Hey all, i'm new but have been lurking for a while and need some help!

in the last few months i've joined the Motor Club at southampton uni, and have been doing 12 car road rallies every other week, and have been very surprised how well my puny 1.2 8v handles twisty B roads.. and have been doing quite well!

i'm looking for some small projects I can do to improve the car for this purpose (not interested in "pimping" as i'm not from essex, nor do I have an inferiority complex about the size of my *****), the catch being that i'm 20 so it would have to be non-major changes which wouldnt affect my insurance very much. I'm with adrian flux, who i've heard are good for modifications?

What I've done:

Lightweight alloys, with tyres about an inch wider than stock front and back

Focus induction kit in the post (needs fitting)

Twin halogen driving lights mounted at headlight level wired to come on with full beam

mudflaps front and back

Planning to:

Remove back seats

fit front strut brace (will this give any benefit on standard dampers and springs? worth it?)

will lowering 30mm be worthwhile to improve handling bearing in mind the roads raced on get slightly potholey occasionally, or shall i leave it stock?

will increasing the track 20mm each side with spacers (hubcentric) improve things or will it **** my bearings?

will changing for new plugs with wider gap and 10mm HT leads make any difference?

do wind deflectors actually work? i like to drive with the window cracked so i can hear the engine better but it gets a bit chilly in the winter!

any other simple cleaning/replacing of simple engine parts make the engine feel better? i just did an oil change and it's much happier than it was!

any other ideas bearing in mind i'm on a student budget and cant jack my premiums up?

oh and hi all!

Lights, good, but I would probably use spots rather than driving lights assuming your headlights give a good spread on full beam.

Remember to use a relay or relays as appropriate.

No wide tyres, good, soft compound, standard tyres on standard steel rims.

Standard springs are probably fine, but put some good quality gas dampers on to support them. Lowered springs are not a good idea.

Don't think you are allowed to remove rear seats, leave them in.

Don't bother with induction kit or fancy leads, just make sure the plugs and leads are good quality, that you are using the right oil and changing it regularly.

Make sure the cooling system is fully up to spec, fit a remote fan switch.

Make sure the brake discs and drums are either very good or new. Use a harder compound material, but not a race material for both pads and shoes (Ferodo/Mintex prefered, not some of these 'designer brands' Make sure the handbrake works properly.

Cheers

D

rallycinq said:

Lights, good, but I would probably use spots rather than driving lights assuming your headlights give a good spread on full beam.

Remember to use a relay or relays as appropriate.

No wide tyres, good, soft compound, standard tyres on standard steel rims.

Standard springs are probably fine, but put some good quality gas dampers on to support them. Lowered springs are not a good idea.

Don't think you are allowed to remove rear seats, leave them in.

Don't bother with induction kit or fancy leads, just make sure the plugs and leads are good quality, that you are using the right oil and changing it regularly.

Make sure the cooling system is fully up to spec, fit a remote fan switch.

Make sure the brake discs and drums are either very good or new. Use a harder compound material, but not a race material for both pads and shoes (Ferodo/Mintex prefered, not some of these 'designer brands' Make sure the handbrake works properly.

Cheers

D

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hi mate! thanks for the input, i've seen your handiwork so i guess you know what you're doing!


what does a remote fan switch do? just put new disks on as part of it's service anyway.

an issue i forgot about which you might be able to help with: my handbrake doesnt really do much, i can pull off from a stop and drive around with it still on, and trying to use it in tight corners seems to do sod all? is that just the joy of rear drum brakes or is there a way to tighten the handbrake cable so it can lock the back wheels?

also, is a strut brace a worthwile addition? or is it only worth it for shining up and showing your chavvy mates?

Fan switch, with relay, will allow you to run the cooling fan when you want.

Make sure you have the good pads in and bedded in before putting any stress in.

You need to rebuild the rear brakes completely. Drum brakes are superb.

If you can get a strut brace in without upsetting your insurers go for it.

