Refreshments for the Trophy

[dawnc182]

Hi all, I've decided to keep the Vee's off the road next year & get the Trophy up to scratch (currently in storage) Here is my plans to tweek her, I really want to keep her as oem as possible but improve the handling as it's not great tbh!

My plans for 2017 -

Sachs to be refurbished & de pinned
New rear sachs
Mark fish springs
Purple power flex bushes
Aux belt change
Service inc NGK plugs
Hydraulic fluid change
Coolant change
PMS solid top mounts (currently running K-Tek & they're knocking)
Passenger handle re spray


She should be tip top with that little lot done, then hopefully I can get her to a few meets

Any other room for improvement?

cheers

 

[Rik Perry]

If I can help with any mechanical work I will be happy too. Not much good at detailing but I know nuts and bolts !!

 

[MarcB]

I hate to say it but speaking from experience i would stick with OEM top mounts.

I had spanking new shocks done at BG worth over £1000 with extras, AST solid top mounts, Power flex bushes and steering rack bushes and trust me the ride is not the best, Its way too hard and its that hard the AST started popping bearings.

I went back to standard OE top mounts with spacers and it feels so much better

 

[Kyle beresford]

Good bit of info marcR, was torn between pure Motorsport and standard items,did you use the updated top mounts that come with the spacers or did you add your own?

 

[Kyle beresford]

Ps dawn,like the list,almost exactly what I'm planning to do to mine

 

[Mikeyjp]

i have got pms top mounts/brace, koni rear adjustable and mark fish springs, use mine as a daily, more than happy with the ride

 

[MarcB]

Good bit of info marcR, was torn between pure Motorsport and standard items,did you use the updated top mounts that come with the spacers or did you add your own?

I used standard OE items from renault with spacer nut. I was running the following and i found it was just way too hard.

Pinned Sachs (freshly built)
Mark Fish Springs
Full Purple Power Flex Bushes (Bottom Arms, Dog Bone, Anti Roll Bar Inner & Outer)
Black Power Flex Steering Rack Bushes
AST Solid Top Mounts (No Drilling Needed For Fitting, Thus Means No Holes In The Strut Turrets)

 

[Gazza]

I used standard OE items from renault with spacer nut. I was running the following and i found it was just way too hard.

Pinned Sachs (freshly built)
Mark Fish Springs
Full Purple Power Flex Bushes (Bottom Arms, Dog Bone, Anti Roll Bar Inner & Outer)
Black Power Flex Steering Rack Bushes
AST Solid Top Mounts (No Drilling Needed For Fitting, Thus Means No Holes In The Strut Turrets)

So are you running the above without the solid top mounts? Was thinking of going down the powerflex route. I remember Mark fish telling me he removed powerflex bushes off a car as the owner didnt like it. Not sure if its the right way to go or replace with standard bushes...

 

[Claude]

Have you considered track rods, track rod ends, wishbones, lower ball joints and ARB bushes?

Also, why de-pin the Sachs? Do you crave adjustability and are you wanting to set the car up and customise the geometry to suit your driving style for track and/or road?

If you want OEM then leave them as they left the factory, otherwise you'll only end up asking people what settings they use, which almost defeats the point.

 

[MarcB]

So are you running the above without the solid top mounts? Was thinking of going down the powerflex route. I remember Mark fish telling me he removed powerflex bushes off a car as the owner didnt like it. Not sure if its the right way to go or replace with standard bushes...

Yes I'm running the above but without AST top mounts.
I will never put solid mounts on my Trophy again, Would rather spend money and replace the OE ones once a year.

Have you considered track rods, track rod ends, wishbones, lower ball joints and ARB bushes?

Also, why de-pin the Sachs? Do you crave adjustability and are you wanting to set the car up and customise the geometry to suit your driving style for track and/or road?

If you want OEM then leave them as they left the factory, otherwise you'll only end up asking people what settings they use, which almost defeats the point.

I also agree with this, De-pinning the sachs is asking for trouble and unless you have someone who knows how to set them up correctly and with the rest of the car you will be forever chasing the pot of gold IMO

 

[dawnc182]

Thanks, she's already got the k-tek drilled top mounts hence why I'm not putting standard back in. (Assume you can't go back to origin having been drilled?)

tbh I haven't much idea what the de pinning does? To my knowledge it allows stiffer setting on the suspension? Only reason I've opted for this is every other car I've come across has had this done & I assumed it was a good option! But, happily leave if no need

 

[Gordon]

tbh I haven't much idea what the de pinning does? To my knowledge it allows stiffer setting on the suspension? Only reason I've opted for this is every other car I've come across has had this done & I assumed it was a good option! But, happily leave if no need

I agree with Claude and others. Unless you have the car set up professionally, or really know what you're going with corner weights, camber, castor etc. you'll just be turning a dial based on your gut feel, which may or may not improve handling. It'll be completely subjective. Renault engineers spent a lot of time on a test track to decide where the dampers should be set, related to the OEM geometry.

Having the dampers de-pinned was a popular choice for many when refurbing, and without the pins you'll be able to turn the adjusters to alter the damping rate (at the front, no adjusters at the rear with standard rear dampers). As before the 'benefit' will be completely subjective to you. Is also likely to cost more money for the refurb at BG to have them unpinned.

Not to mention you'll need to be extremely careful in remembering what's standard, and what number of clicks you've applied, did you reset them at the end of the last drive? Or are you changing them again from a non standard setting? By that time the settings could be all over the place. You have to ensure you do exactly the same for each side too. Unless you're serious about track days etc. all a big PITA if you ask me.

 

[Miller]

Thats a good list of work to get done. I haven't tried the pms top mounts, but the level of service and products I have got from them is excellent. Good luck with the jobs im sure you will be pleased with the results

 

[Luke335]

Wow. It's one dial under the wheel arch. If you want to de-pin then just go for it. You are never going to ruin the handling as its only one setting to put back and it's nice to have a little adjustability. The one change I would add though is the Revalved Mark Fish Koni adjustable dampers on the rear. If you want to stiffen the front more than a few clicks you will find the front and rear will become out of sync. Mark Fish revalved Koni's will have plenty of adjustability to match.

 

[RsMax]

How much are the rear Konis from Marc Fish?

 

[Luke335]

I'm sorry I've no idea how much they are. I bought mine years ago!

 

[Miller]

Can't remember how much the mark fish revalved one's ate but standard koni's are just over £200.