once you're in the wheel-well.

 

[robzracing]

Quite a productive week this week. As the sun was shining I decided to open the workshop doors and get the engine in.

A combination of lifting the engine as high as I could and dropping the shell down low I managed to manoeuvre the engine and gearbox into place pretty much single handed. (a small amount of assistance from the wife!) and it was all in after about 30 minutes.

The remaining time I had that day I managed to get everything underneath the car buttoned up. Exhaust connected, Dogbone fitted, gear linkage and lambda sensor.

Although I intend to change my hoses for some black ones, I got out my old blue hoses so I could start to see what space I have to run the oil cooler hoses.

With the Pure Motorsport radiator in place it looks like I'm going to need to order a couple of 150 degree and a couple of 120 degree AN10 connectors to get the hose to turn down to the cooler without fouling on anything.

There's no rush for this as I won't connect the oil cooler up until the engine has been run for the first time and then the oil changed.
So I next fitted the new Comex fan and then moved on to the front suspension and driveshafts.

Then the refurbished calipers, new discs and bump steer kit.

One final spanner check and torque up of everything and I can make a start on connecting up the wiring. Maybe tomorrow!

 

[robzracing]

Again a bit more progress today. Started on the electrical connections and offereed up the ITBs to complete the fuel plumbing.

And finally, sorted one small detail that's been bothering me.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

Does the pure rad hang purely off those two brackets through the crash bar or does it locate in the original holes with the rubber feet?

I’ve ordered one which hasn’t arrived yet but if the bracket off the front edge of the subframe is no longer used I’m going to remove it..

 

[robzracing]

Does the pure rad hang purely off those two brackets through the crash bar or does it locate in the original holes with the rubber feet?

I’ve ordered one which hasn’t arrived yet but if the bracket off the front edge of the subframe is no longer used I’m going to remove it..

Yep, it just bolts through the crash bar. I wish I had decided to have that rad before I sent the subframe off for powdercoating otherwise I would have removed it too. I should have removed the little tow loop underneath as well.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

Cheers! That’s a job for tomorrow then..

Keep the progress pics coming, love reading through build threads like this!

 

[EVO 4LEX]

Forgot to ask.. don’t suppose you weighed the rad and fan did you?

 

[robzracing]

Forgot to ask.. don’t suppose you weighed the rad and fan did you?

Ah, you know I didn't. Mainly because I forgot to weigh the standard rad to get a comparison before I chucked it. The fan is quite heavy though, possibly heavier than the standard one. (which I do still have).
Bear with me I may still have to remove the rad again when I do the oil cooler plumbing so I will try and remember to weigh it then.
Have you got a standard rad to weigh? I'd be interested to know.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

Ah, you know I didn't. Mainly because I forgot to weigh the standard rad to get a comparison before I chucked it. The fan is quite heavy though, possibly heavier than the standard one. (which I do still have).
Bear with me I may still have to remove the rad again when I do the oil cooler plumbing so I will try and remember to weigh it then.
Have you got a standard rad to weigh? I'd be interested to know.

I’ve removed my cup rad and fan (not sure if cup rad is different) it weighed in at 5.3kg. Was hoping that the new set up would be a little lighter :grimacing:

 

[robzracing]

I’ve removed my cup rad and fan (not sure if cup rad is different) it weighed in at 5.3kg. Was hoping that the new set up would be a little lighter :grimacing:

That's helpful thanks. Mine's a Cup too but I don't think there's any difference.
Let me know about the PM one if it arrives with you before I get a chance to weigh mine. Have you ordered the 12" fan or the 10"? The 12" fits perfectly.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

I

That's helpful thanks. Mine's a Cup too but I don't think there's any difference.
Let me know about the PM one if it arrives with you before I get a chance to weigh mine. Have you ordered the 12" fan or the 10"? The 12" fits perfectly.

Yeah will let you know if it arrives. Not sure on fan size as I just said “yes” to the fan whilst adding the rad to basket. Hopefully that’s what you did and I’ll end up with the same thing! I didn’t bother with the electronic fan controller though.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

Just an update on the rad weights.. my rad finally came today!
So, cup rad- 5.31kg
Slam panel- 1.53kg
Larger bracket off subframe- 0.20kg
Total-7.04kg

Pure rad with all brackets- 3.11kg
Fan-1.79kg
Total-4.90kg

Hope that helps!

