Big Bens non Clio

[RSRowe]

REVO RF018 WHEEL 18 X 8J, 5 X 112, ET40, CB 57.1MM

REVO RF0 WHEELLIGHTWEIGHT. STRONG. FLOW FORMED. OVERVIEW The RF0 wheel is a flow-formed alloy that's lightweight yet exceptionally strong, designed in-house at Revo HQ in the UK. Flow forming is one of the most advanced manufacturing technologies to enter the wheel industry. Flow Forming...

www.carenhancementsuk.co.uk

You know it makes sense.
They look fantastic on them too.

 

[Big Ben]

REVO RF018 WHEEL 18 X 8J, 5 X 112, ET40, CB 57.1MM

REVO RF0 WHEELLIGHTWEIGHT. STRONG. FLOW FORMED. OVERVIEW The RF0 wheel is a flow-formed alloy that's lightweight yet exceptionally strong, designed in-house at Revo HQ in the UK. Flow forming is one of the most advanced manufacturing technologies to enter the wheel industry. Flow Forming...

www.carenhancementsuk.co.uk

You know it makes sense.
They look fantastic on them too.

I’ll not deny this pic is on my phone lol

 

[Helpimonfire]

Pretty sure those are the wheels Wes has on his Golf

 

[Beany]

Pretty sure those are the wheels Wes has on his Golf

He won’t need them now

Or get him to bring the golf to Donny so Ben can have a gamble with AR1s

 

[NickD]

Not wanting to push you over the edge or anything!
On offer!

MRF ZTR Tyre Circuit Race / Trackday 235 40 R18 91W

Performance tyres for road and track

www.motmotorsport.co.uk

 

[Big Ben]

Donington Park 5/11/23
Time had came to test the Clio replacement on track. Have gotten a feel for the car over the last six months and was quietly confident it would be fine.

Weather was decent and dry. Had rained overnight so conditions were damp to start but a drying line soon started to appear in places although for some reason the chicane seemed to stay wetter than other areas.

Early laps were supposed to be cautious and exploratory but that was abandoned after about a lap and half as like a dog chasing a scent I got after it! Confidence was high as the car was very well behaved. Neutral feel with a slight tendency for the back to come round was a nice surprise. Thought it’d be understeer central. Traction was great and can’t speak higher of PS4S tyres. Brilliant.

Next sessions as the track was drying and speed was building I decided to ditch the auto mode and go full paddle. The box was tending to stay in a higher gear on two of the corners than I’d of preferred so knocked the lever into manual and rectified that. Then came the first and almost inevitable issue as brake fade reared its head. Pedal was getting long and juddering as deposits were being left on the discs. I don’t know what pads are in the car but guessing they’re stock and not quite up to a beating in circuit!

With the adjustable maps on the car I chose to run stock power for most of the day as I didn’t want to add stress to the car more than necessary. 300 is ample and was passing 90% of cars. Did do one session on “stage 1” and all it really did was sling me down the straights a bit quicker and accelerate brake fade! Had a nice tussle with a track spec meg250 who was pissed that I pushed him out the way

Overall a very good day. Glad I tested the car to its limits. Doesn’t leave me missing the Clio or particularly in a rush to book more days. Just a representation of where I am in my life at the minute doesn’t mean it won’t change in future but it’s always nice to have something in the garage tucked away should the need arise.

Couple of obligatory pics. Hope you don’t mind the Foreign car!

 

[burrellbloke]

You sound very reserved not giving it full power. The first time I took the Yaris out to Snetterton on a cold January day I turned off all of the safety features and “gave it some” only to nearly spin it on the second corner!

 

[KoZa]

Are you happier with the cupra then with the Meglio?
When yes, why?

 

[Big Ben]

Are you happier with the cupra then with the Meglio?
When yes, why?

Yes in the fact I don’t want a track car anymore I want something that I can drive on the road at weekends. Something that the wife will get in with me. It’s more comfortable and quiet.

No if I was doing multiple track days a year. The Clio was epic and will never own another like it!

 

[Big Ben]

Service time for the Seat yesterday.
Went to the well known VAG specialist in Essex AWMotorworks (!)
Changed the engine oil to Millers and went for a 5w-40 over the standard 5-30 long life Vw stuff. Forums suggest it helps a bit as these engines run hot oil temps anyway.
New foam filter for the induction kit as the one on there was manky.
Serviced the front diff. It is a haldex unit albeit electronically controlled so requires specialised oil change(expensive) and the filter gauze cleaning. Diff was in great condition and filter was very clean which I took as a positive.
Next was the brakes. They were ok at Donington but faded after a few laps so without going silly went for new Hel lines with Castrol SRF fluid and some Brembo Racing front pads. These are interesting as they’re the best upgrade pad I could find that retained the plug in sensor so no faults show on dash. They also have a nice heat dispersal metal shim on the back which is cool. Initial feel is good so we’ll see how they go.
I’m very happy with how the car is atm and have no current plans to ruin it with track focussed mods.