Cheers

D

rallycinq said:

Fan switch, with relay, will allow you to run the cooling fan when you want.

Make sure you have the good pads in and bedded in before putting any stress in.

You need to rebuild the rear brakes completely. Drum brakes are superb.

If you can get a strut brace in without upsetting your insurers go for it.

Cheers

D

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with the fan switch, is it necessary to wire it so you can override the automatic switch on... or do you just have to hard wire it and keep an eye on the temperature guage?

normally during events even when i'm revving it to 5000 my temperature gauge never seems to go above half way, do you still think it's worth doing?

Your car uses ECU to trigger the fan. You need to tap into the relay to allow the ECU still to trigger it.

The problem is not when moving, but you can get some strange heatsoak when at controls.

Cheers

D

rallycinq said:

Your car uses ECU to trigger the fan. You need to tap into the relay to allow the ECU still to trigger it.

The problem is not when moving, but you can get some strange heatsoak when at controls.

Cheers

D

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so basically.. find the relay that turns the fan on, then find the positive input to the relay which switches it on, run a wire from the battery to that contact on the relay with a switch inline, and if the switch is in the off position then its ECU controlled, and if you switch it on, this pulls the relay and its manually on all the time?

my bad. i want to use the switch to ground the relay don't I?

rallycinq said:

Don't think you are allowed to remove rear seats, leave them in.

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yh u can m8 just got to take the seat belts out as well

things like a strut brace and lowered springs will increase ur premiums. anything that adds to the performance and handling will add to them so be careful. at worst, uprate the stock suspension but dont lower it and play dumb... unless they are fitted with brightly coloured springs then ur boned. lol
wind deflectors do work... kinda. great if u just crack the window but anything more than about an inch and they still bring in the wind.

Benny 1992 said:

yh u can m8 just got to take the seat belts out as well

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i 4got summat if u take the seats out and leave thebelts in its an MOT fail

Benny 1992 said:

i 4got summat if u take the seats out and leave thebelts in its an MOT fail

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My suggestion was nothing to do with the MOT, more the MSA regulations.

Cheers

D

rallycinq said:

My suggestion was nothing to do with the MOT, more the MSA regulations.

Cheers

D

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yh yh ok pal, got ya

got the fan override wired in, switch is in the engine bay but it works.... thanks for that tip. going to open the drums up tomorrow and give it a good old clean! might sort them out or at least make it obvious what's up.

wheres a good place to look up events going on locally etc? When i'm back home in the holidays it would be good to keep the events going.. i'm also interested in the idea of autosolo but don't know how to get started there, or what skills it really entails!

Forgive me if this seems like a silly question...but wouldn't it make more sense to put the override switch in the cabin? Where it's easily accessible?

I find the punto is probably the worst handling car I've had so far

That's my input

kiteboy said:

got the fan override wired in, switch is in the engine bay but it works.... thanks for that tip. going to open the drums up tomorrow and give it a good old clean! might sort them out or at least make it obvious what's up.

wheres a good place to look up events going on locally etc? When i'm back home in the holidays it would be good to keep the events going.. i'm also interested in the idea of autosolo but don't know how to get started there, or what skills it really entails!

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Switch needs to be inside, you can run too cool, so you need to be able to switch it off.

Join another car club when at home and do events with them too. The MSA website has some event details, but each club has a website these days so you should be able to find events easily.

Autosolo is an all forwards autotest for road cars that is more open than a traditional autotest. Accuracy and keeping your head are the skills required. Don't expect FTD at your first event, but learn as you go.

Enjoy

Cheers

D

If it never gets to half temp as it is then chances are your thermostat is sticking open. Seems to be very common on puntos.
As for handbrake. Just tighten it up

bredsticz said:

As for handbrake. Just tighten it up

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I disagree, for motorsport service it fully.

Cheers

D

rallycinq said:

I disagree, for motorsport service it fully.

Cheers

D

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If everything is the drum is okay though then chances are the cables have just stretched and never been tightened. Or am i missing something