Did your fan come with the other half of the plug to fit to the cars loom??

 

[robzracing]

Just an update on the rad weights.. my rad finally came today!
So, cup rad- 5.31kg
Slam panel- 1.53kg
Larger bracket off subframe- 0.20kg
Total-7.04kg

Pure rad with all brackets- 3.11kg
Fan-1.79kg
Total-4.90kg

Hope that helps!

Did your fan come with the other half of the plug to fit to the cars loom??

That's great, thanks!
I assume your rad is the smaller (and cheaper) of the 2 that Nick does. I couldn't warrant spending £400 on a rad! Especially in a race car!

I know Nick offers the other half of that plug as an option but I'm fitting a waterproof plug myself. That plug that comes with the fan looks a but ropey.

 

[EVO 4LEX]

That's great, thanks!
I assume your rad is the smaller (and cheaper) of the 2 that Nick does. I couldn't warrant spending £400 on a rad! Especially in a race car!

I know Nick offers the other half of that plug as an option but I'm fitting a waterproof plug myself. That plug that comes with the fan looks a but ropey.
View attachment 1357945

Yeah, it’s the cheaper rad that he does! Perfectly fine for what I’m doing!

Ah, you’d think if buying a full kit it would come with the plug but hey ho I’ll probably do as you have done.. I assume that plug is rated highly enough for the current draw?

 

[robzracing]

Yeah, it’s the cheaper rad that he does! Perfectly fine for what I’m doing!

Ah, you’d think if buying a full kit it would come with the plug but hey ho I’ll probably do as you have done.. I assume that plug is rated highly enough for the current draw?

I hope so! the pins take the same guage wire and I doubt the fan will be doing too much work on my car.

 

[robzracing]

Nearly all back together now. Connections for the last piece of fuel line arrived today so once that's done I can start filling up the fluids and doing an electrical check.

 

[Adamxx]

Is it possible you could measure your aluminium heat shield on bulkhead so I know what size sheet to order?

Nice progress as always

 

[robzracing]

Is it possible you could measure your aluminium heat shield on bulkhead so I know what size sheet to order?

Nice progress as always

I think it's about 600 square but I'll check tomorrow.

 

[Brucefil]

My car could be your brothers and were racing on opposite ends of the earth.

BTW its a balmy 31 today (thats centigrade not Fahrenheit)

Its just coming on 8pm and a lovely bright evening.

Thats why "I still call Australia home"

3 x 13 racing. 3 x the luck

 

[robzracing]

My car could be your brothers and were racing on opposite ends of the earth.

BTW its a balmy 31 today (thats centigrade not Fahrenheit)

Its just coming on 8pm and a lovely bright evening.

Thats why "I still call Australia home"

3 x 13 racing. 3 x the luck

That's nothing, it's a balmy -5 Degrees here today! I'm thinking about putting some factor 30 on.

 

[robzracing]

Very nearly ready for it's first start now.
Last week I finished all electrical connections and tested what I could. At the last minute I have decided to relocate the ECU slightly so I'm making a new housing for that. I really don't like it being in the engine bay but as it's always been there it's too much trouble to bring it into the cabin now. However I have been in talks with a motorsport wiring specialist who has quoted me for a Raychem racing loom to go into the new shell when I start that later this year. Then it can move.

In the engine bay I have now replaced the remaining rubber vacuum hoses and catchcan hose with silicon and last night finally plumbed in the oil cooler.

Also filled and bled all the brakes so in theory it could now go down on it's wheels which it hasn't done since September 2016!
Coolant and oil to do next and then I think we should be ready.

 

[robzracing]

An overdue update as the last couple of days have been a bit nerve wracking getting ready for the first start.

So yesterday was spent double checking everything as much as time would allow and then filling the cooling system, gearbox and finally the engine.
Just cheap coolant as it will be replaced with Evans waterless coolant once everything is running properly and there are no leaks.
Gearbox has been treated to some decent stuff though which I hope will help it through this season before a rebuild in the winter.
Engine has been filled with mineral oil for running in until it's finished on the dyno and then I have some Fuchs Titan to go in it.

