Newbie AGP Clio

[RSTM]

Hi all

Another newbie RS owner in Perth.

2011 AGP Clio.   

Have just got it registered after some fafing about.  Plan to lighten it up and use as a track day car. 

Welcome any recommendations from Perth members for Renault / euro specialists in  who can provide quality mechanical and suspension advice and service. 

Cheers 

RSTM 

[woot woot]

So many stickers. Cool colour though.

Why you take off the bumper?

[Rammus]

Good pickup this, should be well looked after and iirc has been tracked before (sticker happy owner definitely). Double check the wheel nut torque settings on this one as they might be jammed tighter than a bee's etc.

[Phillyphil]

Hi Fella, 

Nice ride

I'm from Perth too and used to own and track one. They are pretty good out of the crate and don't need too much honestly to go well on track. 

It appears to have lightweight wheels and semi slick's already? My advice would be to run a session at Barbs or Collie and see what you think first. I take it your a member of WASCC?

Before you even attempt to take it on track do all the usual maintenance stuff. Gear oil should be changed if you don't want to damage the French cheese synchro's. I learnt this the hard way on track...If your car is standard open diff use Redline gear oil MTL75w-90 it's approx $130 for 1US Gal (3.75ltr) from Oil & Energy in Bibra Lake (They are the importer for Redline to AUS and sell to the retailers). Your car will take 2.5ltrs so my advice would be to buy 2 x US GAL for your next gear oil service in 2 years time or maybe 1 US QRTS (945ml) extra container. 

Cooling system flush would be a good starting point, brake fluid refresh with castrol DOT4 Performance or what every flavor you prefer, DBA T2 rotors are a great upgrade from the standard solid rotors. Not essential straight away as the standard braking system is pretty strong. Perth Brake Parts in Welshpool have them off the shelf and they won't brake the bank. For pads there is loads of options... Depending if your want them to work on the road without too much noise or do you want a proper motorsport pad?

My good mate who is on the forum "Master of puppets" has a Angel and Demon with probably the best build I've see in Perth. KW V3 Coilovers, rear camber shims, Quaife diff, lighten flywheel, KTEC exhaust, OZ lightweight wheels, AO52 tires, DBA T2 rotors with Ferodo DS2500 pads, 2 x Velo GP90 lightweight seats, KTEC harness bar, ITG cold air intake, rear seat delete with KTEC carpet. This thing flies on track and he's glued to my meg4 Trophy through the esses, skyline and down into the basin. 

As far as specialist in Perth none of them are cheap. For things like cam belt, aux belt & water pump they should be done every 4-5 years. You will need to use a specialist. Your options are-

Eurocare Burswood (VAG & Reno specialist) decent size workshop, quality work and heard good things. 

WA Euro Osborne Park ((VAG & Reno specialist) does good work but social retarded to deal with. He did the cam belt, aux belt & waterpump and plugs on my Gordini. 

Ramp Auto (All Euro Stuff) in Malaga I heard have the F4R & F4Rt timing tool and can do belts.

The specialist want over $400 just for a oil change and oil filter change. Way too expensive in my opinion. My mechanic does Castrol Edge 5w-40 (Clio F4r) & Edge 0w-40 (meg4 1.8T) for $230 per service. I get the oil changed every 5,000kms at this price. 

If you have a preferred mechanic I have the clio3 197 / 200 workshop manuals but I can't seem to Microsoft One Drive link these so you will need to drop me a thumb drive if you want them. 

Might see you around at Collie or Barbs. Steve with the Angel & Demon and I are at at least one of the WASCC Tuning days at Barbs each month. 

Later, Phil. 

 

[Phillyphil]

As for suspension that's a whole can of worms and depends on your budget and if you have money burning a hole in your pocket. 

This is my take on Clio3 Cup suspension and upgrades. 

Out of the box the cup suspension is pretty damn good. Best money is spent on tires first!

If your car has over 100,000kms on the chassis well probably time for a birthday!

There is 2 options in my opinion...

