Innehållsförteckning för July 2023 från Classic Ford

Just over 15 years ago, we were scribbling down ideas for what would become The Great Unveiling. Back then, build threads on forums were all the rage, with owners proudly detailing every aspect of their project’s progress. They were great, but they had one big drawback — it meant you’d already seen almost every newly-finished car at a show. As enthusiasts who love car shows and surprises even more, this made us sad. So The Great Unveiling was born, and its premise is simple — owners keep the builds off the internet, swear their family and friends to secrecy, and put in some late nights to get the cars ready in time for a special ceremony at the Classic Ford Show (see page 24). Fast-forward a decade and a half,…

Festival Of The Unexceptional Where: Saturday, July 29 When: Grimsthorpe Castle, UK What’s going on: The ninth Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional, the event for the ‘ordinary’ and ‘mundane’ classic cars of the late 1960s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s, will take place on July 29. Returning to Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire, there will be hundreds of classics on show, while 50 cars will compete for the Concours de l’Ordinaire. Judges will get to choose the most unexceptional winner in each class, and nominations are now open. Tickets are priced at £25 per car (not per person).  Find out more: hagerty.co.uk/official-events/ hagerty-festival-of-the-unexceptional…

It’s funny how childhood memories can stay with you, and for a petrolhead like Rav Dhuna, they often involve cars. “I grew up in Southall, West London. There were so many Triumph Stags and Capris driving around. The sound of the 3-litre Capris thundering up the Broadway is something that left a huge impression on me. The style, the chrome and the V6 roar made it for me. There was one particular guy who drove a red one with cream leather interior. I thought to myself, one day.” Rav’s first car was a Mk3 Escort Van at the tender age of 17. Being the 1990s, this was, of course, duly treated to RS Turbo wheels and bodykit. Rav then bought a Capri 280 Brooklands when he was 21. Power Engineering…

The Ford RS Owners Club of Australia celebrated its 40th anniversary over a weekend at the National Motor Racing Museum at Bathurst — only a stone’s throw from the famous Mount Panorama racetrack. The club began two years after the last Aussie-built Mk2 Escort RS2000 left the factory in Homebush, New South Wales in 1980. It’s unlikely that any of the early club members would have suspected that Ford Australia wouldn’t sell another RS until 2010 when a boatload of Mk2 Focus RS arrived here. A dinner was held on the Saturday night in one of the museum’s halls, where the members enjoyed a meal while surrounded by some classic Touring Cars. A Group A Sierra race car from the Frank Gardner run B&H team was positioned as an appropriate…

Some people don’t even know that Ford made a Mk1 1300 Sport, let alone have ever seen one in the metal,” laughs 33-year-old automotive paint sprayer Jason West. “And with just 52 examples known to still exist in the UK, it just shows what an incredibly rare car this is, especially with this level of originality and condition.” And with its perfect Sunset Red paintwork and unblemished chrome trim of the dogbone front grille surround glinting in the harsh spring sunlight, you could be forgiven for thinking this example had just rolled off the production line, but as Jason can testify, there was a little more to it than that. But first, a brief history lesson from Jason… “The 1300 Sport model was launched in 1971 and had the looks…

Hear the initials ZVH and most people immediately assume turbo. And it’s one where monster power has been produced to boost the lowly 1600 CVH to a con rod-busting 2-litres and beyond using the Zetec bottom end. We’re all familiar with the huge numbers that can be achieved (350 bhp in some instances) but what if you leave the turbo off? Now, that might seem like a daft move, but the whole point of a ZVH is that you can up the capacity fairly easily. At the same time, you don’t have to go to all the hassle of switching management since the standard RS Turbo hardware simply bolts back in. So why can’t that equally apply to normal aspiration? The Zetec block on which the conversion is based, is…

It’s an enduring reality of motorsport that race cars aren’t built for posterity or longevity. They aren’t conceived to one day become icons. They’re just built to win. The team in question takes all of the know-how and technology – and budget – available to them and puts together the most competitive machine they can. And then, after a season or two, they build something better and chuck the old one away. Yet with a renewed and growing interest in the Supertouring era of the British Touring Car Championship, it’s pleasing to find that enough of these racers of various brands exist to fill a grid or two and let them ride again in period style, and the car we have here is a genuine ex-BTCC entrant from 1995, wearing…

Info Contacts I Cleenz Macheenz 020 8659 0047 www.icmhome.org.uk The alternator plays one of the most important roles in your classic Ford from charging the battery, so the high current draw of the starter motor can be accommodated on cold mornings, through to powering the electrical systems when you’re on the move. Like all mechanical components, however, it is susceptible to wear and tear with failure likely to leave you stranded. While the principles of how they work may baffle most people — an electromagnet (the rotor) spins within a set of conductors (the stator) and, after rectification, outputs a Direct Current (DC) — understanding that a brush pressed up against a rotating piece of metal can wear, as can a bearing, means they become much easier to deal with.…

