Restoring my Renault Clio 172 Cup track car.

[conor1n]

Hi Guys

So I bought this car in January 2020 as an already spec'd track car. After a brutal year I didn't get to bring it on track at all. I brought it back to Ireland in November with me with a view to doing a few small bits.. well, like most most projects that escalated.

The plan was to completely tear the car down and treat any rust etc, respray and build it right back up. It's very much track spec already with various mods such as: Half roll cage, coilovers, race seats+harnesses, some polybushing. The engine inlet manifold has been port+polished and there is some form of induction kit (cone filter). It has a big brake kit from the 197 Clio which means 4 pot brembos up front and 300mm HC discs. There is also some ducting to cool them. Usual other bits too.

The plan is to keep the exterior looking very fresh and OEM with a few "race car" touches. Inside I want it to be totally bare and race car.

The biggest challenges will be new colour and building the new wiring loom. As I was inspecting/removing the old loom, various wires were very much corroded and I am would fear that simply removing and adding the loom back to the car could result in a load of loose connections. Heck, the alternator connector ended up detached, on the floor shortly after removing!

The car as it was bought...

 

[conor1n]

So a bit of a whirlwind update...

On a previous thread, I started posting loads of the stripping photos, but it was boring after a while, so here are the highlights. The rebuilding part should be more interesting..

Unloading some bits to start.. seems to be some interesting company here..

As the car was delivered to it's new home for the next god knows how many months.. Bumper had to come off for logistical reasons..

Was quite happy I managed to get the cage out single handedly.. I think it helped by pulling in the ends with those straps.

People often appalled at me standing the car on these fairly rare wheels. Safety first and the wheels will be getting refurbed anyway..

The point of no return, eh!?

Rear subframe out..

This bar holds all the dash in place... The lower dash isn't going back in, only the top and so I don't think most of this frame will go back. Steering column support is all that will go back in, I will probably need a bit of custom fab there also.

Front subframe out.. When removing this, I forgot to drain the gearbox and didn't realise there was still some power steering fluid in the system as it had leaked a lot before. Anyway..... fluid everywhere - nothing a bag or two of cheap cat litter from Tesco couldn't solve. That stuff is amazing!

 

[conor1n]

In the unit I am renting.. another guy is building this temp spray booth. I'm waiting to see how it shapes out.. I may see if I can get in to spray the Clio. For colour I am thinking of Purple base, black (or bronze) wheels and yellow trim, such as calipers and a couple other bits. That colour looks great on the 911 GT3 RS .. Not sure it will be amazing on the Clio. Ultimately I don't think anything is amazing on the Clio, as deep down I really don't like the shape, but then again it does make an amazing track car - so says the internet, which is why I bought it

That insulation ain't going back in.. thankfully. It became apparent after removing what was left of the sound deadening that the car will be even louder than it was before... thankfully it will be predominantly track and the odd blast around public roads. No daily'ing or anything mental like that.

Basic

Where is the grimace emoji. I plan on stripping out the un-needed bits and building a new version of what's left. I will re-use the connectors.

Engine out . I don't plan any mods on this. It's got 122k miles on it. I will do the famous belt and dephaser service while it's out, and after that wait for it to blow before opening it up.

Cat litter is great..

 

[conor1n]

I've built up a makeshift table where I can keep stuff up off the ground and do a few of the smaller jobs on it.

This rear beam is very much toast. It's getting media blasted along with the calipers.

Panels off.

That Anti Roll Bar is toast really.. It's proving awkward to get here in Ireland and postage from UK is a pain. I'll tidy this up and re-install it. It's an easy change later on. This is one of the Cup specific parts on this car. It's a bit thicker than other models.

The rear brakes are totally rusted. These have been cleaned up in citric acid. I guess part of the reason is that there is near zero brake effort on the Cup models as there is no ABS. These discs have no noticeable lip on them and I am loathe to replace them if the same will happen again. It's about £160 for the pair as they come with bearings pre-installed.

They came up like new.

 

[conor1n]

... And the point I was waiting for for quite some time. The point of no return

The body is generally in very good shape, bar a little rust here and there. Nothing to worry about though - so I am told.

The two front jacking points took a bit of hassle from axle stands... My fault really. Some advice says that I can easily fold these back with a vice grips. I secretly want to cut these out and weld in some nice little sections that I can sit onto my axle stands. I need to investigate but something a little shaped to fit the stand and some rubber pads bolted on. I've not seen them anywhere so I am not sure who great an idea it is, but would be very practical.

 

[conor1n]

I started cleaning down the underside of the chassis. No water being used.

First off was white spirits but that is oil based and doesn't dry too well so I have moved over to paint thinners. The thinners is great and is helping me remove the Schutz.. It doesn't seem to be too great up around the engine bay with all the grime. First pass will be thinners but I have purchased two gallons of brake cleaner and will give another clean with that. After some testing if it doesn't work to satisfaction, i'll use degreaser and rinse off with a spray gun - certainly no power washer.

The underseal is generally in great condition with the exception of this part.. easily tidied up.

Oh and a quick peek at a before and after of some citric acid de-rusting..

 

[snoozer]

Rather you than me....

 

[pedrobedro]

It does look solid under there. The wiring looks a nightmare, but then again it always does till you start to figure it out.

 

[Edward Teach]

You cracked the windscreen
But all else is looking good

 

[James1979]

Looks good. Interesting build there.

