TWIN TURBO’D! OCTOBER 2022 ISSUE 452 £5.50 1STFORDS FOR FIESTA ST150 ROYAL FOCUSFURIOUSRSSTMONDEO ST200 How to bag a future classic THE UK’S NUMBER ONE FORD TUNING MAGAZINE TUNE IT BUY IT OCTOBER 2022 ISSUE 452 £5.50 Mk6 ST top tuning tips FORDFAIR 2022 All the action from the biggest Blue Oval event of the year BOOSTEDV8TRACK-OPTIMISEDMUSTANGBY TWO BLOWERS PrincessSeriesLegendaryOneRSTurboonceownedbyDiana 600bhp-plus Mk2 is not to be messed with
For over 40 years Collins Performance has been the leading name for tuning Fords in the UK. Using our extensive in house engineering workshops, software development department and rolling road we continue to o er the best in bespoke tuning packages. Unit 6, Newman Close, Congleton, Cheshire CW12 4TR collinsperformance.com Fiesta MK7/7.5 ST180 Upgrade Packages CP2 220bhp-CP5 340bhp Prices from £360.00 inc vat 1.0 Ecoboost Upgrade Packages CP1 145bhp-CP4 190bhp Prices from £300.00 inc vat Puma ST Upgrade Package CP1 240bhp Prices from £360.00 inc vat Focus MK2 ST225 Upgrade Packages CP1 270bhp- CP3 340bhp Prices from £300.00 inc vat Focus MK3 RS Upgrade Packages CP1 370bhp- CP3 490bhp Prices from £300.00 inc vat Fiesta Mk8 ST Upgrade Packages CP1 240bhp- CP3 290bhp Prices from £360.00 inc vat Focus MK2 RS Upgrade Packages CP1 340bhp- CP3 420bhp Prices from £300.00 inc vat Focus MK3 ST Upgrade Packages CP1 280 bhp- CP2 315bhp Prices from £300.00 inc vat
Unit 6, Newman Close, Congleton, Cheshire CW12 4TR mongooseexhausts.com #TunersChoice Application FullDownpipeDecatSportGPF Cat DPF/GPF System Pipe Cat DeleteBackBack Sierra/SapphireCosworth2wdSierra/SapphireCosworth4wdEscortCosworthEscortRSTurboFocusMK1RSFocusMk1ST170FocusMK2ST225 Application FullDownpipeDecatSportGPF Cat DPF/GPF System Pipe Cat DeleteBackBack Focus MK2 RS Focus MK3 ST250 Focus MK3 ST TDCi Focus MK3 RS Fiesta MK7 1.6 Zetec S Fiesta MK7 1.0 Ecoboost Fiesta MK7 ST180 Fiesta MK8 1.0 Ecoboost Fiesta MK8 ST Mongoose Exhausts Systems are one of the most highly regarded stainless steel exhaust manufacturers in the UK o ering an expanding range of exceptionally high quality performance enhancing sports exhaust systems for many marques of Withcars.over 40 years extensive experience of tuning cars our Mongoose brand of exhausts system are designed, developed using our extensive in house facilities in Congleton including our 4wd rolling road. All Mongoose Exhausts are made in the UK from T304 aerospace grade stainless steel, bent using the nest mandrel bending machines and welded by experienced and enthusiastic sta to exacting standards. Every Mongoose Exhaust component, be it a down pipe, a back box, or a full exhaust system is designed on the car it is meant to t – that way we can guarantee a perfect t every time.
4 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 CONTENTS ISSUE 452 OCTOBER 2022 REGULARS 14 NEWS What's new in the Ford world? 19 FORD PRODUCTS Hot goodies for your Ford. 48 PRINT MY FORD Your Blue Ovals in full print glory. 55 PROJECT CARS We welcome back a familiar face to the projects pages this month. 94 SUBSCRIBE Fantastic deals on the mag. 97 FORGOTTEN FORDS Did Ford really consider making an Escort Cosworth Speedster? 98 NEXT ISSUE What's coming up in Fast Ford... 5562 26 82 08 19 70 SHOWS & EVENTS 40 16 WHAT’S ON List of shows and meets coming up in the next few weeks. 40 FORD FAIR 2022 Full show report from the biggest Blue Oval event of the year. 88 RS CROFT All the action from the Durham and Derbyshire RSOC event.
5OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD MOTORSPORT 08 FOCUS ST Well-tuned fast-road Focus packing over 640bhp. 20 DIANA RS TURBO The full story of Princess Diana’s black Series One Escort RS Turbo. 26 SIERRA ESTATE Sleeper looks concealing a turbocharged ST170 motor. 32 MUSTANG V8 The UK’s first twin-turbo’d RHD S550 Mustang, making 950bhp. 70 MODIFYING GUIDE: MK6 FIESTA ST How to get the most from the heroic little hot hatch. 76 TURBO FAILURES We look at the most common causes of turbo failure, and how to prevent them. 82 BUYING GUIDE: MONDEO ST200 The BTCC-inspired ST200 is surely a future investment. Here’s how to buy one while they’re cheap. TECHFEATURED CARS 20 8832 76 62 FORDS MOTORSPORTIN Latest updates from Fords in the BTCC, GT4 and WRC. 68 TRACK THRUXTONGUIDE: Our guide to tackling the fastest track in the UK. CONTENTS
And Reuben wanted to be different; he set about building what is believed to be the UK’s first twin-turbo’d right-hand-drive S550. The result is a bonkers 950bhp muscle car that’s just at home on the racetrack as it is on the street or strip. Read all about it on page 32.
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ISSUE 452 - OCTOBER 2022 H ow amazing was Ford Fair this year? With beautiful sunshine, loads to see to and do, plus a load of truly stunning fast Fords on display all around the show, it’s easily my favourite event of the year.
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If you need further proof of why Ford Fair is the biggest and best Blue Oval event of the year, check out our show report on page 40. You know what else I love about the fast Ford scene? Your determination to do things your own way, and not to follow the crowd or take the easy path. Reuben Grech is a perfect example of that; he could have easily bolted a supercharger onto his Mustang and enjoyed some silly bhp figures. But anyone can do that.
One more thing I love about the Ford scene is the pedigree and history. One car that sums that up more than any other is perhaps the iconic black Series One Escort RS Turbo that Princess Diana used to drive. By the time you read this, the unique fast Ford would have gone under the hammer at auction and no doubt be all over social media. But if you want to know the true story behind this car and its history, be sure to read the feature on page 20. Enjoy the mag! Jamie
I’m still beaming from the show (and my head is still glowing from the sunburn too!), because for me it shows what the fast Ford scene is all about. I loved the fact that one minute I was talking to enthusiastic club members about their cars and the next minute I’m chatting to current top-flight racing drivers, motorsport teams, and legends from Group A glory days. And they were all mingled together, everyone just out enjoying the day in the sun chatting to like-minded enthusiasts about cars. Where else can you experience that?
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PART OF THE FAST CAR ENTERTAINMENT FAMILY WWW.FASTCAR.CO.UK INSTAGRAM @fastfordmagazine GET IN TOUCH! EMAIL fastford.ed@kelsey.co.uk FACEBOOK facebook.com/fastfordmag SUBSCRIBEANDSAVE! 7OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD INTRO
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BELT & BRACES Plumber Mason Klingsick knows all about the importance of reliability – his pumped-up Focus ST has 641bhp on tap, it’s hot on the gas and built to last Words GRAHAM LEIGH / P hotos JASON DODD MK2 FOCUS ST FAST FORD OCTOBER 20228
A Stage 1 remap and induction kit with Proram filter followed. We all know how these projects can snowball, and before long the decision was made to go all out and have a forged motor built. But why use an ST?
Matt Lewis Motorsport was entrusted with the comprehensive build. A linered block
Eventually, he saw the Blue Oval-shaped light and crossed the county line to Cambridgeshire to pick up this Focus in 2019. He says, “I’ve had loads of other cars, but I never really kept them for long – normally only for about five or six months. That was until I got the ST.” Mason was initially unsure if he wanted to modify the Focus, but liked the idea of an unabused blank canvas to avoid the all-too-familiar undoing of somebody else’s handiwork. So an RW Developments 3.5in turbo-back exhaust system was the first mod, which helped with breathing and made the gorgeous five-cylinder burble more audible.
A Suzuki Swift Sport doesn’t sound like the ideal starting point for a fast Ford fan, but for Suffolk-based Mason Klingsick, it was the first in a long line of motors he tried before finding his rightful place at Uncle Henry’sQuickfeet.tomodify the Suzuki, Mason added a custom exhaust, semi-slicks and an induction kit. Since then, many cars have spent time on the Klingsick driveway, including a caged and tuned Audi TT and a sorted Subaru Impreza WRX.
Mason explains, “I saw there was an opportunity to do something different and build a top-flight ST, as most of the big-power builds use an RS as the starting point.”
OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD 9
DRIVER SPEC AGEKLINGSICKMASON 23 JOB Plumbing and heating engineer INSTAGRAM X600 BYE FIRST FORD Ford Focus ST Mk2 BEST MODIFICATION Screamer pipe FAVOURITE FORD SHOW OR EVENT? IOW Take Over or Ford Fair TRACK DAY OR SHOW & SHINE? “Both really, as I like the car to look nice but still want to use it” SIERRA RS500 OR FOCUS RS500? Sierra RS500 WRC OR BTCC? WRC LESSONS LEARNT FROM THIS PROJECT? “Everything takes time to make it work” WHAT’S NEXT “I will probably go for more power at some point in the future” THANKS “Red5 Carbon Fibre for always helping me with the parts I needed, Dean at RW Developments for his fabrication, including the full custom exhaust and screamer pipe, Matt at Matt Lewis Motorsport for all the engine work and performance parts and for keeping me fully updated throughout the build, Rally Flapz for supplying the mud flaps” Boot-mounted battery and fuel system Bronze rims get the medal STproducesfive-pot641bhp Screamer pipe spits flames MK2 FOCUS ST 10 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
The welded top of the Spec-R oil filter housing eliminates the leakage problem that the plastic originals often suffer. An air-con delete was required to install a substantial Airtec Gobstopper intercooler. Elsewhere, the Airtec catalogue was hit up for a gearbox torque mount, header tank and power steeringMasontank.reports that the most challenging part of the build was getting the screamer pipe to fit. Dean at RW Developments came up trumps with his superb fabrication work, and modified the Nortech tubular manifold to allow the screamer pipe to exit via the bonnet. No mean feat, as it manages to start at the back of the engine, avoid water pipes and the strut brace, and exit adjacent to the centre of the head. Seeing flames shoot into the night sky when the car is pushing on reportedly never gets old. While the car was dismantled, it was a good opportunity to have the gearbox
“I saw an opportunity to do something different and build a top-flight ST, as most of the bigpower builds use an RS as the starting point” cockpitCarbon-clad
are a tried-and-tested duo, while the Matt Lewis Motorsport and Spec-R collaboration breather system and Mishimoto oil cooler ensure lubrication temperatures stay safe.
11OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
TECH SPEC 2008 FORD FOCUS ST ENGINE 2522cc linered block, Mahle Motorsport pistons 8.5:1, K1 H-beam rods, Mahle Motorsport big end bearings, King Racing main bearings, reconditioned head with Stage 1 Newman cams, polished crank, 1000cc injectors, Matt Lewis Motorsport Spec-R breather system and fittings, Matt Lewis Motorsport Mishimoto oil cooler system in gold, Ford oil pump, Ford cambelt kit and water pump, Ford/Victor Reinz complete engine gasket set, modified Nortec tubular manifold and screamer pipe, Garrett GTX3582R Gen 2 turbo, Turbosmart 50mm wastegate, Nuke Performance fuel system with surge tank and Matt Lewis Motorsport custom modified fuel rail, Mishimoto heat shielding, Powerflex upper engine and upper gearbox mounts, Powerflex exhaust mounts, Airtec torque mount, Airtec header tank, Airtec power steering tank, Airtec Gobstopper intercooler, Anembo 70mm throttle body, Anembo inlet plenum, air-con delete kit with powder-coated red bracket, RW Developments 3.5in custom turbo-back exhaust system, Syvecs S6 Plus ECU with Toucan display, Syvecs induction kit with Proram filter, Syvecs Fuel Flex system POWER 641bhp TRANSMISSION Rebuilt original ST M66 sixspeed gearbox with Wavetrac LSD SUSPENSION Stance+ coilovers all round BRAKES Front: Focus ST ventilated 320mm discs and single-piston callipers, with uprated discs and pads; rear: Focus ST 280mm discs and callipers, with uprated discs and pads WHEELS & TYRES 8.5x18in Bola B15 alloy wheels in bronze, 5x108 PCD, ET40 with 225/40/18 Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres EXTERIOR Maxton Design lowline kit, Maxton Design spoiler extension and rear diffuser, carbon fibre Rally Flapz mud flaps, carbon fibre front and rear badges, carbon fibre side badges, carbon fibre door handles, carbon fibre mirrors, carbon fibre bonnet with WRC-style vents, carbon fibre headlight washer covers, Zunsport grille set, custom gel plates, carbon fibre stubby aerial, Team Heko wind defectors
INTERIOR Full RS interior reupholstered in black leather and Alcantara with red stitching and red ST embroidery, carbon fibre sunglasses holder, carbon fibre custom steering wheel, carbon fibre custom gearknob by SS Tuning, carbon fibre handbrake handle, carbon fibre air vents, carbon fibre seat backs, carbon fibre centred clocks, custom speedo and rev gauge, Alcantara top boost pod cover, custom leather and Alcantara parcel shelf, Alcantara door card inserts, leather and Alcantara armrest, Toucan display in air vent, fuel system and battery relocated to boot was selected to ease the worries of cracks; the build added Mahle Motorsport pistons and big end bearings, K1 H-beam rods, King Race main bearings and a polished crank. The head was reconditioned and fitted with Stage 1 Newman cams, chosen for the accessible power band of 1500-to-6000rpm.
A Nuke Performance fuel system with surge tank and modified fuel rail feed 1000cc injectors. A dual ceramic ball bearing Garrett GTX3582R Gen 2 turbo is paired with a Tubosmart 50mm wastegate. An Anembo enlarged throttle body and plenum
Also helping the front wheels gain some traction is the Syvecs S6 Plus ECU. As well as the obvious stand-alone mapping benefits, this system features anti-lag, launch control and torque biasing traction control. It’s used with a Syvecs Fuel Flex sensor that closely monitors fuel content and quality and relays the info to the management system. Again, this setup is as much about belt-and-braces safety as it is pure performance. Powerflex mounts were used for the upper engine, gearbox and exhaust. While a 641bhp rolling road figure is not for the faint-hearted, Mason hopes to break the 700 barrier with a sidewinder turbo setup in future. Elsewhere, he intends to swap the Stance+ coilovers for a BC Racing kit. A K-Sport big brake kit is also on the cards, as although the ST is running uprated discs and pads, the monumental power increase is working them a little too hard. Many well-thought-out feature cars follow a theme throughout the build, and Mason’s is no exception. Although an RS Focus liberated its Recaro interior, Mason wanted to sing his ST song loud and proud, and thus had the Recaros reupholstered in leather and Alcantara with red ST embroidery. Red stitching further ties in the exterior.
Mason has created what must be one of the best STs in the country, and with his plans for the future, there is still more to come.
free to give it some gas ST’s a ball of fire Check out the plumbing Carbon
CARBON FOOTPRINT
So despite his Swift start, we’re pleased Mason swapped to fast Fords. And with his attention to detail and robust approach to tuning, we’re sure we’ll be seeing this car about for years to come. Strong stuff.
reconditioned. Mason says, “I chose a Wavetrac LSD as opposed to a Quaife, as I was keen not to default to RS parts where I could.”
Mason has gone to town with the wonder weave, and the theme flows throughout the car. Red 5 Carbon Fibre was responsible for most of it, and the quality is first class. While the bonnet is the first thing most will clock, there are numerous trim pieces and accessories everywhere. Outside you’ll find carbon fibre is the material of choice for the mud flaps, badges, door handles, mirrors, headlight washer covers and stubby aerial. The party continues inside, where you’ll find it on the steering wheel, sunglasses holder, custom gearknob, handbrake handle, air vents and binnacle surround. Combining light weight, strength and a subtle motorsport flavour, we fully approve of the touches.
On the outside, carbon fibre punctuates the Colorado Red, continuing the colour scheme except for bronze Bola B15 18in wheels; Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres inspire confidence.Masonwas keen to enhance the car’s looks while retaining the ST flavour. A Maxton lowline bodykit, spoiler extension and rear diffuser fit the bill perfectly, while rally-style mud flaps and WRC-style bonnet vents give a good clue that Mason is a self-confessed WRC fan. A Zunsport grille set modernises the front end a treat with its fine, neater-looking mesh. The red colour-coded Airtec script on the intercooler gives a clue to the car’s intentions.
vent
combo MK2 FOCUS ST 12 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
Mason’s bonnetRS-ST Recaro
T housands of Blue Oval fans rolled into Silverstone on 14 August 2022 to be part of the biggest Ford show of the season. Now in its 37th year, Ford Fair attracted Fords of all shapes and sizes and thousands of Blue Oval fans, who all enjoyed the fabulous weather, excellent displays and live demos – and, of course, the very best Blue Ovals the fast Ford scene has to offer. We were there (naturally), and you can read our full show report over on page 40.
The original (Mk1) Focus remained on sale until 2004, since when there have been three further generations of what was Ford’s biggest-selling model. We will miss it.
NEWS
The original Focus was introduced back in 1998, bringing new levels of handling, grip and driver appeal to what was a golden era for Ford, with the company’s New Edge styling bringing cutting-edge looks to match the car’s dynamic driving style.
The Focus will stop production in 2025 commented Stuart Rowley, Ford of Europe boss, although the company is said to be looking into ‘other alternative opportunities for vehicle production’. Ford’s next priority is its new-generation electric car family, which will be built in Valencia, Spain from next year. Meanwhile, the Focus has dropped out of the UK top ten in recent months, with Ford’s strongest sellers now being its Puma and Kuga SUVs.
P roduction of the Focus will end in 2025, Ford has announced. The demise of the family hatch is also likely to mean the end of Ford production in Saarlouis, Germany (home to some of the greatest fast Fords we’ve ever seen) – although the firm has yet to confirm that the plant will be closed. “We don’t have in our planning cycle an additional model that goes into Saarlouis,” OUT OF FOCUS
See what’s going down in the world of fast Fords...
14 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 WHAT'S NEW
FORD FAIR HUGE SUCCESS
The HCVA is working alongside specialist CAPRI
Capri GT4 is a rare car
E ver seen a Capri GT4 before? We hadn’t until now, but Mick Skipp took his freshly restored example to the Classic Ford Show in July. It’s quite possibly the only one currently on the road. Never heard of the GT4? We’re not surprised. Produced in 1980, it was the first of a long run of special edition Mk3s, with a choice of three colours (Stratos Silver, Diamond White or Signal Red), a 1600cc Pinto, one-off decals, and Chocolate Brown GL trim.
T he world is focused on electric cars right now, but are we in danger of missing out on alternatives in our blinkered approach for plug-and-play motoring?
SYNTHETICGT4
internal combustion engines for historic vehicles but switching to synthetic fuels, we can create a virtuous circle.”
Director of the HCVA, Guy Lachlan, told the Classics World website: “Using sustainable and synthetic liquid fuels is clearly vital for the future of classic motoring. There’s much support from legislators, who are increasingly understanding that investment must be deployed in technologies such as future liquid fuels, and not just electrification.”
CKL Developments, which has been testing a customer’s race car at Goodwood using synthetic fuels developed by Coryton Advanced Fuels. The test using a mix of conventional and synthetic fuels proved successful, with the car performing exceptionally well at Goodwood. Garry Wilson, CEO of the HCVA, commented: “We’re pleased to support the future of our historic and classic industry and vehicle owners through the development of these fuels, and are extremely grateful to Coryton and CKL Developments for this first test. By retaining
The Historic & Classic Vehicles Alliance (HCVA) – the not-for-profit organisation created to support the historic vehicle sector – has joined forces with industry specialists involved in the development of synthetic fuels. The HCVA sees synthetic fuel research as essential if the sector is to achieve the government target of ‘net zero’ by 2050.
The HCVA plans to seek extra funding to help with ongoing research into the use of synthetic fuels.
15OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD WHAT'S NEW
Are emissions?tofuelssynthetictheanswerlowercarbon
FUELS INSTEAD OF EVS
See what fantastic shows and events are coming up for Ford fans in the weeks ahead
30
ts/4954204278040618/4954204291373950www.facebook.com/even OCTOBER 02 OCTOBER HAYNES BREAKFAST CLUB Haynes International Motor Museum, Sparkford, Yeovil, Somerset haynesbreakfastclubwww.haynesmuseum.org/ 09 OCTOBER PRE-1998 CLASSIC CAR MEET Club Chesterfield, Chester Street, Chesterfield, www.facebook.com/aspartyevents/events 11 OCTOBER GAYDON GATHERING British Motor Museum, Lighthorne Heath, Warwick, UK www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/whats-on
been continuously evolving, and now
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Somerset haynesbreakfastclubwww.haynesmuseum.org/ 11 SEPTEMBER TRAX SILVERSTONE Silverstone Circuit, Northants www.fastcar.co.uk/trax-Silverstone 13 SEPTEMBER GAYDON GATHERING British Motor Museum, Lighthorne Heath, Warwick, UK www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/whats-on 14 SEPTEMBER FWD THINKING Caffeine & Machine, Stratford-upon-AvonEttington, caffeineandmachine.com/events 25 SEPTEMBER SCOTTISH FORD LIVE Knockhill Circuit, Dunfermline, Fife Ford-Live-id350www.knockhill.com/events/fixture-Scottish25 SEPTEMBER SQUIRES FORDMEET Squires Cafe, Newthorpe Lane, Newthorpe, South Milford, Leeds. www.squires-cafe.co.uk/whats-on 28 SEPTEMBER CLASSIC & RETRO MEET Dorman Long United Athletic Club, Oxford Road, Linthorpe,
O ur favourite multi-marque show returns to Silverstone on 11 September. TRAX, powered by Turbo Zentrum, promises to deliver fast-paced action throughout the day; the legendary Silverstone National Circuit will be in full swing, giving you the chance to really test your mettle (and metal) on the famous racetrack. If spectating is more your thing, you’ll not want to miss the Drift Kings demos. Elsewhere, the TRAX Select sponsored by Auto Finesse will host some of the most impressive cars on show, all fighting to take home the coveted winner’s trophy, while the awesome club displays and massive retail village will keep you busy throughout the day. To book your tickets, head to www.fastcar.co.uk/trax-silverstone Yeovil, Middlesbrough, UK
04SEPTEMBERSEPTEMBER HAYNES BREAKFAST CLUB Haynes International Motor Museum, Sparkford,
a 530bhp track-focussed monster. Also, next issue we’ll have full reports from the RSOC National Day and The Classic, Silverstone. Plus loads more! Pre-order now: issue/View/issue/FTF454https://shop.kelsey.co.uk/*CHECK BEFORE YOU GO! – While all dates and details were correct at the time of going to press, we urge you to double check info with event organisers before heading off! 16 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 WHAT'S NEW
die, they just get faster. But that same attitude exists with modern Blue Oval ownership too. And to prove it, just check out Jack Strathdee’s Focus RS coming up in the November issue.