You have to admire young ambition and the huge enthusiasm that comes with it. If you ever wanted proof of that, Cian, the owner of this cool-cut Mk1 Estate is just 18, but not only has he got himself on the ladder early, he’s been planning it that way for many years. “I had money saved from many years of birthday and Christmas present gifts to buy this car,” he explains. The result of hard saving and a passion for classic Fords is the Mk1 Escort Estate project seen here, overseen by his dad, Phil. It helps that Cian’s dad happens to have the credentials to aid the project, as he reveals to us. “So far I have done most of the work with the help of my dad, who…

CLARKE JUMP STARTER/INFLATOR £116.39 Machine Mart Worried about being caught with a flat battery or tyre? Panic no more! Machine Mart sells this handy portable unit that can both start batteries and inflate tyres. The Clarke Jumpstart 910, which comes with a built-in air compressor, also provides vital standby or emergency power as well as jump-starting your classic Ford if the battery is flat. Contact: 0115 9565555, www.machinemart.co.uk WEBER DCD CARB FLOATS £59.45 Webcon Replacement floats for the Weber DCD carburettor are once again available. The float was out of production, but is now being made from state-of-the-art Spansil which gives a more consistent, reliable product than the older brass types and is resilient to modern fuels. Order yours with part number 4103001100. Contact: 01932 787100, www.webcon.co.uk W-PLATE FOR ESSEX…

1. CUSTOM GRAPHICS How much? £10-200 How hard: ★★☆☆☆ What we’re talking about here are those obscure badges that make you look twice, from old race team logos to long-gone dealer stickers. What about mixing it up with some Porsche-inspired Carrera sill scripts on your street-style Mk2 Escort? If you’ve got a vinyl cutter you’re already on it, if not then try scanning or photocopying old pictures and then contact your local sign makers or try I Say Ding Dong for a quote (www.isaydingdong.co.uk). Easily reversible, too... 2. ACCESSORISE How much? £5-500 How hard: ★☆☆☆☆ We’re not talking supermarket tat here, no we’re far more selective. Raydot fog lamps, RGA spoilers, Paddy Hopkirk bonnet straps, aftermarket logo gearknobs, Yazaki gauges... Hunting down and collecting period accessories is affordable and can…

The scene is set — the 2023 Summernats Car Festival, Canberra, Australia. At every turn, outrageous, mega-horsepower, mechanical beasts with fire and brimstone souls assault your senses. Ground-shaking choppy V8 idles are complimented by tyres so big they could be on a steamroller. Open exhaust systems send the ashes out, while huge air scoops grab any and all available air to stuff inside, and standing too close can see your baseball cap disappear in the blink of an eye. This Aussie car event delivers the best, the wildest and the most mind-blowing vehicles. Amidst the craziness, a red car suddenly breaks cover, and the crowds reaction is instantaneous. The car is an eye-popping candy apple red 1968 Mk2 Cortina, and the owner Derek Mackay is on the receiving end of…

What’s been done this month: Checked over and fitted the new engine, along with glorious downdraught IDFs, bought another Mk3 Escort... Next on the to-do list: Sell the red Mk3 Escort, source a decent manifold and system for the Sierra Thanks to: MJ Racing 01698 259737 Webcon 01932 787100 www.webcon .co.uk It’s been a long time coming, but finally the Sierra now has its fresh replacement engine fitted. The original 1.8 Pinto was always destined to be swapped out, and when it started feeling more tired and occasionally only running on three it was time to haul it out and get the 2-litre in. The 205 block-based engine was bought over a year ago, but that time has flown in. It was purchased on good faith as a freshly-rebuilt unit…

Granted, it’s a far cry from when the rally went right through the island of Ireland for five-days but the Circuit of Ireland’s history, as one of the oldest rallies in the world, remains at the heart. An ageing population of organisers within the Ulster Automobile Club forced a deal with another club, in Cookstown, to keep the rally alive — and bring the band of cars to the market town and surrounding stages. The joint effort netted four stages, repeated twice on roads of which some were unused in competition for over 20 years. Solihull’s Oliver Benton and Kyle Diffin were fastest in the classic Ford scene, jumping up from their car 36 seeding to 16th overall and a up to 2100cc multivalve class win, from Toyota Starlet campaigner,…

