2012 clio 3RS RB7 #166

peter

POTM Winner - February 2017
car introduced in here : http://www.clio197.net/forum/showthread.php?52167-2012-clio-3RS-RB7-166&p=576525#post576525

- 11/2012 clio 3RS RB7 #166
- bought 07/2014 with 14.000 km (8.700 mi) on the clock.
- mileage 08/2018 : 49.000 km (30.500 mi)
- mileage 07/2020 : 60.000 km (37.300 mi)
- mileage 11/2021 : 70.000 km (43.500 mi)
- mileage 08/2023 : 80.000 km (49.700 mi)


mods (june 2023):

- exterior paint detail at 'quality shine'
- K&N panel filter
- silver vision indicator bulbs
- oem steering wheel spacer (from Giacomo_rs)
- mr. pink's brembo fitting pins
- adapter universe stubby aerial
- show/trackday number plates #166
- elite developments stud conversion M14X1.5 68mm
- replaced oem bridgestone potenza RE050A 215/40 18 with michelin pilot super sport 225/40 18
- second set of wheels and tyres : 4X braid fullrace R 7X17 ET47 / michelin pilot sport CUP2 215/45 17
- ferodo DS2500 (front : FCP1667H)
- endless RF-650 brake fluid
- vibra-technics torque link
- black renault diamond badges front and rear
- debadged the boot from 'C L I O' and 'RSrenaultsport' badges
- galfer racing FDRT1066 (front : 2593800RT / back : 2544700RT)
- 4X yokohama advan neova AD08R 215/45 17
- ferodo DS1.11 (front : FCP1667W)
- brembo high carbon (HC) brake discs (front : 09.8904.11)
- extra 15mm steering wheel spacer (from Giacomo_rs)
- sandtler stud conversion 10X M14X1.5 68mm / 10X M14X1.5 75mm
- 20X sandtler coppered steel nuts M14X1.5 (waste of money)
- pipercross foam filter PP1723 (never used it, awful fit)
- 1X braid fullrace R 7X17 ET47 (took one curb too hot ...)
- @Raptor6767 lightweight crank pulley (removed early 2019)
- 4X michelin pilot sport cup2 215/45 17 (warranty set)
- ferodo DS2500 (rear : FCP1491H)
- plasti dipped the renault diamond badges front and rear plus the RS bumper logo
- 4X yokohama advan neova AD08RS 215/45 17
- ferodo DS1.11 (front : FCP1667W)
- brembo high carbon (HC) brake discs (front : 09.8904.11)
- petex car carpets
- ferodo DS1.11 (front : FCP1667W)
- two oem front cup shock absorbers
- new oem front brake line
- refurbished brake calipers front/rear
- repainted brake calipers in silver front/rear
- pagid 'something' front brake pads
- A.B.S. coated rear discs (coating is pants)
- powder coated the oem interlagos 18' wheels (bright black)
- 8mm wheel spacer front/back (took them off 10/2022)
- 4X michelin pilot sport 5 225/40 18
- eibach pro-kit lowering springs
- valeo projector headlamps 044055/044056
- exterior paint detail at SIC


trackdays (november 2021) :

- april 2015 : zolder
- june 2015 : spa-francorchamps
- august 2015 : zolder

- march 2016 : zolder
- april 2016 : mettet
- june 2016 : mettet (1.20.9)
- june 2016 : spa-francorchamps
- july 2016 : zolder (2.06.10)
- august 2016 : spa-francorchamps (3.15.35 / virtual best : 3.14.61)
- september 2016 : spa-francorchamps (3.13.39 / virtual best : 3.14.03)
- september 2016 : 2 laps of the nürburgring - nordschleife
- september 2016 : mettet (1.21.88)
- october 2016 : zolder (2.03.84)

- march 2017 : zolder (2.05.74)
- april 2017 : spa-francorchamps (3.10.45 / virtual best : 3.09.78)
- may 2017 : spa-francorchamps (3.14.46 - plus passenger)
- july 2017 : spa-francorchamps (3.36.85 - wet and very greasy)
- september 2017 : mettet (1.21.06)
- october 2017 : spa-francorchamps (3.10.60 / virtual best : 3.08.84)

- april 2018 : spa-francorchamps (no times - wet and greasy)
- april 2018 : mettet (1.20.71)
- july 2018 : spa-francorchamps (3.10.35 / virtual best : 3.09.35)
- august 2018 : spa-francorchamps (3.08.51 / virtual best : 3.07.35)

- march 2019 : spa-francorchamps (no times - brilliant weather)
- november 2019 : bilster berg (damp - bit of a dry line for fourty minutes or so - drizzle : 2.13.46 / virtual best : 2.12.47)

- october 2020 : mettet (1.21.41)

- march 2021 : spa-francorchamps (3.10.22 / virtual best : 3.07.11)
- october 2021 : mettet (no times - lots of feckin eejits on track and the car was quite difficult to drive, putting it mildly.)
- november 2021 : spa-francorchamps (3.12.37 / virtual best : 3.10.93)


25280082593_260af1b03e_b.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: bigsid and papa
latest mods ...




