Ashers' OEM+ BG Trophy Project
- Thread starter Ash J
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #62
Time for a little update then, not a great deal has been done!
Firstly, after some inspiration from a thread by 'MarcR' on ClioSport, I decided to buy some protective tape and film for my Sachs shocks.
So, bought some of this 3M clear film to protect the stickers. Seems very OCD but doesn't do any harm.
Next up, I ordered some 'X-Treme Tape' which is supposedly air tight, waterproof and moisture-proof (inspiration also from MarcR). Applied this to the top and bottom of the reservoirs, to protect the parts from the elements. Seems like very good stuff and I would definitely recommend this if you ever have Sachs off the car for a refurb, particularly if like mine, your car is a daily. I know they don't look aesthetically as nice with the tape on, but they won't be seen when on the car.
I got in touch with a guy called Austin over on ClioSport (Austin-182) to see if he would make me a gear gaiter in alcantara, seeing as I have a lot of other interior parts in alcantara which were done by Austin when he used to offer this as a service on here. Unfortunately, he no longer offers his services, but luckily he managed to find some left over material in his garage. So I bought this from him and it arrived this week. The gear gaiter will therefore be trimmed in alcantara, and there is enough material to hopefully trim my two dash strips in alcantara too!
I then ordered some new BMW X5 rear exhaust mounts from a local dealership. These are the mounts used with an Orbisoud system (along with custom mounting plates). So I picked these up during the week.
These are the mounting plates that come with an Orbisoud, in a very sorry looking state...
So I took these to a local powdercoater to have tidied up. I went for satin black, and wasn't looking for a 100% perfect finish seeing as they will be under the car, and to save on costs. So a photo of when I picked them up today. Not perfect, but look a lot better and am more than happy with the finish given how much the service cost.
Next, I bought new bolts/washers for the Orbisoud exhaust system from a local fastenings store. I needed 8 nuts and washers to hold the exhaust mounting plates to the car (on the left). And then 4 nyloc nuts to hold the BMW rubber mounts to the mounting plates (on the right).
So I bolted the rubber mounts to the mounting plates meaning they are all ready for when the exhaust is fitted.
Next up, it was time to clean up the Orbisoud system. Again, wasn't looking for it to be perfect as it is a used system, but wanted it looking better than it was before fitting it.
Some before shots...
I bought some stainless steel exhaust cleaner called 'Optiglanz' after reading some good reviews...
These were the results after cleaning...
And then the results after a quick polish with some Autoglym, just to give a bit more of a shine. As I say, not perfect, but a lot better than what it was. The main thing being that the backbox came up very well indeed and should look nice from the back of the car when fitted.
I also took the centre section to a fabricator this week, as there was a slight crack on the join between the silencer and the pipe between the silencer and sports cat. Was very happy with the job they did, good price too.
Firstly, after some inspiration from a thread by 'MarcR' on ClioSport, I decided to buy some protective tape and film for my Sachs shocks.
So, bought some of this 3M clear film to protect the stickers. Seems very OCD but doesn't do any harm.
Next up, I ordered some 'X-Treme Tape' which is supposedly air tight, waterproof and moisture-proof (inspiration also from MarcR). Applied this to the top and bottom of the reservoirs, to protect the parts from the elements. Seems like very good stuff and I would definitely recommend this if you ever have Sachs off the car for a refurb, particularly if like mine, your car is a daily. I know they don't look aesthetically as nice with the tape on, but they won't be seen when on the car.
I got in touch with a guy called Austin over on ClioSport (Austin-182) to see if he would make me a gear gaiter in alcantara, seeing as I have a lot of other interior parts in alcantara which were done by Austin when he used to offer this as a service on here. Unfortunately, he no longer offers his services, but luckily he managed to find some left over material in his garage. So I bought this from him and it arrived this week. The gear gaiter will therefore be trimmed in alcantara, and there is enough material to hopefully trim my two dash strips in alcantara too!
I then ordered some new BMW X5 rear exhaust mounts from a local dealership. These are the mounts used with an Orbisoud system (along with custom mounting plates). So I picked these up during the week.
These are the mounting plates that come with an Orbisoud, in a very sorry looking state...
