Nick Barnes

Hi All I have a Ford Escort Cabriolet 1997 with a Ford 6000 cd radio fitted as standard when it was new . This says its CD changer compatible and has a socket on the rear for a plug to go to a CD changer . So I thought I'd get one and fit it. The problem is the wiring / connectors are differant colours etc ???? I have just got a CD changer ( 6 cds ) from a Ford Mondeo Ghia 2004, its a a Ford CD changer, its an Alpine 3S7T-18C830-BB made in 2003 that was fited as a factory extra when bought new, I got it from a breakers yard it was in the boot in a custom made box along with the DVD player unit , I did not want that because the radio and screen were missing from the car so I just took the cd changer The problem is the wiring / connectors are differant colours etc ???? because of model / year differance ? I emailed Alpine to try and get the answers to what coloured wires go where on my connector in the radio but they say it was sold under liscence to Ford so cant help me ? Even though they made it haha ( they dont know what they make ? weird ) and to contact Ford ? Ford told me to go see the local dealer and they would look into it (my dealer, in my past experiance are as useless as rocking horse sh*t ) The problem I have is that I have no wiring / plugs on the CD unit they've been cut so I only have just 8 loose different wires coming out of the cd changer. coloured: Yellow Orange Red Green Blue Grey Mauve Brown See pic below. On the rear of the radio I have 12 pins, and according to the internet diagram I know what they should be for: 1 ACP + 2 GND, ACP 3 GND 4 (Empty ) 5 Audio R + 6 Audio L + 7 ACP - 8 CD, ACP 9 ( Empty ) 10 GND, AUD 11 Audio R - 12 Audio L - Can someone let me know what coloured wires from the CD changer go to what pins in the 6000cd radio ? or tell me where I can get a diagram / pictures of the wiring explaining ? so I can fit it. IE Yellow 6, Orange 10 Green 12 Etc. So basically 8 wires 12 pins what goes to what ? Thanks for any advice Nick

Hi All I had no repiies to my question about replacing wheels on my MK VII to go to 17" wheels what do i need to check before I buy them ? do I need spacers or longer bolts, is there enough clearance in the wheel arches ? or is it a matter of just swapping them I do not want to buy them and fnd out I need extra work / money spent ( they have no tyres so thats already an extra to consider )

Hi all. just seen these Alloys for sale and was wondering if they would it oin my MK VII Ccbriolet ? all I know is the info from the advert, printed on the wheel is 17 X 7 JJ , S328 ET 40. and also written is 4 bolts 4 X 11.4 ? And just over 7 cm diameter for the hub looking at the tape measure ? What else would I have to change to make the fit ? Cheers Nick

Hi I've been trolling the internet for a site that shows pictures (Diagrams ) and OEM numbers for a MK VII Cab ? ( langauage not important if it has pictures ) but cant track one down ? Has any got a link they can post that is accessable otherwise I have to phone my local ford dealer here in Holland every time I need a part ? It would be very usefull to have a site I can download / save instead. Thanks in advance

Thanks for the replies, but I am in Holland, and the Dutch do not use E-Bay haha, and getting it shipped from UK from a private seller would cost me a lot in postage, so maybe using the company route ( as mentioned above ) is the best as they will ship things over here as individuals will not

On closer inspection it turns out these "washers " holding the heatshield on are just like flattenned nuts ( they were covered in sh*t so couldn't really see until I cleaned the area, a 22mm socket fitted them, all sorted another jod done handbrake now works as as it should !!!

Thanks for the reply I will look to change the CV's looking in you tube now haha, sounds alot cheaper, and hopefully that is where the problem is

As previously talked about I had a problem with my MK VII when accelerating when I put the clutch in it would veer to the left so I changed the lower swing arms both sides ( the bushes were shot more on the left hand side ) Problem solved now she does not veer either way when I change gear. But I also had a knocking / grinding / vibrating noise when pulling away with full right lock on ? ( highish revs, drive slowly and it does not happen even in thight circles driving frontward or backwards ? ) On looking under the car I noticed 1 of the rubber gators on the wheel end of the drive shaft ( left side, left hand drive ) was badly split, loads of grease comming out so I am presuming the bearings inside have also got damaged by water dirt getting inside causing this knocking / grinding /vibrating noise ? Question? I have been searching for new drive shafts ( I will change both sides just as a precaution ) but they seem as rare as rocking horse sh*t ? And the ones I find are hunreds of Euros each side ? not genuine either ? Any ideas of a good place to buy them ( new if poss ? aftermarket is also OK ) Can I change just the end nearest the wheel or is it one complete unit I have seen something that looks like just the end but am unsure if it can be bought seperately and how easy is it to change either the whole thing or just the end piece any special tools required ?

I've read somewhere that these screws are fixed with things called " fender washers " ? do you just pull then off or twist them or whats the trick ? I do not really want to break the heatshield but if all else fails I will just remove the heatshield to gain access to the handbrake cable and wrap the exhaust with exhaust bandage to stop the heat ?

I have bought a new handrake cable to fit on my MK VII, reading the manaul it says remove the exhaust and heat shield ? as well as a couple of bolts, it looks there are screws coming down from inside the car to the underside of the car that hold the heat shield on ( about 8 - 10 all around it )? do I have to undo these from inside the car / under the carpet, or do I have to twist the plastic nut thing from under the car that secures the heat shield ? ( it does not look like a nut ) or do I just pull the heat shield to relaese it off of these screws ?

new old bumper on the car a MK 5 on a MK VII, better that the old cracked one, the exhaust needs straightning but its on.