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£328.49 HP Tuners has launched its new MPVI3 multi-protocol vehicle interface. Building on the MPVI2+, the MPVI3 retains the same great benefits of its predecessors but also adds revised hardware and helpful features. Those features include 8Gb storage, faster stand-alone logging, higher resolution accelerometer, full integration with the Pro Feature Set, and a system developed to welcome future upgrades. The MPVI3 dongle is the physical interface between car and tuner, and HP Tuner’s VCM Suite provides theandnewTocalibrationdiagnostic,comprehensivethescanning,loggingandsoftware.learnmoreabouttheHPTunersinterfaceallitsbenefits,visitwebsite. www.hptuners.eu
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Gaz is reintroducing the Gold coilover kit for the Sapphire and Escort Cosworth 4x4. Offering 60mm of ride-height adjustment, plus adjustable damping via the adjuster on the damper body, the Gold range allows users to fine-tune their suspension. To ensure they last, the Gaz units are plated with black zinc and fitted with anodised adjusters, plus feature a coarse Acme form thread for ease of adjustment. The Gold range comes with a gas cell and high-viscosity index multigrade oil to prevent cavitation and reduce fade under racing and track-day conditions. All units are individually tested and covered by a twoyear warranty. For more info, speak to Gaz Shocks. www.gazshocks.com
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From £25 Automotive artist Darren Curtis has come up with two new Ford prints, including the Mk1 Focus RS and Bullitt Mustang, featuring unique attributes of the original cars, but given a stylised and contemporary graphic treatment. Both high-quality prints are supplied unframed and are available in two sizes: 29.7x42 cm (A3) and the larger 50x70 cm — the latter Gicléeprinted on 200gsm matt art paper. Both sizes will fit standard-size frames. motiveculture.com
Scorpion’s new Predator exhaust system for the Puma is not for the faint of heart; as with other products in the Predator range, it removes the rear silencer completely. Scorpion advises that it is for closed-circuit use only, but with all restrictions removed (especially when fitted alongside a sports GPF or GPF-delete), the Predator system significantly improves flow compared to the OE exhaust (for maximum performance potential) and unleashes an almighty roar too. Available as a valved or non-valved option, with 90mm polished Daytona, or the 90mm carbon Ascari tailpipes, it’ll add a visual boost to the back end too. For more details, speak to Scorpion.
From £5.94 (250ml) Goodridge’s new brake and clutch fluid is available in ‘performance’ and ‘race’ versions, compatible with DOT 3 and DOT 4 braking systems. The performance fluid is available in 250ml (£5.94) and 500ml (£8.70) sizes and is rated to a dry boiling point of 269C. The race fluid is available in 500ml (£21.54) and has been specifically formulated for use by racing teams with a dry boiling point of The312C.new brake fluid is available from Goodridge dealers and distributors globally. Or for more info, visit the Goodridge online shop www.goodridge.co.uk
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£8.99 Every junior petrolhead really needs a bedtime book that will switch them on to the joys of motor racing, and this is that book. Blue Mean1e is the perfect book for the younger budding racers and car lovers, with a moral message. The story is a tale of friendship, sportsmanship and forgiveness, teaching children that real racers keep it off the streets and on the track. With 25 beautifully detailed cartoons from Colin Hardy, this is a colourful, fun and engaging way to teach your kids about racing, as well as helping to instil a sense of fair play. www.veloce.co.uk
DIANA’S ESCORT RS TURBO FAST FORD OCTOBER 202220
A ugust 1997 was drawing to a close. Millions – no, billions – of people around the globe were waking up to shocking news: Diana, Princess of Wales was dead. She’d been killed in a car crash during the early hours of the morning; the black Mercedes S280 she was traveling in had collided with a Fiat Uno and smashed into a roof support pillar in a Paris underpass. She died in hospital at 3am. Regardless of your views on royalty, there’s no denying how much impact Diana’s death made on the world. Outpourings of emotions became surreal, continuing through the media for months; even years. For many, it was life changing: Di had been an inspiration; a fairy-tale princess; how could this blessed being succumb to a mortal passing?
The People’s Princess, as it turned out, was one of us. And we mean that in the Fast Ford sense; cars were entwined with Di’s public appearances, and she spent many years behind the wheel of a great Blue Oval. Her first was a 1981 Escort 1.6 Ghia, which replaced the Austin Metro that Diana was driving when she came to the public’s attention. Prince Charles, Di’s future husband, had bought the silver Mk3 five-door as an engagement present for his fiancé in May 1981; it sported a frog mascot on the bonnet to represent a fairy tale in which a girl kisses a frog to find her prince. At auction in 2021, the Ghia sold for £52,640. Diana’s next Blue Oval is believed to have been a Regency Red Mk3 1.6i Cabriolet (registered A462 RHK), supplied on loan by Ford’s public affairs department, led by Harry Calton. It was the job of SVE’s special vehicle programmes manager Geoff Fox – who also happened to run the Cabriolet project at Karmann – to source the car.
Geoff recalls, “The Cabrio was a special build, as the body colour was only available on the Ghia Cabriolet, not the 1.6i. So if there’s an XR3i Cabriolet in Regency Red, there’s a bloody good chance it’s the same car.” Geoff was also responsible for caring for the drop-top while it spent time back at base. He says, “I once had the car with me, and it’s amazing how many people wanted to borrow the key so they could sniff the seat…” By then a fully-fledged member of the British royal family, Diana was given round-the-clock bodyguards by SO14, the Metropolitan Police’s royalty protection group. SO14 considered the convertible too conspicuous – and too easy to target by terrorists – in the days when the IRA was still active in mainland Great Britain, so the
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Words WILLIAMSON hotos ADE
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After 14 years wrapped up in the Bonkers collection, Princess Diana’s much-vaunted Escort RS Turbo is going under the hammer. Fast Ford brings you the true story behind this mythical machine…
BRANNAN THE STORY OF… OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD 21
PRINCESSDIANA’SESCORTRSTURBO
In 1985, this car was discreet...considered Di dresseshercarriedPrimarkinhere A quarter of this mileage was racked up by royalty Touched by Di, another day DIANA’S ESCORT RS TURBO 22 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
The suggestion was perfect: stylish enough to be seen in around London, sharp enough to outrun trouble, and anonymous enough to blend in with the thousands of other Fords on the roads. It was the Escort RS Turbo.
The problem was, the RS Turbo was available only in Diamond White, with bulky bodykit and in-your-face decals. It was deemed too noticeable. Harry had the solution. He had already been in talks with Fleet Street bigwig Jocelyn Stevens (one-time boss of the Daily Express and Daily Star, nicknamed Piranha Teeth, and reckoned to be proud of his hard-man reputation as a ‘posh bully’ with a habit of driving sports cars into lamp-posts; he’d also owned a series of so-called ‘souped-up’ Escorts) about building an RS Turbo in factory Black. The opportunity to produce one or two was too good to miss. So in summer 1985, Harry turned to Geoff Fox to come up with the goods. As Geoff remembers, “You couldn’t get RS Turbos in black, so it was my job to get them together. This was all organised over the phone, as friends and favours; Harry was responsible for the order (it was a company car), and I was aware of its proposed user.”
Three sets of black bodykits were supplied to Saarlouis, and three black Series One RS Turbos were built; none were factory-finished in any other colours (apart from white).
AUGUST 1985 Diana is loaned Escort RS Turbo, registered C462 FHK; there is also a decoy car, C973 HAR.
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NOVEMBER 1994 Jeff Windsor buys Diana’s RS Turbo. 2008 Mark Bailey buys Diana’s RS Turbo and enters it into his Bonkers Collection. DVLA re-registers C515 DYT as C462 FHK. 27 AUGUST 2022 Diana’s Escort RS Turbo is sold by Silverstone Auctions. 23OCTOBER 2022
As far as Geoff recalls, only the Diana car had an Escort grille in order to look more like a regular Mk3; the others wore the typical Orion/RS Turbo part. All were supplied with blue RS decals and front driving lamps. So as the Cabriolet was returned to public affairs (before being re-registered and sold), Diana was presented with the RS Turbo, wearing C462 FHK plates; the decoy was C973 HAR. Registered on 23 August 1985, she used the RS Turbo as her everyday runabout; for nipping to fancy shops, lunching with Y in the colour box represents a special order
Of the three black cars, one was for Diana, another was for use by SO14 as a decoy car for would-be assassins and paparazzi photographers, and the third was supplied to Jocelyn Stevens, who had it chauffeur-driven.
Met approached Harry Calton to provide something more discreet.
FAST FORD
1981TIMELINE Diana is given Escort 1.6 Ghia, WEV 297W. 1984 Diana is loaned red Escort 1.6i Cabriolet from Ford, A462 RHK.
Geoff recalls, “I spoke with Gordon Pollard (sales director at Marley Foam), and we (SVE) raised a prototype order to cover the cost to paint the body dress-up kit, which were the only parts not available in the plant.”
SEPTEMBER 1993 Diana’s RS Turbo is given away in a Kiss FM radio competition.
MAY 1988 Diana’s Escort RS Turbo is returned to Ford and re-registered as C515 DYT. It is then sold to Geoff King.
But it wasn’t a simple case of sending a few Escorts down the line with a different shade of paint in the gun. And, as Geoff says, “The complexity of painting the bodies off-line after assembly was too expensive, with a risk to paint quality. So the cars were all painted on line, as the black body colour was existing in the What’splant.”more, RS Turbos’ bodykits were supplied to the Saarlouis production line by Marley Foam, pre-sprayed in Diamond White.
Smells like queen spirit
“There’s an A4 box file packed with all the history, and a letter from werePalaceKensingtonsayingtheyawareofthecar”
Fuel pump has probably never tasted supermarket petrol Chassis was hidinginitialstwo
friends, and attending high-profile events. Typically, Diana’s passenger would be an armed bodyguard, so there was a radio in the glovebox (its cable still present today) and a second rear-view mirror mounted atop the windscreen. Contemporary photos also showed Di driving with then-infant Prince William in the back seat. By the time the RS was returned to Ford in May 1988, it had covered 6800 miles – most with Diana at the wheel. It’s not know why it wasn’t replaced with a Series Two, although Di was snapped at the Guards Polo Club on 29 June 1988 while driving a Sapphire Cosworth; often thought to be Mercury Grey, the Sapphire was almost certainly Crystal Blue. Its registration number, E876 EVW, has disappeared without trace.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE COLLECTION?BONKERS
See, he’s not so bonkers, after all. Not your average Escort girl owner
DIANA’S ESCORT RS TURBO 24 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
That was 2008, when the Bonkers Collection was becoming the subject of much discussion on internet groups. Mark had begun buying the lowest-mileage, lowestownership RSs he could find; they had to be original and unrestored. This four-owner and hugely rare black Escort fit the bill perfectly.
Mark confirms, “I wouldn’t have bought it without the provenance. There’s an A4 box file packed with all the history, and a letter from Kensington Palace saying they were aware of the car, but had no photos.”
Blue Oval devotee Jeff Windsor tracked down the Escort and bought it in November 1994. Jeff used the car for RS Owners’ Club events, where interest grew in this one-of-akindBeforemachine.long, it caught the attention of Ford RS enthusiast Mark Bailey – probably better known to most Ford fans as owner of the Bonkers Collection.
Di went on to drive a Jaguar XJ-S V12 Cabriolet, followed by a Mercedes 500SL and then an Audi 80 convertible. So much for SO14’s insistence on her having a hard-top… As for the RS Turbo, it was re-registered (as was typical for royal cars) by Ford as C515 DYT and sold to Geoff King, one of the firm’s managers, for his wife to use; he paid £2638. The Escort next appeared in the limelight in September 1993, when it was given away in a promotional competition by Kiss FM. The prizewinner, Miss Jones from Essex, received the car with 12,000 miles on the clock. She didn’t keep it for long because that’s when it came to the attention of the fast Ford fraternity – for its Rallye Sport heritage rather than its royal blood.
Mark says, “I approached Jeff through the club forum. It took me two years to persuade him to sell it, and I paid an awful lot of money for it at a time when very good 20,000-mile RS Turbos were going for £15,000.”
At the time, the RS was still wearing its nonroyal registration number. But Mark soon rectified it with a trip to the DVLA. He recalls, “In the press photo, it was C462 FHK. DVLA could tell from the chassis number
Fast Ford readers will surely remember Mark Bailey’s Bonkers Collection, which housed some of the best RS Fords in the world. But although many assume the Blue Ovals are still sitting side-by-side in air-conditioned extravagance, that’s far from the truth. In fact, Princess Di’s Escort is Mark’s sole remaining Blue Oval. He admits, “I sold most of the Bonkers collection about seven years ago. At one point I had 26 Ford RSs. Six RS500s. All very lowmileage with great provenance. Never did I buy an RS that had been restored.” Mark is well-known for owning Trade Centre Wales, although folk don’t realise it is one of many – he has five sites in England and two in Wales, employing 900 people. He started his business 39 years ago with one car when aged just 15. And, although he clearly knows the motor trade inside out, his passion for cars overrides their investibility. “I don’t collect classics to make money,” he says, “I buy them because I like to own them. My business is car supermarkets, but I only collect cars that I like. If they go up in value, great. If they go down, I don’t care. I grew up in the 1980s and love the nostalgia.” Surely, then, it was crazy to flog all of the Bonkers Fords? “I got bored. I sold them and bought a Lamborghini Countach, and changed into supercars. At one time I had 150 cars, including 46 Porsches. I had three full-time staff to manage them. It was too much.” Instead, Mark whittled down his collection to ten hypercars – including a one-off Bugatti Veyron, a Chiron, a P1, a 918, a 575 Maranello and Jay Kay’s green La Ferrari. He wouldn’t buy any old ordinary hypercar, either; only something extraordinary or an unusual colour. Mark lives in Monaco, where his daily driver is an Aston Martin DBX. He’s surrounded by wall-to-wall automotive extravagance. “But I still love Ford RSs,” Mark says. “I still look at them, and often think about buying another three-door or RS500. If I was offered a delivery-mileage RS500 I’d be very tempted.”
shell,
Escort’sTurbochargedCVHwasthejewelinthecrown
Sadly, Mark couldn’t bring himself to take the RS for a quick blast; he admits, “I’ve done about 200 miles in it in 14 years, just for the MOT and back. I’ve never used the car because it’s irreplaceable. To me, it’s so precious. This is one of one.” Still, Mark’s an affable chap. He’s always been keen to show his collection to fellow enthusiasts, and Diana’s Escort – still displaying just 24,961 recorded miles – has generally taken centre stage. “People get emotional when they sit in it,” he says. “People want to sniff the seat.” Even so, Mark has decided it’s time to let someone take over custody of this unique Ford. After two years’ deliberation and five different people offering six-figure sums, Mark’s entered the Escort into Silverstone Auctions on 27 August 2022 – frustratingly after Fast Ford goes to print but before it’s delivered to your door.
Mark says, “I’m now semi-retired in Monaco, and I’ve nowhere to store it. I don’t spend much time in the UK, and don’t even get chance to look at the car.
25OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
panels and butEverythingpaintwork...isoriginalbetterthannew”
“Will I regret it? Ask me when it’s sold…”
The one question that remains unanswered (for now) is how much money this Mk3 will make at auction. Given its concours condition and huge rarity as a black Series One, it’s already in the big time. And that’s before you take into account its history – of one careful lady owner… cleaned the but kept the original
“I’ll be there at the auction, and it’ll be an emotional day for me. I wear two hats – a cardealer hat and car-collector hat. I get attached to cars that I have fond memories of.
“I’ll be interested to know who buys it. I hope the buyer will be there and I can shake their hand and wish them good luck. It could go to a long-term collector and never be seen again, but I think it might go to Ireland, where a lot of big-money Fords are in collections.
all the previous registration numbers, which confirmed that C515 DYT was the same car as C462 FHK. Di certainly drove this one.” Mark asked the DVLA to return his Escort to its original identity, then began a process of further sympathetic restoration. Mark’s mechanic, Keith, stripped the RS of its glass, engine and running gear, and renovated every“Wecomponent.cleanedthe shell, but kept the original panels and paintwork. We didn’t replace the parts – we just refurbished it all; we re-zinced nuts and bolts, so everything is original but better than new,” adds Mark. “When we took the factory underseal off, we found someone had etched two initials into the shell, on the floorpan where it meets the chassis legs, before it was painted.” According to Geoff Fox, the initials were most likely inscribed by workers on the Saarlouis production line, aware that the Escort was a special order, but unaware of quite how special its intended driver would be.
“We
ROLLING PROJECT That soon changed, as fate began to play into his hands. The car became a rolling project after a small bump while driving on ice, which was followed by discovering the trusty Pinto needed attention. Kurt says, “As I straightened out the damage, I found the stem seals in the original engine had gone hard, so I figured I’d drop a Zetec on bike carbs into it, which I had sat waiting on a pallet.” Along with a few other upgrades and additions, the Sierra soon began to pick up pace, especially when a bet with a mate in the pub led to a budget-build Zetec turbo conversion. That saw a few revisions when it came to plumbing and manifold configurations, but ended up making a healthy 275bhp and led to bigger things.
SIERRA ESTATE FAST FORD OCTOBER 202226
S ometimes you find yourself falling into a project without even meaning to. But it’s often those kinds of builds that turn out best. With no tune to follow, the natural process of fate will find a way of helping. And that’s exactly how Kurt Tann turned this cheap-and-cheerful Sierra into an awesome homebuilt street sleeper. Thanks to a turbocharged home-brew special under the bonnet and an unsuspecting look inside and out, Kurt has built a truly unique fast Ford. As he likes an 1980s’ Fords, Kurt has owned a few over the years, and was in the process of rebuilding a Mk2 Orion and Mk3 Granada when he first heard this Sierra was up for sale. Kurt recalls, “A friend was eyeing the car up and decided against it. He had sent me the details, and after a chat I decided if he wasn’t going to have it, I had to have a look. I had no interest in Mk2 Sierras at all, but at £250 I couldn’t knock it for a rear-wheel-drive Ford.” Sure enough, the car appeared to be a bargain, as not only was it a tidy example, the engine bay and interior were spotless. Aside from a couple of small bits, the bodywork was decent too. Plus it had every service stamp, past MOTs and a whole load of history. But although it was great buy, Kurt didn’t have much need for the car other than to use it for a summer. “It sounds odd, but I purchased it because at the time I thought the rear end was that ugly it looked cool,” he explains. “I had no idea what to do with the car, as all I actually planned was to run it through summer 2015 to go to the Classic Ford Show and then sell it to crack on with my other cars.”
Built at home and with 400bhp on tap, this soberlooking Sierra wagon is a true homebuilt hero Words SIMON HOLMES / Photos ANDY SAUNDERS SPECIAL BREW WILD CARD OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD 27
ENGINE 1988cc ST170 Zetec engine, homemade sump, ARP bottom end studs with custom adapters to run windage tray, standard crank, PEC steel H-beam rods, ARP rod bolts, Focus RS-spec forged pistons with custom valve pockets, decked ST170 block, MLS 0.6mm head gasket, ARP head studs, ST170 head with exhaust ports flowed and polished, Peugeot 106 GTi Newman Cams 160lb valve springs and retainers, Toyota Yaris coil-on-plug setup, homemade external oil pump setup, home-made water rail, Garrett Gen 1 GTX3076R turbo, homemade exhaust manifold (Nissan SR20-based), home-made plenum (4G63 Mitsubishi-based), modified runner and throttle body flange to suit ST170 lower inlet, 80mm throttle body, Siemens Deka 875cc injectors, 280 litres-per-hour fuel pump, Facet lift pump, home-made swirl pot, 8mm copper fuel lines, Zetec-to-Cosworth lightened flywheel, home-made 3in exhaust, custom US-spec/ST170 rocker cover, modified Sierra Cosworth radiator, modified RS500-style intercooler, home-made 2.5in boost pipes, Range Rover cooling fans, Ecumaster EMU Classic engine management
Front: Gaz coilovers, Mk3 Granada anti-roll bar; rear: Gaz coilovers, XR4x4 beam; polyurethane bushes throughout BRAKES
TECH SPEC SIERRA ESTATE
Front: Sierra Cosworth four-pot callipers and discs, rear: Sierra XR4x4 discs and callipers; braided lines all round WHEELS & TYRES 7x16in Citroen
steel wheels with 165/45R16 tyres INTERIOR Sierra GLX estate trim, LD Performance dash display, Safety Devices sixpoint roll cage EXTERIOR 1990 Sierra LX estate, strengthened rear turrets, boot floor/rear wheel well removed, Ford optional front splitter; paint: Maritime Blue with red bonnet THANKS “Massive thanks to anyone that’s had any involvement with it over the years in different ways, whether motivation, advice or midnight help, and especially, Phil, Tub, Ben, Shakey, Josh and Ads, my parents and Yas” Sierra sits so low on Citroen 16s and super-skinny rubber Digital display and extra gauges keep tabs on the vitals For the road, the trimmedremainsinteriorSierra’sfully Mazda sixspeedswappercog Roll cage and GLX trim? Well, why not? SIERRA ESTATE 28 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
SUSPENSION
TRANSMISSION Mazda RX-8 gearbox, custom Zetec-to-Mazda RX-8 adapter plate, hydraulic clutch conversion, CG Motorsport Stage 3 Cosworth clutch kit, home-made propshaft, Titan Motorsport plated limited-slip diff with adapted stub shafts
Load systemforswirlhousesbaythepotthefuel
“The ST170 turbo idea came about after chatting about specs with a couple of mates”
“When that motor died after a drag racing day out in 2019, I decided if I was going to do it again, I would take the time and do it properly. So, the ST170 turbo idea soon came about from chatting about specs with a couple of mates,” remembers Kurt. The current build is the best yet and revolves around a heavily reworked ST170 engine, complete with forged pistons, steel rods and a tickled cylinder head. To go with it is a large GTX3076 turbo that, much like the rest of the build, has been fitted using Kurt’s home-brewed skills. For instance, the exhaust manifold is a Nissan 200SX item that has been heavily adapted to fit, and the same goes for the inlet plenum, which started life on a Mitsubishi Evo and has been modified to fit the ST170 lower manifold. Kurt explains, “Pretty much the majority of the work was done by me, bar a couple bits of alloy TIG welding and the odd piece of help here and there where I’ve not been able to access kit. The majority was done between sheds at home by juggling space.” Other custom parts with Kurt’s input include the sump, plumbing and external oil pump setup, although he tells us the home-brewedST170-basedenginemakes415bhp
WILD CARD 29OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
WILD CARD
Drilled
Wagon’swheels
“Mostly people laugh and it’s generally good,” says Kurt. “I think it’s down to the fact that most people can relate to wanting something similar themselves — although the bonnet can split opinion.”
