Black 197 Trackday Clio

[ttrw2]

Morning all,

Joined this forum at Xmas when I was starting to look for a cheap 197 for trackday car use. Ever since selling my last racecar in Nov last year (because I didn't use it enough) I'd been itching to get something else to keep the track time up.

After absorbing the superb hints and tips on here and searching the usual places I found a car that fitted the bill - a cheap and cheerful 197 in good mechanical condition - but not too perfect that I'll care too much about thrashing it on trackdays:








(Recaros surplus to requirements so will be up for sale once removed)



Pics above are from the day I collected it - it was 320 mile round trip hence the bootful of tools just in case!

I then set about getting all the bits needed to get it up to scratch/ready for trackday use! -

Tyres:


Gear oil:


Discs, oil, filters, fluid. Boggo standard pads at the back and DS1.11 up front.


Seat bases for my buckets:


And I snapped up a set of black polybushes to get the engine mounts sorted.

Got the car up on stands in the garage yesterday, over the next few days/weeks I'll get all the above bits fitted, any additional stuff done as required in time for target first day out on 11th March. Watch this space!

I need to order a cambelt kit and the tools to do the job - any suggestions?

Cheers,
Rob

 

[sevenfourate]

Hi Rob,

Busy times ahead !!

ALS Performance on eBay for cambelt kit. Cheapest genuine stuff money can buy....

Good luck.

 

[Big Ben]

Great stuff Rob. Sounds like a man with a plan. Enjoy

 

[Sneydster]

Is it just a simple swap for standard seats to the Recaros? Or is something else needed to fit them? Sorry if a thread hijack but looking good Rob good luck

 

[///M]

Welcome. Good start!

I'm jealous mate. I'd love a track slag!

 

[Pav]

very nice..she wont stay standard for long..good for her..a few touches and she will be track ready..

 

[Jimmy]

It looks like quite a nice example, even if it is just for track use! Will you be stripping more than just the Recaros out, or will you keep it usable on the road too?

@Sneydster there is a guide on swapping over the standard seats to Recaros in the 'How To' section.

 

[ttrw2]

Thanks guys. No not too fussed about creature comforts but dash, heater, front doorcards and carpets will stay for now...

Today's progress:

Car up on stands in the garage, brakes all stripped down


Painted all the new disc bells up so they don't immediately rust and look crap. Drying in front of the fire


And the pile of bits I stripped out that'll be going to the tip


I've kept a log of the weight of all the bits I've removed in case anyone's interested:

Front Recaros 24.7kg each
Rear seats 19.9kg
Head unit 1.4kg
Speakers 0.7kg
Front seat belts and brackets 5.1kg
Rear underlay 4.3kg
Assorted plastic trim & insulation 3.6kg
Rear 'doorcards' 3.8kg
Isofix beam 2.9kg
Total out 91.3kg

And what's going back in....

Sparco Pro 2000 bucket seat 7.9kg each
OMP seat mount bases 3.3kg each
Ally Sparco sidemounts 1.0kg /pair
Total back in 24.4kg

Total weight saving so far 66.9kg

Not bad and all the rear seat belts and boot trim, headlining, etc to come

 

[ttrw2]

Hi Rob,

Busy times ahead !!

ALS Performance on eBay for cambelt kit. Cheapest genuine stuff money can buy....

Good luck.

Thank you kind sir - will order a kit later.

Does anyone on here rent the tools to do the job?

Cheers,
Rob

 

[nutnutwelshman]

Looking good Rob

 

[Kojack]

Wow the standard Recaro's are heavy indeed. Good work so far.

 

[tombate911]

Looking great so far, keep up the good work. I wouldn't mind getting my car on a weighbridge at some point when I've finished stripping out the interior as far as i'm going. Seats and Exhaust were the biggest losses on mine, AC coming out this week.

 

[ttrw2]

Bit more progress on the Clio today:

Got another coat of paint on the discs (the domestic boss was out so snuck them in the oven to speed up the process)




Old (gulp) vs. new


Pins cleaned up OK - they're slightly different designs to each other so must've been replaced at somepoint


New screw for the calipers


I like the idea of the anti-squeal layer on the Pagid pads


Rear back together. Need to get a pad wind-back tool to push pistons in



To the front. The all important DS1.11 cup pads


All bolted up ready to go

 

[Moono16v]

Great thread already! So much weight in things you don't expect!!!

What you doing with the recaros? Selling? Interested.....

 

[ttrw2]

Great thread already! So much weight in things you don't expect!!!

What you doing with the recaros? Selling? Interested.....

Thanks, yep and probably another 20kg of 'easier stuff' to come out yet.

Recaros are in the For Sale section mate.

 

[ttrw2]

Well, two years of ownership have flown by!

A couple of updated pics:







Unfortunately I'm going to have to sell her soon as a house move means I need to downsize the car count.

It's currently without MOT/tax/etc as has only been used on-track the past couple of years. Is it worth getting MOT'd for a sale or is the market for track-only Clios strong? Doubt I'll ask much for her as I'm from the sell quick/cheap school of thought!

Cheers,
Rob

 

[Pav]

hope she finds a good home..

 

[Josh Bailey]

Can you PM me as I’m after a track 197

 

[ttrw2]

The annual update! I was able to keep her in the end, finding suitable storage whilst I moved house and sorted everything out. The current covid lockdown gives a perfect opportunity to get a load of little bits and pieces done I've been meaning to do for ages.

Today's job was front off to strip out the A/C system (save further weight):




Cheers, Rob

 

[lewishunter98]

What've you done to get rid of the AC?

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