What to expect with wear and tear

[trmb84gti]

Hello everyone,

I would like to ask for some advice if I may. Going to be running my road car in sprints next year if everything goes to plan, but am worried about wear. The is the obviously wear on tyres and so on but would like to know what else to look out for. I have an H reg Peugeot 205 Gti and would like to know what I should spend my money on to prevent wear or what to prep for. I know you all get asked things like this all the time but I am a genuine enthusiast and want to get started. Any advise or abuse welcome

[Adam]

Clutch and driveshafts get a battering if running sticky tyres due to repeated hard launching (i snapped a shaft on my TU engined 205!).

[trmb84gti]

Ok Cheers Adam!! Going to prob run road tyres so will keep that strongly in mind

[tri_longer]

Well, first off would be your rear beam, when did that last have a re-build, as any stiction or play in that is going to be a problem.

Bushes on the front wishbones, watch the rubber covers on the wishbone ball joints as well, if they split and lose grease then you will get premature wear.

Anti roll bar drop links are a common 205 failure point

Wheel bearings

Generally anything that is likely to get picked up on an MOT is going to take more of a pounding when being sprinted, so give it a regular spanner check.

Brakes should be fine as you don't use them a massive amount compared say to rallying or circuit racing.

The 205's are pretty hardy, and provided the above are in new/v good condition before the start of the season I wouldn't expect you to need to replace anything during the season.

[dennis.doyle]

I'd like to second Adam's suggestion on clutches, but nothing to do with 205's, huge hp or sticky tyres. I ran a 110 bhp GTi type thingy on 60 series road tyres & found a rattle was the clutch cover falling to bits after a couple of thousand miles from new. Nobody on the road launches as viciously as you do at a sprint/hillclimb.

[siany1997]

All the above. Racing won't actually break your car, but the general wear and tear is accelerated. Prevention rather than cure n all that. Otherwise you might,for example, fancy a trip to Scotland and break something really important. Which would be bad .
Just sayin.

[trmb84gti]

Ok cool doesnt sound too bad then, thanks very much for your advice! Roll on next season then! So who is in this road classes then? What is the competition like?

[grahamb]

Noise, vibration and heat, are the three things you'll make more of when driving a car on the limit.

Noise is important, as the car will need to pass a noise test at every event. Go for a quiet stock or aftermarket exhaust and you'll be fine.

Vibration, everything that can work loose will, so use Nyloc nuts wherever possible, threadlock if you really want to make sure things stay put, or lock wire if you really want to go to town. Suspension bolts should be 12.9 grade throughout, dont be tempted with stainless fasteners on suspension. Remove things that can fall off, such as hub caps and wheel centres.

Heat, obvious, brakes get hotter, engines (oil and water) run hotter, you get hotter. Ensure the engine runs normal temperatures when stressed, or it wont just be the engine that's stressed when the car is pushed to its limits. Make sure you have adequate ventilation when competing. Run alloys where you can as these soak the heat away from the hubs/calipers and keep things cool.

[trmb84gti]

Thanks very much Graham for your advice