Throttle response

[RetroR]

Hi guys so I have owned my 197 for a couple of months now but still can't get used to the throttle response feeling so dead especially from a standstill (came from a MX5 ). I don't dare try and pull out into a small gap in case I mistime it plus my wife won't drive the car as it only seems to pull away well when you give it loads of revs....

I've had a look around and I was thinking about trying a sprint booster or similar I have seen a DTE Pedalbox 3s that looks good, any one tried one or am I better off getting a Sprintbooster.
The car is standard apart from wheels.

 

[///M]

Hi guys so I have owned my 197 for a couple of months now but still can't get used to the throttle response feeling so dead especially from a standstill (came from a MX5 ). I don't dare try and pull out into a small gap in case I mistime it plus my wife won't drive the car as it only seems to pull away well when you give it loads of revs....

I've had a look around and I was thinking about trying a sprint booster or similar I have seen a DTE Pedalbox 3s that looks good, any one tried one or am I better off getting a Sprintbooster.
The car is standard apart from wheels.

The initial throttle response is pants. Really. But it shouldn't be affecting you to the point of not being able to pull out into traffic safely, presuming of course that you're not going for gaps that you shouldn't be!

Sprintbooster should help but personally I just drive around it and give it a bit more revs when needed.

It is all more than made up for when you're flying down a country road in the sweet spot though. No issues with the response then!

 

[sevenfourate]

Remap on the rolling road. The 'proper' way to end fuelling, response and kangarooing issues.

Mine went from the worst fuelling 200 in the World - to something thats a pleasure to drive.

You might even gain 5-8hp and a few torques if your lucky

 

[///M]

Reading this again, I'm just wondering if you're exaggerating it a bit in your head due to having something that responds nicely previously. It really shouldn't be that bad, maybe something isn't right?

And Shuv makes a good point, a remap does a lot for the drivability.

 

[RetroR]

I don't think i'm exaggerating and I know some of it is down to a different car characteristics but pulling out on to the roundabout leaving work it not the same experience it was in a lower powered car.

I wish I had looked in to it a little more before I bought it but never expected a fairly modern car to have poor low speed driveability. I loved the test drive but the garage was on the outskirts of town and I didn't really do much stop / start town driving on the hour I drove it (my fault I know).

I'm beginning to think I would rather chop it in and lose some money on it than continue driving it as it is.... It is a great car once you are out on a nice B road etc and definitely brings a smile to my face but I have to use the car to commute through town everyday.

Still it looks like it is fixable if I want to throw more cash at it... Can anyone recommend a good place for a remap in the Northamptonshire/ish area if a sprintbooster wont fix it?

 

[Pav]

meg it

 

[///M]

I don't think i'm exaggerating and I know some of it is down to a different car characteristics but pulling out on to the roundabout leaving work it not the same experience it was in a lower powered car.

I wish I had looked in to it a little more before I bought it but never expected a fairly modern car to have poor low speed driveability. I loved the test drive but the garage was on the outskirts of town and I didn't really do much stop / start town driving on the hour I drove it (my fault I know).

I'm beginning to think I would rather chop it in and lose some money on it than continue driving it as it is.... It is a great car once you are out on a nice B road etc and definitely brings a smile to my face but I have to use the car to commute through town everyday.

Still it looks like it is fixable if I want to throw more cash at it... Can anyone recommend a good place for a remap in the Northamptonshire/ish area if a sprintbooster wont fix it?

Sounds like something isn't quite right to be honest mate. I really feel the throttle response in ours as the other car has a ridiculous amount of urgency in comparison. But I can't say I ever find it wanting when pootling around town.

Regarding the sprintbooster and a remap, there's more info than you could ever need with a quick search. Worth it, you'll know what's what pretty quickly.

 

[RetroR]

Thanks for the help I have searched and read up quite a lot on the sprintbooster and from what I read I thought it would fit the bill, I also searched about remaps but it didnt appear to be that relevant as my car is totally standard and I had never thought I would need to spend £300-400 just to get it to run correctly in standard form.

I guess I need to see if I can find another 197 for sale fairly locally and see if it is my car at fault or if its just me.

 

[///M]

Thanks for the help I have searched and read up quite a lot on the sprintbooster and from what I read I thought it would fit the bill, I also searched about remaps but it didnt appear to be that relevant as my car is totally standard and I had never thought I would need to spend £300-400 just to get it to run correctly in standard form.

I guess I need to see if I can find another 197 for sale fairly locally and see if it is my car at fault or if its just me.

You're welcome.

All cars would benefit to some degree from a remap. Bear in mind from the factory they're mapped to deal with all sorts of weird conditions and really crap fuel etc. It's just a bit of optimisation.

I'd say definitely find a nearby one at a dealers and give it a try. At least you'll know. But honestly, never found ours wanting. Sure it's not going to tear your face off from a standstill but if you're just bobbing around town, it's not really needed anyway.

Good luck.