Ford might have been distinctly late to the supermini party, but it certainly made an entrance with the Fiesta. Unveiled in February 1977, it immediately stole attention from established rivals, such as the Volkswagen Polo, Renault 5, and Fiat 127, and just six months after launch it was Europe’s fastest-selling car. It was a good job too, as Ford had a lot riding on the Fiesta’s success. Not only was the crisply-styled hatchback designed to tap into a huge, rapidly-evolving sector, but the manufacturer had also pumped an unprecedented amount of cash into what was internally known as the Bobcat project. As well as being its first supermini, the Fiesta also represented Ford UK’s first foray away from its traditional engine, drivetrain, and body preferences, bringing the manufacturer’s range bang…

Great news for YB fans: Costec has reached the final test phase of its brand-new Cosworth YB engine blocks. The company was set up in 2008 by Jeremy Scott, who previously worked at Cosworth specialising in the YB engine — and one of Costec’s aims was to reproduce the YB 200 block in cast iron. “Working with advice from the FIA, we have produced a ‘sympathetic replica’ with cast main caps that has gone through two years of testing,” says Jeremy. “Harvey Gibbs of SCS and Karl Norris of Norris Motorsport have both been involved in development. All-up weight is 54 kg with caps; the core plugs on the side of the block are machined in, as there are two pillars behind so it will not break through to the…

A new exhibition at the National Motor Museum offers a fascinating look at how the future of the motor car was imagined in the past. The ‘Motopia? Past Future Visions’ exhibition will examine how the futuristic concepts of days gone by have become reality, looking at car design, propulsion, including visions from the world of science fiction. It will display landmark vehicles like the Volkswagen XL1 plug-in hybrid, the Sinclair C5, as well as a Columbia Electric vehicle from 1901. The exhibition at Beaulieu in the New Forest, Hampshire, will run until April 14 next year.…

To paraphrase The A-Team’s cigarchomping Hannibal Smith, we love it when a plan comes together, and on a sunny Sunday in May, it did just that as the reborn Classic Ford Show made a triumphant return to the West Sussex countryside. After last year’s sun-soaked but tentative first event at the South Of England Event Centre, could the Classic Ford Show repeat the trick in 2023? Thankfully, yes — though with heavy rainfall in the weeks leading up to the show, some last-minute tweaks were needed to the layout to avoid some soggy ground. But no matter, on the day the sun was out and so were the smiles, as 1000s of enthusiasts descended on the event centre. Moving the Classic Ford Show from a track-based to a static event…

Trick induction How hard:★★★★★★ One that isn’t necessarily budget — and in reality isn’t at all — but a well-installed over-the-top induction system gives a massive wow-factor to any engine. A pair of sidedraughts are almost standard classic Ford now but tricking them out with whopping trumpets and OCD-style detail sets them apart. Better still is moving completely away from the accepted norm — fitting downdraughts, fuel-injection converted DCOEs, or even whopping, taper-body modern throttle bodies... Hidden wiring How hard:★★★★★★ Classic Ford engine bays can sometimes be a let-down — you’ve got a beautifully-detailed engine but next to it is a washing line full of dirty laundry as the wiring runs down the inner wings draped across your paintwork. True, hiding it is tedious taking a lot of daunting rewiring…

681F vs 711M Crossflow Q Ihave a Mk2 Cortina which has the 681F block in it, and I have recently acquired a complete 711M 1600 Crossflow engine. Can I use the 681F sump on the 711M block, as I require a front bowl? Or as I’m only looking at taking the 681F out to 1660cc and installing a road/rally cam, and modifying the vales to just past GT spec, is there any point in swapping it for the 711M, as I was also contemplating using the 711M for another project. John Lever UK A Toanswer your first question, yes the front-bowl sump will bolt straight up to the 711M, though you’ll need the matching oil pick-up pipe and dipstick, too. While it’s widely recognised that the later 711M block is…

This story began in 1996, when Ford Motorsport’s Boreham operation was in transition. The Escort RS Cosworth was past its peak, chief design engineer John Wheeler had been promoted to run Ford’s Aston Martin DB7 technical operation in the Midlands, and there was turmoil at the top of the sport. The original World Rally Car regulations were due to take effect in 1997, but Ford Motorsport needed a new model. There wasn’t a suitable car to meet the new rules, and the outgoing Escort RS Cosworth – built to Group A regs – would no longer be eligible. From a technical point of view, the new rules were easy enough to meet. But would Ford have a suitable base car available by 1 January 1997? This was the dilemma. Although…

1. Don’t just renew It’s all too easy to let the direct debit continue and sign up for another year with your existing insurer. Before you do though, have a look at quotes from other insurers. If they come in cheaper and you don’t want to switch, call your existing insurer, quote the cheaper prices and quite often they will be able to bring your renewal quote down to a similar level. 2. Look at classic insurance They’re often tied into Agreed Value, limited-mileage polices but classic insurance specialists can offer some great-value policies. Most class a vehicle eligible for classic insurance as being over 20 or 25 years old, but some allow exceptions for modern classics, so do your research before you dismiss a classic insurance policy out of…