With no end in sight but more ideas in the pipeline, we expect to see Kurt fermenting the special-brew Sierra a whole lot more...
Turned-down tip looks like a dirty diesel’s
Coupled with the steel wheels and sleeper style, the car always gets a good reaction.
intercoolertosuppliesbumperextraairanRS500-style
Although the car has a great, understated style, Kurt tells us it happened by accident. He reveals, “There wasn’t really a plan for the exterior, as such. But partially down to the little mishap I had, I’ve always had a soft spot for the American moonshine runner/bootlegger cars; rough enough, simple and set up with a bit of poke underneath.” With that in mind, the replacement red bonnet has purposely been kept its contrasting colour.
trickiest job was something that looks much simpler: “The hardest part was actually getting the US-spec rocker cover to fit. It involved coupling an ST170 and US-spec Zetec cover into one.”
To continue the mixed-and-matched theme, the engine is attached to a Mazda RX-8 gearbox with an uprated clutch, and powers the wheels via a proper plated-type LSD. The combination is incredibly effective and Kurt says the car performs very well, so far running a best of 415bhp and 335lb.ft of torque. Having previously managed a best of 13.5 seconds in the quarter-mile with just 275bhp, the new setup is yet to be properly tested but should be plenty quicker. While the running gear has been heavily reworked and the exterior finely detailed, the inside remains relatively standard, which was always the plan. “Anyone that’s owned a Sierra knows how comfy they are, so I didn’t want to lose that and bought a scrapper GLX estate for just £40 with a mint interior,” Kurt laughs. Sure enough, the combination of comfort and performance make the car a joy to use, and Kurt tells us it’s at home on the road as much as it is on the strip. “It actually drives pretty well day-to-day,” he explains. “It’s definitely still useable on the road, albeit Cornish roads aren’t the most forgiving for a lowered car, but a majority of the time it’s just used for going for a drive and enjoying at the occasional drag day.”
MORE AND MORE
RED RIDING HOOD
As with any home build, there’s still more to do, as Kurt has plans to tune the car further and make some improvements. He explains, “I want to dial the VVT in and drop the exhaust housing size a bit to move the boost range a bit lower. There’s also a Supra diff to go in the back end, along with a spare rear beam that’s destined for the chop saw to make it fully adjustable. Plus, I’d like to beef up the fuel system, add some more boost and sort out a few project niggles.”
ESSENTIAL UPGRADES
SIERRA ESTATE 30 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
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Reuben’s previous cars included Honda, Toyota, Vauxhall, Nissan and Kia hatchbacks, which made the Ford Mustang GT quite a leap. But there was good reason for that.
Making around 950bhp, this is the UK’s first right-hand-drive twin-turbo Mustang. It also happens to be the owner’s first Ford…
TWIN-TURBO MUSTANG FAST FORD OCTOBER 202232
Words SIMON HOLMES / P hotos JASON DODD W e all remember our first Ford. And although for some it might be more fondly recalled than others, our initial Blue Ovals clearly leave a lasting impression – after all, it’s the reason we read this magazine. But while most of us had a low-power Fiesta or Escort, we don’t think anyone can match Reuben Grech’s first ford – this highlymodified twin-turbo Mustang GT. Not one to do things by halves, Reuben bought the car brand new and certainly didn’t expect to modify it to this level. But once he started, it proved to be a slippery slope. He says, “When I saw it, I thought I had finally found a car that was good as it was without having to modify it. “But nearly £50,000-worth of modifications later, I can clearly see how wrong I was. I started modifying it four months after I bought it, and it just went downhill from then; it’s has been a work in progress ever since.”
He says, “As a kid, I was always
FIRSTIMPRESSIONS OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD 33
Although supercharging seemed the obvious default option as a proven modification, with readily available kits that are simple to install, Reuben just had to go a different route. He explains, “There are various reasons why I wanted turbos, but the main one was because I wanted to be different, and I simply wanted the first in the UK.”
mesmerised by the Mustang. But since they only came in left-hand drive, I thought it was not reasonable to own one in Malta, where I was born, or in the UK, where I live.”
Crammed with
Back in 2016 Reuben was looking for a new car and was about to buy the latest Honda Civic Type R, but at the last minute learnt that the right-hand-drive Mustang had arrived in UK showrooms. Eager for a test drive, he promptly visited the local dealership. Reuben recounts, “I walked into the showroom and this Mustang was the first car in front of the door. It was love at first sight. After driving the demo car, I was told there was a 12-month wait but then asked about the car in the showroom – which was a cancelled order. I paid the deposit and picked it up three days later. It was the shortest time I ever had to wait for a brand-new car.” Not one to keep cars standard, a range of modifications followed over the next few years as Reuben made the Mustang his own – from bigger wheels and uprated suspension to interior and exterior improvements. “I kind of wanted to keep some sort of a sleeper look – so not all out on the outside. But I knew I wanted to go all out on power, noise and handling,” Reuben says. As a result, he opted for a subtle approach, although admits he got hooked on carbon fibre, which is how the front splitter, canards, rear spoiler and even propshaft followed. Similarly, the cabin remains relatively standard, as he liked the general look and feel, although couldn’t resist adding green and carbon fibre touches to replace the chrome. While modifying the car, Reuben also made full use of it on the road, track and shows, which is how he came to create the Mustangs Unleashed UK club. Driven to continuously improve and develop the car, the most serious modifications followed as Reuben could no longer resist the urge for forced induction.
TECH SPEC TWIN TURBO MUSTANG GT ENGINE 4951cc Coyote V8, Function Factory Performance custom turbo kit, Comp Turbo Technology 62/62 triple ball-bearing ceramiccoated turbos, ceramic-coated manifolds, custom intercooler, ported 2018 inlet manifold, ARP Oil/Ford Performance oil separator, custom Cobra Sport 3in Venom exhaust system, K&N cone filters, Modular Motorsport Racing (MMR) inlet manifold lockouts, billet chain guides, billet secondary tensioner bracket, billet primary chain tensioners and secondary chains, Coyote billet oil pump gear, Coyote crankshaft gear, ARP/MMR balancer bolt, ATI Super Damper serpentine series harmonic balancer, MagnaFlow 200-cell cats, Turbosmart external wastegates, Race Port Gen V blow-off valves and eBoost 2 boost controller, Injector Dynamics ID1050cc injectors, painted engine cover, expansion tank cover, fuse box cover, brake fluid cover and strut covers POWER 950bhp (owner’s estimate) TRANSMISSION Original Getrag MT82 sixspeed, Lethal Performance LPXHD twin-disc Kevlar clutch, Lethal Performance billet steel flywheel, McLeod Racing slave cylinder, stainless steel braided clutch line and highload roller pilot bearing, Steeda
painted green, 380mm DBA discs and Xtreme Performance pads; rear: Brembo callipers, 330mm DBA discs, braided brake lines, Castrol React SRF brake fluid WHEELS & TYRES 20x10.5in Velgan VMB8 wheels in gunmetal, 5x114.3 with ET25 with 295/30/20 Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres EXTERIOR APR Performance carbon-fibre front splitter, canards and rear spoiler, RGBW sequential tribars and demon eyes, LED fog/ DRL lights, custom front grilles, custom badges, black-painted grilles, side skirts, front splitter, diffuser, radiator cover extensions, matt black stripes with green pinstripes INTERIOR LED lighting, painted dash trim, carbon-fibre screen surround and door handle surround, green steering wheel decal, green door and centre console piping, RTR Vehicles gearknob, Shaker Pro Sound System and subwoofer TWIN-TURBO MUSTANG 34 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
But there was far more method to the madness than taste, as the track days had made Reuben wary of adding more heat in the engine bay and the low-mounted mods, 950bhpCoyotethispacks clutch spring, QA1 carbon-fibre propshaft, Drive Shaft Shop (DSS) half-shafts, Wavetrac ATB LSD, Ford Performance 3.31:1 ring gear, diff cooler SUSPENSION Pedders Extreme coilovers, BMR Suspension lockout kit, vertical link, rear adjustable camber links, rear lower control arms, rear on-car adjustable rod ends, adjustable sway bars, Steeda tower brace, Pedders camber adjustment top plates, Ford Racing toe knuckle bearings BRAKES Front: Brembo callipers
Roadrunner has finally met his match “From my understanding, it’s quite scary as a passenger, because they always go either extremely quiet or start screaming as it pushes them into the seat” 35OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
GET IN TOUCH CHRIS@WAYSIDE-PERFORMANCE.CO.UK I 024 7775 2553 I WAYSIDEPERFORMANCE FORDST & RS SPECIALISTS SERVICE, REPAIR & UPGRADE INSTALL IN HOUSE ROLLING ROAD OEM AND STANDALONE ECU TUNING GENUINE FORD & PERFORMANCE PARTS STOCKISTS WWW.WAYSIDE-PERFORMANCE.CO.UK VISIT OUR WEBSITE BUY ONLINE AT NEMESISUK.COM Performance upgrades and aftermarket parts from 100s of top brands for Mustang & Ford.
Steering wheel on the proper
side We can’t wait to find out beastquarterswhatthiswillrun manualSix-speedmakesgreatuseofthegrunt 37OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
Buying a kit that has never been test-fitted on the same model car will induce a world of stress, pain and fabrication to actually make it work”
turbos would also keep the centre of gravity down. Plus he did not want to add more weight ahead of the front wheels because he already found the GT very front heavy. He says, “Turbos also gave me the flexibility to change the power level with a push of a button. It was a no-brainer for me.” But undertaking the ground-breaking conversion would prove no easy task, as no one had tackled the potential clearance issues before, which meant it took a whole lot of time and effort to simply get the parts, let alone making them fit. Reuben confirms, “I must admit, it was no walk in the park. At the time, there were no right-hand-drive twin-turbo kits readily available, so it’s been quite a long-winded and painful road. I had been looking at kits from America for two years and eventually managed to locate a company that was willing to give it a go for me. After spending a long time on the phone, I eventually decided to take the plunge and part with my money to be the first test dummy.”
DRIVER SPEC REUBEN GRECH AGE 41 JOB Country director –commercial and operations, club founder at Mustangs Unleashed UK FIRST FORD Ford Mustang GT FAVOURITE MODIFICATION Twin turbos FAVOURITE FORD SHOW OR EVENT? Ford Fair TRACK DAY OR SHOW & SHINE? Track day SIERRA RS500 OR FOCUS RS500? Sierra RS500 WRC OR BTCC? WRC LESSONS LEARNT FROM THIS PROJECT? “The
The only way for the company to ensure there would be no clearance issues with the pre-made kit was to send various more power you add, the more supporting modifications you need; the more power you add, the more power you want.
THANKS “Massive thanks to my wife for the patience she has with putting up with my car-modding addiction, as well as the support after each car-related hurdle; Mustangs Unleashed UK Facebook group members for their endless knowledge, support and encouragement; Kev, Bob and Ian at Hendy Performance in Eastleigh for the pain I induced on them during the twin-turbo installation and every other modification; Charles at Function Factory Performance in America for supplying the kit; Ben and Denton at Motorsport and Performance for the dyno runs and advice; Guy at Nemesis UK Performance for draining my bank account with the parts and advice; and Unit 7 Detailing for the ceramic coating”
and
There’s no talk of replacing the car, but who would if this was their first Ford?
With a first Ford unlike any other, Reuben plans to keep developing the car. In future a GT500-style carbon-fibre bonnet and front bumper will be added, as well as a new steering wheel and, in the never-ending quest for more power, meth or nitrous injection.
Classy carbonfibre rear wing Carbon canards Brembo 380s will haul up 950bhpTWIN-TURBO MUSTANG 38 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
“It turns heads wherever I go, and I constantly get thumbs-up from passers-by and other drivers on the motorway or at shows. From my understanding, it’s quite scary as a passenger too, because they always go either extremely quiet or start screaming as it pushes them into the seat.”
right-hand-drive parts to America, including the exhaust manifolds so that they could be test-fitted on a bench before returning the finished kit. The drawn-out process took six months until eventually, just before Christmas 2020, a load of boxes turned up at Reuben’s door. He recalls, “I was the happiest person you could imagine. Obviously, at the time I thought it would be a breeze from then on, as I was under the impression that everything would just fit. But the installation took over three months with various trips to fabricators, exhaust manufacturers, parts suppliers and so on. Around 50 per cent of the installation was either modified or custom-made to fit.” The timeline also included a lot of waiting for parts to be manufactured and delivered during a badly-timed global pandemic, but the results were worth it, as the custom kit helps the car produce around 950bhp at just 10psi of boost. With further supporting modifications in place, the car is still used on track, at Santa Pod, and for shows. “I also use it for aimless joy rides when I need to put a grin on my face,” Reuben adds. It puts smiles on other people’s faces too, as Reuben tells us people seem to love the way it looks and sounds.
HENDY PERFORMANCE EASTLEIGH Unit 5, M3 Trade Park, Leigh Road, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO50 9YA 023 8098 5486 | hendyperformance.co.uk SERVICES LIKE NO OTHER WE’RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO HELP FELLOW FORD ENTHUSIASTS PERFORMANCEREMAPPINGTRACKPREPARATIONPERFORMANCEUPGRADESUNDERSEALINGUPGRADESBESPOKESUSPENSIONGEOMETRYPERFORMANCECARSALESVEHICLETRACKING
The rest of the show was packed full of the best Blue Ovals the scene has to offer, and always-entertaining track time around the Silverstone circuit, this year sponsored by Elf Bar. Special recognition went to ten of the coolest cars – also sponsored by Elf Bar – and the hotly contested, new-for-2022 Ford Fair Select display, where judges from sponsors at Auto Finesse had the particularly difficult job of choosing the best-finished car from a shortlist of absolutely stunning Fords.
The biggest and best Blue Oval bonanza of the year returned to Silverstone, and it was a real scorcher
Words JAMIE & MIKE RYSIECKI / P hotos JASON DODD, LEIGH JONES, & JAMES SMYTH S ome things in life are just meant to be. Trains are meant to be late, old people are meant to drive badly, and Ford Fair is meant to be roasting hot and brilliant. And sure enough, it was! After an uncharacteristically damp 2021, and a Covidpostponed 2020, we were glad to see Ford Fair back in full swing for 2022, and all the cars on show were bathed in beautiful sunshine as the UK enjoyed another heatwave. It was fantastic to see so many Ford fans (and not just from the UK – special mention to José Novo who drove his Sapphire Cosworth all the way from Portugal to be at the show) all eager to display their Blue Ovals and be part of the Onceshow.again, Mountune returned as headline sponsor for the whole event. And, once again, the firm’s stand was packed throughout the day. With the famous show discounts, a selection of new products being released on the day, plus a coffee shop, live DJ, and even friends at Corbeau with a selection of the latest seats for visitors to try out, not to mention a display of epic cars featuring Mountune engines – such as the current Focus ST BTCC car and a rallycross RS200 – it was easy to see why the stand was so busy.
Of course, Fast Ford was in attendance too. Our stand was at the other end of the paddock area, featuring 50 of the best feature cars (including a handful that have yet to be published), and a retail stand that also hosted a giant Scalextric set and retro Sega Rally arcade game.
Of course, clubs make the show the huge success it is, and the dedicated owners’ groups were out in force this year – with special awards to recognise their efforts going to Welsh Ford, West London Classic Ford, and Oval Owners. As if that wasn’t enough, the ST170 Owners’ Club, ST220 Enthusiasts, and Mk1 Focus RS Owners’ Club all put on special displays to commemorate the 20th anniversaries of their beloved models. There was so much to pack in, Ford Fair must be the best-value day out for any Ford fan, and long may it continue!
New for this year, the Fast Ford stand also included a Fords In Motorsport display, which featured some seriously impressive machinery. And it was great to see the return of the Live Action Arena for 2022, with Paul and his team putting on a brilliant stunt display to wow the crowds. Paul was even let loose in a Ford GT to do some donuts and impressive drifts.
Carbon-clad Mk4 Estate
You can’t beat Scalextric Fast Ford’s stand was a feast for the eyes HP Tuners brought along some modded Mustangs FORD FAIR 2022 WHERE SILVERSTONE, NORTHANTS WHEN 14 AUGUST 2022 40 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT FORD FAIR 2022
LIVE ARENAACTION
“I want to break free!”
“The weather! Nah, it’s the general atmosphere, the cars on show, the track action, the trade stands… All of it really.” IN THE CLUB
41OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
Fast Ford featured Puma
What’s the best thing about the club? “I would say it’s the loyalty of all the members; they’re always around to help each other out and it creates a great atmosphere within the group.”
It’s a wrap! No,it’s actually satin paint Daniel’s ST featureddetailsneat
How long have you been a member?
FAST FORD STAND As Ford Fair is the biggest Ford show of the year, it’s only right that the UK’s biggest and best-selling Ford tuning magazine is attendance. Our stand hosted a selection of more than 50 fabulous feature cars from the current and previous issues – plus a few that have yet to appear in print – filling the pit garages and paddock area. The shaded garages not only provided an awesome setting for the display cars, but also offered some welcome relief from the beating theHPsun.Tuners sponsored the jampacked Fast Ford paddock areas, and the HP Tuners team even brought along a cool line-up of Mustangs and Fiestas, as well as product displays to talk to Ford fans about their latest MPVI3 tuning interface. As well as the awesome feature cars, the Rep to Race Car Mondeo project was also on display, showing off its latest upgrades. The stand also housed a giant Scalextric set, a retro Sega Rally arcade game, a win-a-car competition, and the retail stand where you could pick up a show guide, copies of the current mag, or Ford Fair merchandise.
NAME Daniel Eaton CAR Mk7 Fiesta ST CLUB Essex Ford Meet
The Live Action Arena returned for Ford Fair 2022, and as ever the sights and sounds of Paul Swift and his team demonstrating some crazy stunts and unbelievable precision driving drew in the crowds. Lucky competition winners even got to experience the thrills from the passenger seat alongside Paul as he was driving, while the crowds were treated to an epic display that even included a series of drifts and donuts from the Ford GT Paul had borrowed from Ford Performance for the day – not as easy as it sounds in a halfmillion-pound hypercar that has been designed from the groundup to give as much grip as is physically possible. Rep to Race Car was on display Swift was born slippy
What’s your favourite thing about Ford Fair 2022?
“I joined around five years ago.” How many shows do you attend with the club each year? “I usually do around ten shows or meets per year.”
NAME Steve Cooper CAR P100 pick-up QUICK SPEC Cosworth YB, BorgWarner EFR turbo, Pectel T6 ECU, approximately 500bhp, Cosworth T5 gearbox, Cosworth RWD diff and six-degree rear beam conversion, Lotus Esprit rear coilovers, Cosworth front coilovers, AP Racing brakes, Escort RS2000 Recaros
What future plans do you have for the car? “I want to move the side-exit exhaust so it exits through the side of the truck bed rather than underneath. And I also want a full interior retrim at some point. Other than that, just use it and enjoy it.”
MOTORSPORTACADEMY
As headline sponsor, Mountune always make a big impression at Ford Fair, and this year was no exception. Found in the pit garages at the top of end of the paddock, the Mountune stand hosted a live DJ and barista coffee shop alongside a fully-fitted-out retail stand, which was offering the famous Ford Fair discounts on selectedMountuneproducts.alsoreleased a few new upgrades at the show, including a carbon crossover pipe for the Mk4 Focus ST and the m285 hybrid turbo upgrade for the Mk8 Fiesta ST. Mountune even invited friends at Corbeau along with a selection of sporty bucket seats for people to try out – including our editor Jamie, who took the opportunity to size up his backside for a pair of buckets for the Rep to Race Car build too. Elsewhere, the Mountune-powered cars on show demonstrated the company’s motorsport links, with everything from a retro rallycross RS200 through to the current Focus ST BTCC race car on display.
How long have you owned the car? “I first got it about six years ago. Back then it was a standard 1.8 diesel truck.” What made you want one? “I fancied something a bit different. I used to have a 4x4 Cossie-powered Mk2 Fiesta, but I wanted something that I could use for shows and that would stand out a bit.”
