MK1 Escort Cosworth 4×4

Having already built a V8 X-Pack Capri for Tony, he entrusted us with his latest project, a Mk1 Escort fitted with a Sierra floorpan and inner wings, powered by a Cosworth 4×4  engine and running gear.

Although the car was running and road legal when bought, it was far from the finished ideal that Tony had in mind.

Firstly the ride height was lowered and adjusted.

The rear arches were then removed and new steel ones re-fitted slightly lower to give the illusion that the car was lower than it actually was.

Since the sierra suspension was much larger than an escorts’, even with bubble arches fitted the front arches needed to be widened to cover the wheels and make it road legal.

With the car sitting correctly, the arches completed and clearances checked the car was stripped in preparation for other alterations.

The car came with a cosworth radiator and intercooler which protruded through the front valance. A new intercooler was used which was slightly larger than the original one so, along with the radiator, it had to be re-positioned so that it no longer protruded through the valance. Be-spoke bumper irons were crafted so that the missing front 1/4 bumpers could be fitted.

The original combination of sierra boot floor and escort alloy fuel tank did not work so the boot floor was removed and a flat floor was fabricated, with the tank being located further back with a recess for the swirl pot.

With the sierra interior removed in favour of a more retro stripped out look, a new steel section of dash was grafted in to accommodate an original six clock instrument cluster that we fitted. a custom roll cage was constructed as one couldn’t be bought off the shelf due to the sierra floor pan being fitted.

Being an Escort/Sierra hybrid, no bonnet hinges had been fitted, so a custom set had to be made using parts from a Ford Capri.

With the fabrications complete, the shell was prepped and re-finished inside and out in Ermine White.

Continuing with the race spec interior, custom alloy panels were fabricated and a pair of Sparco bucket seats with full harness seat belts were fitted. Due to the rollcage being fitted and narrower foot wells the pedals had to be re-modelled to line up with the seating position.

The rocker cover was colour-coded and polished along with a dash of stainless to tidy up the engine bay.

And thus the transformation was complete !