- vibra-technics torque link

26481296385_abb1afe659_b.jpg



- ferodo DS2500 (FCP1667H)

25878455863_2ea2f2dd5e_b.jpg
 
Last edited:
Lovely, lovely! Any more photos of the wheels?

Btw. I'm thinking of doing the same, black on black look to my RB7. Are the yellow parts on yours painted just gloss black or is it the same metallic blacks, as is the rest of the car? Photos would be much appreciated! :smile:
 
Lovely, lovely! Any more photos of the wheels?

Btw. I'm thinking of doing the same, black on black look to my RB7. Are the yellow parts on yours painted just gloss black or is it the same metallic blacks, as is the rest of the car? Photos would be much appreciated! :smile:



cheers man.

black parts are painted in the same colour as the rest of the car. sorry, don't have more photos.
the wheels are still on the car (done a trackday last wednesday). i'll see if i can take a few photos tomorrow, when i put the black ones back on.

the wheels are the same design as what renault uses on their rally clio R3T (except for the italian championship. for some reason the italians run on evo corse rims) ...
https://www.google.be/search?q=clio...v&ved=0ahUKEwjY1oCK1qLMAhXKA8AKHcwIDd8QsAQIHQ

i don't think anyone else is running these braid fullrace R wheels on a mk3 RS. i've seen photos of a 3 RS with the braid fullrace A in 17 and 18 inch. i chose the fullrace R, because i didn't want the wheel to extend too much (only 6 mm from oem) and i wanted to make sure the brake calipers were cleared. these R's are specifically designed for cars with large brake calipers and high ET. the fullrace A has a max ET of 55 (on a 8x17 wheel). that's the same as OZ ultra's and alleggerita's. this means they extend 11 mm more than oem. looks brilliant, but there is a possibility of rubbing when i plan to lower the car and put 225 section tyres on those rims. fullrace A 18 inch wheel ET goes as high as 70, but i wanted a 17 inch wheel to keep trackday tyre cost down. ideally, i'd like a braid fullrace R in the size 8x17, so i could run the wider 225 tyres in stead of the 215's i'm running now. but braid only manufactures them in the size 7x17.

i don't think they are the best looking rims for the clio, but they are super strong (basically competition wheels used in rally and rallycross), i could specify the ET-value and they are quite a bit cheaper than the OZ's. i'm very pleased with them and can't recommend them enough.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: papa
Looking good! Any feedback from the tyres? On quicker/much more powerful cars (ie supercars) they meant to be great, not sure how they this mixed compound behaves on our little subtle clio though..
 
Looking good! Any feedback from the tyres? On quicker/much more powerful cars (ie supercars) they meant to be great, not sure how they this mixed compound behaves on our little subtle clio though..



cheers yiannis.

i've done two trackdays with the cup 2's to date. it's my first experience with a high performance tyre, so can't compare them really. before i bought them, i sent an email to michelin belgium for some info on tyre dimensions, weight and what tyre pressures to run. they were quite quick in sending me the data, but they also told me that they don't rate the cup 2 as a semi slick. they see it as a road tyre optimised for track use. so i'm guessing performance isn't in the same class as the R888's, the a048's and the direzza's of this world. performance should be compared with a tyre like the yokohama AD08.

on the last trackday (last wednesday) i ran a couple of laps behind a friend of mine (fre23 on here). he's got a similar RB7, maybe a bit lighter (no backseat) and he's running an akra (i have a stock exhaust), with very similar performance. he's got the yoko a048 on his car and i could easily tell he found better traction out of the slow corners. not by much, but still.

once warmed up, the tyre is quite consistent over a 30 minute run (unless you overcook it, which i did once or twice). compared to the oem bridgestones, grip levels are obviously up and feedback on turn in is better. but what really surprised me, is that the car is also much more stable at the back when braking hard. tyre wear ... i was expecting more tbh. they look pretty battered after only three hours of track use. could be i'm expecting too much, though.

when these cup 2's are shot, i'll probably get me some real semi slicks. preferably the dunlop direzza's. thing is, they're quite expensive over here.
 