ON SHOW
After racing at Spa (see page 64 for full report) the British GT Championship entered its summer break, so the Academy Motorsport team – whose Mustang GT4 is joint second in the Silver Cup standings – were able to join in the fun at Ford Fair. They brought their full race rig with two cars, one of which entertained crowds with demo laps during the dedicated motorsport track sessions with their GT4 race driver Matt Cowley at the Mattwheel.clearly enjoyed the time on track too, telling us: “It’s good fun to be out there and because it is not a serious race environment you can have a bit of a play with the car. I was getting the back end out and making sure it was nice and loud for everyone, just putting on a bit of aBackshow.”inthe motorsport paddock, the well-informed Ford Fair attendees had questions for the team about performance numbers, championship regulations, steering wheel controls, suspension configuration and, not least, the special Multimatic dampers. It’s great to see top-end motorsport teams enjoying a day out in the sun with their cars just the same as the rest of us, and was a welcome addition to Ford Fair 2022.
MOUNTUNE
What’s the best thing about your car? “I love how it looks. It’s the coolness of it for me.”
Mustang was howling on track P100 was loaded with mods RS200 retro rallycross monster YB packs500bhpabout 42 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT FORD FAIR 2022
EsCos
“For nearly four years now.”
IN THE CLUBFORD FAIR SELECT New for 2022, the detailing experts over at Auto Finesse showed off some of the best presented cars from their academy. The top three picks each won a bespoke trophy and an Auto Finesse detailing kit. Richard Beazer’s track-prepared Sierra three-door took bronze, with Simon Williams’s concours-worthy Turbo Technics Capri 2.8i taking the runner-up spot. Gareth Park’s immaculate Escort RS Cosworth took the outright victory.
runner-up Crowds queued to seenewMountune’sproducts “Look,
a
What’s your favourite thing about Ford Fair 2022?
“The selection of cars on show, and the size of the event – it’s huge.”
How long have you been a member?
Mk2 RS2000 mixed well with modern
winner Richard Beazer’s Sierra came third 43OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
RedFordssuits an S1 so well Turbo Technics Capri was that’s where the driver sits” was welldeserved
What’s the best thing about the club?
NAME Barry Meldrum CAR Series One Escort RS Turbo & Mk2 Escort RS2000 CLUB Oval Owners’ Club
How many shows do you attend with the club each year? “I do as many as I can, and that’s usually around ten per year.”
“The people. Everyone is so welcoming, and they all want to talk and chat cars. It doesn’t matter what car you have either, everyone is made to feel welcome.”
Ex-BTCC and GT
TOP 10 AWARDS New for 2022, Elf Bar was on a mission to find ten of the coolest cars at the show. There was no shortage of contenders, but somehow the judges managed to narrow it down to a short-list of ten of their favourites. These included a brace of stunning Mk2 Focuses, a caged Sapphire RS Cosworth, an immaculate Mk3 Escort, a turbo’d Puma, a Roush Mustang, a lowrider Galaxie 500, a stripped-out Mk2 Fiesta, a beautiful Anglia and a classic Mk1 Capri.
NAME Neil Woodcock CAR Mondeo ST220 CLUB ST220 Enthusiasts
EscortmightyonChrisinCaineMichaelontrackhisRS500BakertrackinhisMk3 Neil
Tim Sandhu’s Escort Cossie was the angriest-looking car at the show ST220s were out in force for the 20th anniversary Andy Rouse’s ex-BTCC racer was recently rediscovered Ford racers impressalways look cool racer loves his LEDs
44 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT FORD FAIR 2022
How long have you been a member?
Bagged ST
“I’ve been a member of the group for five years.”
What’s your favourite thing about Ford Fair 2022?
What’s the best thing about the club?
“It’s got to be the members. I love the banter, but there’s also a lot of useful technical knowledge that gets shared too.”
“For me it’s the social side of being part of the club. It’s great to catch up with existing members, and gives us an opportunity to meet new members that haven’t shown with us before too.” was car of the show for one of the Fast Ford team
IN THE CLUB awardsinMustangWide-archwastheTop10 Galaxie
How many shows do you attend with the club each year? “I like to do as many as possible, if not all the events the club attends. I also help organise a few, and we also have various breakfast meets throughout the year too.”
Modified
“My dad bought the car brand new in March ’89 when I was 11. He later passed it on to me, but I kind of stole it as soon as I turned 18.” What made you want one? “From the first moment I saw it, I just knew I wanted it.”
What’s the best thing about your car? “Being a Cosworth, I’m tempted to say the engine. But the history on this particular car is very important to me.”
“I’ve got to drive it back home to Portugal yet, so hoping it makes it in one piece is the first thing. I just want to keep it alive, and one day I will pass it onto my child the same as my father passed it on to me.”
How long have you owned the car?
MOTORSPORT CARS
Ford Fair 2022 went big on motorsport Fords. Not only was there a dedicated display from Paul Nevill and the guys at the Modified Fords Series, but the Fast Ford stand also hosted a special display of race and rally cars. Highlights this year included a brace of very special Sierra RS500 Cosworths in Paul Linfoot’s Spa 24-hour-winning Eggenberger machine and Andy Rouse’s original Kaliberlivery BTCC racer now owned by Michael Caine, plus Academy Motorsport and the duo of Mustang GT4 racers. Elsewhere, Nigel Mummery brought along a big-spec Mk2 Escort rally car, plus an original RS200 road car – now running 700bhp and converted to full Evolution spec. A Ford GT even made a brief cameo when Paul Swift popped over to swap wheels and tyres with the help from the Academy crew.
There’s still plenty of room for old-school at Ford Fair Supercharged
ON SHOW
QUICK SPEC Largely standard power, suspension and brakes, Rouse leather Recaro interior, driven all the way from Portugal
Paul Linfoot’s Bastos RS500 was one of the stars of the show ST170powered Mk2
was Oldwinneraandnew in the Motorsport garage 45OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
What future do you have for the car?
José drove his Saph all the way from Portugal
NAME José Novo CAR Sapphire Cosworth
West
The ST170 Owners’ Club hosted a display to celebrate 20 years of the model Ford won the Best Regional Club award London Classic Ford took the Best Classic honours 357bhp lurks within
Craig uses the ST to compete in Time Attack Craig and Natalie Weston won the Club Hero award Owners’ Club took the Best Club trophy
Welsh
NAME Craig Peace CAR Mk7 Fiesta ST QUICK SPEC 1.6-litre EcoBoost, X47 turbo, Pumaspeed race map, Airtec intercooler, 357bhp, BC Racing BR coilovers, JP Cages roll cage, 15in Team Dynamics Pro Race LT alloys, Airtec rear spoiler, EBC RPX brake pads, custom wrap How long have you owned the car?
Oval
46 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT FORD FAIR 2022
“It’s so quick! It’s such a fantastic handling car, it just makes me smile every time I drive it.”
What made you want one? “I’ve always wanted to do more track time. I’d reached as far as I wanted to go with Tornado, and I fancied doing a few rounds of Time Attack, so a Fiesta ST seemed the perfect answer.”
“I got this just after I sold my Mk2 Focus RS (nicknamed Tornado) at the end of 2019.”
“Lots. More racing and more Time Attack. I’ve got an M-Sport roof scoop on order, and I’m thinking about switching to EMU Black stand-alone engine management for better control and easier data logging on race days.”
20 YEARS OF...
ON SHOW
What future do you have for the car?
CLUB AWARDS
What’s the best thing about your car?
Three special fast Fords celebrate their 20th anniversary this year, so Ford Fair wanted to pay homage to the Focus ST170, Mondeo ST220 and Mk1 Focus RS with a dedicated anniversary display for each. To make that happen, the organisers called on the help of three of the most pro-active clubs in the scene: the ST170 Owners’ Club, ST220 Enthusiasts, and the Mk1 Focus RS Owners’ Club. Each arranged an awesome line-up of their favourite fast Ford, and created a truly amazing spectacle that spanned the length the of the paddock area opposite the Fast Ford stand.
The show wouldn’t be what it is without the awesome club support it receives. So, to celebrate and give a little something back, Ford Fair 2022 awarded four major trophies in recognition of the clubs’ hard work and dedication. The Best Classic award went to West London Classic Ford, while Welsh Ford took home the trophy for Best Regional club. It was double-honours over at the Oval Owners stand, though; not only did the club scoop the overall Best Club award, organisers Craig and Natalie Weston also took home the Club Hero trophy.
Think your car is worthy of a feature in Fast Ford? Send us a brief description, a quick spec list, and a few photos (no more than 5!) to fastford.ed@kelsey.co.uk and we’ll take a look! Your pride and joy could soon be splashed across these very pages…! GET FEATURED! Your car could be on these pages next month… THE UK’S NUMBER ONE FORD TUNING MAGAZINE 47OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
Ford famously never built an RS version of the Mk7 Fiesta – there really wasn’t any need when the ST was so good. But we can’t help but wonder how awesome a full-fat Rallye Sport Fiesta could have been. Thanks to Kellie, we don’t need to wonder any longer. She’s owned this ST since October and set about creating a mini-RS by adding an RS-style front bumper, rear diffuser and rear spoiler from Maxton Designs. The rear diffuser requires a twinexit exhaust, which comes thanks to a full KMS Hurricane 4.5in system, meaning this ST certainly KELLIE MK7 FIESTA ST POLLARD UNTERWAINIG
Well, if so, all you need to do is ask! Simply email us, or post a picture of your car on our Facebook or Instagram pages and add the hashtag ‘#printmyford’, and each month we’ll choose our favourites and print them in this aptly named feature. Alternatively, drop us an email with a couple of pics, a full spec list of any mods and upgrades, and a few details about your time with the car to fastford.ed@kelsey.co.uk with the subject heading ‘print my ford’ and we’ll pick our favourites for a slightly more detailed review each month too. In order for us to print your Ford please ensure all images are of print quality, show the whole car, are free from watermarks, and you have permission from the photographer to use them in the magazine (*by submitting an image, you assume full liability and Fast Ford accepts no responsibility for any copyright infringement) Now go on, get posting! And don’t forget to add the tag #printmyford
WERNER
CHRISDARRENLONGMANNROSE
48 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
See your very own fast Ford in full printed glory!
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
IAN SHARPE barks like an RS should. An accompanying Vudu Stage 2 intercooler and MAXD Out Stage 1 remap give the 1.6-litre EcoBoost a heftier punch than the stock ST, just like an RS should have. A set of Bola B10 alloys finished in white give a motorsport vibe, especially as the chassis sits 40mm closer to the ground on a set of lowering springs. Other personal touches can be found on the interior and exterior styling, but this gives us a pretty good idea of what a Mk7 Fiesta RS could have looked like.
GARY
DEAN
#PRINTMYFORD
Ever wanted to see your car appear in all its glory in the printed pages of a Ford tuning magazine?
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
This is not John’s first fast Focus, coming from two previous Mk2 ST versions (both a pre- and post-facelift model) that were both mapped and used regularly on track. The fragilities around the 2.3-litre EcoBoost did cause John some concern at first, but now everything’s sorted and he is confident in the machinery he has underneath him, he hasn’t looked back. Power has been increased to around 420bhp thanks to a Litchfield Stage 2 remap and all the supporting hardware mods, such as: Scorpion
JAMES ADAMDANIELCONSOLEBOXBRISTOLBAKERPOWERS
ALEXANDER
BOND
JAMIE STONE CALUM MCLEOD
turbo-back exhaust, intercooler upgrade, Mountune induction kit and uprated recirc valve. The next step is a forged engine build and chasing really big bhp figures. John’s already laid some of the foundations in the shape of a Stage 4 clutch upgrade, beefier EBC two-piece discs and YellowStuff pads, a Quaife ATB diff, and carbon synchros in the gearbox, which have already found their way onto the RS. There’s more to come from this fast Ford in the future for sure.
49OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD #PRINTMYFORD
JOHN BRADLEY MK3 FOCUS RS
DAVID PERCIVAL DAVID OLDFIELD
Enter the world Compomotiveof Winning around the world since ’73 sales@comp.co.uk www.compomotive.com @compomotive_wheels
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Momo Revenge alloys are one of the first clues, although being finished in black means they don’t jump out unless you know what you’re looking at. Your next clue is the Airtec lettering on the intercooler, beside which you’ll note a pair of air intakes in the front lower grille. At the back, the massive Mongoose exhaust lets you know this RS means business, while under the bonnet carbon-dipped covers conceal a host of performance upgrades.
JOSHUA MIDGLEY
MATTY TOWERS MK2 FOCUS RS
TYSON PATRICK EAGLEJOE
LEE ROBERTSON MIKE BANKSKEVIN CORNES NICO WO KYLE JODIEGIBSONBELLAMY 51OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD #PRINTMYFORD
The mighty Mk2 Focus RS is still a firm favourite with fast Ford fans; if anything it seems to be gaining more admirers as it gets even better with age. One of the best things about the Mk2 RS is the ability to create something really unique, and tailored specifically to your tastes. Matty has gone for the subtle OEM-plus approach with his RS; no aggressive body kits or eye-popping graphics here, but Ford fans in the know will immediately spot this is no box-stocker. The 20in
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
STEVESMITHCLEWLOW ROBBIE WALKER
TARIQ KHAN STE BARBER
RICH SMITH
ADAM JEANES MK5 FIESTA ZETEC S and Escort RS2000 alloys give a more menacing stance and improve handling at the same time. Adam has owned the Mk5 Fiesta for just over a year and has covered 10,000 miles during that time. He says it’s one of the best cars he’s ever driven, and the love he has for his ZS will never leave him. See, it’s not always about the size of your dyno graph.
STEVEN HALL SIMON SHIPLEY RALPH WENBAN 52 FAST FORD OCTOBER #PRINTMYFORD2022
PHIL
You don’t need to have a hugely powerful engine to have fun in a fast Ford. Adam’s tidy little ZS has to make do with just 101bhp, but Adams says it feels and drives like it has double that. Maybe one day it will, as Adam’s already started with the mods and performance upgrades. A 4-2-1 manifold with de-cat pipe allows the 1.6-litre Zetec SE to breathe more easily, while AP coilovers
FORD PARTS R US n MAINTENANCE n REPAIR n TUNING UPGRADES n FULL RESTORATION ADDRESS: UNIT 6 HOMEFIELD IND EST, LOCKING MOOR ROAD, WESTON SUPER MARE. BS24 7BE PERFORMANCE AND RETRO FORD SPECIALISTS E: FORDPARTSRUS@HOTMAIL.CO.UK | T: 01934 820792 | M: 07446 487799 ALL MAKES & MODELS SERVICED & REPAIRED • Performance Parts • Supplied & Fitted • Modification & Track Preparation • Cosworth Parts • MOT Preparation/Test Arranged • Alloy Wheels Tyre Packages • RS/ST Parts • Ford Parts SuppliedSPECIALIST Unit 11a Enterprise Park, Beck View Road, Beverley HU17 0JT 01482 860019, 07939 123935 www.gsmotorsportuk.co.uk Pleased to support Richardson FordPackagesArrangedHU170JT ALL MAKES & MODELS SERVICED & REPAIRED MODELSALL • Performance • Supplied • Modification • CosworthSPECIALIST Unit 11a ALL MAKES & MODELS SERVICED & REPAIRED • Performance Parts • Supplied & Fitted • Modification & Track Preparation • Cosworth Parts • MOT Preparation/Test Arranged • Alloy Wheels Tyre Packages • RS/ST Parts • Ford Parts Supplied SPECIALIST Unit 11a Enterprise Park, Beck View Road, Beverley HU17 0JT 01482 860019, 07939 123935 www.gsmotorsportuk.co.uk Pleased to support Richardson Ford ALL MAKES & MODELS SERVICED & REPAIRED • Performance Parts • Supplied & Fitted • Modification & Track Preparation • Cosworth Parts • MOT Preparation/Test Arranged • Alloy Wheels Tyre Packages • RS/ST Parts • Ford Parts Supplied SPECIALIST Unit 11a Enterprise Park, Beck View Road, Beverley HU17 0JT 01482 860019, 07939 123935 www.gsmotorsportuk.co.uk Pleased to support Richardson Ford ALL MAKES & MODELS SERVICED & REPAIRED • Performance Parts • Supplied & Fitted • Modification & Track Preparation • Cosworth Parts • MOT Preparation/Test Arranged • Alloy Wheels Tyre Packages • RS/ST Parts • Ford Parts Supplied SPECIALIST Unit 11a Enterprise Park, Beck View Road, Beverley HU17 0JT 01482 860019, 07939 123935 www.gsmotorsportuk.co.uk Pleased to support Richardson Ford Unit 11a Enterprise Park, Beck View Road, Beverley HU17 DJT 01482 860019 www.gsmotorsportuk.co.uk gsmotorsportuk
Other projects have got in the way of the budget ST170 recently, but Dan’s found time to order some brake upgrades. The Focus ST is back on the top step of the podium where it belongs. Read the full race updates on page 62. All race cars need good brakes. And thanks to a new set of stoppers developed by EBC just for this car, our Mondeo now has them. DAN FOCUS ST170 MOTORBASE FOCUS BTCC CARS FAST FORD REP TO RACE CAR MONDEO p58 Snapper Jason is back in a Blue Oval. It’s a bit of change from his old Mustang V8, but the Mk8 Fiesta ST will be a great little project. JASON FIESTA ST MK8 The Sapphire returned to Ford Fair for the first time since it left on the back of an RAC truck. No drifting this time, as Ade was busy snapping. ADE SAPPHIRE COSWORTH The bodywork is finally back together, but Dan’s not one to rush things – and he’s tackling an underbonnet update before getting on the road. DAN SIERRA COSWORTH The Ranger is with Phil at The Install Company so he can work out how to fit the fancy new Airlift air suspension kit. p56 p62 p60 DALE RANGER KING CAB 55OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
After passing its MOT last month, the RS has been enjoying sunny days out with the family. But is Jamie really considering selling...? The Focus made the trip to Ford Fair to be on the Fast Ford stand, but Dan’s modified tailpipes appear to have fallen off. JAMIE FOCUS RS MK3 DAN FOCUS ST250 See what’s been going on with our projects this month…
FLEETFAST
Last issue, I introduced my latest project build, a Ranger King Cab. Now, I know this is not the kind of thing you’ll usually find in the pages of Fast Ford but bear with me because I have big plans for this old farm truck: I’m going head-to-head in a build-off with fellow Meguiar’s man Tom Clarke, who is building a Mk2 VW Golf (VW fans can read about that in our sister title, Performance VW ). So it needs to be something a little bit special to beat him. And it will be special. Last month I showed you the truck I’d bought to form the base of this build, and it was dropped off at Swallows Racing in Somerset, where it was promptly pulled apart and assessed. We even got the tape measure out and did some quick maths to make sure the twin-turbo V6 I plan to run will fit. It Havingwill.been given the thumbs-up by the guys at Swallows, the stripped-out King Cab chassis found its way heading north to Phil James in Leicestershire. Phil is one of my best mates, and the guy I always turn to when it comes to fancy fabrication stuff like this. In this case, he was tasked with giving the Ranger the ultra-low stance needed to impress at shows and events, but still have the ability to drive there and back under its ownThesteam.answer, like so many top show builds, comes from air suspension. I popped in to see the guys at Car Audio Security – who are once again fully behind the build – to pick their brains about which air-ride kit would be bestAirliftsuited.was the brand they recommended, and because we like fancy things with all the bells and whistles, we opted for the full-fat 3H system. It’s a very clever piece of kit, and The Ranger is now at The Install Company, stripped and ready to go under the knife to achieve the killer stance Dale is looking for W115 has taken taxiing
around Ford parts 56 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FAST FLEET
HOW TO GO LOW DALE MASTERMAN RANGER KING CAB Dale’s happy as a kid Christmasat Dale’s
to
Ranger gets stripped down to its chassis
You can use a hard-wired controller in the car, or even use the dedicated app on your smartphone to switch between height and pressure sensors. In real terms, that means you can use the pressure sensors to control ride height when giving it some around a track, but then switch over to height sensors to level things out when you pick up your mates for a Sunday morning cruise. Or in my case, when I load the pick-up bed up with all the show stuff I’ll no doubt be carrying to and from events. With a full kit of boxes loaded into my Merc, I then trundled off to deliver it all to Phil. Now it’s over to him to work out how to install it all – he does run a shop called The Install Company, after all. But I do feel a bit sorry for him; this is no off-the-shelf, bolt-on upgrade. Phil has already stripped the truck right back and Airlift goodies are high on the list
Isn’t it funny what you see at theselaundrettesdays
Airlift says it’s the world’s first height- and pressure-based air-ride system.
Classy Cobra buckets is busy working out where to nip-and-tuck the chassis to achieve that perfect showstopping stance. Oh, and just to make his life a bit more difficult, I’ve reminded him that I’ll need to run massive rear wheels to put all the power down, so he needs to leave room for some decent-sized rubber at the back, and the bulky engine with two whacking great turbos at the front. While Phil was busy calculating things (read shouting and swearing – I’m not sure if it was at the truck or me) I dropped in to see the guys at Cobra Seats. They are supplying a pair of their classic buckets for the build, but like everything on this Ranger, they will be customised before fitting; Hawkes
Autoworks will be giving the whole interior a full retrim, but let’s get the thing rolling first, shallComewe?back next month to see how the build progresses.
57OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD FAST FLEET
Upgrades to the wheels, tyres, suspension (coilovers), intercooler, exhaust system and a custom wrap have all been installed, and the transformation from repmobile to race car is well under way. But there’s one area the stock Mondeo has been lacking in: brakes. The standard stoppers are reliable and quiet and do a surprisingly good job of hauling the old girl up from motorway speeds. But on track we’re hoping to be going a fair bit faster. And then having to slow down from those speeds several times per lap. Such repeated abuse would simply cook the stock stuff in seconds.
All good race and track cars need proper brakes; arguably more than they need additional power or any other upgrade. Therefore we wanted something that would offer some serious bite; more than anything the stock calliper would be capable of even with performance pads and discs, we wanted a bigger, more powerful complete brake kit. But not many people list off-the-shelf big brake kits for the Mk4 Mondeo. Thankfully, our friends over at EBC aren’t afraid of a custom project car (remember the Fiesta ST they built last year that also appeared in the mag?), so when we spoke to them asking how difficult it would be to make one of their big brake kits fit, they told us to drop the car off at their Northampton-based development centre and they would take a look for us.
