mr-reno-139
AKA Paul Cunningham
- Messages
- 2,247
- Location
- lancing west sussex england
t remember when I last posted pictures of my own renault 4 on here and as there is quite a lot of new members who may not seen i thought I would post a few recent pictures taken yesterdaythe yellow peril started life when its left the factory as an export poor road version 845 F4 van it was built in 1978 with an r 2109 oval plate I bought it in 1985 as a cheap running van and having always wanted to own a Plein Air version I thought I could build my own 1 week later I had taken hacksaw and angle grinder 2 my new purchase it was used like this 4 about 6 months when I decided 5 ts 1300 engine and gearbox was a good way forward
this was a lot of fun and much safer when I fitted disc brakes and the rear handbrake from renault 5
obviously with no roof still haven't got around to sorting that one it was only used as a summer toy andover the winter one year I thought maybe what are the engine I could put in a quick measure up of a 1600 Fuego turbo road itself out has been to large unless I had no intention of a steering colum anywhere
remembering this was in 1990s when most parts were easily availableI settled for a renault 16tx engine and decided on a right hand drive conversion to allow the steering column 2 fit next to the exhaust
it would not clear under the inlet manifold if Kept it left hand drive
I had to cut it out the bulkhead who needs a heater anyway
sadly the engine was just too tall to keep the dash change over the top of the engine so a floor change assembly from Renault 5 mark 1 was welded into the floor in the correct position To bolt 1300 5 ts box to the bigger engine I had to use a renault 17 tl bellhousing and change the first motion shaft in the box and ths stade in the car for a few years until the h a o box decided it wasn't really strong enough 4 the bigger engine next Thoughts were can I get 5 gordini box bolted on the front of the engine
that was the end of the front cross member staying in its original position and using extension pieces to the chassis and Gordini cross member it's all just fit it in behind the original bumper
moor fabrication 2 make a lower crossmember 2 mount gear linkage through followed by 5 gordini front hubs bigger calipers and shock absorbers and anti roll bar all bolts straight on as the mark 1R5 was developed from the Renault 4
the bonnet also had to be cut at the lower front edge to clear the gearbox which now protrudes through it when I converted it to right hand drive I had also fitted a dual circuit renault 20 master cylinder bolted to the 5 pedal and servo it all seems to work quite well and has been used like this 4 a good 15 years now
the engine is exceptionally torquey and will pull in 5th gear smoothly away from about 20 miles an hour or you can drive it like a looney and it will Wheel spin in first and second
obviously being an open vehicle and normal renault 4 metal quality meant that 10 years ago I did spend sometime cutting a lot rusty metal completely away and welded in new sections this has held up very well but the bodywork is now a little past its best and as soon as my Rodeo is working I will be taking It off the road until I can sort body work out