Last edited:
Nice one Peter, great feedback. Out of curiosity, what pressured did the recommend at the track?
 
Last edited:
Nice one Peter, great feedback. Out of curiosity, what pressured did the recommend at the track?



michelin recommends running the cup 2 between 2.3 bar (33 psi) and 2.5 bar (36 psi) when warm, as well on the back as on the front. so, i set them at 2.3 bar all round after the first session. after the second run, i found the back of the car still sliding too much. so my mate (fre23) suggested to lower the pressure at the back by two tenths. felt much better. next time i'll set them at 2.3 bar (front) and 2.1 bar (back) to start with. maybe go up to 2.5/2.3, to see the difference. just out of curiosity.

was browsing the net for some info on semi slicks today and came upon a new tyre from nankang. i heard they had a new tyre coming, just didn't pay attention to it. it looks brilliant. might try that one when the cup 2's are finished, since they're favourably priced ... http://www.nankangtyre.co.uk/performance/motorsport/ar-1

 
michelin recommends running the cup 2 between 2.3 bar (33 psi) and 2.5 bar (36 psi) when warm, as well on the back as on the front. so, i set them at 2.3 bar all round after the first session. after the second run, i found the back of the car still sliding too much. so my mate (fre23) suggested to lower the pressure at the back by two tenths. felt much better. next time i'll set them at 2.3 bar (front) and 2.1 bar (back) to start with. maybe go up to 2.5/2.3, to see the difference. just out of curiosity.

was browsing the net for some info on semi slicks today and came upon a new tyre from nankang. i heard they had a new tyre coming, just didn't pay attention to it. it looks brilliant. might try that one when the cup 2's are finished, since they're favourably priced ... http://www.nankangtyre.co.uk/performance/motorsport/ar-1


So a sexy tyre! Also want too try these, but first want too see some reviews of them :lol:
 
michelin recommends running the cup 2 between 2.3 bar (33 psi) and 2.5 bar (36 psi) when warm, as well on the back as on the front. so, i set them at 2.3 bar all round after the first session. after the second run, i found the back of the car still sliding too much. so my mate (fre23) suggested to lower the pressure at the back by two tenths. felt much better. next time i'll set them at 2.3 bar (front) and 2.1 bar (back) to start with. maybe go up to 2.5/2.3, to see the difference. just out of curiosity.

was browsing the net for some info on semi slicks today and came upon a new tyre from nankang. i heard they had a new tyre coming, just didn't pay attention to it. it looks brilliant. might try that one when the cup 2's are finished, since they're favourably priced ... http://www.nankangtyre.co.uk/performance/motorsport/ar-1


Peter,

if I may suggest tyre pressure please. I used R888, rally slicks and now Direzza 03G. What is rule number one, is the tyre temperature when warm should not be higher than 2.1-2.2 bar. So when you come off from a session, having a cool down lap as the last lap of the session, immediately check pressure and it should be around 2-2.1bar. So it means when cold -before session- it is recommended to have it at 1.7ish.

try this and check lap times :smile:
later you can even lower it 1.6 front and 1.7 back, when cold.

cheers tamas
 
  • Like
Reactions: papa
Peter,

if I may suggest tyre pressure please. I used R888, rally slicks and now Direzza 03G. What is rule number one, is the tyre temperature when warm should not be higher than 2.1-2.2 bar. So when you come off from a session, having a cool down lap as the last lap of the session, immediately check pressure and it should be around 2-2.1bar. So it means when cold -before session- it is recommended to have it at 1.7ish.

try this and check lap times :smile:
later you can even lower it 1.6 front and 1.7 back, when cold.

cheers tamas


... tamas, so you are suggesting the same tyre pressures for front and back? doesn't the heavier front on the clio require higher tyre pressures? also, will setting tyre pressures this low not lead to more tyre wear? i'm relatively new to this trackday fun, so any info would be great. thanks.

one more question regarding the direzza's ... where did you get them from?
 
Last edited:
two trackdays since the last post in here. one at spa-francorchamps (JPRS - sadly no pics) and one at mettet ...

27531481006_3a419f9417_b.jpg



michelin cup 2's holding up pretty well. even in the rain at spa. plenty of life still in them. i thought about buying some genuine semi slicks when the cup 2's are done, R888R or direzza's. now, i'm not so sure anymore. my suspension is stock and i doubt i'll be getting the most out of semi's.