PASM's Wheels | Clio RS & BMW 330i - Update #9: New daily!
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Thanks for the write-up PASM. 👍
Some of those pictures taken are astonishingly good
. The bottom one of the Clio in motion is unbelievable.
Some of those pictures taken are astonishingly good
. The bottom one of the Clio in motion is unbelievable.
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Thanks guys. I wish you were there too Lucas, the little Clio is in another league. It would have minced that Charger Hellcat round Hatzenbach. 
@Rikson Except for above items it's completely stock. The braking system is very well suited to track use from stock but the Ferodo DS performance pads make it totally fade free.
@Mike Rotch Thanks. The guys I was with are photography geniusses if you ask me. Lots of fun was had with finding new locations, ways and techniques to make a photograph of the car.
I plan on treating Pluto to a bit of a refresh. I have purchased the following kit:
Top left to right below:
@Rikson Except for above items it's completely stock. The braking system is very well suited to track use from stock but the Ferodo DS performance pads make it totally fade free.
@Mike Rotch Thanks. The guys I was with are photography geniusses if you ask me. Lots of fun was had with finding new locations, ways and techniques to make a photograph of the car.
I plan on treating Pluto to a bit of a refresh. I have purchased the following kit:
Top left to right below:
- ATE Brake fluid DOT 4 Typ 200 - Higher boiling point than standard spec DOT 4
- Ravenol RCS 5W-40 engine oil - Came recommended from Clio RS track tool owners, should lubricate better at high rpm
- Oil filter and plug ring
- Ravenol 75W-90 gearbox oil - Again came recommended
- Gearbox oil performance additive - Combined with the oil should make the box silky smooth. At the moment it is a bit notchy, but no crunches.
- Engine flush fluid - Will use a tiny amount for the old gearbox oil just before changing it. Don't think I'll use it on the engine as it is in top condition
DTM
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Awesome Bart specially from the part were you said no more short shifting 
What happen in the karussell, happens to me all the time, I hate that corner 
Watched the fourth lap too. Noticed you get used to the limit of the car, the tires were squeezing a little 👍
But careful keep some margin we don't want to see you end up in the railing
Your just a pussy
What happen in the karussell, happens to me all the time, I hate that corner Watched the fourth lap too. Noticed you get used to the limit of the car, the tires were squeezing a little 👍
But careful keep some margin we don't want to see you end up in the railing
Looks Good Bart.
I wish I had the balls to do some laps there,but the horror movies from YT with guys crashing theirs and other ones cars makes it a bit of a nono for me
Is your RS fully stock?
Your just a pussy
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Just watched Lap 4. Bloody awesome! 👍
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Awesome, looks like it was a blast! Man I wish I was on the same continent as the Nurburgring...
I could do with several litres of that stuff.
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Update #8
Been a long while since I wrote an update. Nearly a year in fact. Since then, I drove on track on 2 occasions.
Nürburgring - June 2018
Last summer, @GTP_Dutchy, @Nolinar and I went to the VLN race on the 23rd. We watched the start at Hatzenbach and then went to Brünchen and walked all the way to Mutkurve. Especially at Mutkurve, the GT3 cars were really impressive to watch. The braking zone into Steilstrecke was action packed as well. Dinner was had at the Pistenklause, a bit of a tradition for us by now. We spent the night in a comfortable AirBnB apartment and set the alarm clock early, so I could get some laps in at the Touristenfahrten session on Sunday. On the Sunday morning, there aren't too many cars out on track yet.
First lap I took both Dutchy and Nolinar as passengers. Last time at the Ring, I still had my Michelin CrossClimate+ all seasons on. This time I was on my set of Yokohama AD08R. That made a huge difference. Grip levels were higher, but mostly precision and feedback went up, which gave me more confidence. Nolinar decided on taking some pictures, so we dropped him off at Breidscheid and I did a further 2 laps with Dutchy in the passenger seat.
