2012 clio 3RS RB7 #166

mate why you uninstall the light weight pulley ? any sort of problems ? i asking because i want to put lightweight flywheel and puley these days ..thank you
 
the car's having a quiet life, due to obvious reasons. but that's about to change. first trackday of the year is coming up next thursday at spa-francorchamps, a two-hour 'tracknight', from 18.00 till 20.00. then 9 october a full day at mettet and hopefully a full day at spa-francorchamps again, in november, that is if the british organizer doesn't decide to cancel the event (quarantine issues). i hope it stays dry, so i can finally find out if the yokohama AD08RS really is the crap tyre everyone on the internet, makes them out to be.

had the car serviced at the beginning of the year. fresh bardahl XTS 0W40 (engine oil) and elf tranself 75W80 NFP (gearbox oil) going in. didn't change the brake fluid. had to replace a ball joint. can't remember which one though. the front brake discs were done (after three years) and replaced them with another pair of brembo high carbon ones.
 
Last edited:
the car's having a quiet life, due to obvious reasons. but that's about to change. first trackday of the year is coming up next thursday at spa-francorchamps, a two-hour 'tracknight', from 18.00 till 20.00. then 9 october a full day at mettet and hopefully a full day at spa-francorchamps again, in november, that is if the british organizer doesn't decide to cancel the event (quarantine issues). i hope it stays dry, so i can finally find out if the yokohama AD08RS really is the crap tyre everyone on the whole internet, makes them out to be.

had the car serviced at the beginning of the year. fresh bardahl XTS 0W40 (engine oil) and elf tranself 75W80 NFP (gearbox oil) going in. didn't change the brake fluid. had to replace a ball joint. can't remember which one though. the front brake discs were done (after three years) and replaced them with another pair of brembo high carbon ones.
Track night at Spa sounds cool Peter! Not heard of the other track?
Put some pics up mate. Don’t see enough of your lush motor
 
  • Like
Reactions: peter
Not heard of the other track?

mettet is a really short track (just over 2 kilometers i think), but with some nice medium fast corners (one with a cool drop). suits the clio very well.


Put some pics up mate. Don’t see enough of your lush motor

yeah, i'll take the camera with me next thursday. if there's enough light i might take a couple.
 
right, tracknight next thursday is off. fully booked apparently. why i could still sign up last friday, is beyond me.
looks like people are booking well in advance, just to get a day in.

i am going to be so pissed off at work tomorrow.
 
  • Angry
Reactions: Big Ben
the car was pulling to the right (last couple of weeks), so i had it geo'd today. allignment was ok, but right side upper and lower balljoints are f*cked. again (third time on the right side). getting that fixed before next friday's trackday.

also, i've been hearing a rattling noise for quite some time now. mostly right after i start the car. then when the clio warms up, the rattling noise disappears. i've had the exhaust heat shield looked at. two rivets had worked loose. had them replaced, but the noise was still there. on further inspection, the honeycomb in the second cat worked loose. so i had that removed. not sure how that's going to affect emission values. will find out when i have to get the car MOT'ed, next month.
 
Last edited:
the car was pulling to the right (last couple of weeks), so i had it geo'd today. allignment was ok, but right side upper and lower balljoints are f*cked. again (third time on the right side). getting that fixed before next friday's trackday.

also, i've been hearing a rattling noise for quite some time now. mostly right after i start the car. then when the clio warms up, the rattling noise disappears. i've had the exhaust heat shield looked at. two rivets had worked loose. had them replaced, but the noise was still there. on further inspection, the honeycomb in the second cat worked loose. so i had that removed. not sure how that's going to effect emission values. will find out when i have to get the car MOT'ed, next month.

Didn't have the second anymore on mine with the akrapovic evolution...passed every time without issues.
 
  • Like
Reactions: peter
hooray! first trackday since november 2019 is done!

frustrating morning. wet and a greasy track. also cold and overcast, so the track didn't really dry. lots of yellow flags and a couple of reds, so a bit stop-and-go. couldn't get any heat in the front tyres. car understeered like hell. didn't really know what to do, to get rid of it.

afternoon was much better. the sun came out during the lunch break and the track dried up pretty quickly. i could finally find out what the yokohama AD08RS are like on a dry track. well, they squeal like a pig! noticed that last year at bilster berg, but i thought that was because the track never was 100% dry. they definitely make a lot more noise than their predecessors. running the same pressures as the AD08R, i also found the car more understeering. there was never the same bite on the front axle as with the AD08R or the michelin cup 2's. played a bit with tyre pressures, but not enough to get completely rid of the understeer.