And finally on its wheels.
Today I had Steve Greenald arriving at 10.30 who is one part of Track N Road in Rainham and had previously mapped the Emerald ECU.
After cranking the engine to check pressure we immediately noticed the fuel pump was dead. Headache number 1!
Bypassing all the wiring the pump would run with 12v put through it so we were able to check fuel pressure which was all good.
Leaving the pump running like this we cranked the engine again only to find this time no spark!
I hadn't really expected things to go completely smoothly but I was starting to feel like a bit of an idiot having asked Steve over with such fundamental issues unresolved.
I then suggested he gets the laptop plugged into the ECU to see what was happening with the spark. It was then that we discovered the ECU was dead!
This of course was the source of the lack of spark and dead fuel pump and after a bit of fumbling around I discovered one earth wire still disconnected from when I had the loom out of the car. Thank God!
Connected that up and the car started on the button. Can't begin to describe the relief. Steve thought it all sounded very healthy so we ranit up to bed in the cams etc and let the temp come up.
Only one problem running wise; the fan won't kick in, so I need to check the wiring and the relay. This is all controlled from the ECU as well but it needs some investigating.
I also have no EPAS for some reason and the rev counter has stopped working so plenty of small issues to get over but other than that it's just about ready for the dyno next thursday.
Let's hope it goes well there and it makes the power I'm hoping for.

 

[robzracing]

This past week has been rather hectic in the workshop. After last week's success at startup I had a few days to try and iron out a few issues ready for the rolling road on Thursday.
A good part of this time was spent throwing together the bodywork just so I could transport it to Essex around the M25 while keeping the engine dry from the inevitable rain. The front of the car is still slightly twisted from a rather heavy excursion into the tyre wall at Cadwell a couple of years ago so the old bonnet doesn't really fit properly and even fitting it all playes havoc with my OCD! But with a new shell ready to be built it really isn't worth worrying about it, or spending too much time trying to straighten it.
While fitting the bumper back together I did spend a bit of time drilling a bit more ventilation into the lower grill to help cooling the the oil cooler.

Every little helps!
I still have a few electrical niggles that are going to need attention. I haven't had a chance to investigate why the EPAS isn't working yet but this is high on the list to be sorted before we can start testing. But since fitting some new headlights I have also discovered I have no power to the front lights at all which is odd. No headlights, sidelights or indicators. Every other light on the car is working so I'm just going to have to trace the wiring back. I suspect the white connector in the engine fuse box may be the culprit assuming they run into this.

A small coolant leak was cured easily. (Just needed to fit a jubilee clip. Whoops!) But I've also now got a small gearbox leak from the drivers side driveshaft which I didn't have before. I wasn't too concerned with fixing this before Thursday though. So other than a quick spanner check, wheel torque up and some air in the tyres it was on to the trailer. Which appears to have shrunk!

Anyway, Thursday was a day of highs and lows and ultimately turned into rather a long day.
I was due to arrive at Road n Track at 11am which I duly did. After a quick push off the trailer, (still no reverse) and the obligatory cup of tea I drove the car on to the rollers.

...and 3 hours later I was still there as they built a stable map for the engine. By the end of this they were very happy with the engine which was appearing to be strong, with the only adjustments being a slight increase in fuel pressure and a change to the spark plugs up to a 7 temp rating from a 6 which is standard. (apparently)
Only as they started the power runs did the problems begin and the day on the dyno came to an abrupt end.
Sadly there is an oil leak from most likely, the main crank seal at the gearbox end. The bell housing had filled with oil and of course covered the clutch which was then slipping too much to allow any power runs.
A very disappointing end to the visit as well as frustrating as the bottom end was the only part of the engine that I haven't put together myself. Not that I would have done a better job of course. Being where the main investment in this engine has gone I was more than happy to leave this to an expert and to be honest this could have been a far worse result, so I'm not overly disappointed as it's a relatively straight forward fix even though it means the gearbox will need to come out and I will now have to order a new Helix 4 puck clutch.
So after loading her back on to the trailer I then dropped the car off to Mark Fish as it's going to be far easier to fix this on a ramp and I wanted him to corner weight the car and set up the geometry anyway.
Being the solid chap that Mark is, he is going to speak to the company who assembled the bottom end and suggest they take responsibility for this failure. It is a company that he recommended to me anyway and he has a good relationship with them. Hopefully they'll be reasonable and this fix will not cost me too much.
the main thing though is now to decide whether to pull out all the stops and try and get the car ready for Silverstone on the 6th May, with a test day on the 4th. Or wait until Oulton on the 2nd June.
With an empty workshop I've got a quiet weekend to think about it.