The cost effective way is approx $1k budget. Deal with KTEC Racing UK and buy either Eibach/H&R springs and OEM Renault cup shock. Even Koni Sport dampers are good. Don't forget to do a Powerflex polybushing )"purple & yellow road series) upgrade of all engine/gearbox and chassis mounts. The handling will be razor sharp and better than off the showroom floor. Add in some rear shims and you can get greater than -1 deg negative camber on the rear beam. 

 

DO NOT buy mid spec $1.5 to 2K coilovers without bump adjustment. I'm talking about the Biltein B14, Yellow speed or KW V1 of the world. You spend good money on the purchase price, good money to fit them and yes you can corner balance, ride height and rebound adjustment but they are floored... Let me tell you why....     

If you start taking weight out of the car for example remove the rear bench seat and 30kgs is removed from the rear axle.... The only way to set the car up to compensate the weight balance is to increase front bump setting and reduce rear rebound. With the 3 models mentioned above you can't adjust bump in that price category. 

 

The expensive but saves money in the long run is buy either KW V3, KW Clubsport or AST. Your looking at greater then $3.6k buy price plus fitting. You can full control of bump, ride height and rebound and if you remove weight from interior or IE lithium battery you can tune the chassis to brake flat and hard. 

 

Do your research -

Parts, engine tuning and upgrades for Renaultsport Megane, Clio & Twingo : K-TEC Racing

Suspension - Clio 3 RS-200 (pure-motorsport.co.uk)

Renault Clio Mk3 RS Parts (kamracing.co.uk)

 

The best guy in Perth for setting up a track car is John Fowler Autosport.... All the guys from TECCWA Redmist Autokhana use him and he is highly regarded in the Rally Sprint WA and Speed Event Series circles. He's in Osborne Park and is the Yokohama Motorsport Tire agent. Also agent for KW Suspension. Look up his facebook page and you will see the race and track cars that go through his workshop. 

Other than that Wilkinson Suspension is right next to my work in Bayswater on Beechboro Rd just off Collier Rd exit. They do tones of 4WD but you see a fair few Rally Sprint cars out the front. Other than that most Suspension Shops in WA just concentrate on the 4WD sector as that's where the money is. 

Good Luck

 

 

 

 

[OZCUP]

18 minutes ago, Phillyphil said:

As for suspension that's a whole can of worms and depends on your budget and if you have money burning a hole in your pocket. 

This is my take on Clio3 Cup suspension and upgrades. 

Out of the box the cup suspension is pretty damn good. Best money is spent on tires first!

If your car has over 100,000kms on the chassis well probably time for a birthday!

There is 2 options in my opinion...

The cost effective way is approx $1k budget. Deal with KTEC Racing UK and buy either Eibach/H&R springs and OEM Renault cup shock. Even Koni Sport dampers are good. Don't forget to do a Powerflex polybushing )"purple & yellow road series) upgrade of all engine/gearbox and chassis mounts. The handling will be razor sharp and better than off the showroom floor. Add in some rear shims and you can get greater than -1 deg negative camber on the rear beam. 

 

DO NOT buy mid spec $1.5 to 2K coilovers without bump adjustment. I'm talking about the Biltein B14, Yellow speed or KW V1 of the world. You spend good money on the purchase price, good money to fit them and yes you can corner balance, ride height and rebound adjustment but they are floored... Let me tell you why....     

If you start taking weight out of the car for example remove the rear bench seat and 30kgs is removed from the rear axle.... The only way to set the car up to compensate the weight balance is to increase front bump setting and reduce rear rebound. With the 3 models mentioned above you can't adjust bump in that price category. 

 

The expensive but saves money in the long run is buy either KW V3, KW Clubsport or AST. Your looking at greater then $3.6k buy price plus fitting. You can full control of bump, ride height and rebound and if you remove weight from interior or IE lithium battery you can tune the chassis to brake flat and hard. 