So I took these to a local powdercoater to have tidied up. I went for satin black, and wasn't looking for a 100% perfect finish seeing as they will be under the car, and to save on costs. So a photo of when I picked them up today. Not perfect, but look a lot better and am more than happy with the finish given how much the service cost.
Next, I bought new bolts/washers for the Orbisoud exhaust system from a local fastenings store. I needed 8 nuts and washers to hold the exhaust mounting plates to the car (on the left). And then 4 nyloc nuts to hold the BMW rubber mounts to the mounting plates (on the right).
So I bolted the rubber mounts to the mounting plates meaning they are all ready for when the exhaust is fitted.
Next up, it was time to clean up the Orbisoud system. Again, wasn't looking for it to be perfect as it is a used system, but wanted it looking better than it was before fitting it.
Some before shots...
I bought some stainless steel exhaust cleaner called 'Optiglanz' after reading some good reviews...
These were the results after cleaning...
And then the results after a quick polish with some Autoglym, just to give a bit more of a shine. As I say, not perfect, but a lot better than what it was. The main thing being that the backbox came up very well indeed and should look nice from the back of the car when fitted.
I also took the centre section to a fabricator this week, as there was a slight crack on the join between the silencer and the pipe between the silencer and sports cat. Was very happy with the job they did, good price too.
- Thread starter
- #63
Tried out my new snow foam that I bought (Chemical Guys Honey Dew). It was a lot more foamy before I took this picture!
Then gave her a wash, a full clay bar session, and now plan on detailing her over this weekend and during the evenings next week. I will be doing the following:
Polishing session with G3 Professional Scratch Remover (one from Halfords in black bottle)
Follow up with a coat of Meguiars Ultimate Polish
Two coats of Chemical Guys BlackLight
Two coats of Chemical Guys Jetseal 109
Two coats of Dodo Juice Wax
Clean wheels with IronX, protect with coating of Jetseal 109
Protect windows with a coating of Jetseal 109
Full interior clean (Poorboys Natural Look)
This should see her looking good for the upcoming Origine RS show. Paint still won't be perfect and some fine scratches will still show in sunlight, as the G3 is only being used by hand and not a DA polisher, but should be looking pretty damn shiny, and the paint should almost feel like glass after the clay bar session. Will look at doing a machine polish (or paying for a professional paint correction) at some point in the future.
Car is also booked in on 17th August to have all the suspension parts fitted. It will also be getting a full chassis setup and alignment immediately after. The guy doing the alignment/setup is going to take all the measurements beforehand, order the necessary rear shims from Pure Motorsport (only parts I don't have), then once they have arrived, complete the setup/alignment and dial in my front camber/toe settings that I am going for (using Eibach bolts and the adjustable AST top mounts).
That is it for now!
Then gave her a wash, a full clay bar session, and now plan on detailing her over this weekend and during the evenings next week. I will be doing the following:
Polishing session with G3 Professional Scratch Remover (one from Halfords in black bottle)
Follow up with a coat of Meguiars Ultimate Polish
Two coats of Chemical Guys BlackLight
Two coats of Chemical Guys Jetseal 109
Two coats of Dodo Juice Wax
Clean wheels with IronX, protect with coating of Jetseal 109
Protect windows with a coating of Jetseal 109
Full interior clean (Poorboys Natural Look)
This should see her looking good for the upcoming Origine RS show. Paint still won't be perfect and some fine scratches will still show in sunlight, as the G3 is only being used by hand and not a DA polisher, but should be looking pretty damn shiny, and the paint should almost feel like glass after the clay bar session. Will look at doing a machine polish (or paying for a professional paint correction) at some point in the future.
Car is also booked in on 17th August to have all the suspension parts fitted. It will also be getting a full chassis setup and alignment immediately after. The guy doing the alignment/setup is going to take all the measurements beforehand, order the necessary rear shims from Pure Motorsport (only parts I don't have), then once they have arrived, complete the setup/alignment and dial in my front camber/toe settings that I am going for (using Eibach bolts and the adjustable AST top mounts).
That is it for now!
Great job 
that exhaust is amazing
that exhaust is amazing 
Looking good . Great work
- Thread starter
- #68
So after waiting ages for it to turn up, my flocked steering cowling turned up. To be fair, due to the massive delay in getting this to me, they sent me out a free pair of flocked dash strips so I am quite happy with that. No pictures of either of these yet, will try and get some!