All good track and race cars need decent brakes. And after a trip to EBC’s Northampton HQ for a custom kit, our Mondeo does too
So, just a week or so before Ford Fair, the Mondeo made a trip to Northampton, where the engineers at EBC got to work. EBC decided the most suitable kit for this car would be the high-performance four-piston calliper with braided lines coupled to a 355x32mm twopiece disc with BlueStuff pads. This combo would offer a significant improvement in braking force and the ability to brake hard repeatedly without fade – a must for track cars. Also, as we still need to drive to and from the racetracks, this combo would remain fully road legal and compliant enough to use on the street, without fear of the brakes not working when not up to optimal temperatures. Not only that, but when EBC put the whole kit on the scales we discovered that the new four-pot calliper setup was a whopping 3kg
BRAKE TIME QUICK SPEC ■ Mondeo 2.5T ■ Titanium X ■ 19in Rotiform BUC-M alloys ■ Toyo R888R tyres ■ Scorpion Red Power turbo-back exhaust including sports cat ■ custom wrap by 3M ■ PB coilovers ■ Airtec intercooler ■ EBC front callipers with two-piece discs and Bluestuff pads 58 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 REP TO RACE CAR
Words & Photos JAMIE T he Rep to Race Car project is taking shape quite nicely; we’ve still got a lengthy list of jobs to do and upgrades to fit, but if we stop to catch a breath for a second and look back, it’s already come a long way.
SUPPORTED BY SEE THE LATEST UPDATES ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/FASTFORDMAG per side lighter than the old OE stuff. Keep in mind that’s unsprung weight, and in the case of the disc, rotating mass too – both of which have a huge impact on a car’s acceleration, braking and handling performance. Losing weight here has many benefits. There is no kit available for the Mk4 Mondeo, but EBC does offer the callipers and component parts individually for one-off and custom jobs like this. Although, with more complete kits being added to the catalogue, most Ford owners can take advantage of EBC’s development and testing work, and just bolt the finished kit straight on. The Mk7/Mk8 Fiesta ST and Mk2 Focus RS kits are proving very popular now for that very reason. With the car already in Northampton, and a tight deadline to get the car back on the road in time for Ford Fair, the nice chaps at EBC were able to hand us back the car at Silverstone. The Mondeo was proudly on display on the Fast Ford stand and was rightly attracting attention from show-goers throughout the day; the shiny new bright yellow EBC callipers peeking out from behind the spokes to catch your eye. With the front brake kit installation only being completed a few days before the show, we ran out of time to replace the rear discs and pads with matching upgrades. EBC’s balanced brake kits include upgraded rear discs with the same slotted grooves to match the fronts, along with the same compound pad upgrades, but we’ll get those fitted at Fords Parts R Us by the time you read this. That also means we haven’t yet had the chance to really put the new setup to the test. We’ll follow EBC’s guidance on bedding-in (which can be found on the firm’s website), and once that is complete, we’ll be able to offer a proper comparison. While at Ford Fair, we also popped in to see Corbeau to pick the team’s brains about bucket seats and harnesses – Jamie even sat in a few to get a feel for which ones offer the best compromise of support and comfort [You mean to see which he could physically squeeze his fat arse into – DW ], so expect an update soon. Oh, and while at Silverstone we also popped over to see Ramair to pick up a performance induction kit, spoke to Helix about a clutch and flywheel upgrade, and picked the brains of Martin at Collins Performance about custom remaps and how we can get close to 300bhp from the 2.5-litre engine too. It was a productive day chatting to various specialists, but now we need to get back in the workshop and get to work once more. EBCCONTACTBRAKES 01604 ebcbrakes.com286028 Yellow callipers carry Bluestuff pads Sexy piecetwo-discs EBC’s four-pot callipers (above) offer serious weight savings over stock (left)–essential for slowing an oversized editor 59OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD WWW.TENGTOOLS.COM IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Jason returns to the Fast Fleet pages with his latest Blue Oval, a Mk8 Fiesta ST AGAIN
BACK
JASON MK8 FIESTA ST
Nearly 18 months after departing the Fast Fleet pages, it’s great to be back with another Ford. For three years I had a Magnetic Grey S550 Mustang V8, but after 30,000 miles and some extensive mods it was time to say goodbye and get a more sensible, smallerengined coupe… I’ll say it quietly, but I went for a BMW M2, which covered all the bases as a daily driver, plus had plenty of performance and a seven-speed DSG gearbox. But I’ve always been a fan of hot hatches, so last August I purchased a Mk5 Golf GTI. My first cars were Golfs, but I’d never ticked that box of owning the legendary hot hatch hero [Don’t you mean zero? Fast Ford’s hero is the XR3i - DW ]. With a mere 15,000 miles on the clock, it was the perfect daily. Plus, it meant I could keep the miles off the M2. Us photographers do cover some miles and after doubling the mileage in just a year, plus the ULEZ fees adding up, I decided to find a more modern alternative. The car had to be economical, a hatchback, have some nice spec, and most importantly, needed to be fun to Thedrive.only car I was interested in was the Mk8 Fiesta ST – ideally with Performance Pack and upgraded wheels. After looking locally, nothing seemed sensibly priced; only ST3s were available with the Performance Pack, and they were at a solid premium.
So, while I’m busy snapping away at Ford Fair, don’t be too surprised if you spot me wandering through the Retail Village and eyeing-up what goodies are available for the Mk8 ST.
60 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FAST FLEET
I looked at an ST2 in Nottingham at Sandicliffe Ford; great service and almost the perfect car, but it was black and that was the only colour I didn’t want –because my M2 is black, and Mrs D’s Golf is the same hue.
The only time you’ll see a Blue Oval beneath a Hyundai Jason gets ready to launch before alongside an MX-5 for a new Kona EV.
I sat in the driver’s seat – comfy these Recaros, aren’t they? I scrolled through on the menu system, and up popped the launch control setting, confirming the car did indeed have the Performance Pack fitted. It also has LED headlights, rear camera and upgraded brakes, noted by the red callipers.
I continued searching, and on my doorstep at Marshall’s Canterbury Hyundai was the perfect car: Moondust Silver, three-door, four years old, with just 11,000 miles and full service-history. You might not expect to find the ideal fast Ford at a Hyundai dealership, but it turns out the car was traded in the day
A deal was done and, at the time of writing, I’ve had the car just two weeks. Its first official outing will be at Ford Fair, but after that I’ll have to get those gorgeous 18in alloys refurbished… Or replaced with something even better. I’ll also book the car in for some paint correction to clear the swirls on the paintwork, and then it’ll be like new. Perfect and ready to accept some tasteful performance upgrades.
FastFordsnapper
RadiatorHeaderTankIntercoolerBoostPipeKit OwningourownRSMK3hasgivenustheopportunitytospend countlesshoursinresearchanddevelopmenttogetour productstoperformtothehighestpossiblestandards. SCC’sTimeA�ackwinningFiestaST180 featuringourRadiatorandOilCooler package.AswellasCompSpecIntercooler. ThenewCURVED ST180Intercooler Ourpurposebuildfi�ngcentrenowopen!Call tohaveyourparts fi�edbythe experts! UsetheHashtag #proalloytogeta featureonourstory FiestaSTMK8 NewIntercoolerKit-Visitourwebsiteforthelatestreleases 01440710266 sales@proalloy.co.uk Visitournewlookwebsitenowtobuyonlinewithease
Sam Osborne was flying at Knockhill... literally
The BTCC season restarted after the summer break with a trip to Knockhill at the end of July. After his best qualifying performance of the season, Ash Sutton started in P2 – the only front-wheel-drive car in the top six. Ash served up a monumental drive in the opening race, taking the lead from pole-sitter Jake Hill with an impossibly late braking manoeuvre around the outside going into Duffus Dip. Ash stayed ahead for five laps, but Hill retook the lead on lap eight, and Ash fought off Colin Turkington to claim second. Just three tenths of a second in qualifying meant the difference between a frontrow start for Ash in P2 and NAPA Racing UK teammate Dan Cammish in P10. Dan demonstrated a clean drive, climbing to eighth at one point before being edged back to ninth by the end of the race.
WINNERS
Dan made early progress in round 17, climbing into eighth on the first lap, before the safety car was required. When the race resumed on lap four, he moved into seventh and pressured Gordon Shedden lap after lap, but was bundled back to ninth place.
NAPA’s first win in touring cars was almost worth the wait
ROUND 18 Ash capped off the weekend with a top-five result, and he was in the mix for the podium again during the closing stages. “How holdingfingersmanyamIup?”
The latest racing updates from Blue Ovals competing in various categories all over the globe FORDS MOTORSPORTIN
62 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
The Motorbase-run Focus ST proved itself a worthy BTCC race-winner again at Knockhill and Snetterton JAMIE / P hotos MOTORBASE PERFORMANCE
ROUND 17 Lining-up on the front row for the second race of the weekend, Ash held second off the line and, after an early safety-car period, his opportunity came on lap five when leader Hill ran wide at the chicane. Ash sliced past and stayed there all the way to the flag – despite contact from Hill’s BMW on the run uphill to the finish line causing a heart-in-mouth moment – to claim his first win of the 2022 season, and his first for the Motorbase team. Ash said: “To take our first win of the season, and NAPA Racing UK’s first in touring cars, is fantastic – and especially against all the BMWs. It was made a little bit easier with Jake’s mistake at the chicane; I think he was just trying to match what we were capable of doing through there, and that’s been our AGAIN!
Words
On the Apec Racing With Beavis Morgan side of the garage, Sam Osborne was close to points results in the first race, finishing just outside the points-paying spots in 16th. Sam’s teammate Ollie Jackson started the opening race in 26th after an engine bay fire late in the qualifying session. Ollie’s race day didn’t start much better either, when contact on lap three undid early progress.
strongest thing all weekend, so I just focused on that and gave it full send every lap.”
Sam had a repeat of round 16 in his Apec Racing With Beavis Morgan machine; he broke into the top 15 on lap one before the safety-car period, and despite slipping back to 19th a few laps after the restart, he fought back into 17th again before the flag on lap 26. Race two delivered an improved 21st place for Ollie, which was a strong recovery after having to pit at the end of lap one following an enforced excursion across the grass and through some advertising hoarding.
ROUND 16
Two first places for the Motorbase-run Focus STs have Blue Ovals where they should be – right at the top of the BTCC. WRC M-Sport proved the Puma Rally1 is a force to contend with, showing blistering pace but succumbing to tough luck on WRC events.
Hopes of a hat-trick of solid finishes were dashed almost immediately for Dan when he was wiped out of the race at the exit of McIntyres on the opening lap. Meanwhile, setup changes to Sam’s car didn’t work as desired, and he had to settle for 23rd place. Ollie moved from 21st into 18th on the opening lap of the last race at Knockhill but slipped back to 21st during the closing stages.
ROUND 21 And it was the reverse grid draw that saw Ash Sutton promoted to pole for the final race of theHeweekend.madea good start, but was somehow edged back to second out of Riches by Dan Rowbottom’s Honda Civic. It didn’t take long for Ash’s response to come, though, with the BTCC champ moving back through at Agostini.Henever looked back, and Ash’s lead of 0.7 seconds at the start of lap two became an eventual winning margin of 4.5 seconds. He also claimed the fastest lap of the race to earn an extra championship point. Starting so far back in race three, Dan Cammish in the sister NAPA Racing Focus ST did all he could to take the chequered flag just outside the points in 16th position. Sam Osborne started on row ten, and raced well into 17th by lap six, but on lap nine he was put off the circuit twice in succession –ultimately recovering to finish 20th.
ROUND 20 The second race of the weekend saw the NAPA Racing UK Focus STs of Ash and Dan collide at the second corner after the field bunched up and left the two Fords nowhere to Dango. came off worst, plummeting down the order outside the top 20 and eventually working his way back through to finish in 18th. Ash, meanwhile, rejoined the track and was clearly determined to make up for lost time, fighting his way back up the order to finish P9 for the second time of the weekend. From 21st on the grid in round 20, Sam didn’t have the best of first laps in the red and black ST, and slipped back three places. Recovering to 22nd before a mid-race safety car, he climbed into 20th position with a few laps to go. Ollie in the sister Apec Racing with Beavis Morgan ST served up another terrific start: storming into 10th position on lap one, he finished 13th and therefore only missed the ‘reverse grid’ draw for race three by one place.
BRITISH GT4 Academy Motorsport’s Mustangs took a vacation to Spa, where phenomenal qualifying pace saw a Ford in pole position. p62 p64 p66
Teammate Ollie Jackson enjoyed his best result of the season, finishing ninth in the final race of a scorching weekend. Ollie said: “ It’s where I feel I should be and hopefully we’ve turned a corner now.”
IN THIS ISSUE
63OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
ST where it’s meant to be Ollie Jackson enjoyed his best result of the season at a sunny Snetterton
BRITISH TOURING CARS
ROUND 19 Just two weeks after leaving Scotland, the BTCC rolled into a scorching and arid-looking Snetterton amid the UK’s second heatwave of the summer. The incredibly hot conditions provided challenges for the cars and teams in keeping everything cool, and the conditions undoubtedly favoured the rear-wheel-drive BMW over the Focus STs. Ash Sutton went into the weekend third in the standings, just six points off the leader. Starting the first race of the weekend in P11 always meant progress would be difficult, but Ash fought hard to finish in ninth place. It really was another weekend of whatcould-have-been for Dan Cammish. After a strong qualifying, Dan raced a solid and competitive race to finish in seventh, achieved after passing Rowbottom on lap three. Sam Osborne was somewhat frustrated after qualifying, feeling he didn’t get the most out of the car, but from mid-distance in race one he started to make some steps forward. Racing strongly, a late battle with Josh Cook was the highlight and Sam just missed out on a top-20 finish. The sunshine at Snetterton certainly shone on Ollie Jackson: in race one he gained six places on a superb opening lap, moving up from 25th on the grid into 19th place. Although edged back after an early safety car, he fought back to 18th.
Next up is a return visit to Thruxton at the end of August, and we’ll have a full update.
A s the WRC headed to Estonia for the seventh round on the 2022 campaign, the M-Sport team once again showed the raw pace of the Puma Rally1 on gravel by claiming two fastest stage times and a further four top-three times. But bad luck and misfortune once again struck the Blue Oval crews. Adrien Fourmaux claimed his best finish of the 2022 season and topped the M-Sport ranks in seventh. It all started so well for Craig Breen too. He was fastest in the opening stage and continued a blistering pace into Friday morning. But a small slide wide soon turned into a day-ending incident when his Puma collided with a concealed telegraph pole.
WRC
M-SPORT HAS SPEED BUT NO LUCK events in Estonia and Finland show that M-Sport’s Puma Rally1 Hybrid has the pace to compete for victories, but bad luck has hampered their chances of silverware Loubet rolled out of the rally M-Sport’s Puma1 is on its way up
The M-Sport crew worked tirelessly to get the Puma back on the road for Saturday, where Breen settled in to post consistent (top five) times. But bad luck struck the Irishman again – he was caught in some of the heaviest rain of the weekend, causing his windscreen to fog up, and forcing him to slow down.
64 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
Words JAMIE / P hotos M-SPORT
FORDS IN MOTORSPORT
Pierre-Louis Loubet struggled to find his rhythm in Estonia, and a light roll on Saturday afternoon in slippery conditions, combined with hitting a rock on the inside of a corner on the opening Sunday stage, would force him to retire from the event.
WRC
It was the first visit to Finland in a top-spec Rally1 car for Loubet, who set competitive times on his debut. Rain on Saturday brought difficulties, but the young Frenchman more than held his own with a top-five and two top-six stage times among a competitive field more familiar with these fast gravel stages.
Next, the WRC heads to Ypres in Belgium, where M-Sport is hoping the narrow and twisty asphalt farm lanes will suit the strengths of the Puma better.
Adrien Fourmaux’s brilliant start to the event ended abruptly when he lost 17 minutes repairing a bent steering arm. He managed to get the car back to the service area for the M-Sport mechanics to put right, and good times on Saturday and Sunday gained valuable data for the team and experience for the driver.
Once again they demonstrated the pace of the Puma Rally1, but left Finland a little subdued after a weekend of highs and lows. Gus Greensmith was the highest-finishing M-Sport driver, coming home seventh after three days and 22 stages of gruelling action.
65OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
Fords continue to crowd-pleasersbe Red Bull gave him wings
A promising start was dampened by rainy conditions on Saturday, in which Greensmith struggled to find grip. He continued to climb the order through the rest of the event, moving up to seventh at the end of the rally.
Gus Greensmith also endured a difficult weekend in Estonia. After showing good pace initially, changing a punctured tyre mid-stage, combined with a driveshaft issue on Sunday, forced the young Brit into retirement. The M-Sport team then headed to Finland a few weeks later, hopeful for better results.
But it was local driver Jari Huttunen who raised the most eyebrows. He set the fifth fastest time on his first ever competitive stage in the Puma Rally1, and went on to finish the rally in ninth place overall.
Craig Breen showed a lot of promise in the early stages, and despite rainy conditions and low grip levels, he was able to keep up with the front-runners. But a collision with a banking saw the right rear corner ripped off the Puma and ended Breen’s event. He did make it back out for Sunday’s power stage, where he finished second and claimed four valuable power-stage points.
66 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
“I’ve got some on-board video from the previous years that I have been reviewing and picking up as many references as I can... Similar to every track this season. My teammate Matt has been extremely helpful, giving me tricks to help get me up to speed”.
Marco produced a remarkable qualifying performance, which, when combined with fine work by teammate Matt Cowley, resulted in the Mustang being near-unbeatable in the fight for pole. In Q1 Signoretti pulled a mighty 1.2s clear with his first effort, before then improving again to craft an unassailable 1.284s gap by the end of the session. Although the earlier start of Sunday’s race meant initial temperatures were similar to Saturday’s, the all-important track temperature had increased by 15-to-18C. The fast-rising temperatures had a particularly damaging effect on the Mustang: a heavy car plus full fuel load worked the tyres harder, leading to loss of traction and cornering speed. Plus, the hotter, dryer air robbed
A year ago, Academy Motorsport driver Matt Cowley made his debut at the circuit with Will Moore. Twelve months on and it’s Canadian Marco Signoretti who is breaking his duck at the awesome Belgian track and Cowley who is sharing his knowledge. Ahead of the seventh round of the British GT Championship, Marco told Fast Ford, “Out of all the amazing circuits we’ve been to this season, racing at Spa is the one I have been the most excited about. It’s surreal to think I will be racing on the track I have been watching my heroes drive for years.
SPA TREATMENTHEAT
Words MIKE RYSIECKI / Photos JEP / SRO power from all the naturally-aspirated cars and provided an advantage to the more slippery shaped cars in the field. That meant a prudent start for Signoretti saw him exercise a defensive first run through Eau Rouge and Raidillon, falling back to sixth before later regaining third place. None of the three GT4 cars carrying success penalties from Snetterton were able to overpower their prescribed additional pit stop time, which meant that after their extra 15 stationary seconds and driver change, Matt Cowley rejoined down in eighth. Regardless, Academy was able to add a respectable haul of damage-limiting points by finishing fifth in Silver Class and seventh in GT4 overall. The sack of points pulled the Mustang even more closely into the tight group at the top of the GT4 table, and even more ready for Brands Hatch where Academy have previous winning form. my finger”
“Pull
BRITISH GTFORDS IN MOTORSPORT
Mustangs muscled their way to pole
Signoretti must be a good listener and a fast learner because his qualifying performance exceeded all expectations. The conditions were perfect, and the Academy team handed him a perfectly prepared Mustang GT4.
A ny driver going to SpaFrancorchamps to race for the first time is bound to have a little apprehension mixed in with their excitement.
Matt Cowley shared the knowledge for Marco Signoretti to debut at Spa with a monster qualifying lap
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If you can, try to wait until you’re out of the curve before you brake for the Complex. In the same way that the car accelerates best in a straight line it also stops best in a straight line: you can apply more brake pressure
On the flip side, if you can get a slipstream from the car in front (if it’s a competitive session; don’t worry about this on track days) then the best line is whichever they take so that you can stay in the tow.
The way the surface has been laid allows us to use it as a reference point for the racing line. The surface is effectively set out into four GUIDE
Even seasoned racers respect Thruxton’s high-speed thrills
Thruxton is a test of the driver’s nerve as much as for the car they’re driving. It’s incredibly fast and a little bit scary.
Words ALEX NEVILL P hotos FAST FORD ARCHIVES
As mentioned, Allard is followed by a long curve to the left that goes over a slight crest. Use lane two to keep the wheel open and cut back to lane one at the end of the curve.
T hruxton is renowned as the fastest circuit in the UK, and is seen among race drivers as the track that separates the men from the boys. The high-speeds and lack of run-off areas mean you need to be brave to nail a lap, and even low-powered shopping cars average speeds close to 100mph around here. In a tuned fast Ford you’ll need to make sure your lines and braking points are spot on.
3- NOBLE Noble is a fast double-apex corner, but in a low-powered car it’s best viewed as an acceleration zone and a chance to continue building speed before things get tricky at Goodwood. Approach the corner from lane four and use the painted kerb on the driver’s right as a reference point, turning-in just after you’ve passed it. As with the Complex, the apexes are simply the tightest parts of the turn, but you don’t want to hit the first one. Turn into it, of course, but only get as far in as having lanes with a seam between each. For this guide we’ll refer to them as lanes one through to four, with one being the first lane on the left – like motorway lanes. Having approached the corner in lane one, and then apexed in lane four, there are a couple of options on the exit: some drivers let the car run out to lane three for the shortest run to the left-hand curve that follows, but some prefer to let the car run out to lane two. The car accelerates best in a straight line, and by running out to lane two the wheel is straighter and it’s easier to continue accelerating through, and out of, the corner.
It’s time to head to the fastest track in the UK, as we guide you around Thruxton
2- COMPLEX The Complex is made up of three corners: Campbell is a 90-degree right; followed by Cobb, which is a slightly more open left; and then a final flat-out right-hander, Seagrave. From the exit of Seagrave, you’re flat-out (or close to flat-out) for most of the lap, so a good exit is Thecritical.apexes are fairly obvious (the tightest part of the corners) and you can use the lanes as markers. After the apex of Campbell, try not to run further out than lane three (stay on the right half of the track) and then position the car so that the right wheels are back into lane four before turning for Cobb. You’re accelerating through Cobb, so you must run wider on the exit. But you should still only go to lane three before bringing the left wheels back into lane two for a straighter (therefore faster) line through Seagrave, and all the way back to lane one on exit.