Have booked a day at Snetterton 17th Feb to kick its head in though

 

[burrellbloke]

I am looking forward to seeing the non-Clio out on track.

 

[NickD]

Apologies for putting this in your thread, but it sort of fits the theme of none Renault.

Interesting stuff. How are you finding the brakes a bit further down the line?
This is my none Clio

I am surprised how good it is as standard. Likewise, I don't want to modify it for track as it just makes the road part a pain. Like you it only has a brake mod which is Goodridge brake lines and Carbotech pads. I change the brakes from standard after coming from the Clio because that car had the best brakes of any car I have ever owned. (No slop, instant stop! Made that up on the spot!) They are quite good, but can squeal at slow speed, which does not bother me. However I am considering going back to standard because of several things. Firstly the Goodridge hoses don't actually fit that well. It was noted as the car's first service that the rear lines were damaged. Checking this they were rubbing on the wheel during droop and so I had to an as tie wrap, not exactly professional. Then having just changed the front pads, I noticed that the design forces the hose against the caliper and that has now split the sheath right at the union.
Which is certainly less than ideal.
Secondly, they are rather expensive as £300 for the front pads alone, but having just fitted them and bedded them in, they started to vibrate quite noticeably at Snetterton, so I need new discs, which adds to the cost of changing pads considerably. Considering the standard fronts seemed quite effective, just slightly short lived, but a set of front pads and the wear sensor from Hyundai is only £120 + vat then it is three sets of pads for the price of one Carbotech.
And finally, possibly the biggest reason is that when I went to changed the pads I found that the rubber gators on the pistons were totally destroyed, which is concerning me some what as there is, to my knowledge, no seal kit available.
Other than that the car is great and as a standard road car does very well. Weight transfer because of road suspension can make the back end comically mobile at times, which comes to the only thing I would change, if I could, would be the rev hang. It is not serious but on track it would be nice to have more engine braking. Because of this you have to brake instead of just lifting of for some corners. Combine this with a slight bit of turbo lag, meaning you want to get on the throttle earlier and it can mean you are still on the brakes while you want to be on the throttle to allow for the lag. I'm having to learn to drive in a slightly different fashion.
Not bad considering the car is on Goodyear Supersport road tyres and all the others are on track rubber.

 

[AndyP]

Apologies for putting this in your thread, but it sort of fits the theme of none Renault.

Interesting stuff. How are you finding the brakes a bit further down the line?
This is my none Clio View attachment 156383

I am surprised how good it is as standard. Likewise, I don't want to modify it for track as it just makes the road part a pain. Like you it only has a brake mod which is Goodridge brake lines and Carbotech pads. I change the brakes from standard after coming from the Clio because that car had the best brakes of any car I have ever owned. (No slop, instant stop! Made that up on the spot!) They are quite good, but can squeal at slow speed, which does not bother me. However I am considering going back to standard because of several things. Firstly the Goodridge hoses don't actually fit that well. It was noted as the car's first service that the rear lines were damaged. Checking this they were rubbing on the wheel during droop and so I had to an as tie wrap, not exactly professional. Then having just changed the front pads, I noticed that the design forces the hose against the caliper and that has now split the sheath right at the union. View attachment 156380
Which is certainly less than ideal.
Secondly, they are rather expensive as £300 for the front pads alone, but having just fitted them and bedded them in, they started to vibrate quite noticeably at Snetterton, so I need new discs, which adds to the cost of changing pads considerably. Considering the standard fronts seemed quite effective, just slightly short lived, but a set of front pads and the wear sensor from Hyundai is only £120 + vat then it is three sets of pads for the price of one Carbotech.
And finally, possibly the biggest reason is that when I went to changed the pads I found that the rubber gators on the pistons were totally destroyed, which is concerning me some what as there is, to my knowledge, no seal kit available.
Other than that the car is great and as a standard road car does very well. Weight transfer because of road suspension can make the back end comically mobile at times, which comes to the only thing I would change, if I could, would be the rev hang. It is not serious but on track it would be nice to have more engine braking. Because of this you have to brake instead of just lifting of for some corners. Combine this with a slight bit of turbo lag, meaning you want to get on the throttle earlier and it can mean you are still on the brakes while you want to be on the throttle to allow for the lag. I'm having to learn to drive in a slightly different fashion.
Not bad considering the car is on Goodyear Supersport road tyres and all the others are on track rubber.

Thanks for the write up. It’s potentially saved me money for when I eventually track my i20N.

 

[Big Ben]

Apologies for putting this in your thread, but it sort of fits the theme of none Renault.

