ford mk 2 Escort Group4 RS2000 (Honda Engined)

Escort Group4 RS2000 Honda For Sale

Very reluctantly I am offering for sale my RS2000 with Honda engine. It was subjected to a 5 year rebuild to the current spec and was finished 3 years ago in August 2009. It has done 460 miles since and is to be considered as a new build.

This car has been used to go to Ford shows and has done the Ford RS Owners club Lakes Tour 2012 and kept as part of a classic Ford collection and is a very unique car. which needs to be seen to be appreciated.

It has also been used as an extra in a movie set for the Stone Roses movie.

This car was purchased originally as a lightly modified RS2000 broadstripe. It was purchased by its first owner on 17th September 1976 who kept it for almost 20 years. Its second owner bought the car on 4th August 1995 and the mileage on the invoice states 23. 00. To date it has just 5 former keepers.

This description below summarises what was done during rebuild and the spec the car has now:

Shell

 Completely stripped to a bare shell all the corrosion was replaced with good metal. This however only amounted to some patches to the floor. the chassis rails over the axle and the a-posts. The underseal was stripped to reveal a very solid floorpan and original sills. The front panel and wings were replaced to make a flat front using Hadrian panels. The wing mounting rails were cleaned up at this time as was the heater bowl. Note that neither of the inner wings needed to be replaced and although they are not original they are to RS spec.

Then the shell was strengthened by seam welding and was fitted with a four-link kit. a round turret kit. gussets and all the normal body mods associated with building a competition car. The cage is a bolt in Safety Devices that ties in to the turrets and the arches are from Ralloy. as are all the other alloy components.

After the engine had been fitted and the car was dry-built it was all stripped down again and sent off for painting to Kartec of Pickering. It was now media blasted to bare metal. which revealed only a couple of areas missed before to be repaired. and primed in a zinc phosphate primer. It was painted in graphite grey to the interior and underside including the boot interior and engine bay. Stone chip was used to protect the vulnerable areas. Seam sealer was applied to all the body seams. The exterior is painted the original diamond white and a stripe added in post office red.

Suspension and Steering

 All brand new. Bilstein wedged coil overs with tarmac inserts. adjustable tca's. twin cam anti roll bar. double width brackets. 2. 5 turn quick rack on a lowered rack mount world cup crossmember. At the rear tarmac slipper springs and turreted bilsteins. Axle location is by four links and watts linkage. Alloy roller bearing top mounts. alloy group 4 hubs. Wheels are Compomotive ML and I have 2 sets which are 13 and 15 diameter.

Brakes

 All brand new. AP Racing radial 4 piston callipers. alloy bells. AP vented discs. AP callipers and solid discs at the rear. Braided flexible hoses. Bias pedal box. no servo.

Rear axle:

Brand new narrowed atlas axle with fully floating half shafts. Cover for watts linkage. Custom 2 piece propshaft. 4. 6 limited slip differential.

Engine:

The right engine had to be chosen which would have been a BDA if they weren't so expensive. Therefore I made a list of suitable alternatives. It had to be all alloy. 16 valve of around 2 litres and give over 200 bhp. I wanted fuel injection. to run on unleaded and not turbo. Top of the list came the Honda S2000 engine because it has bullet proof reliability and is available with its own 6 speed gearbox. It revs to 9000 rpm. about the same as a BDA. and will do 100. 00 miles (unlike a BDA).

The engine I bought is low mileage and was fitted with the original plenum and exhaust. It runs on a programmable ECU by MSD for which I have the software running on a laptop. The only mods made to the engine. clutch or gearbox are for the dry sump. This was also purchased from MSD and is a beautiful alloy casting. Has been mapped on a rolling road and makes 230bhp. The exhaust system was custom made by Tony Law exhausts.

Dry sump lubrication. Ralloy baffled alloy tank in boot.

Fuel pump in boot. fuel lines in braided hose. return in rubber.

Ralloy alloy radiator. electric fan.

Honda S2000 clutch and new 6 speed gearbox.

Electrical:

Extensively modified wiring loom. Battery relocated to boot. fuse box to centre console. Battery master and cut out switch. Alarm and immobiliser integrated into wiring loom. Fuel pump located in boot. Electric cooling fan. All gauges replaced and extra gauges located in centre console. Warning lights for indicators. charging. main beam. low oil pressure. fuel pump. cooling fan and spot lights. Relays for cooling fan. spot lights. ECU and fuel pump.

Interior:

Painted in graphite grey. Fitted with rubber mats in place of carpets but most other trim still in place eg door cards. headlining. Heating and ventilation all as standard. Leather 4 spoke steering wheel. Seats are new Recaros and so very comfortable. They are solidly mounted to seat rails welded into the shell and could easily be replaced by alloy mounts and FIA spec buckets. Also the harnesses are not to FIA spec but can easily be unclipped and replaced. In the space previously occupied by the rear seat is a helmet/luggage net. Windows are green tinted. windscreen also has a top tint.

Other:

I don't have to make any excuses for this car. It is quick and reliable. Because the engine is standard it drives like a standard road car – until the revs reach 6000 rpm when it takes on a different character. The suspension is not unduly stiff for the road nor too soft for the track. It has an MOT to September 2012 and from 1 November will have 12 months road tax.

This is a reluctant sale and I never thought I would need to sell this car. I shall include all the wheels and tyres plus the lap top and software for the ECU. The price is £23950

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT ANDREW ON: 01524 35036 or 07884423812

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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