Hello,

I've just ordered my copy of 'The Book' online and am keeping my eye out for my donor car and i was wondering if its possible to use a newer escort instead of the old mk1/2, theres and abunance of cheap 1998~ escorts around here and no mk1/2's, would they be any good? or how about a 1999 fiesta (> 1.8)?

I'm not planning to race the car, just want a nice sports car to drive on a sunny day (well as sunny as we can get in the uk).

Thanks for any comments,

If you want to build it from the book, then you'll still need a live axle, from a mk1/2 escort, or one from a cortina. You'd also need the cortina front uprights. Mk3 escort onwards had IRS. You'd be better off getting a sierra and changing the rear to irs. Plans available from rorty-design.com.

I'm going to do mine as I go along, unless I see a dirt cheap cortina donor. The plan for me is to buy a zetec engine from a late escort and get the other bits as I go along. The down side is it'll cost more and I'll get a Q plate.

HTH.

Jon

If its a Severn Style car your thinking of building as "the book" would suggest then the newer Escorts are no good as they are Front Wheel Drive.

The engines out of the mentioned cars could all be made to fit and posibly many other parts but the build would still require you to get a Rear Wheel Drive gearbox and rear diff etc.

So its either keep chaceing the Elusive Mk1 or Mk2 Escorts or switch to a Sierra based build

The reason for using MK1 and 2 escorts, is because they are rear wheel drive, later ones are FWD, not much use as a doner.

one finger typing lets me down again

[Edited on 17/6/06 by Wadders]

ah of course, i didn't even think about the rear wheel vs front wheel drive aspect, i'll have to go with the Sierra plans then, there's tons of 2L Sierras around here too.

I've seen some plans online for the locost, would i be right in thinking that i would need to go for the locost+4" plans to fit the Sierra bits?

the ones from mcsorley.net?

I think you'll still need to adapt for IRS if you use mcsorley. The other problem is the pinto might be too tall, and you'll need a shallow sump. Oh and a type 9 box.

[Edited on 17/6/06 by joneh]