time wise ... well, always tricky to compare tyres in different circumstances, but i did a 1.20.9 (michelin cup 2) and a 1.20.7 (yokohama AD08R) in much warmer (and therefor less ideal weather?) conditions. with the RS, i couldn't get below 1.21.4. i know it's only seven tenths, but the track's also only 2.1km. whenever the track was clear, i could do pretty consistent laps (half a second apart max).

would i buy again? no, don't think so.

one more thing ... i can't recommend the ferodo DS1.11 pads enough. never missed a beat on a track with four heavy breaking zones. just brilliant.
 
Last edited:
Interesting on the Yokos Peter. Are you not allowed a proper semi slick over there? No thoughts of a 2nd set of wheels?
Car looks great still. One of my favourites
 
  • Like
Reactions: peter
Interesting on the Yokos Peter. Are you not allowed a proper semi slick over there? No thoughts of a 2nd set of wheels?
Car looks great still. One of my favourites


E-marked semi slicks are allowed, but since i run stock (cup) suspension, i always thought them to be a bit overkill. with no camber adjustment, i wouldn't be using the full potential of a (more expensive) semi slick. that said, i've seen people using them on stock (cup) suspension. i've come across on some zestino (gredge 07RS) tyres. softer compound than most UHP tyres (like the yokos or federals) and not much more expensive. could give them a try.

re. a second set of wheels ... i still have the black 18" wheels that came with the car, so i've got that covered.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Ben
i was a bit fed up with sitting at home with nothing much to do except work in this 'virus age', so i booked a trackday at spa with circuit-days.co.uk. did one with them two years ago and quite liked how they ran things. this time ... well, i thought driving standards were poor. overtaking left and right, overtaking in braking zones, overtaking three abreast, one moron overtaking during a full-course yellow, flashing headlights, full-on competition cars on track (not allowed according to the circuit-days website). understandably hardly any english participants (i saw one irish mclaren), lots of germans and belgians who weren't familiar with how to behave on a trackday organised by an english organiser. almost did a @Big Ben and walked away by noon ...

then after a couple of red flags (one for a totaled porsche cayman GT4, which lost it a blanchimont) things settled down. had a much better afternoon, track was totally dry by now, still quite cold but the sun was out and if you picked your time to go out, traffic was reasonable. had two nice dices with a 911 and a megane 3RS. enjoyed that.

i'm still running the yokohama AD08RS and while i wasn't convinced by them last time out, i have to say they performed very well this time. played a bit more with tyre pressures this time and in the end settled for 33psi front and 31psi rear (hot both). always tricky to compare lap times, but when i add up my fastest sector times i got as low as 3.07.11. that's the fastest i've been at spa. i have to say, i felt a lot more relaxed behind the wheel. i'm sure that reflects in the lap time as well.

two years ago, the photos were truly excellent. this time ... maybe not so ...
 
Last edited:
I'll have to get out to Spa again soon, really enjoyed the last session there.

I have to admit though, when it comes to driving standards I'm very much of the 'if you can't beat them, join them camp'. I've become a lot more aggressive since participating in European sessions.
I've found the less you hesitate and the more you just send it, the less frustrations and near misses you encounter. Gives a slight element of control over situations.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sean197
yearly service done :

- bardahl XTS 0W40 (engine oil)
- elf tranself 75W80 NFP (gearbox oil)
- endless RF650 (brake fluid)
How’d you find the Endless brake fluid Pete? Not a common go to brand in UK. Have you tried Motul660 as a comparison?
 
I've found the less you hesitate and the more you just send it, the less frustrations and near misses you encounter. Gives a slight element of control over situations.

i agree, but on a power track like spa you're always on the receiving end with a modest powered car. i can stand my own in the middle sector, but it's the run down to blanchimont and eau rouge which is often frustrating. more powerful cars will blitz you there and then trundle through the corners.
 
  • Like
Reactions: John Gordon
How’d you find the Endless brake fluid Pete? Not a common go to brand in UK. Have you tried Motul660 as a comparison?

no complaints there, ben. never had a soft pedal, never boiled the fluid (not even on a hot summers day on a hard-on-brakes track). i bought six cans from ebay (UK seller) a couple of years ago, at a ridiculously low price. used up the last can now. not sure what i'm going to buy next. i saw motul now has a RBF700 with comparable specs to the endless RF650. never used motul RBF660.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Ben