 

[sevenfourate]

Thanks for the help I have searched and read up quite a lot on the sprintbooster and from what I read I thought it would fit the bill, I also searched about remaps but it didnt appear to be that relevant as my car is totally standard and I had never thought I would need to spend £300-400 just to get it to run correctly in standard form.

I guess I need to see if I can find another 197 for sale fairly locally and see if it is my car at fault or if its just me.

All i can say is - as standard mine was dire. I would 100% have sold the car rather than put up with its overall crap fueling per-se. Anything other than full-chat going up the gearbox wasn't 'fun'. Which of course in reality as a daily is 95% of the time.......

I then ran into the whole replacement manifold issue and so did the normal breathing mods before getting a remap to take advantage of those 'mods'.

BUT: i would say the difference in the cars driveability from the mapping alone as such was substantial. I would be absolutely amazed if you were disappointed and still suffering you same issues having had a remap. In saying that - the mapping normally sorts: The well documented low/midrange flatspot, the cold-start kangarooing issues and gives a bit more bhp and torque to boot Some say throttle response cannot be mapped out. Not sure if thats entirely my experience if im honest.....

Your issue from extremely low down the rev-range and from a dead standstill pulling away.....isn't perhaps a stereotypical 'problem' though.

A phone-call to a mapper (Andy @ Engine Dynamics will give advice over the phone i'd be pretty sure - and is a site sponsor) would for sure be worth doing before you dive into anything.

 

[RetroR]

Thanks for that post is was really informative and what I was looking for.

I would 100% have sold the car rather than put up with its overall crap fueling per-se. Anything other than full-chat going up the gearbox wasn't 'fun'. Which of course in reality as a daily is 95% of the time.......

This is exactly how I feel at the moment so at least there is light at the end of the tunnel...

Searching on here and googling it's not looking like there is anyone fairly local to get a remap.. So I guess the best thing to do is either add a couple of performance parts then remap when funds allow or just find something I can live with.

 

[dulevo666]

Are you using a premium fuel or supermarket stuff ?
mine runs like a bag of nails on the cheap stuff so always use shell optimax
also mine is totally flat & gutless from cold but picks up after a couple of mins

 

[sevenfourate]

Thanks for that post is was really informative and what I was looking for.



This is exactly how I feel at the moment so at least there is light at the end of the tunnel...

Searching on here and googling it's not looking like there is anyone fairly local to get a remap.. So I guess the best thing to do is either add a couple of performance parts then remap when funds allow or just find something I can live with.

My pleasure.

Standard was the worst fulling car i've ever owned. I dont pretend mine was way worse than any other MK3 Clio RS either. I just think 'they are all like that'.....perhaps in varying degrees......

 

[sevenfourate]

Are you using a premium fuel or supermarket stuff ?
mine runs like a bag of nails on the cheap stuff so always use shell optimax
also mine is totally flat & gutless from cold but picks up after a couple of mins

Good point on the premium fuel !!!!!!

Cold-map on these is abysmal agreed....... mapping sorted mine 99%.

 

[RetroR]

When I got the car I have no idea what was in it so after reading up I thought maybe the problem was the fuel. First of all I tried Tesco momentum 99 for about 3-4 weeks but it didn't seem to make much difference so then I tried Shell optimax for about a month and to be honest it didn't feel much different to the Tesco fuel.
I haven't tried any other fuels but I have stuck with Tesco as it is 2 minutes from work.

Thanks for all the help and ideas I really appreciate it

 

[link]

They are gutless low down, renault did well to give a car turbo lag without the turbo...

Have you checked your MAP sensor isn't broken, it shouldn't be undrivable at low revs just a bit lack lustre (especially when cold).

 

[Foxspeed]

when i had mine it drove fine at low revs and pulled ok and the few others i have driven over the years always drove ok and i wouldnt say were dangerous pulling out etc only when say cold...mine improved alot by the tied down map sensor

has the cambelt been done? if yes by who? might be timed slightly wrong...

 

[RetroR]

I don't think I have a faulty MAP sensor as I saw an improvement when I cable tied it down, although after a couple of weeks it seemed to go back to its old ways but I noticed it had loosened off a bit I guess with the under bonnet heat and cheap cable ties. Yesterday evening I took the sensor out and have now used sealant so I will see how it goes over the next few days.

The cambelt was done by the garage I bought the car from and I have wondered recently if the timing could be a bit out, it could also be why I never noticed it on the test drive as it was changed after I put my deposit down, again I really need to find a specialist near me who can check the timing as despite google etc I cant find how you can easily check it yourself.

 

[link]

What kind of garage was it? Changing cambelt on one of these is a specialist job as you really need the correct tools, to put it in perspective it just cost me £600 to get mine done with genuine parts...

 

[RetroR]

It was the garage I bought the car from just a regular 2nd hand car sales place (they are trading standards approved though so I could have some comeback if it has been done incorrectly).... I asked them to do it as a condition of sale but I didn't realise it was a specialist job at the time. The workshop manager I spoke to though seemed to know his stuff as he sorted out a couple of other Renault specific problems it had. I may phone them up and see if they had all the correct tools to do the job.