FORDS IN MOTORSPORT
1- ALLARD The first corner is Allard. Like most of the circuit it’s flat-out in most fast Fords, but take the time to build your speed and find out what you and the car are capable of. There’s a slight dip in the road on the approach, which makes a good turn-in marker. The apex is about three-quarters of the way around the turn – or halfway around the patch of tarmac you’ll find on the inside, depending on which makes the most sense to you.
and slow the car in a shorter distance with greater stability, which in turn sets you up for the Complex better. There’s a marshal’s post to the driver’s left, which makes a good reference point for braking.
THRUXTON
68 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022
THRUXTON TRACK
8- FINISH LINE Keep the power on from the exit of the chicane as you sprint towards the finish line.
THRUXTON ALLARD COMPLEX NOBLE CHURCHGOODWOOD BROOKLANDS CLUB FINISHLINE 1 2 3 4 5876 Scary Thruxton can soil shreddiesyour 69OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
your left wheels into lane one to help keep momentum; keep your wheels inside lane one until you turn into the second apex.
4- GOODWOOD As soon as you exit Noble you need to be setting yourself up for Goodwood, a long right-hander. If you find you’re able to take this corner flat-out then you have a couple of options line-wise: you can either head straight to lane three from the exit of Noble and turn in from there for a shorter distance overall; or position yourself in lane two from the exit of Noble and start to turn into the corner just after the patch of tarmac starts in lane three. This will be a longer distance to travel, but the trade-off is that it’s a straighter line and therefore easier to carry speed through the corner. If you’re in a car that needs a bit of a brake or lift here, then the second line is for you, as the straighter line will help you carry more speed and with better stability. The apex is quite late here, around the start of the kerb (don’t hit it). Once the kerb ends, let the car run back out to the left, where there can be a variety of lines. If the corner is easily flat-out then you only want to run out as far as your left wheels dropping into lane one on the exit; the track follows a curve on the exit and we can shorten the distance by staying in lane two and cutting into lane three through the tightest part of the curve. Alternatively, if the corner isn’t flat-out or you’re having to work at the pedals a bit, then you’re probably better off running out all the way to lane four to help you carry as much speed as possible through the corner. You will still want to cut back towards lane two or three for the curve.
The corner is flat-out in a most well-set-up cars, but the best advice is to find a speed
The part of the track that follows has a curve (known as Brooklands) and a small crest (called Woodham Hill, although it’s definitely not a hill). The best line through Brooklands is lane two, as it means the car is slightly straighter. You then cut back into lane one as you go over Woodham Hill for the straightest line into the braking zone for Club.
5- CHURCH Church is up next, and we can only assume it was called this as a reminder to say your prayers before you turn in. It’s the fastest corner in the country, and you can tell that from the driver’s seat. It’s a bit scary. The apex is on a slight crest and therefore hard to spot. It’s a little bumpy (by Thruxton’s standards, anyway – overall the circuit is very smooth, but you notice even the smallest bumps at 100mph-plus) and you run out of space very quickly on the exit. Having moved back to lane one after the curve on approach, there’s a dip you can use as a turn-in point. Although the apex itself isn’t clearly visible, the marshal post on the inside is a great reference point until you can see the kerb, which is your actual apex. The corner is slightly longer than you’d think, as there’s a slight kink on the exit. You need to hold the car within the right-hand side of the track until you reach the kink, at which point you run out all the way back to lane one.
After the kink, let the car run out into lane three slightly before turning into the first right. When turning into the chicane you can either ignore our advice about the kerbs and attack the first kerb with the right wheels for a shorter and straighter line, or look after your car and drive around the kerb. Either way, the important part is to apex late enough that you can keep the car to the right of the track (the lighter surface) before you turn in to the left.
7- CLUB Club is probably the trickiest part of the circuit, and with it being the end of the lap, the pressure’s on not to screw it up. After the non-hill there’s a kink to the right that starts the entry into the Club chicane. For the shortest distance, run the car over to lane four – up to the white line on the inside.
The rest of the chicane comes up so fast that you’ll be acting on instinct instead of having time to look for reference points; just try to be as straight as you can and get on the throttle hard and early. The kerbs through the rest of the chicane are flatter and more usable.
Before you get there, though, you’ll need to be braking. Try to get the downshifts done in this part of the braking zone if you can, as it’s the straightest part of the braking area and therefore least likely to generate lock-ups.
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you’re comfortable with and gradually start chipping away from there. 6- BROOKLANDS
Here’s how to really exploit the ST150’s performance
Over the years we’ve seen plenty of fast-road conversion with around 200bhp combined with sensible chassis and braking upgrades. In recent years, more ST owners have turned to adding boost to give some quite crazy power figures for a little Fiesta,
And, of course, the Mk6 ST has always been a force to be reckoned with on track, and we’ve seen plenty of track and full-on race cars embarrass much more powerful machinery on the circuits thanks to an uncompromising and incredibly nimble chassis setup.
Or, like most people, you could combine your perfect blend of all of the above to create an ST that is really unique, fits your needs and reflects your personality perfectly. Here’s our guide to modifying the Mk6 Fiesta ST.
he Mk6 Fiesta ST went back to fast Ford roots of sticking a big engine in a little car, stiffening up the chassis, and sending it down the road for some chuckable-yetuseable fun. It really was the XR2 reincarnated in 2000s form. And, just like the XR2, the chassis underneath can easily cope with more power than the stock 2.0-litre Duratec’s 150bhp (hence the ST150 tag). Also, just like the XR2, the engine itself can be coaxed to give significant improvements – either in screaming naturally-aspirated guise or gulping down wads of boost from a forced-induction conversion. But, because technology improves over time, the rewards on offer from a well-tuned ST150 far outweigh anything Ford’s earlier hot hatches could ever hope to muster.
With a fantastic chassis and a highly tuneable engine, the Mk6 Fiesta ST offers affordable yet formidable fast Ford fun.
70 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
T
initially with bolt-on supercharger kits, but latterly with full-blown big-turbo installations.
Words JAMIE P hotos FAST FORD ARCHIVES
MODIFYING GUIDE MK6 FIESTA ST
The Mk6 Fiesta ST came fitted with Ford’s common IB5 gearbox. It may lack the sixth speed of more modern transmissions, but it’s so short-geared you don’t really need another. The stock IB5 might not be the slickest ‘box Ford ever fitted, but it will cope with most you’ll throw its way, especially if sticking with naturally-aspirated tuning. The ST lacks a limited-slip differential, though. And while the IB5 ‘box is strong enough, the stock diff has been known to break. And when it breaks it usually disintegrates and takes out the entire gearbox. An uprated limitedslip diff like Quaife’s ATB is an ideal solution for most road cars, but track and race cars might prefer a more aggressive plated-type from Gripper or 3J TheDriveline.standard clutch and flywheel are adequate for most power increases up to around 200bhp (providing they’re in good health), but for anything more you’ll need an upgrade. Helix offers various options: uprated organic for road use, or heavy-duty paddle clutch kits for track and race. For boosted cars, a beefier gearbox like the MTX-75 is essential. It’s not a straight swap, though, and will need modifications to the engine bay, along with a different clutch plate to suit the input shaft. You’ll need that limitedslip differential now too.
racybucketsFixed-backfitthetheme You’ll not need any excessive weight All the gears, loads of ideas You won’t need the heater vent on track Letbeyourselfsuede LSD is high on the list 71OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD MODIFYING GUIDE MK6 FIESTA ST
INTERIOR
TRANSMISSION
The stock half-leather ST seats are comfy and supportive enough for day-to-day use, but for enthusiastic driving and the odd track day you’ll want something that can hold you in place a little better. Mountune fitted a set of Recaro Sportster CS seats (the same as found in the Mk2 Focus RS) to the demo car back in the day (which we later robbed for our own project ST) and they were perfect; comfy enough to use on long journeys, but more than supportive enough for fast road thrills and a spot of track day fun. These, with the rear seats deleted and maybe a half-cage, will give an excellent clubsport vibe that many owners are looking for. But they are expensive. And seemingly fitted to every modified Ford these days. So, for something a little different, one of the reclining bucket seats from specialists like Corbeau could be the answer. Especially as these allow the use of performance four-point harnesses when on track, or the factory three-point seatbelt for comfort and practicality on the road. Dedicated track and race cars will look to lightweight carbon/Kevlar FIA-approved race seats and matching harnesses, which are often a little too impractical for a regularly driven road car.
72 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
ENGINE
The ST’s 2.0-litre Duratec is a robust engine, and as long as you keep an eye on the oil levels regularly (it does like a drink) you can get stuck in straight away with the upgrades. If you want to be sensible, the first upgrade should really be a power steering relocation kit; it won’t gain you any power or improve performance but will stop the original setup spitting its PAS fluid all over the engine bay at high revs. And when you start tuning, you’ll want higher revs. Some tuners recommend an oil cooler upgrade for similar reasons. When the car was new, Mountune offered warranty-friendly performance packages in the shape of MP165 and MP185 tuning kits. Complete kits are no longer available, but some of the key components (such as the air filter kit) are. And that’s your starting point when tuning the MK6 Fiesta ST: engine breathing. The original airbox is an awkward and unsightly beast, not to mention restrictive. Bin that in favour of a K&N 57i kit, ITG foam induction kit, or the Mountune cold air induction system, and you’ll free up some grunt immediately, but more importantly, lay the foundations for things to come. With fresh air coming in, then it’s time to focus on getting the exhaust gases out. Cat-back systems give added audible appeal, but for more meaningful gains a sports cat from Scorpion, Piper or Milltek should be added to the mix. Add a suitable remap to the mix and you can expect to see around 165-to-170bhp – plus a much more enthusiastic driving experience – from these simple upgrades. The next step is to add a set of fast-road cams as Mountune did with the MP185 kit. A tried-andtested profile is the Cosworth 200-spec camshaft kit; these can be fitted without the need to change valve springs, and will produce up to 200bhp with supporting mods. Other profiles from the likes of Newman Cams and Piper Cams are also available, as are double valve springs for cam kits with very highForlift.cams like those, you’ll be looking at building a high-spec naturally-aspirated engine, and the next restrictions are the inlet manifold and throttle body. Mountune fitted a unique inlet on its top-spec MR200 tuning upgrade for the ST, as did Cosworth with the 200 kit. The former is no longer available new, but replica Cosworth items are available from tuners like Jamsport and SiCo Developments, while Pumaspeed offers its own similarWithversion.asuitable remap, this will take power to around 190/200bhp and is seen as the sweet-spot for fast-road, authentic ST tuning. If you’re looking to retain some degree of originality, get off here. But if you’re keen to continue the ride, you now face two distinct options: stick with naturallyaspirated tuning or add some boost by way of a supercharger or turbocharger conversion. Sticking with naturally-aspirated tuning, a set of throttle bodies comes next. Many of these require a stand-alone ECU, but there are kits available that work with the ST’s drive-by-wire throttle and can be made to work with a remap on the stock ECU. You’ll see over 200bhp, but you’re into the realms of diminishing returns and every extra horsepower will become more expensive and time-consuming to extract. That said, with 2.3-litre bottom end, ported and big-valve head, lairy cams and enormous throttle bodies, over 300bhp is possible. This is usually reserved for race cars where 2.0litre naturally-aspirated regulations are taken to theAnextreme.easier way to reach similar power levels –and beyond – in a road car would be to switch to forced induction. Howling throttle bodies are the essence of an ST thekitMountunestilldoestrick Never a better badge to see beneath a bonnet
of installation workA blower is just the job 73OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD MODIFYING GUIDE MK6 FIESTA ST
SUSPENSION
You’ll struggle to beat Bilsteins on an ST
takes
While the ST’s Duratec engine will make for an excellent, high-revving, throttle-bodied howler capable of delivering over 300bhp without a boost gauge in sight, getting there is neither cheap nor easy. But converting to forced induction is surprisingly simpler than it Jamsportsounds.launched several bolt-on supercharger kits for the Mk6 ST using centrifugal Rotrex units. A stock Duratec will take 300bhp on standard internals, plus because of the linear nature of boost delivery based on engine speed, these conversions even worked perfectly well on the factory ECU. A supercharger would work on an otherwise stock ST, but best results come when cams, exhaust systems and inlets are added.
Even more can be extracted when you throw in some uprated internals and a bigger blower. Supercharger conversions retain that naturallyaspirated feeling behind the wheel, but for the biggest kick in the backside you can’t beat a turbocharger. There are many different routes available, and it’s all custom-build stuff so not really an off-the-shelf kind of upgrade. As such, your engine builder or tuner can work with turbo choice, cam profiles, engine spec, and a whole host of other variables tailored to what you want. Big power is possible, and we’ve seen STs knocking on the door of 500bhp with well-spec’d turbo conversions.
Developed by Ford’s TeamRS division at the Nürburgring, the Mk6 Fiesta ST has fantastic handling straight out of the box. It’s fun, playful and communicative; exactly as a hot hatch should be. It does sit too high, though. You’re unlikely to see many STs with original springs these days, but if yours has then a set of lowering springs from Eibach are the answer; the lower stance not only looks better but it helps performance a little too. The best option is to couple the springs with matched updated dampers; Bilstein’s B12 kit has long been a favourite of ours and works exceptionally well on the Mk6 ST. So well, in fact, for a fast-road car there isn’t any real need for coilovers – certainly not budget types that will hinder rather than help performance and ride quality. If you’re a track fan you may find that the adjustable settings and stiffer spring rates of a set of a quality coilovers with most things on track, and then outrunning them on the B-roads on the way home. Dedicated track and race cars have the option of full roll cages, motorsport-spec rosejointed suspension components to really stiffen things up, but these are often too much of a compromise for any road car. Air ride has been used to great effect on show cars too. are helpful for perfecting the handling package; ASTs are said to be the best for the Mk6 ST. Polyurethane bush upgrades from SuperPro or Powerflex are wise investments to replace worn rubber units and stiffen the chassis. Add a performance rear anti-roll bar from Whiteline, and rear axle spacers at the same time, and you’ll have a decent little setup that’s capable of keeping up
Powerflex bushes are a no-brainer
Like Lego Turbo lots
INDUCTIONFORCED
but faster
JAMIE, EDITOR: “I still have very fond memories of the little ST project car we had on the mag about 12 years ago. That car only had 185bhp from a Mountune MP185 kit, but there was nothing you’d be afraid of on the road. The Bilstein B12 kit and Powerflex bushes really sorted the handling, and the rev-happy Duratec was so forgiving compared to the fragile modern high-boost turbo engines. Today, I’d build on that spec and look for over 200bhp via NA tuning or near 300bhp with a supercharger, bolt on some big brakes, remove some weight and fit a pair of lightweight bucket seats. The perfect fast-road thrillseeker.”
You’ll feel lighterbenefitstheofrims
Don’t stop before upping the brakes
It’s also the perfect opportunity to play around with offsets and increase width to fit a fatter tyre. Most road cars stick with 17s or drop to 16s, but most dedicated track and race cars go even smaller to 15in diameter wheels as this is said to give the best handling characteristics on the Mk6. As for tyres, Toyo’s R888R is a firm favourite for track use, but any quality tyre will do. Just don’t fit budget rubber and undo all that excellent work on the chassis and upgrades.
74 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
OCCONTACTSMOTORSPORT www.oc-motorsport.co.uk BURTON POWER www.burtonpower.com MOUNTUNE www.mountunestore.com JAMSPORT www.jamsportstore.co.uk
WHEELS AND TYRES
EXTERIOR
The stock 17in multi-spokes were funky when the ST was launched, but they do look a little dated today. And they’re heavy. Very heavy. In a test Fast Ford conducted a few years ago we weighed the stock alloys and tyres at a whopping 20.87kg each. In the same test, we weighed a similarly sized set of Team Dynamics Pro Race 1.2s with the same tyres, and they tipped the scales at 17.6kg. That’s a 12kg reduction. And they say that 1kg of unsprung weight is worth 4kg of chassis weight, which means that’s the same as removing a massive 48kg! So, the first thing is to ditch the stock alloys
Stick to branded rubber
Don’t be fooled by the seemingly small diameter of the 258mm front brakes; when combined with decent fast-road compound brake pads, uprated discs, and braided lines they’re perfectly adequate for fast road use. In fact, the Fiesta ST Championship used to run them, so they have been proven to work on trackTheretoo.is a cheap and easy upgrade, though: fitting Focus ST170 300mm discs with Mk3 Mondeo callipers. This is a fantastic upgrade that makes a notable difference on a very small budget – they work even better when uprated discs, pads and lines are used too. Another in-house upgrade is to use the Brembo four-pot callipers from a Mk1 Focus RS. You’ll need suitable brackets, but they’ll clear the stock 17in rims when you add a set of wheelPerhapsspacers.the best option, though, is a proper aftermarket big brake kit. There’s plenty of options from the usual suspects such as AP Racing, K-Sport and Hi-Spec, offering various diameters; and that’s crucial because for a track car you’ll want to drop an inch or two on wheel size to optimise handling. At the rear, there’s no need for anything fancy. Simple disc and pad upgrades are often more than you’ll ever need, but if you want bigger discs, then fitting the ST170’s carriers to the Fiesta callipers allows you to run 270mm rears within the stock wheels.
BRAKES
for something lighter. Many cast alloys offer significant weight savings over stock, but forged alloys will give the biggest gains.
WHAT WE WOULD DO…
DAN CONTRIBUTOR:WILLIAMSON, “First, I’d leave it alone – on the styling side, that is. Even the standard 17in alloys would need to stay. But they’d have to wear sticky track-day rubber and sit closer to the arches – so a B12 kit would be coupled to Powerflex bushes. Uprated brakes – perhaps simple ST170 stoppers – would be next, mated to aggressive pads. And that’s where the subtlety would end. A clubsport cabin would feature a full cage and bucket seats, the gearstick would link to a sequential straight-cut ‘box, and a 2.3 Duratec would be fed by juicy throttle bodies. Or perhaps I’d just stick with a supercharger; for a fast-road weapon, nothing beats a blower.”
PUMASPEED pumaspeed.co.uk
The funky styling and chunky arches on the Mk6 Fiesta have something of a retro appeal these days. Despite the Mk6 Fiesta only being a teenager, car designs have changed so much through the 2010s and into the 2020s that the ST has a decidedly old-school feel to its aesthetics. There’s no need to improve on what Ford gave us, other than maybe removing any twin stripes if they were fitted, as they do look dated by modern standards. Lairy kits and massive rear wings are all available, of course, but a more subtle approach with a lowline kit and front splitter is preferred by many.
07540info@laird-performance.co.uk607105 Laird Performance I 1 Newton Brae I Cambuslang I G72 7UW LAIRD PERFORMANCE THE WINNERS CHOICE WE ARE WE ARE FOLLOW US on our Socials GET IN TOUCH FOR MUCH MORE SHOP NOW FORD FIESTA FORD FOCUS INTERCOOLERSOUTLAW Laird Performanc specialise in performance parts & Tuning mainly in the Ford Ecoboost range
OIL STARVATION Without question, the most common cause of turbo failure is oil starvation. A turbocharger’s turbine shaft runs at speeds of over 150,000rpm and at temperatures exceeding 900C, and it can do so almost endlessly – but only when lubricated as it was designed to be.
Turbochargers get a bad rep for being temperamental old things that like to play up in anything other than 100 per cent perfect conditions, but that’s not really fair. Turbos must put up with some of the harshest conditions your engine dishes out – those immense heat cycles would put an enormous strain on any piece of hardware, but a well-cared-for turbo will happily cope. Looked after properly, a good turbo can last the lifetime of your car, even on a tuned engine. But they’re not indestructible. They rely heavily on other component parts of your engine – not to mention your mapping settings – being in tip-top condition too. That’s why we’ve complied this guide to the most
HOW TO PREVENT OIL STARVATION Use a good-quality oil and filter and change them sooner than your manufacturerrecommended intervals. Keep an eye on your oil pressure too – ideally via an aftermarket gauge reading directly from the oil feed union to the turbo – as any drop in pressure can destroy a turbo very quickly.
common causes of turbo failure, what caused them, and how to prevent it from happening.
To work effectively, a turbo needs a constant flow and pressure of clean, good quality oil. This not only works to lubricate the thrust and journal bearings, it also helps to stabilise the rotating shaft and journal bearings, as well as acting as a coolant. This requirement is intensified as the turbocharger speed and engine load increases. Even a small reduction in oil pressure can be enough to kill your turbo in seconds, and can be identified by blueing on the turbo shaft or seized bearings. The main causes of oil starvation range from oil pump failure to low oil levels; or dirty oil to broken or blocked oil feed pipes.
We take a closer look at what could be killing your turbo, and how to prevent it Words DAN SHERWOOD & JAMIE / P hotos JAMIE & FAST FORD ARCHIVES ARE YOU KILLING YOUR TURBO? TURBO FAILURES Are you doing this to your turbo? A enginelifelastshouldbuiltwell-turbotheofthe 76 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
A wise turbo specialist once said, “Turbos don’t die; they’re killed.” And they were right.
OIL CONTAMINATION Many people assume the oil filter will remove any dirty bits before the oil reaches the turbocharger. But this can be a costly mistake.
Good quality-oil and filter, changed well before the prescribed intervals, is essential. Adding an inline turbo pre-filter could also help catch any errant particles hell-bent on waging war on your turbo.
HOW TO PREVENT OIL CONTAMINATION
HOW TO PREVENT IT Buy from a reputable specialist to ensure you’re getting a quality product, and that can provide backup in case of any problems and technical queries.
And when this happens, it is always the turbo that fails first.
77OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD TURBO FAILURES ARE YOU KILLING YOUR TURBO?