On Sunday, I took the front bumper off (not as bad a job as I thought it might have been) and fitted my painted washer blanks from Spray Shack. Very happy with the result, no more leaking washer jet!
Monday, I took the drive up to Littlehampton to NADUK and dropped the car off to have all the following fitted:
Trophy Sachs Dampers
Koni Adjustable Rear Dampers
Mark Fish Springs
Powerflex Inner & Outer ARB Bushes
Powerflex'd Wishbones with new Ball Joints
New Track Rod Ends
Powerflex Steering Rack Bushes
Powerflex Rear Beam Bushes
AST Solid Adjustable Front Top Mounts
Eibach Camber Bolts
I also had the Orbisoud exhaust system fitted, and another brake fluid flush with Motul RBF600 fluid. The eagle eyed will also notice my TPI polarised wheel bolts have also now been fitted.
This was then followed up by a chassis alignment, to get the tracking correct, and adjust the front camber, caster and toe settings. The rear is very slightly out of alignment (well within tolerances but not equal each side, which I believe is standard on the rear beams) and had planned on purchasing some shims from Pure Motorsport to have this corrected, but typically Pure Motorsport are closed this week! So I will be sourcing the rear shims soon and going back to have the rear aligned.
Went to pick up the car today. Was pretty excited when I got the call!
Best picture of the Sachs at the moment! Will get a head on when I next take the wheel off! ...
Powerflex bushes were fitted all round, just a picture of the wishbones for now...
Rear end (love this picture)...
During alignment...
And a few after stopping off at Tesco on the way back for some shopping (not great pictures)! Pictures don't really show how menacing she looks compared to before! Happy with the drop and she still needs to settle yet so may even drop a tad more. And please excuse that the car is actually filthy in these pictures (might not look it, but it is!).
Orbisoud sits nicely...
As for the suspension... wow! Roads have been very wet today, so haven't been able to go for much of a spirited drive to put them to the test. And no doubt I will want to play with the rear Koni's to get them performing how I want. But what I am most impressed with just from driving fairly normally, is the compliance from the Sachs! Considering they are a racing inspired damper, they perform very well on bumpy roads! There is so much feedback from them and I feel as though I can feel exactly what each wheel is doing, so much control. I am very impressed anyway! Can't wait to start using them a bit more in the coming weeks when the roads are hopefully not so damp, to get a real feel for them. And adjust the Koni's to suit too. But early impressions of the setup as a whole (Sachs, Koni's, ASTs, Powerflex, MF Springs) is very good, feels awesome. I will of course report more once I've actually done some decent mileage in the car.
All in all, very happy! And I couldn't recommend the services of NADUK (who did all the work) enough! Top bloke.
All for now.
On Sunday, I took the front bumper off (not as bad a job as I thought it might have been) and fitted my painted washer blanks from Spray Shack. Very happy with the result, no more leaking washer jet!
Monday, I took the drive up to Littlehampton to NADUK and dropped the car off to have all the following fitted:
Trophy Sachs Dampers
Koni Adjustable Rear Dampers
Mark Fish Springs
Powerflex Inner & Outer ARB Bushes
Powerflex'd Wishbones with new Ball Joints
New Track Rod Ends
Powerflex Steering Rack Bushes
Powerflex Rear Beam Bushes
AST Solid Adjustable Front Top Mounts
Eibach Camber Bolts
I also had the Orbisoud exhaust system fitted, and another brake fluid flush with Motul RBF600 fluid. The eagle eyed will also notice my TPI polarised wheel bolts have also now been fitted.
This was then followed up by a chassis alignment, to get the tracking correct, and adjust the front camber, caster and toe settings. The rear is very slightly out of alignment (well within tolerances but not equal each side, which I believe is standard on the rear beams) and had planned on purchasing some shims from Pure Motorsport to have this corrected, but typically Pure Motorsport are closed this week! So I will be sourcing the rear shims soon and going back to have the rear aligned.
Went to pick up the car today. Was pretty excited when I got the call!
Best picture of the Sachs at the moment! Will get a head on when I next take the wheel off! ...
Powerflex bushes were fitted all round, just a picture of the wishbones for now...
