Kangoo Compact (aka Racevan3)

[Brigsy]

Side project that ive had for almost exactly 1 year but its starting to take pace so will update on here. Copied and pasted from Cliosport.net so bare with it

TDLR - im an idiot and keep buying scrap Renaults and a new project is in stock:LOL:

A few months ago in my old job i had a 68reg Kangoo, got it with delivery mileage brand new. Noted pretty crap in diesel form, and handling average however i had heard that the underpinnings were very similar to meg/mk3 clio, and confirmed when having a look underneath briefly.

Said van

Returned when i left the job, good riddance to tracker and 62mph speed limiter. Thought to myself that it would probably be sound, with more power and better handling.

At the time i still had my old Kangoo 172 (Racevan2), which was leagues ahead. Lacked a bit of straight line speed, and deep down im a turbo man missed the turbo torque so sold which stuck some money back in the pot.

With the drive looking less cluttered and bank balance up a few quid said no more projects until my Extra (Racevan1) is back on the road.

Had the idea of a Megane rs powered Kangoo2 for a while, and seen the compact version. The compact is the same length as Clio2. Compared to the usual ml version of the Kangoo2 its like a micro machine.

Press pic of the compact next to ml

Thinking this would be a great project to do once the Extra is done, sat on the idea. The compact is rare to find for sale, as from what i gather nobody bought them with the 4 foot load space in the rear making them pretty useless as a van.

Mrs was looking and seen one for sale on Facebook marketplace, needing a new engine and only down the road. Made the mistake of going for a look, looked pretty unloved but bodywork quite good, engine totally shot. Stuck a low bid in, scrap money and the fella was up for it.

Collected on the back of my mates truck this week

Short arse

Cleaned up and roof rack removed and pushed into position.

Current engine bay half a dci lump with melted pistons on cyl 1 & 4 :LOL:

Had a good look round and the subframe looks pretty identical to meg2 or clio3. Meg rs track control arms, hubs and brembos bolt on as one as already been done, so handling should be great. Mounts look identical to megane, so in theory a meg lump and ndo box should go in (pk box fits).

Wiring may or may not be tricky, however i have been thinking about this, and there is a few options, if all else fails standalone ecu and stack dash.

 

[Brigsy]

Engine and r26 number 453 has arrived to strip for parts.

Engine has wossner pistons and pec rods, currently fitted with rs250 head, but will be reverting back to stock to get it fired up. Bought a 19t turbo, and 3" scorpion decat. Should see a bit of progress once the weather picks up.

 

[Brigsy]

Megane stripped, next stop is the weigh in yard:LOL:

 

[Brigsy]

Had a spare ten mins so tried the R26 clocks in. Plugged straight in, and everything thats possible to test with no engine in works as expected. When opening the back doors the boot open symbol lights up. Every warning light on as nothing is plugged in under the bonnet :LOL:

The only downside is the dash cover would need a little trim to be refitted. Clio3 clocks go straight in so have bought a set and will try them in.

I reckon this might be able to be wired up a bit like a meglio, which is going to be a doddle if thats the case.

Having naughty thoughts about a garrett turbo and cams to suit lol.

 

[Brigsy]

Small update, was advised 197 clocks went straight in, so bought a cheap set and fitted and working.

 

[Brigsy]

Had a set of spare wheels refurbished for the mrs meg today, so stood them up against the Kangoo. Its going to look awesome on 18s

 

[Brigsy]

Nothing happening today so took advantage of the nice weather and cut/polished the passenger side of the noddy van. It had a big scuff on the passenger door, which came out easy after a couple of passes.

Fallout was horrendous on it, needed a good coat of Korrosol

Products in stock

Came up pretty mint to be fair

 

[Brigsy]

Machine polished the rest today. For a small van there is a lot of panelling, 8 hours later and the rest is done. The fallout was horrendous on every panel, its had paint before to my suprise, the back doors are not the best but good enough. Overall it looks decent though.

The future, need to stop pissing about and get the engine in

 

[Brigsy]

Started prepping the meg suspension and hubs ready to fit.

Swivel bearings were a little bit tight. Ive done a few sets of these over the years and a piece of piss to do. These look to be original, they were absolutely fine no play, simply regrease and refit. Grease bolts on order to fit for future maintenance.

All the bits were looking a bit shitty but essentially all the balljoints and bushes are fine and will be easy good enough for a few more miles. Give them a wire wheel, hydrate 80 and a coat of ten year old hammerite i found in my lockup, will do

Pikey pu sealant filled dogbone.

 

[Brigsy]

Pandemic update

Bored yesterday so pulled the knackered diesel out. Started by removing the front end and remaining ancillaries, not much to take off as head was off.

I had planned on selling the gearbox, drained the oil and it came out like bum wee, out for the scrapman

Could not be arsed jacking it up to pull a shaft and want to keep it rolling so got the hacksaw to cut it, its only a hollow shaft, wont take long.