The fourth and final lap, I did solo. I could carry more speed than before and there was less traffic on this particular lap. I reckon I was on my way to a personal best lap by a big margin. But at Wippermann, I hear a strange knock as I hit the third apex kerbstone. I immediately slowed down to a safe speed. At first, I thought I might have punctured or broken something on the suspension. As I slowly continued, I did not hear the sound again and everything felt fine. But the lap was over anyway and better safe than sorry. In the car park, I checked over the corner of the car and found nothing out of the ordinary. Thankfully we could just return home.
TT Circuit Assen - August 2018
There is an event held every year since 2009 at the TT Circuit, called Racing Against Cancer. The event is for children with cancer and their parents, brothers and sisters. Owners of sports cars take them around for a few laps around the track the whole day. I have been a volunteer via the karting club since 2010, helping with paddock activities. Some of our members with track/sport cars have taken part in the past. It's a wonderful event and I've been meaning to participate as well as soon as I had a suitable car.
It was a wonderful day, great, dry and warm weather. The children enjoyed the laps, as did I. The Clio was struggling a little with the warm weather. Engine and tires were fine, but the brakes were not coping that well. I think waiting in the pits with hot brakes started to warp the front discs, which gave me more and more vibration as the brakes got hotter. The retardation stayed very solid. The vibrations did start to trip up the ABS computers, so it gave me an malfunction message. At one point, the ABS system packed up completely and I locked up an inside rear wheel slightly
. Restarting the engine solved that. The brakes were definitely due an overhaul before the next trackday.Once cooled down and driving on the streets, the vibrations from the front discs were tolerable. When I checked over the front brakes, I diagnosed the front calipers to be the cause of the issues. One of the 4 dust seals on both calipers were ripped and the piston retraction was not sufficient enough to create enough clearance between the pad and the disc. That could have caused the disc to overheat and warp.
So I did a bit of research and decided on buying new calipers and overhaul my old ones and sell them. The new ones being nice and shiny new red finish is a nice bonus! While I was disconnecting the brake lines, I might as well upgrade them with stiffer stainless steel ones and replace the brake fluid for some racing grade brake fluid. As I was doing that, I found the front brake pads looking marginal, so I decided against just mounting the new brake discs and wait until I had ordered some new brake pads as well. I also had to remove the front bumper to replace a failed xenon bulb
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Update #9
For those that haven't read the OP by any random chance, at the end of 2020 I bought a new daily and kept Pluto the Clio for the fun kilometers.
I have a soft spot for E90's. They are just a great blend of sporty and comfort. It is also the car I got my drivers license in. Nice and sharp on the steering and great grip. The sport seats are still one of my favorite seats in any car. With the side bolsters pumped up (they have air cushions) they are just as supportive in the corners as the Recaro Sportsters in the Clio. They are also comfortable and easy to get in and out, that last bit is unlike the Recaro's.
In my ownership so far I have driven 30.000 km with it. There's now around 230.000 km on the clock. In that time I've had some niggles, like the misfires I solved with new spark plugs and coils. I've had to fit a new battery. That was not a surprise, as the car gave fair warning before it left me stranded. At one point it gave a warning icon that the battery was low, even after a fairly long drive, so I knew it was nearing its end. Turned out it was still the original battery.
Now, more than 2.5 years since I got it, the first major hurdle came. It's now running on 5 cylinders, a suspected bad fuel injector. It's to be diagnosed properly and hopefully the bill doesn't turn out to be eye wateringly large.
Replacing spark plugs
Makes a great towing vehicle for the X30 kart - here on winter wheels
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Turned out that it actually wasn't a faulty injector. Rather, it was a bad coil even though I replaced all six about two years ago...
So that didn't break the bank to fix. I will concentrate on the suspension and engine/transmission mounts next. There's a lot of low hanging fruit to make the car better. Considering fitting a KW V1 or ST XA coilover set and some M3 suspension arms.
So that didn't break the bank to fix. I will concentrate on the suspension and engine/transmission mounts next. There's a lot of low hanging fruit to make the car better. Considering fitting a KW V1 or ST XA coilover set and some M3 suspension arms.