You may know this but, from experience- when you do the loom, get a couple of sheets of ply and screw them on the wall or whatever end to end. You can use nails in them to hold the components and then more nails to support the wires as you run them. Makes it easy to wrap the wires when you’re done.

I’ve done a couple of land rovers that way and it’s loads easier than having it spread out on the floor like a nest. You can get proper measurements between points as well.

 

[Barking Mat]

Fair play that man.

Interesting project.

 

[Wallace]

Are you storing all the original parts? If the car might be eligible for a Classic race series at some point in the future those parts would bump the value up.

Would have been nice to do a couple of track days before ripping it apart to see if anything stood out to be rectified or improved so you don't end up doing work twice. Keep the enthusiasm going

 

[conor1n]

Thanks guys - please feel free to offer any advice as obvious at it may seem - I meant to give this heads up in the OP, but i'm pretty novice with this stuff. This is the biggest project I have ever taken on in my life really and a prior to starting DIY repairs on my E Class in April 2019, I had never actually used a socket on a spanner before.

It does look solid under there. The wiring looks a nightmare, but then again it always does till you start to figure it out.

It sure does.. that is somewhat of a loaded pic I must admit, it contains the looms for rear, dash and engine bay. Three separates so that is the first point of simplifying.

You cracked the windscreen
But all else is looking good

I did... arrrgh! It initially cracked when I tried to remove the rear view mirror and broke so easily, in reality I was always going to have broken it as I didn't realise it was so fragile. The Cup variant Clios had lighter windows..

Looks good. Interesting build there.

You may know this but, from experience- when you do the loom, get a couple of sheets of ply and screw them on the wall or whatever end to end. You can use nails in them to hold the components and then more nails to support the wires as you run them. Makes it easy to wrap the wires when you’re done.

I’ve done a couple of land rovers that way and it’s loads easier than having it spread out on the floor like a nest. You can get proper measurements between points as well.

I had come across that before.. very good tip. If I am to get the Clio ready for mid summer I will need to start on the loom soon. There is a lot of uncertainty around that. I need to identify all the connectors first so I can get the correct pins and crimps.

What way did you buy your wire? Colours, gauges, roll lengths? Where from? So many questions

Fair play that man.

Interesting project.

Thanks Mat - it is interesting and fun and I should learn a hell of a lot!

Are you storing all the original parts? If the car might be eligible for a Classic race series at some point in the future those parts would bump the value up.

Would have been nice to do a couple of track days before ripping it apart to see if anything stood out to be rectified or improved so you don't end up doing work twice. Keep the enthusiasm going

I am not as I don't have them. The first pictures in the OP are as I received the car so very little OEM stuff to be stripped and kept. The only OEM things I am discarding are the remaining sound deadening, roof headliner, door cars and lower dash... And I ain't storing them

 

[Brad93]

I love these always wanted a trophy 182.

 

[Brad93]

Whiteline used to do an ARB for these I’m sure which was a worthwhile mod on any track car. Polybushes is another one well worthwhile while you’ve got everything off.

 

[Brad93]

What suspension units do you have? There used to be some rare ones about that needed rebuilding every two years, apparently they were the nuts.

 

[James1979]

I bought everything from vehicle wiring products. The first time I bought a few rolls of different colours and thickness of wire. The second one I did I just got rolls of white in a couple of gauges and a set of numbers and did it that way.

It doesn’t matter what you choose as long as you record it. It is never going to be a standard loom so you don’t need to stick to anything, just whatever is easy for you and make a diagram.

 

[Migmac]

Brought it back with a view to doing small bits,

 

[Cosantoir]

Ohhh seeing a dash out always gives me anxiety

 

[conor1n]

I love these always wanted a trophy 182.

Yea the Trophys are sweet - looking at some crazy coin on these right.

Whiteline used to do an ARB for these I’m sure which was a worthwhile mod on any track car. Polybushes is another one well worthwhile while you’ve got everything off.

Oh sorry I should have said - this was the front ARB, Whiteline only do rears. There is already a Whiteline on the rear, I believe.

What suspension units do you have? There used to be some rare ones about that needed rebuilding every two years, apparently they were the nuts.

I don't know what they are, but fairly rusted in a sorry enough state. A previous owner told me he had some garbage ones one it.. I need to identify and replace if needed. If these are identified as reasonably good shocks I will refurb them for now and re-use. One of the springs is gone I think as the left side of car sat a little lower. Will investigate. The reality is that I wouldn't know good from bad springs so if these are salvageable i'll happy use and upgrade later.

I've been prioritising jobs that are easier done at this stage. Shocks can easily be changed on my driveway any time.

I bought everything from vehicle wiring products. The first time I bought a few rolls of different colours and thickness of wire. The second one I did I just got rolls of white in a couple of gauges and a set of numbers and did it that way.

It doesn’t matter what you choose as long as you record it. It is never going to be a standard loom so you don’t need to stick to anything, just whatever is easy for you and make a diagram.

Great thanks, i'll check them out. I don't think i'm going down the route of independent colours for all, way to spenny for me. I saw a guy on YouTube had a colour coding scheme, interested to hear your thoughts. In fact, High Performance Academy seems cool.

Brought it back with a view to doing small bits,

Haha yea... funny how things escalate, eh!?

Ohhh seeing a dash out always gives me anxiety

Dashes are the ultimate pain in the a** imho, but for this job it's no biggie as the awkward lower dash isn't going back in. I'm getting the top flocked and will just fix it on top.