15 mins later and we are through the solid shaft :cautious: good job im used to this after years of hand cutting when i was a joiner

Gear and cars all over as usual

Split the engine and box on the deck, pikey wheelbarrow to take the stuff outside for the scrap man. Good workout lifting the block into it, nearly went through the rotten wheelbarrow base:LOL:

Engine bay quick clean up with apc and a brush, came up alright. Very similar to mk3 clio/meg

Rats nest of wiring to sort out later. Can i f**k be arsed changing the full loom unless totally necessary. I can get the r26 sagem s3000 virginized, if that does not talk to the uch/upc then its getting an immobiliser emulator. If i have no joy with that, my mate has offered me a nice standalone ecu.

Job for another day sorting this

Pic of racevan, project racevan, and 250cup that does the shopping run occasionally

Anyway the pikeys rudely awakened me chucking the scrap onto the pickup this morning at 70am. Took two of them to lift the bottom end, weak!!

Front end looks so high now engine is out, it offends my eyes. I have Kangoo H&R springs on order, brand new r26 shocks in stock, hubs, brembos, wishbones prepped. Should see the front end done as soon as they arrive

 

[Brigsy]

Knock at the door earlier and the H&R springs arrived from Germany in a week, miles faster than most Royal Mail parcels!

Started pulling it to bits

Fitted on fresh R26 shocks

Wishbones and hubs on

Brembos on, flexi hoses fitted and brembo hc 312mm discs fitted. Discs have had a sacrificial dusting of black to keep the rust off whilst stood. Started pissing down so no pics, calipers are zip tied on due to bolts not arrived yet.

Still a high rider as no engine in and only one side done. If im not happy with the rideheight then it will get a set of Bc's up front once its up and running.

 

[Brigsy]

Both sides of the front suspension are done and its rocking an old set of ph1 225 alloys whilst stood.

Found this beauty when stripping the drivers side front suspension down, daylight half way round where the spring cup joins the strut body. So close to failing, only 9 year old and still mot'd.

Arse was nipping a bit when gunning the strut to hub bolts off incase it let go..worked fast as f**k to get it stripped :LOL:

 

[Brigsy]

Progress update on the chode/noddy van/shortarse.

Basically nothing has happened but have gathered loads of parts. Enough to build up the new engine.

Found the rare 250 inlet manifold. Need to make an adaptor plate to suit the r26 throttle body.

Fuel rail will have the reg removed, inlet and outlet fitted and traditional fpr fitted on the fuel return with a proper fuel system.

Went to fit the clutch, and noticed the crank seal is knacked so got one on order. Borrowed the genuine knocker tool to fit it.

Reset the pressure plate ready for fitting with the press.

5 stud rear beam has arrived today. Might get it on this weekend and get the brakes bled up.

 

[Brigsy]

Rear beam fitting time. Best check wheels fit i guess.

Ahh thats a no then, fouls the handbrake cable and the fecking centre of wheel fouls the caliper

Measured up the hub centre protrusion and its 20mm, so ordered 10mm slip on Pms spacers to suit meg2 and longer bolts to suit.

Wait a few days for spacers to arrive, try again and it works.

Whipped beam off and stuck the new one on and fitted the H&R rear springs.

Cleaned arches too. Discs and pads will be getting replaced once its on the road, will leave the rusty ones on for now.

Small issue with the handbrake cables, the beam is off a normal length Kangoo ML so the handbrale cables are about 18" too long oop:Two solutions to this - if Ren made this model with rear discs then can order cables to suit, if not i will shorten these cables.

Wheels are only on as sacrificial whilst its sat doing nothing on the drive so just need it to roll. Needs to be lower but will see what its like with an engine and box in.

Like an oldskool micro machine:LOL:

 

[Brigsy]

Been looking for a 6 speed shifter for a Kangoo and they are quite thin on the ground as most are 5 speed. As its a dash mounted shifter needed the proper one really.

Sniffed one out on ebay in Latvia, off a lhd model. Was fairly expensive but stuck an offer in which was accepted. Took a gamble with this as for lhd (assumed both the same from checking part no's) and was not even sure if it would work on the 250 pk gearbox.

Arrived today and after the rain stopped finally got some motivation to get off my arse and do a bit.

Hooked up the shifter to the 250 box and can report it works ok and can select all 6 gears so thats a nice little win

Pulled the old shifter out and fitted the new one, ballache as cables run under the heater box, stripping dash trims off etc.

Crank seal turned up too so used the genuine knocker tool to fit. No pics as forgot but works great, no pissing about.

Next job was to mock up handbrake cable length. From what i gather they never specced rear discs on the compact model which leaves the ml length handbrake cables to suit the calipers about 12" or so too long. So need custom handbrake cables really. Outer sheath is the same length as it meets the rear floor behind the fuel tank.

Cut down the inner to suit, and made some clamps. Back yard engineering style, used an old head bolt, drilled the length, then drilled the side and tapped for an m5 thread/bolt. I seen similar stuff done on the kit car forums when looking, and to be fair it works great, tested by repeated ripping the handbrake up and the clamps have not moved. Will prob eventually get proper cables made up now i know the length is correct.