Rear end (love this picture)...
During alignment...
And a few after stopping off at Tesco on the way back for some shopping (not great pictures)! Pictures don't really show how menacing she looks compared to before! Happy with the drop and she still needs to settle yet so may even drop a tad more. And please excuse that the car is actually filthy in these pictures (might not look it, but it is!).
Orbisoud sits nicely...
As for the suspension... wow! Roads have been very wet today, so haven't been able to go for much of a spirited drive to put them to the test. And no doubt I will want to play with the rear Koni's to get them performing how I want. But what I am most impressed with just from driving fairly normally, is the compliance from the Sachs! Considering they are a racing inspired damper, they perform very well on bumpy roads! There is so much feedback from them and I feel as though I can feel exactly what each wheel is doing, so much control. I am very impressed anyway! Can't wait to start using them a bit more in the coming weeks when the roads are hopefully not so damp, to get a real feel for them. And adjust the Koni's to suit too. But early impressions of the setup as a whole (Sachs, Koni's, ASTs, Powerflex, MF Springs) is very good, feels awesome. I will of course report more once I've actually done some decent mileage in the car.
All in all, very happy! And I couldn't recommend the services of NADUK (who did all the work) enough! Top bloke.
All for now.
Congratulations, Ash! It's great to see everything has come together in this might fine example - well worthy of it's tag as Trophy #501.
Aesthetically it's in such a good place now, I'm looking forward to seeing it again. I remember how 'high' it looked on the standard setup, but now it looks spot-on, you must be thrilled.
The best is yet to come though - enjoy driving it!!!
Aesthetically it's in such a good place now, I'm looking forward to seeing it again. I remember how 'high' it looked on the standard setup, but now it looks spot-on, you must be thrilled.
The best is yet to come though - enjoy driving it!!!
Nice, Very nice. That must have been some bill to get all them bushes done.
You considered some form of sticker for the skirts. Trophy ones are obviously easy to get , but you could get something made up. I believe TONKA might have the font.... might lead to an interesting debat on here
T-SPEC
BGT...( I am guessing not)
BG-TR
BLACK-T
You considered some form of sticker for the skirts. Trophy ones are obviously easy to get , but you could get something made up. I believe TONKA might have the font.... might lead to an interesting debat on here
T-SPEC
BGT...( I am guessing not)
BG-TR
BLACK-T
- Thread starter
- #72
I bought two of these (boot and glove box): http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/311390204182?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
And a pack of these (interior light and map reading light): http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121692916470?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
- Thread starter
- #74
Only a small update.
First up, few pictures of my car at the recent Origine RS show at Goodwood.
I bought a new gear gaiter to have trimmed in the alcantara material I have. Had to buy a new gaiter, as the two clips on the base of my old one had broken so was not secure.
Then I dropped off the gaiter, along with a set of dash trims, to a local trimmers last week to have them done in alcantara. Picked them up yesterday. More than happy with them...
So, the old gaiter (see the broken clips)...
And the new alcantara one fitted...
And the new alcantara dash strips fitted...
Just ordered some Motul 300V oil, oil filter, 10L of Renault coolant, and a new expansion tank bottle, ready for another service in mid-September.
All for now.
First up, few pictures of my car at the recent Origine RS show at Goodwood.
I bought a new gear gaiter to have trimmed in the alcantara material I have. Had to buy a new gaiter, as the two clips on the base of my old one had broken so was not secure.
Then I dropped off the gaiter, along with a set of dash trims, to a local trimmers last week to have them done in alcantara. Picked them up yesterday. More than happy with them...
So, the old gaiter (see the broken clips)...
And the new alcantara one fitted...
And the new alcantara dash strips fitted...
Just ordered some Motul 300V oil, oil filter, 10L of Renault coolant, and a new expansion tank bottle, ready for another service in mid-September.
All for now.
Your great work continues. After seeing your car I so want and BG Clio
trophy spec.. you need to get rid of that digital heater and get a nice peeling rotary switch one ..
..
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #78
Time for bit of an update.
First up, booked the car in with Rentech on Friday, to have the following done:
Fit new genuine power steering pump
New power steering fluid
Coolant change
Fit new genuine expansion tank bottle
Oil and filter change with Motul 300V oil, and also fit a Gold magnetic sump plug
Fit Evol Engineering dog bone mount
Few pics of parts ready to be fitted...