 

Do your research -

Parts, engine tuning and upgrades for Renaultsport Megane, Clio & Twingo : K-TEC Racing

Suspension - Clio 3 RS-200 (pure-motorsport.co.uk)

Renault Clio Mk3 RS Parts (kamracing.co.uk)

 

The best guy in Perth for setting up a track car is John Fowler Autosport.... All the guys from TECCWA Redmist Autokhana use him and he is highly regarded in the Rally Sprint WA and Speed Event Series circles. He's in Osborne Park and is the Yokohama Motorsport Tire agent. Also agent for KW Suspension. Look up his facebook page and you will see the race and track cars that go through his workshop. 

Other than that Wilkinson Suspension is right next to my work in Bayswater on Beechboro Rd just off Collier Rd exit. They do tones of 4WD but you see a fair few Rally Sprint cars out the front. Other than that most Suspension Shops in WA just concentrate on the 4WD sector as that's where the money is. 

Good Luck

 

 

 

 

Very good advice @Phillyphil

[RSTM]

6 hours ago, woot woot said:

So many stickers. Cool colour though.

Why you take off the bumper?

Headlights were not working when i got it.     

[RSTM]

5 hours ago, Rammus said:

Good pickup this, should be well looked after and iirc has been tracked before (sticker happy owner definitely). Double check the wheel nut torque settings on this one as they might be jammed tighter than a bee's etc.

Yep they were a mess…. Changed them to racing line  stud an nut set up. 

 

[RSTM]

On 9/6/22 at 9:17 AM, Phillyphil said:

Hi Fella, 

Nice ride

I'm from Perth too and used to own and track one. They are pretty good out of the crate and don't need too much honestly to go well on track. 

It appears to have lightweight wheels and semi slick's already? My advice would be to run a session at Barbs or Collie and see what you think first. I take it your a member of WASCC?

Before you even attempt to take it on track do all the usual maintenance stuff. Gear oil should be changed if you don't want to damage the French cheese synchro's. I learnt this the hard way on track...If your car is standard open diff use Redline gear oil MTL75w-90 it's approx $130 for 1US Gal (3.75ltr) from Oil & Energy in Bibra Lake (They are the importer for Redline to AUS and sell to the retailers). Your car will take 2.5ltrs so my advice would be to buy 2 x US GAL for your next gear oil service in 2 years time or maybe 1 US QRTS (945ml) extra container. 

Cooling system flush would be a good starting point, brake fluid refresh with castrol DOT4 Performance or what every flavor you prefer, DBA T2 rotors are a great upgrade from the standard solid rotors. Not essential straight away as the standard braking system is pretty strong. Perth Brake Parts in Welshpool have them off the shelf and they won't brake the bank. For pads there is loads of options... Depending if your want them to work on the road without too much noise or do you want a proper motorsport pad?

My good mate who is on the forum "Master of puppets" has a Angel and Demon with probably the best build I've see in Perth. KW V3 Coilovers, rear camber shims, Quaife diff, lighten flywheel, KTEC exhaust, OZ lightweight wheels, AO52 tires, DBA T2 rotors with Ferodo DS2500 pads, 2 x Velo GP90 lightweight seats, KTEC harness bar, ITG cold air intake, rear seat delete with KTEC carpet. This thing flies on track and he's glued to my meg4 Trophy through the esses, skyline and down into the basin. 

As far as specialist in Perth none of them are cheap. For things like cam belt, aux belt & water pump they should be done every 4-5 years. You will need to use a specialist. Your options are-

Eurocare Burswood (VAG & Reno specialist) decent size workshop, quality work and heard good things. 

WA Euro Osborne Park ((VAG & Reno specialist) does good work but social retarded to deal with. He did the cam belt, aux belt & waterpump and plugs on my Gordini. 

Ramp Auto (All Euro Stuff) in Malaga I heard have the F4R & F4Rt timing tool and can do belts.

The specialist want over $400 just for a oil change and oil filter change. Way too expensive in my opinion. My mechanic does Castrol Edge 5w-40 (Clio F4r) & Edge 0w-40 (meg4 1.8T) for $230 per service. I get the oil changed every 5,000kms at this price. 

If you have a preferred mechanic I have the clio3 197 / 200 workshop manuals but I can't seem to Microsoft One Drive link these so you will need to drop me a thumb drive if you want them. 

Might see you around at Collie or Barbs. Steve with the Angel & Demon and I are at at least one of the WASCC Tuning days at Barbs each month. 