Update my Escort MK VII will now be a Frankenstein model lol, as you may have read I picked up a rear bumper brand new in my colour cheap 35.00 Euro ( my old one had a big crack in one side ) not till I got it home did I find out its from a MK 5 ( I need to go to specsavers, but also it was not as advertised 1998 ? ) so the exhaust wont come out of the same hole as on a MK 5 bumper !! the end box on my MK VII needed replacing anyway so now I have bought a new end box that will fit a a MK V / VI / VII so it comes out of the hole nearer the side of the car, cheaper than getting a piece of stainless made up to fit onto the middle section without having the last siliencer. Found a rubber strip to also go into the bumper, but they only had it in red that should do just as well ?, waiting for it to be delivered so i can check the colour match So hopefully next week I should get it fixed onto the car, I will add pics when its done .

Hmm I did think about that does it not effect back pressure or anything else ? a nice bit of stianless from the connection of the old box could be the way forward and just as cheap ? I know on my old motorbike a Kwaka ZXR 750 I had no baffles in the exhuast they were removable ( I never put them in ), and it sounded wicked

Does anyone know if a MK5 end silencer will fit on a MK VII system ? so it comes out of the hole in the bumper in the right place ? is it the same diametre pipe to connect to the existing middle section of a MK VII ? or do I need to buy the middle box as well ? if so will it then fit onto the CAT ? and is there any clearance problems ? mine is a Cabriolet so do I need a Cabriolet one or will any model MK 5 end box fit ?

also on ebay this guy has MK 5 spares Retroford International Ford spares meandmymonkeymatt1 (38906 )100% I am in holland so they charge me loads to ship GRRRRRR £15.00 postage found a black strip in holland 14.62 Euros

Hi Doyle maybe this site will help you ? I found it but I need a black strip for mine but maybe you can use one of these I do not know what colour you need ? https://parts.loc8apart.co.uk/nav/auto-part/Ford/Escort/Bumpers-and-Rubbing-Strips.php

Thanks Doyle I am scouring the local junk yards for a trim, now i know what to look for Hopefully I can sort out a rear box that will also fit ? might have to get one made to fit with a pipe bender or just get a pipe made with no silencer haha

Hi here are some pics of the old bumper ( on the car ) and the new one. The guy said it was from a 1998 MK VII ? Maybe a different model ( XR3i ? ) or a different year / Mk ? Maybe he got it wrong ( I should of looked more closely but was just pleased to get it for a good price, the bolts / screw holes line up, So now i just need to find a rear box that has the exhaust tip coming out nearer the side of the car, I am sure all the diametres of pipe are the same for the MK 5 / 6 / 7 ? so as long as it comes out of that hole it will be good ? and a rubber moulding in black to go onto it so I can fit it. here are some more pics of the car

Bought a brand new rear bumper, already painted in my colour, from an online site here in Holland ( like E-Bay ) spoke to the guy selling it and thought after getting some more info and pics it was the same as i needed for my 2000 1.6i Mk VII ( his was a 1998 ) he had it to do a project on his but then sold the car so it was spare. Picked it up today ( 35.00 Euros ) in Germany 2 hrs away. Got home took off the old one, went to fit the new one, and Grrrrrrrr the exhuast pipe on mine is nearer the middle of the car, than his was, so the hole in his bumper is nearer the side of the car. My tailpiece is a straight piece coming from the end of the rear silencer, I now have to get a new rear box with the bent tailpipe so it comes out of the hole in the bumper nearer the side of the car, not towards the centre. Not a great loss the back box needs replacing anyway, so just makes me do that quicker so I can fit the new bumper on. Another thing I did not notice once i got it home that I didn't notice in the pics, is there is a groove in the new bumper to fit a rubber moulding to, ( mine did not have this it was all solid plastic ) any ideas where I can get this and anyone have a part No or discription of this part ?

looked at the locking mechanism for the in / out steering wheel today but could not see anything that was loose or anything I could tighten in that area ? Theres just a slotted bar with a pin and when you move the arm it clamps it in place ( it looked as if this was working ok ? ) after closer inspection with the covers off it seems that the little bit of in / out movement I get is coming from the top ? where the steering wheel is connected to the stearing colum so it looks like a stearing wheel off job and try and tighten that end of things.

Wishbones replaced after a bit of a job the old ones wouldnt come out, but after a bit of gentle persuassion with a crow bar and a hammer and a few swear words I got them out, and after a bit more effort and wiggling, using screwdivers to line up the bolt holes ect , and more swearing, finaly got the new ones in ( why does it look so easy on you tube ? ) 2 people doing it would be a big help !!! had her tracked up and now no more pulling left when I accelerate hard and put the clutch in to change up the gears, so another job done NEXT lol

Glad to hear you've sorted it

Wishbones will be here tomorrow so something for the weekend, if the old wishbones are original I might do the same keep the old ones and next time buy new bushes and balljoints as I have heard a lot of people having this problem of wishbone joints / bushes wearing out quickly ? any ideas of where the best place to get the poly ones from ? And cost ?

cheers Si I sprayed the door switches and its OK ATM but now I know where it is for future problems

yep mines better, but not good, I will live with it until I have to take the door cards off at a later date and check out that strap thing again.