Next up is wheels... long story! Saw a freshly refurbished set of Turini's come up for sale, and bought these as it was financially better than getting mine refurbished. So I got the tyres swapped over to the new Turini's and had them fitted to the car. Here is a pic of one of the newly refurbished wheels (no pics of them on the car as they weren't on long enough!)...
However, as I say, they weren't on the car that long! I had been thinking about having my first set refurbished in a light grey, something different. After seeing the new wheels on the car, they looked very similar to before (still anthracite) but obviously just a bit tidier. I wasn't 100% happy considering I really wanted to give grey a go. So I decided to have my old set refurbished in Porsche Sport Classic Grey (paid extra to have the paint ordered) and then to sell the newly refurbished anthracite set (hope you are keeping up!). Could have just had mine refurbished in the first place, never mind!
It was a good excuse to order a set of Yokohama AD08R's at the same time, and have these fitted once the wheels came back from powdercoaters.
So, how they looked when I went to go and pick them up...
Fitted to the car...
And the new AD08R's...
Wheels look a million time better in real life! Mega happy with them. Really offset the black well, and I have had so many comments on them you wouldn't believe! Really need to be seen to be appreciated, colour can't be properly picked up from my iPhone camera.
Sunday I went and swapped my Cup spoiler for a Trophy one which had already been sprayed in Black Gold. Finally the last missing Trophy piece has now been sourced!
Looks much, much better with the Trophy spoiler. Very happy! Although I am missing how much further the boot opens with the Cup spoiler.
I then took a controversial move and ordered a pair of 'Trophy' decals for the skirts in anthracite, seeing as the car is full Trophy spec. Just means that if someone asks about the decals, I can explain why they are there (car has Sachs fitted etc etc), bit of a conversation starter potentially. I am not one to normally badge my cars as something they are not, but in this instance I decided to go for it as I really like how they look, and it is basically a Trophy minus the red paint and numbered plaques! Hope it doesn't upset you Trophy guys. How they look...
Treated the car to a well deserved wash including a snow foam...
Next up, I ordered a pair of rear adjustment shims from Pure Motorsport to have the rear aligned...
Also bought a pair of genuine inner tie rod kits, as there was still some play in the steering and a slight knock too, and every other suspension part has been changed within the last month which left these to be replaced.
Both the inner tie rods and rear shims were fitted today, along with another alignment/tracking session. Everything all nice and tight and solid now.
Managed to get a picture of the dog bone mount fitted whilst the car was up on the ramp. Love how it has really stiffened everything up, in a good way. Slightly more vibration in the cabin at idle, but nothing I can't live with, especially given the benefits from having it fitted. Everything feels so much more connected, really is a great little mod. Big thanks to Andy (Miller) on here, for letting me trial this dog bone mount before making a decision to buy it off him, thanks mate.
Also cleaned up the wheels and took a few more pictures whilst they were off the car today. Was just trying to get a better picture of how the colour looks, but again they need to be seen really! So difficult to show exactly how this colour looks in photos. Can also see the top of the Sachs and the Mark Fish springs that were fitted a few weeks back, in the bottom pic.
Finally, I went for a drive along some of the finest West Sussex roads today on the way home from having the above work done. Car got absolutely filthy so needs cleaning again already, but it was an absolute joy to drive. This car is epic. Stopped off in the supermarket to do some shopping and get a couple of quick snaps. She is filthy (worse than the pictures show) but at least looks used!
Time to enjoy driving it for a bit now
First up, booked the car in with Rentech on Friday, to have the following done:
Fit new genuine power steering pump
New power steering fluid
Coolant change
Fit new genuine expansion tank bottle
Oil and filter change with Motul 300V oil, and also fit a Gold magnetic sump plug
Fit Evol Engineering dog bone mount
Few pics of parts ready to be fitted...
Next up is wheels... long story! Saw a freshly refurbished set of Turini's come up for sale, and bought these as it was financially better than getting mine refurbished. So I got the tyres swapped over to the new Turini's and had them fitted to the car. Here is a pic of one of the newly refurbished wheels (no pics of them on the car as they weren't on long enough!)...
