Fast Ford July 2021

WELCOME I love this time of year. As the show season starts up, we start to see some of those project cars we’ve been following build photos of on social media actually finished and in the metal. It’s always an exciting time of year to see what new projects are unveiled, and what new twists some of the more established stalwarts of the scene have been doing to their fast Fords too. But after being shut away for the vast majority of 2020, this year is extra special. Not just because we’ve been starved of the shows, events, people, and cars we all love, but because it has given us an extra 12 months of garage tinkering time – meaning that some pretty special projects will be breaking cover this…

WHAT SHOWS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO? “Ford Fair is the big one. We’re currently organising displays, and it looks like it’s going to be another belter! But, on a personal level, I also really enjoy RS Combe; it’s laid-back, local to me, and I can spend the day chilling with my family and mates.” JAMIE, EDITOR “I do like Ford Fair (when I’m not blowing up my Cossie, that is!) but my favourite show of the year is Retro Rides Gathering. I camp overnight, and it’s always huge amounts of fun spending a weekend with like-minded car fans.” ADE, PHOTOGRAPHER “I’m looking forward to the monthly club meets and general get-togethers with a mix of cars, a greasy bacon buttie, and coffee like tar. That’s what car meets are…

FOCUS ST FINGER-LICKIN’ FOCUS You can have buckets of fun in a factory-stock Focus RS. But ordering off-menu makes even Ford’s spiciest hot hatch all the more tasty Words DAN BEVIS Photos ADE BRANNAN Most people, generally speaking, enjoy a bit of fast food. It’s not hard to fathom why – the appeal of wandering in off the street and having a hot meal in your hand within a couple of minutes speaks for itself, as does the familiarity. If you find yourself hung over in Margate, Malibu or Madrid, a Big Mac will always be a Big Mac. Some of us always go for ‘the usual’. Creatures of habit, we visit the same outlets on the same days like clockwork, and always order the same things. It’s comforting, in…

TECH SPEC FOCUS ST ENGINE 2522cc EcoBoost RS, Airtec induction kit with K&N filter, Radium dual catch can and baffle plate, Mountune recirc valve, Mountune big boost pipes, Mountune sound suppression chamber, Mountune PTU brace, Mountune roll restrictor, Airtec front-mounted intercooler, Scorpion turbo-back non-res valved exhaust system, carbon fibre engine covers, Cobb handset with Litchfield Stage 2 POWER 415bhp; quarter-mile: 12.7s TRANSMISSION Factory RS MMT6 six-speed gearbox with RS all-wheel-drive SUSPENSION H&R lowering springs BRAKES Front: Focus RS Brembo four-pot callipers with Mountune 350mm grooved discs and Ferodo DS2500 pads; rear: Focus RS factory callipers with Mountune grooved discs and Ferodo DS2500 callipers WHEELS & TYRES 8.5x19in OZ Superturismo LM alloys with ET45, finished in shadow chrome, Michelin Pilot Sport 4 235/35x19 tyres EXTERIOR Wrapped in 3M Gloss Flip Psychedelic…

DRIVER SPEC ANDY MURRAY AGE 41 JOB Director of a soft drinks company FIRST FORD F-reg Mk2 Ford Fiesta 1.1 Firefly BEST MODIFICATION “It’s a tough one to decide. It would either be the interior because it’s a one-off, or the Scorpion exhaust every time I go through a tunnel” FAVOURITE FORD SHOW OR EVENT? Ford Fair TRACK DAY OR SHOW & SHINE? Show-and-shine LESSONS LEARNT FROM THIS PROJECT? “Make your car your own, and enjoy it“ WHAT’S NEXT “I don’t have anything else planned for the car at the moment, apart from seeing friends again after Covid and getting back to shows with Custom Fords” THANKS “I would like to thank Alan at Ultimate Customs in Glasgow for making the car look at its best at all times; Andy…

WHAT'S NEW NEWS See what’s going down in the world of fast Fords... FORD HELPS UK’S SMALLEST TOWN TO SWITCH TO ELECTRIC The electric vehicle (EV) revolution is upon us, and while those living in the big cities and suburbs may see immediate benefits from all-electric cars, those who live in rural areas and small towns aren’t quite so confident about making the switch. New research shows a large majority of those in the countryside (82 per cent), small towns (79 per cent) and villages (76 per cent) would not feel confident purchasing an EV as their next vehicle, if a ban on petrol and diesel cars came in next week. Ford of Britain challenged the population of Fordwich, Britain’s smallest town, to switch to electric in the all new…