Good morning, Oppo.

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 05/12/2017 at 10:36 • Filed to: None

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What’s shakin’?

crowmolly > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:39

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This

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:40

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Is it 5pm yet? This week has sucked

itschrome > crowmolly 05/12/2017 at 10:46

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what only single definition.. Bah, I demand a HIGH DEFINITION 455

ttyymmnn > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras 05/12/2017 at 10:47

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It’s almost 5:00 in Paris.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:50

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I drove one of these for two days and I didn’t hate it. In fact I kinda like it.

$kaycog > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:52

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Svend > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:52

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Love the Fiesta XR2 there.

ttyymmnn > Svend 05/12/2017 at 10:53

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I wish they still made something like that today.

Dave the car guy , still here > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:54

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I love the mK1 goodness. BAT Limited helped me back in the day take my US spec 1.6 up to something we estimated at 95 to 100 hp. With it being only 1850 lbs curb weight was faster than a friend’s 1975 Trans Am. He borrowed it one night and won a burn out contest with it. Was my first hot hatch.

ttyymmnn > itschrome 05/12/2017 at 10:55

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ttyymmnn > $kaycog 05/12/2017 at 10:56

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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 10:58

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I’m sitting at my desk, having pared down my active projects to the point that the active one would involve me diving in blind and drawing things I don’t have any confidence in. Obviously I don’t want to do that just yet.

So, coffee and the Michael Schenker Group while I wait to see if any of my other projects in production blow up.

I did replace the door seals on the Galaxie last night. Hopefully it will now quit leaking.

AndyG_UK > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras 05/12/2017 at 11:13

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4:13 pm here in the UK, I finish work in 32 mins (not that I’m counting!)

$kaycog > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 11:14

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Whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on!

Svend > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 11:14

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It’d never pass all the stringent requirements for driver and passenger safety.

Thankfully there are still a few Fiestas left (in the U.K. at least).

Some go for crazy money though.

£16,000

£9,000

ttyymmnn > Svend 05/12/2017 at 11:31

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It’d never pass all the stringent requirements for driver and passenger safety.

I know, and that’s both good and sad at the same time.

Svend > ttyymmnn 05/12/2017 at 11:43

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True.

All these safety things these days makes people complacent and prone to taking risks.

AuthiCooper1300 > Dave the car guy , still here 05/12/2017 at 12:19

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They were excellent little cars. In Group 2 rally spec, the US version (in Europe there was no 1.6 at first, so they had to resort to yours) could reach around 160 hp. Real giant-killers.

Dave the car guy , still here > AuthiCooper1300 05/12/2017 at 12:53

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There was a guy in Houston in the 80's that had one with a turbo McGyvered into it. The car had a bright red repaint and rear louvers. He claimed 150 hp and massive torque steer. It was fairly well sorted. I saw it only a few times on the road. He had trouble with getting a good launch but once rolling it was insanely quick for the day.

AuthiCooper1300 > Dave the car guy , still here 05/12/2017 at 13:03

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Just a couple of memories about fastish Fiestas... One day when I was still a kid I saw the Fiesta of a local rally driver just parked on the street, a full Group 2 one (still 1.3 though: this was even before Ford Europe started rallying the US cars). I must have spent one hour looking at it!

Twenty years later I ended up working for that same guy (who, on the other hand, may have been the first person ever to win a rally outright in a Fiesta, even if it was a very small rally indeed).

Around ‘82 or ‘83 I used to see around town a very tough looking Fiesta Commercial (instead of rear side windows they had steel panels). It had all the “Fiesta Super Sport” add-ons (front dam, spats, rear spoiler), 6" x 13" genuine Minilites, bucket seats and a MotoLita steering wheel as per the rally cars. And it was high-gloss black all over. That paint could put a Merc to shame. The only note of colour was a tiny sticker (almost stamp-sized) on the rear screen advertising its owners, a local bodyshop (of course).

A quarter-century later I met the owner and driver of said Fiesta. He had sold the previous business and set up another one. His shop has now painted three or four cars for me! One day we ended up talking about the black car (sadly, long gone). In its last iteration it had had a 1.6 rally engine, close-ratio gearbox with straight-cut gears, the works - and suspension tweaks to match. (In fact the gearbox was the actual one which had been in that rally car I mentioned earlier: it is a very small world).

Some car to use as a small van for your business.

AuthiCooper1300 > Dave the car guy , still here 05/12/2017 at 13:15

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Because the 1.6 is in fact a “Kent” block... there have even been Fiestas with 1.7 BDA engines - for rallycross, I seem to remember. That must have been a nice package indeed.

Interesting story about that guy. There were similar contraptions here in Europe claiming around 110 hp. I understand those were scary enough.

Dave the car guy , still here > AuthiCooper1300 05/12/2017 at 13:41

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That sounds like excellent advertising for his shop. I wonder what horsepower it was up to? Great that you got to come full circle by getting to know the owner.

Mine was just a beige US spec S model. I added a rear parcel shelf from a Ghia model, stereo with equalizer, Hella 160 lamps, Carello fogs and Kamei spoiler. For go fast it got a cam, Sachs clutch, some ignition goodies, larger two barrel Weber and exhaust. For handling all I did 175/70SR12 Vredesteins.

AuthiCooper1300 > Dave the car guy , still here 05/12/2017 at 13:56

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I have to ask the guy next time I see him! The engine had an incredible sound, and that was when it didn’t have the 1.6 yet (that happened after I had left town). I imagine they must have kept it around the 100 hp mark - more than enough for pottering around carrying panels, paint and other shop supplies.

He is a very curious guy. Before retiring he used to drive around in black Escort XR3i he inherited from his father. First thing he did when he got it was to fit steelies instead of alloys - and this was almost 20 years ago, when it was not fashionable yet.

Interesting that you kept the 12" wheels. People started going to 13" in order to fit bigger discs (eventually Ford did the same). Unfortunately the cars were so light that with the typical 185/60 tyre fitted to the big wheels aquaplanning was almost certain. Another interesting modification I remember at the time was adding a second damper to the front suspension, for better control.

I should try to find a little Fiesta one day and do it up. Unfortunately there are quite a few other cars I’d like to subject to the same treatment.