However, as I say, they weren't on the car that long! I had been thinking about having my first set refurbished in a light grey, something different. After seeing the new wheels on the car, they looked very similar to before (still anthracite) but obviously just a bit tidier. I wasn't 100% happy considering I really wanted to give grey a go. So I decided to have my old set refurbished in Porsche Sport Classic Grey (paid extra to have the paint ordered) and then to sell the newly refurbished anthracite set (hope you are keeping up!). Could have just had mine refurbished in the first place, never mind!
It was a good excuse to order a set of Yokohama AD08R's at the same time, and have these fitted once the wheels came back from powdercoaters.
So, how they looked when I went to go and pick them up...
Fitted to the car...
And the new AD08R's...
Wheels look a million time better in real life! Mega happy with them. Really offset the black well, and I have had so many comments on them you wouldn't believe! Really need to be seen to be appreciated, colour can't be properly picked up from my iPhone camera.
Sunday I went and swapped my Cup spoiler for a Trophy one which had already been sprayed in Black Gold. Finally the last missing Trophy piece has now been sourced!
Looks much, much better with the Trophy spoiler. Very happy! Although I am missing how much further the boot opens with the Cup spoiler.
I then took a controversial move and ordered a pair of 'Trophy' decals for the skirts in anthracite, seeing as the car is full Trophy spec. Just means that if someone asks about the decals, I can explain why they are there (car has Sachs fitted etc etc), bit of a conversation starter potentially. I am not one to normally badge my cars as something they are not, but in this instance I decided to go for it as I really like how they look, and it is basically a Trophy minus the red paint and numbered plaques! Hope it doesn't upset you Trophy guys. How they look...
Treated the car to a well deserved wash including a snow foam...
Next up, I ordered a pair of rear adjustment shims from Pure Motorsport to have the rear aligned...
Also bought a pair of genuine inner tie rod kits, as there was still some play in the steering and a slight knock too, and every other suspension part has been changed within the last month which left these to be replaced.
Both the inner tie rods and rear shims were fitted today, along with another alignment/tracking session. Everything all nice and tight and solid now.
Managed to get a picture of the dog bone mount fitted whilst the car was up on the ramp. Love how it has really stiffened everything up, in a good way. Slightly more vibration in the cabin at idle, but nothing I can't live with, especially given the benefits from having it fitted. Everything feels so much more connected, really is a great little mod. Big thanks to Andy (Miller) on here, for letting me trial this dog bone mount before making a decision to buy it off him, thanks mate.
Also cleaned up the wheels and took a few more pictures whilst they were off the car today. Was just trying to get a better picture of how the colour looks, but again they need to be seen really! So difficult to show exactly how this colour looks in photos. Can also see the top of the Sachs and the Mark Fish springs that were fitted a few weeks back, in the bottom pic.
Finally, I went for a drive along some of the finest West Sussex roads today on the way home from having the above work done. Car got absolutely filthy so needs cleaning again already, but it was an absolute joy to drive. This car is epic. Stopped off in the supermarket to do some shopping and get a couple of quick snaps. She is filthy (worse than the pictures show) but at least looks used!
Time to enjoy driving it for a bit now
Fair play for going different. I cant make my mind up on the wheels. However as said fair play for not just doing what everyone else does. Perhaps the bullet needs a tie in to the wheels to help visually.
The trophy sticker.. Who cares what everyone else thinks at the end of the day its your car. Had this debat 20 years ago when we built a an xr3i into an estate 3dr shell with stripped interior and white compomotive mo's. Long chats with bewteen everyone involved and my mate finaly agreed the car was special enough without claiming it was an xr3i.
If i ever had to reshell 120.. theres half a chance it would be dark green like the car I learnt to drive in..
The cars stunning whatever folk say.
The trophy sticker.. Who cares what everyone else thinks at the end of the day its your car. Had this debat 20 years ago when we built a an xr3i into an estate 3dr shell with stripped interior and white compomotive mo's. Long chats with bewteen everyone involved and my mate finaly agreed the car was special enough without claiming it was an xr3i.
If i ever had to reshell 120.. theres half a chance it would be dark green like the car I learnt to drive in..
The cars stunning whatever folk say.