Readly RF Feb 20

MK2 ESCORT
TECH SPEC
ENGINE & TRANSMISSION:
2100cc Pinto, twin 45 Weber carbs, mildly
ported head, Holbay bay cam, Harris exhaust
manifold with Ashley system
Mazda six-speed manual gearbox, Quaife
LSD, narrowed English axle, 3J half shafts.
CHASSIS:
13” Compomotive alloy wheels, 185/60/13
Yokohama A48R tyres, coilover front struts,
adjustable rear shocks, de-cambered leaf
springs
INTERIOR:
Recaro front seats, full roll cage, 1600 Sport
dash, oil temp & pressure gauges.
EXTERIOR:
South African shell, Diamond white
paintwork, front & rear Mexico spoilers,
black front quarter bumpers, black rear
bumper, black rear panel.
THANKS:
Thanks to my son Jake and all our good
friends with help during the project.
Q&A
FANTASY FORD:
Escort Cosworth or a Lotus Cortina
TRACK DAY OR CLUB DAY:
Track day
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE ESCORT:
Gaz suspension
Exterior looking good, the interior got spoilt
with Recaro front seats from a later Ford model
while lending a hand in keeping the shell rigid a
full cage was the order of the day. Other additions
see a bank of extra gauges for Kevin to keep
a watchful eye on the engines oil temp and
pressure. There you have it, a well put together
Escort perfect for that Sunday B-road blast to blow
the cobwebs away.
“I’m delighted with how it’s turned out,” beams
Kevin. “A good percentage of the build has been
done by myself, and with anything, I couldn’t
manage Jake and friends stepped in to lend a
helping hand along the way. It included plenty of
laughs when things were going right and some
late-night cursing when things didn’t go to plan,
but hey that’s all part and parcel of working on an
old Ford, so you just have to take a few breaths
and carry on.”
With the winter weather closing in and darker
evenings upon us the Escort has been taken into
the warmth of Kevin’s workshop for a gearbox
change, and one that’s quite popular and pretty
straightforward is the Mazda six-speed box. “It
sounds more difficult than it actually is,” he smiles,
“I cut the tunnel out with the old box still in and
then removed it before fitting the six-speed. I then
fitted an auto tunnel around the box and welded
it all in place, which included new rear mounts.
Then I removed the box to fill before painting the
new tunnel. Once it was all painted, I put it all back
together with and a new Bailey Morris prop. I used
one of Lee Butchers (BRE) adaptor plates and clutch
forks which work really well.”
How long this box stays in is going to be a good
guess as one thing Kevin’s planning on doing this
year will be racing the Escort.”Racing is something
I’ve wanted to do for a long time so when the time
comes, a four-speed box will go in just for that.”
Well, we all wish you good luck with the racing. n
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