Cut-back blades help prevent the turbine wheel from clipping the inside of the housing and causing damage
HOW TO PREVENT IMPACT DAMAGE
The air filter prevents dust particles, small stones, dirt and leaves from reaching the turbo’s delicate compressor wheel. Running without an air filter, or even just using one that has rubbish levels of filtration, means more debris will find its way into the turbo. And, spinning at 150,000 rpm, it doesn’t take much of an imbalance to wreak havoc. At best, the bearings will wear out prematurely because of the excess vibration, but often the imbalance is great enough to cause the compressor wheel to clip the inside of the compressor housing. When this happens, larger chucks of the blades can break off, making the whole thing even more out of balance, until eventually the compressor wheel destroys itself. Although more likely – and easier to prevent – impact damage isn’t limited to the turbo’s compressor wheel; it can also happen to the turbine wheel caused by debris from inside the combustion chamber. This could be anything from lumps of carbon, injector tips or broken valve parts, to bits of weld or rust from the manifold. But whatever it is, anything hitting the turbine wheel will cause considerable amounts of damage.
Problems can arise when you try and cut costs with cheap turbos that perhaps haven’t gone through the same vigorous checks to ensure build quality. Although things may seem fine for a short time, the usable lifespan is often radically reduced, meaning the savings you make on the purchase price are lost through buying twice when your cheap turbo fails.
THRUST BEARING FAILURE
BUILD QUALITY
Always invest in a good-quality air filter with good filtration properties, as well as meeting the airflow requirements for your power level. And make sure you clean it regularly, according to the maker’s instructions. Also, be sure to check the turbo for loose connections and debris, especially if fitting a turbo after a previous failure. If possible, check exhaust manifolds for signs of internal rust or loose weld spots too.
OE turbos are built to meet stringent specifications and pass numerous quality checks and tests. That’s part of the reason they’re so expensive. A high-quality aftermarket turbo, built by a reputable specialist, will also have strict quality control, testing and development procedures, again adding to the costs.
Bad mapping and hot EGTs can cause the turbine wheel to melt willdamageImpactquicklykillaturbo
Just like having low oil is bad news for your blower, contaminated oil is also a sure-fire way to turbo failure. Any particles of debris floating around in the oil system (from the products of fuel combustion such as carbon deposits and soot, to tiny metal particles from general wear and tear of the engine) will eventually get past the oil filter and end up at the turbo, causing damage to the smooth surfaces of the bearings and shaft. But it’s not just particles getting past the oil filter that can cause damage. Other engine problems that allow water or fuel to mix with the oil (such as head gasket failure) will prevent the oil from working as it should, reducing its supportive, cooling and lubricating capabilities.
IMPACT DAMAGE AND TURBO FAILURE
As the compressor wheel spins, it is effectively trying to pull the shaft out of the front of the turbo. It is prevented from doing so by the turbo’s thrust bearing, which holds the shaft in place and resists this axial force. On most standard applications with low boost levels, a 270-degree thrust bearing is sufficient to stop this from happening – it’s called a 270-degree bearing as there is a 90-degree cut-out that allows the bearing to slide over the shaft, making a turbo cheaper and easier to produce; a 360-degree bearing is made of three pieces, and assembled with the shaft running through it. But increase the boost and the thrust bearing will struggle to contain it. This can lead to a reduction in lubrication and a
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STOPPING THE ENGINE WHEN THE TURBO IS HOT
CARBON BUILD-UP
A turbo is fed by hot exhaust gases, so unsurprisingly creates a lot of heat in the shaft and bearings, much of which is dissipated by the flow of oil. When allowed to slow down and cool over a reasonable period, this isn’t a problem. But by shutting off an engine immediately after being on boost, the flow of oil is halted and that heat is trapped inside the turbo. This heat can cause damage, including a warped shaft – due to turbine droop – as well as carbonising the oil and damaging the bearings. At this stage it’s all over, and turbo failure is imminent.
CLOGGED ENGINE BREATHER
As well as damage and wear to the bearings and shaft, running old and dirty oil can lead to a build-up of sludge in the engine’s oil galleries and the turbo oil-feed pipework.
OVER-BOOSTING
It’s recommended that you end your journey at a more sedate pace or, once at your destination, simply leave the engine ticking over for a few minutes to allow the turbo to cool down before shutting it off. Turbo timers were popular back in the day, but just leaving the car running for a few minutes before you lock up and leave it does the same thing.
Don’t under estimate the importance of a good breather system on a turbo’d engine 360-degree thrust bearings are a good upgrade Silicone hoses can help cure boost leaks and prevent your turbo from over-boosting 79OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD TURBO FAILURES ARE YOU KILLING YOUR TURBO?
HOW TO PREVENT HOT STOP
The use of good-quality oil and fuel will help limit potential build-up, as will regular oil and filter changes. Also, inspect the waste oil and filter for signs of build-up and to get an insight into what’s going on inside the engine.
Have your turbo checked over before you start increasing boost pressures. This could involve getting it refreshed by a turbo specialist with new or uprated bearings if you are planning on pushing things further.
HOW TO PREVENT GETTING A CLOGGED ENGINE BREATHER
rapid increase in wear, identified by in-out play in the shaft and smoke from the exhaust.
Any restrictions or blockages here can prove fatal for your turbo. Some cars seem to suffer from carbon build-up and excess sludge more than others, and there is not much you can do about it other than keeping an eye on your oil condition when checking levels; thick black oil needs changing fast.
HOW TO PREVENT CARBON BUILD-UP
Also known as over-speeding, over-boosting is where the turbocharger is operating above its normal limits. Like any component that is working harder than it was designed to, this causes excess wear and eventually damage. This can damage the bearings, shaft and even the turbine and compressor wheels themselves (they effectively increase diameter under the huge centrifugal forces, and expand so much they can make contact with the inside of the housings). Overboosting can occur for various reasons, from incorrect ECU mapping to a faulty or undersized wastegate or actuator. It is more commonly down to a simple air leak in the turbo system. There are various places air can leak from, including broken gaskets, split hoses or punctured intercoolers – all of which force the turbo to work harder as it tries to reach the required boost pressure.
Ensure that all the turbocharger pipework (and intercooler) is sound with no splits, cracks or leaking joints. Consider uprating
The engine breather system is an important part of a turbocharged engine; it’s a oneway valve that allows high pressure blow-by gasses from the crankcase to pass through without causing excessive pressure in the oil system. If this gets clogged it will allow excessive pressure to build up in the engine. In turn, this will pressurise the turbo’s oil system, causing oil to force its way past the bearings, causing damage to the bearings and blue smoke to be emitted from the exhaust.
The standard PCV system should cope with moderate increases in power while continuing to control the emissions from the crankcase, but the system should be thoroughly checked (even on a relatively new car) and any suspect valves and hoses replaced. For highly-tuned applications, a remote catch tank is advised to vent excess pressure and collect oil vapour.
HOW TO PREVENT OVER-BOOSTING
HOW TO PREVENT THRUST BEARING FAILURE
TEMPERATURES
To ensure your car stays within a safe range, fit an EGT sensor, ideally one that feeds back to the ECU. That way, if the temperatures go up it can shut down the engine before any damage is done.
The standard mapping will never cause your turbo to fail, but poor remaps can, and often do. Simply upping the boost levels or crudely turning everything up will cause all manner of performance and reliability issues, not least of which for your turbo. Incorrect AFRs can introduce excess carbon build-up, high EGTs can crack housings, too much boost can cause over-speeding, and when it all eventually blows up, the chunks of broken engine exiting via the exhaust will completely finish off your turbo just for good measure.
to silicone hoses, which will not perish over time and are capable of holding greater pressure. Also, ensure that the wastegate and actuator are operating correctly.
Excessive exhaust gas temperatures (EGT) can be caused by poor-quality oil, faults in the oil cooling system, incorrect mapping, bad tuning, poor maintenance and such like.
TURBO TECHNICS www.turbotechnics.com
TURBOCONTACTSZENTRUM www.turbozentrum.co.uk
EXCESSIVE EXHAUST GAS
HOW TO PREVENT IT
HOW TO PREVENT COMPRESSOR SURGE Eliminating compressor surge can be achieved by fitting a suitable blow-off valve, but if you are experiencing surge at wide open throttle (when any BOV would be shut anyway) you need to look at other areas
AET TURBOS aet-turbos.co.uk
such as turbo sizing, wastegate and actuator function and mapping.
BAD MAPPING
HOW TO PREVENT IT Choose a reputable specialist to map your car. It’s also worth doing a full health check before you look to increase the power levels, as any faults will need to be fixed first.
80 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
TURBO DEVELOPMENTS www.turbodevelopments.co.uk
TURBO PERFORMANCE www.turboperformanceltd.com
External wastegates can help with compressor surge
Turbos are built to take the high temperatures generated during normal operation, but if the temperature of the exhaust gases is too high, it can cause catastrophic damage. Typically, this damage is located around the turbocharger’s turbine, cracking the housing, causing excessive erosion and corrosion, all while causing collateral damage to other components like the wastegate.
COMPRESSOR SURGE Turbo cars make some great noises, especially when they are tuned, and that’s all part of the fun. But some noises can signal problems. One such sound that you don’t want to hear is the ‘flutter’ or ‘turkey gobble’ sound sometimes wrongly referred to as ‘wastegate chatter’. This noise is the sound of compressor surge. It happens when the turbo is delivering more air than the engine can take in, which then backs up and eventually tries to force its way back out through the turbo the wrong way – the noise is this air hitting the still spinning compressor wheel blades. It may sound cool, but the added pressure on your turbo will cause accelerated bearing wear.
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BHP Rating: Up to 350 BHP* Specification: Turbo Technics designed larger upgraded billet compressor wheel. Full size K04 turbine wheel upgrade. Turbo Technics designed anti-surge ported compressor housing. Turbo Technics large a/r turbine housing (nickel-alloy) Bearing housing and bearing system upgrade (K04) Upgraded journal bearing and shaft. Turbo Technics 360 degree thrust bearing assembly. Competition seal kit. *with supporting modifications
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BTCC’s
BUYER’S GUIDE
GOOD: £1500 TO £4000 Mechanically-sound ST200s start here, hopefully with fewer than 150,000 recorded miles. At the lower end, they may need a little welding on the sills or wheelarches, but higherpriced cars should be fit for faithful service. Pay extra for a saloon.
CONCOURS: £4000 TO £8000-PLUS Rust-free ST200s are worth the extra cash, but beware of overpriced cars with optimistic (or cynical) dealers. Genuine very-low-mileage examples can double this value, but always take a long time to find a buyer.
MONDEO the golden age but bizarrely overlooked Mondeo is a Fast Fords have always been targeted by thieves and fraudsters, but the ST200 thankfully escaped most of the serious attention. Even so, you’ll need to invest in a thorough history check to ensure it’s not been stolen, written-off, scrapped or the subject of outstanding finance. Check the chassis number on the logbook matches the sticker on the driver’s-side B-pillar, the stamps on the bulkhead (there’s a cutout in the insulation), and a plate on the nearside dashboard (visible through the windscreen from outside). It’s also worth checking the car is a real ST200, as opposed to a tarted-up lesser model. By far the majority of British ST200s were Imperial Blue, and early examples (there were reportedly two press cars) were painted Imperial Blue on the inner wings, as opposed to primer. Diamond White, Panther Black, Stardust Silver and Radiant Red were also offered in mainland Europe. The ST200 LE of July 2000 is particularly rare, having been sold in the UK as the only type of ST200 saloon; 201 were produced. The LE tends Visible VIN windscreenin to be valued higher than the regular ST200 hatchback or estate (Germany and Belgium also got LE hatchbacks and estates). Ensure any LE has black-and-blue heated leather seats, blue steering wheel and dashboard inserts, plus a Limited Edition badge on the bootlid and numbered plaque on the ashtray (quoting a number out of 300, despite a 322 having been produced; it’s assumed the plaques were dealer-fitted, and not in numerical order).
today, Ford’s motorsport-inspired
PROJECT: £500 TO £1500 Typically offered for ‘spares or repairs’, a cheap ST200 will be rusty – perhaps hopelessly rotten – and in need of major repairs. Rebuilding a scrapper to roadworthy condition won’t be cost-effective, and a full restoration would set you back far more than it’s worth.
■ British Touring Car Championship racing was at its peak during the Mondeo’s reign, and the ST200 was the closest road-going relation to the ultra-cool Super Touring series. ■ ST200s are an unfathomably cheap route into the Recaro seat of a retro fast Ford – and with such heritage, ever-increasing rarity and burbling V6 soundtrack, their prices are sure to rise within the next few years. ■ Still enormously practical and usable everyday, a Mk2 Mondeo is a faithful companion with loads of standard kit and 140mph performance. What’s not to love?
82 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
ST200 Hero of
WHY YOU DON’T…
HOW MUCH TO PAY
■ Gaffer-taped bumpers and minicabs are the old-Mondeo image, despite a classic-Ford status tantalisingly close to fruition. ■ Rust can be the end of the road for a Mk2 Mondeo. If it’s rotted through the sills, inner arches and floors, it’s a substantial project – or, most likely, a scrapper. ■ BTCC looks, maybe, but the ST200 isn’t quick by modern standards. And because it was welltuned by Ford from the factory, aftermarket improvements aren’t easily achieved.
ST200
fast, faithful and extremely affordable family favourite Words DAN WILLIAMSON Photos MATT RICHARDSON VITAL STATISTICS MADE 1999 to 2000 PRICE WHEN NEW £22,945 POWER 201bhp @ 6500rpm TORQUE 170lb.ft @ 5500rpm TOP SPEED 141mph 0-60MPH 7.8 seconds IDENTITY
WHY YOU WANT ONE…
ST200 still looks smart in Imperial Blue 83OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
JULY 2000 A final run of 201 ST200 Limited Edition saloons are sold in the UK, featuring Racing Blue paintwork, black-and-blue leather seats. A small number of limitededition saloons, hatchbacks and estates are produced for Europe.
INTERIOR
24 OCTOBER 1998 Mondeo ST200 previewed at the British International Motor Show, intended to monetise Ford’s British Touring Car Championship programme. Based on the ST24 hatchback or estate, the ST200 ((Sports Touring 200bhp) is tuned to produce 201bhp, boasts uprated suspension, 17in alloys, Recaro seats and almost-mandatory Ford Racing Blue (Imperial Blue) paint.
OCTOBER 2000 Mondeo Mk3 introduced.
8 FEBRUARY 1999 First production Mondeo ST200 built, a right-hand-drive in Racing Blue. 9 MARCH 1999 Ford promotes the Mondeo ST250 Eco concept at the Geneva show. Closely resembling the ST200, the ST250 (Sports Touring 250bhp) includes a supercharged 3.0-litre Duratec V6 with LPG capability, Prodrive clutchless transmission and 8x18in multi-spoke alloy wheels.
APRIL 1997 Mondeo ST24 hatchback introduced, wearing four-spoke ‘turbine’ 16in alloy wheels and RSAP (Rallye Sport Appearance Pack) bodykit comprising spoilers, skirts and mesh grilles.
FEBRUARY 1998 Mondeo ST24 estate joins the range, with RSAP bodykit offered at extra cost.
JUNE 1999 Mondeo ST200 goes on sale in UK.
AUTUMN 1998 RSAP standard on ST24 unless delete option is specified.
AUGUST 1999 Full-leather Recaro seats now standard in place of half-leather upholstery.
AUGUST 1996 Facelifted Ford Mondeo introduced, now known as Mk2, with ‘Dame Edna’ headlamps and bigger back lights.
23HISTORYNOVEMBER1992 Ford Mondeo production begins at Genk, Belgium. MARCH 1993 Ford Mondeo is launched at the Geneva Motor Show.
Mk2 Mondeo cabins are hard-wearing, so even a high-mileage example shouldn’t look scruffy; if it is, suspect it’s hard a hard life – perhaps used years ago as a minicab or even police car (especially if it’s one of the rare white-painted ST200s), which left the factory with cloth seats. That said, a few rattles and creaks can be expected in a Ford of this age. Tatty trim, scuffed seats, damaged door cards or a drilled dashboard can be replaced fairly easily, unless it’s an ST200 Limited Edition with mottled blue fascia panels. All regular ST200s were equipped with carbon-look interior panels and door pulls, plus a perforated-leather steering wheel, blue dials with ST200 logo, carbon-effect ST200-badged gearknob, six-disc CD changer, climate control, all-round electric windows, trip computer, ST200 kick plates and nowrare floor mats. Start asking questions if any pieces are missing from your potential purchase. Electric window and central locking motors are regular causes for complaint when their motors stop working. The parts are shared with basic Mondeos, so don’t tend to be dear, although second-hand parts are becoming harder to find. Make sure the heater blower activates on all settings (a common Mondeo fault), and check the air conditioning blows cold. Ensure the dashboard isn’t displaying warning lights, especially lamps for the ABS (typically due to a sensor fault) or airbag (often caused by a poor connection in the loom under the front seat). Be especially wary of a battery warning light, which could suggest alternator failure or a tired battery. Flickering or pulsing headlamps may also be evident, but could be related to an alternator wire, which was a cheap and simple repair covered under a Ford technical service bulletin. Early ST200s included Recaro front seats with halfleather upholstery, or full-leather as an optional extra. From summer 1999, full leather was standard. Worn bolsters, cracked leather and broken bases are quite normal by now, and the electric motor mechanisms tend to stop working due to stripped gears; several ST200s have been retrofitted with pre-2003 Mondeo ST220 seats, which look similar and have a more reliable motor assembly. Lift the mats in both front footwells to feel for dampness; if water has been leaking through the bulkhead or pollen filter, the carpets may be mouldy and the floorpan rotten. Boot floors of saloons and hatchbacks corrode due to leaks from the rear light seals, so check beneath the mats and spare wheel. Be sure to look under the rear seat bolsters for rotten seat belt mounts. Blue dials were fitted to all ST200s
ST200 LE dashboardblue
23 AUGUST 2000 Final Mondeo ST200 built, a left-handdrive in Panther Black. ST200 production totals 4861, including 1852 UK sales.
BUYER’S GUIDE MONDEO ST200
SEPTEMBER 1996 Mondeo ST24 (Sports Touring 24-valve) appears as a repackaged Si V6 saloon, featuring 168bhp, 2544cc Duratec V6 engine, lowered suspension and uprated dampers.
TECH SPEC MONDEO ST200 ENGINE 2544cc, 24V, V6 Duratec VE with 10.3:1 (ST200) compression ratio, chain-driven quad cams, dual-phase induction system, Ford EEC-V management, extrude-honed primary and secondary cylinder head intake ports, reprofiled hollow inlet and exhaust camshafts, extrudehoned upper and lower intake manifolds, enlarged throttle body, dual-inlet air cleaner, Bosch green injectors, revised ECU software mapping and increased-diameter twin-tailpipe exhaust system TRANSMISSION MTX75 five-speed manual, lightened flywheel, uprated clutch, revised gear ratios, traction control SUSPENSION Front: MacPherson struts with uprated springs and dampers, lower A-arms, anti-roll bar, front subframe and wishbones; rear: Quadralink with independent struts (saloon/hatch), trailing arms (estate), revised springs, dampers, anti-roll bar BRAKES Front: 278mm ventilated discs; rear: 253mm solid discs; ABS WHEELS & TYRES 7x17in multi-spoke alloy wheels with 215/45x17 tyres EXTERIOR Mondeo four-door saloon/five-door hatchback/five-door estate with Si rear boot/ tailgate spoiler, mesh front grille, RSAP bodykit comprising side skirts, front and rear bumpers, twin-exhaust outlets in rear bumper, heated windscreen INTERIOR Half-leather Recaro front seats (full leather from summer 1999), perforated-leather steering wheel, dark blue instrument cluster, carbon-look interior panels, door pulls and gearknob, ST200 kick plates and mats All UK EditionsweresaloonsST200Limited 84 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO RUN? If fuel economy is your greatest concern, the ST200 isn’t for you – the V6 engine has a drinking habit. But it evens out by taking parts and overall running costs into account, and the Mondeo doesn’t suffer any silly RS tax.
SHOULD I MODIFY IT?
WHAT DO I NEED TO HOWKNOW?MUCHDOES IT COST TO INSURE?
In December 2021, Neil Haste of the Mondeo ST Owners’ Club calculated there were 737 surviving ST200s in the UK, so they’re pretty rare – but a steady flow can be found in private hands on eBay and Facebook groups. Some severely overpriced ST200s are offered by hopeful dealers, and concours cars occasionally crop up at classic car auctions or collectors’ car dealers. Always ask around club members before investing.
WILL VALUES RISE OR FALL?
Group 34 insurance means it’s not cheap, although the relatively low value and justa-Mondeo image will usually result in a reasonably-priced premium if you shop around or use online comparison sites. A concours or modified ST200 will require a limited-mileage policy through a specialist broker to appreciate the modern-classic status – and to value the car accordingly in the event of disaster.
Prices are still on their knees, and – believe it or not – ST200s are typically cheaper than the equivalent ST24s on which they were based. Values will inevitably climb over time, but not in any real rush.
Probably not. Tuning an ST200 is a thankless task, and will serve only to decrease its overall value. It’s also almost impossible to improve an ST200 aesthetically. and the need for a rebuild. Neglecting oil changes can cause camshaft wear: listen for tapping from the top of the engine, especially from cold.
WHERE DO I FIND ONE?
Clattering could point to a tired timing chain tensioner; they’ve been known to wear out from as early as 60,000 miles, but repairs are expensive. Some ST200 owners have sourced timing chain kits from Japan or America to save money. Slow-sounding starter motors are common, albeit not overly expensive. Alternator faults can be frequent but awkward to change, thanks to being at the back of the engine beneath the rear exhaust manifold. A duff alternator can lead to several other issues, so make sure the alternator light (battery symbol) comes on with the ignition, goes off when the engine is started and doesn’t flicker under high revs. Fuel pump failure is problematic, causing the car not to start; listen for buzzing underneath. OE replacements are costly, but non-genuine pumps are available to save cash. Allow the engine to get warm, and ensure the cooling fans cut in. They sometimes seize altogether, leading to eventual meltdown.