Excuse the minging floor as it needs a big clean, but can wait until the seats are changed for something better.

Goal is to have the engine in by Xmas and depending on how it goes together poss fired up.

 

[Brigsy]

Started cleaning a few bits up on the engine. Cam cover, breather plate and a couple of other bits got a once over.

Etch primed

Bedliner paint ftw

Oil filler cap looks a bit bright might need to tone it down a little :LOL:

 

[Brigsy]

Late one on the engine tonight as the new tappets turned up.

Engine is a bitza, 250 head on R26 bottom end with wossner pistons and pec rods. Slipped a set of 172 cams in whilst cam cover was off, be rude not to

Not using vvt at the moment but stuck a fresh 172 dephaser and vvt solenoid that i had in stock, to save messing about trying to delete the vvt.

Usual bollox, new belt kit, water pump etc.

Its pinned up at tdc & horseshoe in, not set cam timing yet as ran out of time and need to order a new crank pulley bolt, i could prob reuse this but as they are pennies ill bosh a new one on.

 

[Brigsy]

Seen some inspiration the other day too. Turns out that they done a 1.2 turbo model on the current Kangoo in Aus, not sure if it was a one off from Renault as a demonstrator as no real info out there about it. Looks alright though, i reckon the newer clio 220 edc might fit and meg rs280 lump, if you had deep pockets.

Car Reviews - Renault - Kangoo - 1.2-litre Turbo-petrol​

Indepth 2017 Renault Kangoo 1.2-litre turbo-petrol Our Opinion by trusted GoAuto Journalists.
www.goauto.com.au

 

[Brigsy]

Bought a bargain pair of corsa d vxr recaro cs off ebay that needed some loving but priced very well. Give them a good wet vac and had to repaint the harness inserts as they were poorly painted arden blue.

Prepped and painted in my fav bedliner paint

Fitted

Sat in the kitchen for a few days drying out

Reckoned up what would be needed to make them fit, the base is flat yet offset on the recaros with the corsa runners removed, and kangoo runners are flat as the seat unbolts off them. Took a few measurements then ordered a couple of mtrs of 50mm x 5mm flat bar to make a basic subframe to adapt the kangoo runners to fit.

Cut and drilled plate to suit, small mods done to kangoo runners and trial fitted.

Test fit to check seat placement and all good, height and forward/backward adjustment retained.

Removed, modified passenger side to suit, etch primed and a lick of bedliner paint.

kangoo pre tensioner wiring fits straight into the vxr pre tensioners so retained them, can always program them out with clip if they give any errors.

Fitted, Seatbelt bolts to original Kangoo seat, luckily the recaro base has a mounting point for seatbelt on the base so simple bolt on.

Seating position is great, with it right down on the height adjustment its a lot lower than stock. Really pleased with how they have turned out.

Need to get the engine in asap before weather really turns. P.s. ive bought a nice set of wheels for it but that can wait until next time

 

[Brigsy]

Picked up a new set of wheels last weekend. Ive been sniffing around for a while for nice wheels and anything nice in 5x108 is like rocking horse poo to find.

Story goes like this. Back in the day around 5 years ago i went to a TurboRenault rolling road day at RsTuning in Leeds and seen a nice ultra blue r26 with a set of white compomotive mo6 on. Thought it looked pretty epic and took a pic and that was the last i seen of it.



Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago - im browsing facebook and i see the same r26 again on the meganesport facebook page so i fire the current owner a cheeky pm asking if he wants to sell the wheels. Reply was not currently selling but will let me know if he ever decides to sell as they are road/wet track wheels.

A week or so later i get a pm asking if i want to buy them as the gearbox has blown up and hes breaking the car! Was tempted to buy the full car but we already have the ph1 225 sat there in the garage.

Got a few pics through via pm, set of 6 wheels, 4 have new goodyears on. Bit of heritage with the wheels, apparantly custom made years ago in r26r offset with correct hub centre bore and possibly used when testing the r26r around the Nurburgring? One wheel has 2x valves in for mega accurate tyre pressure checking.

Agreed a price and the deal was done. As per usual miles away from me and i dont have a vehicle large enough to pick 6x 18” wheels and tyres, so borrow my neighbours Combo van thats not been furthur than the local builders merchant for years / never been serviced to pick them up in, what could possibly go wrong? :LOL: Luckily nothing and it done the 600 mile round trip without any dramas at all and even got a shoutout off MistaJam on capital on the evening.

Give them a clean up, in pretty good nick considering been used for track. 4x matching rims et66 and 2x slightly different offset et54. Wheel with 2x valves 2nd from left.



Test fitted. Needs a major altitude adjustment (looks like a fecking micro machine at the moment :LOL: ) still no engine or box in so will see how it settles. If it needs more lowering ill buy a pair of meg coilovers for the front and sort the back with a custom setup if needs be.




Pretty happy though as heading in the right direction.

Tried them on the mrs 225 and they look epic.



So 3x sets of good wheels in 5x108 to share between the pair.