Interesting stuff. How are you finding the brakes a bit further down the line?
This is my none Clio View attachment 156383

I am surprised how good it is as standard. Likewise, I don't want to modify it for track as it just makes the road part a pain. Like you it only has a brake mod which is Goodridge brake lines and Carbotech pads. I change the brakes from standard after coming from the Clio because that car had the best brakes of any car I have ever owned. (No slop, instant stop! Made that up on the spot!) They are quite good, but can squeal at slow speed, which does not bother me. However I am considering going back to standard because of several things. Firstly the Goodridge hoses don't actually fit that well. It was noted as the car's first service that the rear lines were damaged. Checking this they were rubbing on the wheel during droop and so I had to an as tie wrap, not exactly professional. Then having just changed the front pads, I noticed that the design forces the hose against the caliper and that has now split the sheath right at the union. View attachment 156380
Which is certainly less than ideal.
Secondly, they are rather expensive as £300 for the front pads alone, but having just fitted them and bedded them in, they started to vibrate quite noticeably at Snetterton, so I need new discs, which adds to the cost of changing pads considerably. Considering the standard fronts seemed quite effective, just slightly short lived, but a set of front pads and the wear sensor from Hyundai is only £120 + vat then it is three sets of pads for the price of one Carbotech.
And finally, possibly the biggest reason is that when I went to changed the pads I found that the rubber gators on the pistons were totally destroyed, which is concerning me some what as there is, to my knowledge, no seal kit available.
Other than that the car is great and as a standard road car does very well. Weight transfer because of road suspension can make the back end comically mobile at times, which comes to the only thing I would change, if I could, would be the rev hang. It is not serious but on track it would be nice to have more engine braking. Because of this you have to brake instead of just lifting of for some corners. Combine this with a slight bit of turbo lag, meaning you want to get on the throttle earlier and it can mean you are still on the brakes while you want to be on the throttle to allow for the lag. I'm having to learn to drive in a slightly different fashion.
Not bad considering the car is on Goodyear Supersport road tyres and all the others are on track rubber.

Nice review Nick.
I think the brake hoses I’ve fitted are fine. This is a much more common platform than your i20 so teething issues would have been ironed out long ago. As for performance they feel strong but so did oem pads tbh they just started to fade after 3 hot laps. Might be fluid getting too hot? Castrol SRF in now so that eliminates that potential problem.
I’m on track in a couple of weeks so will report back. I’m fairly certain they’ll not withstand more than 4-5 hard laps before fading but we shall see. In all fairness that would be acceptable to me. I’m not looking for a track car just a road car with benefits!

 

[Helpimonfire]

4-5 hard laps of Snetterton is more than enough at times!

 

[NickD]

I've put it back to standard for now, which has instantly reminded me of why I changed away from standard in the first place!
Interesting though. A rather compromised Clio, as far as road driving went, against a standard (brakes aside at the time) road car. Sems you can have your cake and eat it. Clio was also on track rubber, and in the afternoon, which I don't have any footage of, the Hyundai was faster than this video.

I also lied, they were Forge hoses, Goodridge and Hel probably fit better.

 

[Big Ben]

I've put it back to standard for now, which has instantly reminded me of why I changed away from standard in the first place!
Interesting though. A rather compromised Clio, as far as road driving went, against a standard (brakes aside at the time) road car. Sems you can have your cake and eat it. Clio was also on track rubber, and in the afternoon, which I don't have any footage of, the Hyundai was faster than this video.

I also lied, they were Forge hoses, Goodridge and Hel probably fit better.

Technology is more advanced and car is fresher than the Clio so that’s compensating for lack of brakes and different rubber. Modern cars are pretty amazing

 

[Big Ben]

Snetterton update 17/02/24:

Was a great day

 

[Helpimonfire]

Clear. Concise. To the point.

10/10 would read again.

 

[Big Ben]

So having looked at the photos from the recent trackday I didn’t deem them worthy of purchasing so no pics to add here sorry. Couple of drive by videos but I can’t upload them for some reason

The day was great. My mate took his 300 Trophy Megane and we were pretty evenly paced so spent a lot of the day messing about as a pair which I found a nice change. The old car tended to be out in its own for much of the day. This one seems more inclined to mingle!

DSG flappy paddles ceased working before lunch. Disconnected the battery for 30mins and hey presto they’re fine again. Weird anomaly but I’ll take the free fix!

Car performed great. I love the flappy paddles if I’m honest. Still gives that bit of driver involvement over full auto and on way home can set it to comfort and happy cruising. Seemed to use a lot less fuel than the megane which was nice. Only did one tank in the day which is a rarity.

Bastard puncture on way home. Brand new PS4s as well so forked out £180 for a new one as it was right in the edge which is typical. Luckily it held enough air to get me home

No plans for mods or anymore track days atm. But watch this space…..