ST200s were known for being well-tuned by Ford in Germany – taking the ST24’s 168bhp 2544cc Duratec V6 to 201bhp thanks to polished cylinder heads, sportier cams, honed inlet manifolds, beefier throttle body and dual-inlet airbox. Although that means it’s tricky to enhance power output, it thankfully doesn’t result in an overlystressed engine. The early Duratec V6 had a reputation for head gasket failure, but that’s rare on an ST200. Even so, check for symptoms: mayonnaise on the dipstick and steam from the exhaust would be unusual – a blow to atmosphere from near cylinder one on the front bank would be more likely. Failure would sound like a blowing exhaust manifold, which is fortunately the most likely cause – leaking from a gasket or sheered bolt; listen for the ticking getting louder as you increase the engine revs. Blowing from the EGR system can cause ticking too, so EGR deletion works well. Misfiring could also result from head gasket failure, but the most likely culprits are the coil pack, plugs or leads. Poor performance is common, often due to a knackered IMRC (inlet manifold runner control), which opens the secondary inlet butterflies at 3500-to-4000rpm, giving a surge of power under full throttle. The IMRC lives above the exhaust manifold; a transistor on its circuit board overheats and fails, causing sluggish acceleration at higher revs. It can be replaced, repaired (you’ll need expert soldering skills) or bypassed altogether to keep the secondary inlets permanently open, with mixed results. If you’re lucky, you may find the secondaries are just dirty, so a quick clean-up could be the cure.
Duratec V6s tend to burn a little oil, so letting it run low could be catastrophic – destroying the crankshaft bearings, resulting in heavy knocking
Ford’s 201bhpDuratechighest-tunedV6producedfromthefactory 85OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD BUYER’S GUIDE MONDEO ST200
ENGINE
Corrosion is the number one killer of ST200s, and many of today’s survivors are exhibiting rot. Typically, if a Mondeo is rusty, the tinworm will be extensive – and often prohibitively expensive to repair if it’s really taken hold. Rusty rear wheelarches will be obvious, but check inside the inner arch (extending to the rear seat belt mounts), all the way down to the sills, and behind the side skirts. Feel behind the skirts as far as you can reach, pressing on the inner sills. Corrosion could have spread to the floorpan, so examine the underside, including chassis rails and boot floor. Remove the wheels and inspect the inner arches behind the arch liners. Repairs here will be expensive, but if it’s been done correctly – chopping out all the rot and adding cavity wax protection – there’s no need to be alarmed. Look around the fuel filler flap and examine all the doors, paying attention to their frames and the weather strips alongside the windows; when rusty they tend to scratch the glass, so budget for a set of new seals. Some Mk2s have rotted quite severely around the windscreen rubbers too. The bonnet may be corroded – generally due to stone chips – and the fog lamps need checking to ensure they’re not cracked. Of course, the ST200 is a Mk2 Mondeo, so its bumpers are naturally inclined to crack or fall apart; gaffertaped bumpers were traditional for Mondeo owners, yet the ST200’s RSAP bodykit (shared with the ST24, among others) is relatively easy to find second-hand – except for the twinexhaust back bumper. For hatchbacks and saloons they’re rare, but ST200 estate rear bumpers are almost impossible to find – resulting in the car potentially being written-off by the insurer if it gets damaged. Bear in mind any severely crispy ST200 could be fit for scrap, so it’s preferable to find a better car than indulge in a lengthy restoration. Tread carefully around any ST200 that doesn’t sport Imperial Blue bodywork. A few were built in other colours, and 66 UK police cars were Diamond White – rare, yes, but often subjected to a hard life.
Twin-exit back bumpers are rare Lift the boot mat to check for dampness and corrosion
86 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 FF TECH
EXTERIOR
Broken anti-roll bar drop links also cause knocking noises, as do snapped coil springs or even faulty dampers. Beware, because the springs and shock absorbers are ST200-specific, and OEM dampers are particularly difficult to source.
DAN CONTRIBUTOR:WILLIAMSON, “Buying an ST200 was always on my agenda, but after a long series of Mk1 and Mk2 Mondeo daily-drivers in the 1990s and early 2000s, I skipped to the ST220 instead. Yet I still feel like I missed out on the ultimate Mk2, so I sometimes keep my eyes open for an ST200 estate to sit in my little collection. It would be Imperial Blue, of course, but I wouldn’t care if it had covered plenty of miles because Mondeos can take the strain with ease. Of course, I’d be tempted to drop in a 3.0-litre Duratec bottom end, and a Quaife ATB diff would be useful. Most of all, I’d need to upgrade the brakes for some that don’t cook themselves on the way to a track day...”
ST200s spokes17infour-studranmulti-
BURTON POWER www.burtonpower.com
Ford’s MTX-75 five-speed manual gearbox is known for being tough; in the ST200 it gained revised gear ratios, a lighter flywheel and uprated clutch. It’s unlikely to cause any bother. That said, a few high-mileage ‘boxes have had differential problems, and a gearbox oil change at 100,000 miles has been mooted as beneficial. On the flip side, it’s an opportunity to invest in a limited-slip diff… Listen for whining from the transmission – the telltale groan sounds similar to worn driveshafts but will generally be accompanied by torque steer when driving in a straight line. Check for rumbling or rattling from the gearbox (suggesting worn bearings), and be wary of gear selection problems, especially on third – which points to knackered synchromesh and the need for a replacement ‘box. It’s especially likely if the Mondeo has minicab-rivalling mileage. You’re more likely to experience clutch trouble, even on a lesser-used ST200. Take a test drive and ensure the pedal feels light; if it’s heavy, the springs or pressure plate are on their last legs; if the biting point is high or gears are tricky to select, it’s ready for replacement. Clutch slip will be evident if you drive in fourth gear at 2000rpm and floor the throttle; if the engine revs increase but the road speed doesn’t, expect to spend heavily on getting the clutch renewed. Worry less about clicking on full steering lock, which will be due to tired CV joints; they’re not pricey to replace, but are best swapped sooner than later.
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES
WHAT WE SAY
You may be surprised by how nicely an ST200 drives. The stock setup included lowered springs and stiffer dampers, resulting in a firm and sporty ride (reckoned to be too firm by some testers), not to mention great poise on the twisty bits. The problem is ST200s were fitted with bespoke suspension components, including unique front suspension arms; like normal Mk2 Mondeos, they regularly destroy front wishbone bushes, resulting in wandering at speed and clonking over bumps; unlike normal Mondeos, the replacement parts are rare and expensive. The ball joints can be replaced separately, but owners tend to get the main subframe bushes from America by buying Ford Contour components.
MONDEO OWNERS UK groups/1899868830129749/www.facebook.com/ ST DRIVERS www.stdrivers.co.uk
MONDEOCONTACTSSTOWNERS’ CLUB www.mondeostoc.com
TRANSMISSION
JAMIE, EDITOR: “I’ve always had a soft spot for the Mk2 Mondeo, probably becuse it was the car I always chose to compete as when playing TOCA on the Playstation as a teenager. But like Dan, when the time came to buy one, I went for the later ST220 instead. Still, I’d happily own a tidy ST200 today. Estates are the coolest, but I’d be happy with a saloon or hatch. I’d need a custom exhaust and induction kit though; an ST200 isn’t particularly fast, so you’d want something in return for burning all that fuel money, and the ST200’s V6 does make a glorious noise when tuned. It’s one of the few fast Fords you could buy and actually use, and it still be potential investment.”
Likewise, banging at the back may result from fractured springs or defective drop links; saloons and hatchbacks are also susceptible to broken rear subframe bushes, which make the rear end feel soggy. Upgrading to polyurethane solves the problem. Estates have their own issues because their self-levelling rear dampers are ultra-pricey; ST220 (Mk3) versions will suffice instead. Like all Mondeos, the ST200 is sensitive to wheel geometry settings (leading to wandering) and worn wheel bearings at high mileages; listen for rumbling, and jack up each corner of the car to wiggle the wheels and feel for excessive play. ST200 stoppers were sub-standard from new (basic Mondeo callipers with 278mm discs), so expect them to feel poor by modern levels.
Tricky priceyselectiongearcouldbetofix 87OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD BUYER’S GUIDE MONDEO ST200
Juddering from the pedal is common (typically due to warped/contaminated discs/pads), while sponginess is mainly caused by air in the system – perhaps from the fluid having overheated. Basic servicing should fix the faults, using the best pads you can afford. Heavy juddering and pulling to one side during braking probably stem from a seized front calliper (if not an aforementioned wishbone bush). Rear callipers are particularly prone to sticking, often with the handbrake failing to function; jack up the car and spin the wheels to check. Ensure the ABS system works properly: the warning light should glow when you turn on the ignition, and go out again after starting the engine. If it stays alight, it’s usually due to a dodgy (dirty or failed) sensor, but it could also be caused by the ABS pump or module. Many ST200 owners have by now added upgraded front brakes, which are a bonus when buying. Mk1 Mondeo V6 callipers, ST170 discs with Mk3 callipers, or Focus ST225 callipers with redrilled discs (from five- to four-stud) are all triedand-tested solutions.
CONTOUR ENTHUSIASTS’ GROUP www.contour.org NAUTILUS PERFORMANCE www.nautilusperformance.com
The variety of cars on track was unreal: Caterhams, Subarus, BMWs, SEATs, Renaults, and Hondas were all battling on the wellknown circuit, famed for its link with the BTCC and rallycross championships for decades.
We head to the North Yorkshire circuit for the Durham and Derbyshire RSOC’s annual event
Words and photos JON CASS W e always love the combination of a track day and show at the same venue, and Croft circuit in the North East is an ideal location for such an event. Fortunately, the Durham and Derbyshire RSOC cottoned on to this notion some years ago and, despite clashing dates with numerous other big shows in the area, the 2022 event at Croft proved to be another enormous success.
In contrast to last year’s show, which had cars spread out over the vast open areas around the grounds, the organisers wisely took the decision to restrict the displays to the circuit itself this time around. This meant there was far less walking between the many club stands, traders, concours cars, paddock and, of course, the main showpiece – the track itself. This created a much more actionpacked atmosphere, and friendly banter and car chat among Ford fans was as superb as ever; we’ve come to expect nothing less from RSOneCroft.thing that strikes you wandering around this event is the standard of cars on display. It may not be the biggest Ford show in the UK, but the sheer number of immaculate Cosworth and RS-badged cars on offer takes some beating. It’s not often you get to see a quartet of Escort Cosworths parked next to a brace of Sapphires with a repeat scenario just around the corner. With a mixture of standard and tastefully modified examples, this was pure Cosworth heaven and proof that many of these iconic cars are still driven. We were especially pleased to see some freshly modified oldschool RSs too; if you’re into Eighties’ and Nineties’ Fords, we can’t think of a better place to be.
Hungry Fords awaited eager judges When car shows become freestyleaevent NMS Focus attacked the fabulous track RS CROFT 2022 WHERE CROFT CIRCUIT WHEN JULY 2022 88 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT RS CROFT 2022
For those into the younger generation of modified Fords, there was still plenty to keep you happy, with Fiesta and Focus STs and RSs galore. Fortunately, despite threatening clouds, the weather stayed dry until the final hour, and even the fresh winds that were quite noticeable throughout the day didn’t spoil the fun.
The Blue Oval badge still dominated, despite the appearance of other marques, with modern STs and RSs of varying specifications unleashing their potential without a speed camera in sight. Sierras are seldom seen at track days nowadays, but Croft always provides a few lairy examples
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
“...And I’ll maybe change the styling...” “...Or I might just keep it forever”
Chris Beachim brought his recently built 350bhp S2, which, combined with perfect OEM-plus looks, had to be one of the stars of the day – we have a full feature coming soon. In fact, NMS cars were out in force, and witnessing the trio of MK1 Focus RSs from the same stable (including Tim Butcher’s 500bhp monster) was a sight to behold. Meanwhile, Gary Lali was back in his burgundy Mk2 Fiesta L (another full feature coming soon) – which now has 259bhp on tap – and, as usual, he took it all in his stride, leaving exotic machinery in his wake. RS Croft isn’t the biggest Ford show on the calendar, but thanks to the unbeatable quality and variety of cars, combined with non-stop track action, this event will always remain one of our firm favourites.
GARETH PARK ESCORT COSWORTH complete with their sideways antics, much to the spectators’ delight.
Gareth says, “My dad and brother had RS Turbos, while I always lusted after an Escort Cosworth. I looked at a few but settled on this one in 2018.” Bought as standard car, some of you may have already spotted this was the former QUICK SPEC Morette headlights, carbon splitter, Compomotive TH wheels, RS500 hoses, carbon engine bay covers, Anembo rear beam, Gaz Gold suspension, Quaife diff, AP six-pot front callipers, big rear brake kit, underside components powder-coated, Stage 1 engine tune Power Engineering demo car, which benefited from an array of choice mods back in the day. Gareth says, “I’m not a fan of standard cars and was keen to put my own mark on it. I began by fitting a spoiler, Morette headlights and a carbon splitter.” Those CompomotiveimposingTHrims add a sense of purpose, while the carbon theme continues under the bonnet, with various covers. The RS500-style hoses and a Stage 1 remap are likely to be joined by a bigger turbo and a stand-alone ECU with a further remap over the winter, but for now Gareth is quite happy making the most of what the current setup has to offer. Having said that, looking at the chassis and underside, it appears Gareth has already prepared for a potential power increase, as the Gaz Gold suspension, AP six-pot brakes, Anembo rear beam and powder-coated components should easily cope with 400bhp-plus.Highlyunusual for an Escort Cosworth these days, Gareth’s example has undergone a transformation from a standard car to modified, before returning to standard then back to modified once again.
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“...But I’ll upgrade the turbo first...”
“One day, all this will be yours...”
Escort Cosworths are never in short supply at Croft, but one that really stood out among so many well-kept examples was this silver stunner belonging to GarethGarethPark.isno stranger to modified cars; he previously poured much of his spare time into a Corsa VXR, which wasn’t in the same league as a Cossie.
We’ve met Jack smith before at one of the regular Squires Fordmeet events, where he often showed his Mk3 Fiesta RS Turbo. Modified to 200bhp, Jack spent years improving the Fiesta and finally getting to a stage he was happy with. But why is his Fiesta not here? Jack explains, “I really liked the RS Turbo, but I always wanted a Sapphire Cosworth. I decided to make the change.” Jack looked at three other examples before settling on QUICK SPEC T34 turbo, Siemens injectors, RS500-style intercooler, Group A air filter, wasted-spark conversion, Pectel ECU board, Airtec intercooler, silicone hoses, Koni shocks and springs, uprated discs and pads, Compomotive TH2 17in wheels, tuned to 365bhp this white 4x4, which benefited from still having original panels and glass, and no rust. Jack says, “Unfortunately, after three weeks I blew the gearbox up. I had it rebuilt, and now it copes well with 365bhp.” To achieve that power, the YB engine benefits from a T34 turbo, Siemens injectors, RS500-style intercooler, wastedspark conversion and a Pectel ECU board. The brakes remain original other than uprated discs and pads, but the suspension has been beefed up with the aid of Koni shocks and springs. And that’s not to mention the anthracite Compomotive TH2 rims, which were always bound to look as hard as nails on this Jackcar.smiles, “I’m happy with how the car is now, but I might upgrade the callipers at some point. Owning and driving a Cosworth has so far proved to be just as much fun as I’d hoped.” We all knew it would be.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT JACK SMITH SAPPHIRE COSWORTH 4X4 Late-spec 4x4 with rare cloth Jack hoped no one noticed he’d trapped his watch strap in the window Sadly, we didn’t see this RS on track “Watch this: when I lift my arm, the bonnet goes Ultra-new-schoolup”is cool too Jack says 365bhp is loads of fun 90 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT RS CROFT 2022
One of our favourite cars of the day had to be this perfectly executed Series Two RS Turbo track car built by Chris Beachim. It not only looked the part but performed impressively too. We first met Chris years ago when he owned a grey S2, and he mentioned plans back then to turn it into a track car. “I was offered this shell over a decade ago and decided to turn my attention towards this instead,” Chris explains. “It was a bare rust-free shell, making it an ideal black canvas.” It turns out Chris had already bought and paid for the RS shell around three years before he had chance to pick it up from the barn where it had been
QUICK SPEC Carbon Delights carbon fibre extras, Mk2 Focus RS M66 six-speed ‘box, big-valve NMS CVH head, Mk1 Focus RS Zetec bottom end, AEM stand-alone management, T38 turbo, ID105OX injectors, NMS twin Cosworth intercooler, Tilton adjustable bias pedal box, AP four-pot callipers, Leda coilovers, RS1600i front crossmember, rose-jointed, AEM digital display, Recaro seats, NMS roll cage, water injection, approximately 350bhp stored. He adds, “It took another seven years to build it. Although much of the credit is thanks to the boys at NMS.” With the aim to keep the appearance OEM-plus, Chris has managed to retain the iconic RS Turbo looks, complemented only by discreet carbon detailing and a set of gold Compomotive rims. Even inside, the RS Turbo dash and steering wheel remain, but you might have spotted the neatly installed AEM digital display and dials, which nestle inside the original binnacle. In contrast, the NMS-fitted roll cage, bias pedal box and Recaro bucket seats are a world away from a stock RST. It’s under the bonnet where the most significant changes have been made, bringing the Escort’s power up to a staggering 350bhp. The engine is a combination of an NMS favourite, a ZVH: part CVH, part Zetec. That sees a big-valve CVH cylinder head mated to a Mk1 Focus RS Zetec-based bottom end, and there’s a T38 turbo, ID105OX injectors and water injection all thrown into the mix for good measure too.
The rose-jointed chassis has seen upgrades to match, with Leda coilovers, AP Racing four-pot brakes and an RS1600i crossmember; as a package this all adds up to a rapid track car with cool retro looks. Quite possibly the perfect combination for any RS fan.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT CHRIS BEACHIM SERIES TWO ESCORT RS TURBO Track-spec RS is partOEM, part all-aggro Tarmac-arched Mk2 shows why oldschool still rules XR trio was a welcome treat S2 stocklooksfromtheback Clubsport cabin suits an S2 ST given a lot of stick NMSkicksmotorout350bhp Caged for rigidity 91OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD
MICHAEL DUGGAN FOCUS ST game way Zetec 340bhp
lurking under here 92 FAST FORD OCTOBER 2022 EVENT REPORT RS CROFT 2022
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
ST could easily be mistaken for a
Michael Duggan spent the last 15 years restoring a red RS Turbo to such an impeccably high standard, he soon realised he needed a slightly more practical Blue Oval to use daily. Michael says, “I love my RS Turbo, but I’m scared to leave it anywhere. The five-door Focus ST is slightly more discreet.”
Bought only a few months ago, this 2010 ST3’s understated looks hide a highly potent machine. The Collins CP340 remap, Airtec Stage 2 intercooler, RS injectors and Auto Specialists induction kit add up to a substantial 340bhp. The M-Factory limited-slip diff, Focus RS clutch and flywheel and Hardrace torque mount help to put the power down. Eibach lowering springs and Hardrace lower arms and ball joints improve the handling, while a Rob Galloway splitter, Panther Black ST wheels and a discreet CP badge keep exterior mods to a minimum, just the way Michael likes it.
QUICK SPEC Mountune gearknob, gaiter and starter button, Rob Galloway splitter, Panther Black wheels, Collins Performance CP340 remap, Airtec Stage 2 intercooler, Auto Specialists induction kit and inlet plenum, Pro Alloy header tank, Collins dump valve, Focus RS injectors, Mongoose 3in downpipe, decat and Section 59 exhaust system, block mod, Eibach springs, M-Factory LSD, Focus RS clutch and flywheel, Collins Performance short-shifter, Hardrace torque mount, lower arms and ball joints, tuned to 340bhp
Winging it, the RS
S... Air jacks: so cool Escorts are a core Croft fixture ...Except for the
Generation
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Frank Stephenson was a young designer at Ford’s Merkenich design center in Germany. While the Escort Cosworth’s design which was styled by Steve Harper and Ian Callum, completely independent of the Escort Cosworth project, Frank was asked to submit ideas for adding sparkle to the Escort Cabrio. He sketched up a delightful-looking Escort Speedster – some months ahead of when Karmann began dreaming up a variety of Escort Cosworth derivatives: a coupe, station wagon, dune buggy and yes, a Speedster too. Karmann’s idea gathered steam and Frank
Steve Saxty sheds some light on a proposed Speedster version of the much-loved Escort Cosworth Words & Photos STEVE SAXTY
THE BLUE OVALS YOU’VE (PROBABLY) NEVER HEARD OF… was asked to do a sketch that combined his Speedster-style rear with the almostproduction-ready Cosworth front. The plan was to make a one-off show car, but it was never built. Removing the roof would have added something like £7000 to the price of the car. That was too close to Porsche money and so Ford kept the lid on the car, until now.
This sketch by Frank Stephenson shows his Escort Speedster musings with the later front end styling and Mk5B-style grille The never-built show car would have featured the regular Escort Cosworth grille but, by the time it had reached production the Speedster would have likely been updated with the later nose
97OCTOBER 2022 FAST FORD FORGOTTEN FORDS
SPEEDSTERCOSWORTHESCORT
A n Escort Cosworth Speedster sounds like a mouthwatering prospect. Remove the rear seats and replace them with a twin-bubble fairing that swoops off behind the rear seats and off you go. Back in spring 1990, just as the Escort Cosworth was nearing production Ford’s marketing team were getting cold feet. The new RS might find far less than the 5000 buyers per year they had contracted Karmann to make and so a way was needed to widen the car’s appeal, but how?
■ We love an engine swap at Fast Ford And we love the 1.6-litre EcoBoost motor too. So, naturally, when we heard about Andy Frank’s Mk7 ST-powered Fiesta Zetec S we were quick to get it featured. Read the full story next month.
■ The Mustang has only been available in the UK for a few years but owners and specialists have really taken to tuning it – you only need to look at the twin-turbo S550 from the cover of this issue to see that. Next month, we speak to the experts to bring you the best advice on where to spend your cash when making the Mustang even mightier.
■ The old saying goes that ‘fast Fords never die, they just get faster’, and that’s definitely the case with Jack Strathdee’s Mk1 Focus RS on the cover next month. In fact, we featured this very car back in 2015, and while the 530bhp powerplant remains the same, the rest of the car has evolved into a track-focussed monster!
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