more power for Clio DCI

[HK51]

Hi All,

I love the website, has plenty of interesting reading. Lots of things I wanted to know, I found the answers here.

As you may have gathered, I have a 51 Clio DCi 65. I want it to go faster and would like to know how do I go about it.
I've been thinking about getting a bigger renault engine, maybe 1.9 DCi from megane/laguna.

How does one go about these things?
Where do I find an engine?
Where do I find a garage that will do this (I live in the S/SE)?
Anything I need to be aware of (apart from "it will cost an arm and a leg") before I embark on such an adventure?

Any similar experiences with Clios or any other cars are welcome.

Please dont tell me to buy a new car , I want to stick to my Clio.

Thanks in advance
HK

 

[obi_waynne]

Welcome to Torquecars. You could try ebay and the local scrap yards you never know what might turn up.

You will need the wiring and ECU from the donor car so if you have access to the donor car during the swap it can make life alot easier. The front suspension may also need uprating a little due to the heavier lump.

When it comes to garages you really need to ask around but don't sound like a boy racer. Try and get a quote for the job rather than a day rate.

 

[HK51]

Thanks Wayne,

Really helpful advice.

Few more questions,

Do I go for a normal garage where I get my car usualy serviced or should I be looking for specialist garages?
I guess specialist garages would have more experience with these things?
Will I need the gearbox from the donor car?
My gearbox may not be able to handle the extra power?
Or perhaps the garage will advise me on this.

Regards,
HK

 

[obi_waynne]

Due to the narrower torque band on a Diesel the gearbox ratios are vital. Too long or short and you will miss the power band and be skipping gears or changing all the time. A "normal" garage will probably only do small jobs and charge more for a big job like this. It is really worth asking around.

Have a chat with the guys at www.southcourtgarage.co.uk (Deal near Dover if that's not too far away from you) - I trust them implicitly with my Audi and they are a Renault specialist. Karl is the owner - have a chat with him and mention my name!

 

[HDi fun]

That DCi 65 can be remapped to around 100bhp far more cheaply than changing the engine.

 

[HK51]

That DCi 65 can be remapped to around 100bhp far more cheaply than changing the engine.

hi HDifun,

Appreciate the suggestion however, I am in fact running it with a PSI box at the moment which brings it to around 85-90BHP. I ran it against a mates stock dci80 and mine has better acceleration which means more torque and probably more BHPs. But, I want more power than that. My aim is at least 130BHP. Thats why I want a new engine.

Cheers

 

[HDi fun]

OK, point taken. The 1.9 dCi dishes out about 130bhp in stock tune. Even if you manage to find and get one fitted I would still suggest a remap as you'll get a much livlier and more forgiving drive.

I have a late model Peugeot 406 with the 2.2 HDi unit. It's a twin cam 16 valve unit so there's scope for improvement. Factory tune is 136 bhp and like that it's pretty lively for a heavy car.

It's been sympathetically remapped and now delivers 192bhp with a silly 320 lbft of torque. Both numbers are from full dyno (rolling road) testing. It feels it too, with massive pull in all the gears. Massive in the
'Porsche-Boxster-would-have-to-be-worked-hard-to-get-past' kind of a way.

Read the Torque Cars diesel section.

I would steer you away from tuning boxes towards a custom remap. Tuning Boxes are a compromise, a custom map can be done to suit the car and you driving technique.

For example, you can have accelerator pedal response curves changed for each gear/rpm situation so that the thing is not ridiculously nervous in town at low speeds.

I recommend Celtic Tuning to anyone looking to make the best of a modern diesel engine.

Good luck, go enjoy it and stay safe.

Regards,

Paul.

 

[HK51]

Hi Paul,

I already read the article where your car is mentioned and I envy you. Acceleration from 50 to 70MPH in under 3 sec is something that most sports cars will struggle to beat. Thats is really amasing. I wouldnt mind getting something simillar myself but even a 130BHP will be ebnough for me... at least for a short while I have thought about getting the new engine tuned further but I will take things one step at a time. First to get the new engine in and make sure its all running fine. I will then see how things go and progrees from there. Fuel economy is another very important aspect to me.

Appreciate your advice and comments.

Regards,
HK

 

[HDi fun]

130bhp in a Clio will be a beautifully effortless drive. if you're really lucky you may just find a bent Laguna with the 175bhp two litre unit.

As for fitting it to a Clio, well, that's not my speciality, but, if it fits then you need do nothing more - it will fly in any gear at any speed.

Rgds,

Paul Anderson.

 

[stormforce]

Hi Paul

I had my 04 scenic 1.5dci 80bhp tuned by angel tuning when i got it 6 months ago.
And you are bang on the money re-mapping makes a big difference.
It is now rated at about 108bhp which was all they recomended at the time.
I was wondering if its worth trying to go a bit furthur or is 108 all I will get given that its only a 1.5 diesel engine to start with
Any advice from any member of the group would be appreciated.


Paul

OK, point taken. The 1.9 dCi dishes out about 130bhp in stock tune. Even if you manage to find and get one fitted I would still suggest a remap as you'll get a much livlier and more forgiving drive.

I have a late model Peugeot 406 with the 2.2 HDi unit. It's a twin cam 16 valve unit so there's scope for improvement. Factory tune is 136 bhp and like that it's pretty lively for a heavy car.

It's been sympathetically remapped and now delivers 192bhp with a silly 320 lbft of torque. Both numbers are from full dyno (rolling road) testing. It feels it too, with massive pull in all the gears. Massive in the
'Porsche-Boxster-would-have-to-be-worked-hard-to-get-past' kind of a way.

Read the Torque Cars diesel section.

I would steer you away from tuning boxes towards a custom remap. Tuning Boxes are a compromise, a custom map can be done to suit the car and you driving technique.

For example, you can have accelerator pedal response curves changed for each gear/rpm situation so that the thing is not ridiculously nervous in town at low speeds.

I recommend Celtic Tuning to anyone looking to make the best of a modern diesel engine.

Good luck, go enjoy it and stay safe.

Regards,

Paul.

 

[pgarner]

hey stormforce. the reason your were proberly told that 108 is the most they would recommend is the clutch would proberly start to stuggle with any more

 

[stormforce]

hey stormforce. the reason your were proberly told that 108 is the most they would recommend is the clutch would proberly start to stuggle with any more

Yes agreed because the soon as you let the clutch out the power band is there and keeps coming no let up re-mapping is great.
I have always liked the dci diesel engines there great well they would have to be as they are also fitted to nissans.
thanks for the info appreciated............Paul

 

[pgarner]

if your keen on more power/torque have a look and see if you can get an uprated clutch for it. you would also have to look at better cooling for the engine and turbo, larger intercooler etc. might also be an idea to see if renault can give you a max power for the turbo before it overspeeds and knackers itself.