Later, Phil. 

 

Hi Phil thanks so much for the response. 

I will defiantly be referring to it frequently, completed the service today with edge 5-40, upgraded the front disk and pads to Forza 3 and looking for braided lines to install when i change the fluid..   I am not yet a member of any car clubs,  you mentioned WASCC and TECCWA in your posts,  again any advice / recommendations in this space is most welcome.   I am hoping to hit the Collie try day in September for my first rack day. 

Thanks s again 

RSTM

[Phillyphil]

22 hours ago, RSTM said:

Hi Phil thanks so much for the response. 

I will defiantly be referring to it frequently, completed the service today with edge 5-40, upgraded the front disk and pads to Forza 3 and looking for braided lines to install when i change the fluid..   I am not yet a member of any car clubs,  you mentioned WASCC and TECCWA in your posts,  again any advice / recommendations in this space is most welcome.   I am hoping to hit the Collie try day in September for my first rack day. 

Thanks s again 

RSTM

For car cubs and motorsport events in Perth (Grass Roots) here is the choices. As you might already know you need a car club before you apply for your CAMS (Motorsport Australia) Speed License. Other than that buy a fire extinguisher bracket from Kap Industries and a magnet blue battery triangle from LUXE Performance or Go-Gear   -

TECCWA ( Toyota Car Club Western Australia) $50 membership. They run 6 rounds of Red Mist Autokhana from Feb through to Nov. They used to hold these behind Tiger Kart Club at Wanneroo but have moved to the car park at the Kwinana Motorplex (Same place as Rally Sprint) due to issues with Tiger Kart Clubs Go-Kart rounds etc. The surface is probably better at Kwinana but for me it's the other end of town so I haven't yet competed this year. The course is set up with timing gates and close racing. 1 understeer moment and you can loose valuable tenths or seconds. Top speed on the faster part of the ever changing course/cone layout (depending on the car or gearing) it approx 100km/hr before heavy breaking into 180 deg turn. Great to hone your skills before you try open circuit. Red Mist cost $90 for 4 hours Sunday morning event or $75 if your a TECCWA member. 

 

 

WASCC (WA Sporting Car Club) I've just joined this year. In hindsight it's the best value of most the circuits and events on offer. I paid $225 this year but I believe rates are increasing for the "Your car our circuit" membership. Its cheaper if your a repeat member so approx $185 next year. For that you get a $75 Tuning day voucher so it's only really $150 for the start up member. 

They run all sorts of events so refer there website. There is Point to Point, Time Challenge and Hill Climb at Jacks Hill. The Member Tuning days are great, 2 on offer per month at $75. Usually there will be a busy weekend one but I like the night or Friday ones and I take the day off work as there is a lot less punters and it allows me to unleash the inner bogan on the weekdays then the weekend is family time with my 2 year old boy

 

There is also the Old RAC Track at the Airport now Driver's Risk Management. Great 1km twisty/technical track and not too hard on the car like barbs and Collie. The thing is you need at least 8 people to hire the circuit for say 3hrs and that will cost you approx $170 per head. From memory the track hire is $400+gst per hour. More than 8 people and they need to provide more staff and the rates increase. As you can see by the pricing it's not cheap compared to WASCC tuning days which are more value. 

I have hired this track with mates from Autokhana a few times over the last few years but organizing everything is a brain fry. 

 

 

Then there is Collie Motorplex which is worth the drive. They are doing loads of Come and Try days mostly on "Short Track" Come and Try on the long track was this weekend just gone. They do "Tuning Days" which is $90 and best to download there events from there site and like them on Facebook. Long Track is the best circuit I've ever been on. The thing about Collie is it has 3 fast Chicanes/Esses which sort out the boys from the men. Anyone can do a circuit like barbs where you driver straight, brake and turn right but Collie fast speed direction changes keeps you on your toes. 

 

 

Then there is the "Speed Event Series" This is great grass roots motorsport, All time trials except your share the circuit with others in your class but you race the clock not others if that makes sense. There is a round coming up in Collie in July. Worth checking out.