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H Plate Mk5 New Project...


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well we've got the contact adhesive, staples & rivets at the ready and was going to try get it finished today until I realised I'd completely forgotten to get some Bowden cable so we currently have one snapped and one frayed tension cable holding the job up... Ah well looks easy enough at least, more awkward/fiddly than technically hard and probably a lot easier if the wind buggers off and I can get the missus to help out holding a corner or edge here & there.

 

Also a potential issue is the routing of the tension cables, as our old roof was so far gone that they'd pulled through all the way along both sides before one broke. The new roof skin actually has multiple slits in the channel where the front of the cable could enter so if anyone has done this before and could describe (or even better get a couple of pics) exactly where the cable goes into the channel and where it comes out the other end, that'd be fantastic.

 

Cheers.

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Today is a "ready to scream and throw hammers" kind of day lol. Got the roof most of the way on a couple of days ago and spent the rest of the time waiting for a bit of sun to warm the roof and aid in stretching the thing enough to clip it down at the front. Well this morning we got a few minutes of warmth and I managed to apply enough brute strength and ignorance to get the clips to hook in and sneck them shut. Now I'm aching all over and exhausted before midday...

 

Anyway 20mins later I go out for a smoke and see if it's leaked after a shower, and it's only pulled out of the back f*cking rail the absolute b*stard... I really don't know why either as it was definitely in the groove fully and secured either end with a self tapper. My only thought is I applied too much of the BF&I to get it to close, I mean I'm no weakling at 15st-odd but I'm certainly no powerlifter either but I swear the car had flexed in the middle by the time the roof was shut. The doors were both catching on the anti-burst plates and the window fit was rather odd. Also slapping the roof skin did produce a fair impersonation of an impending indian attack.

 

Anyway nothing much I can do now but scream at the weather, come back to it when I'm not p*ssed right off at it, pull the rear bar out jam the beading back in and try again on a warmer day... Other than that though I'd have to say I thoroughly recommend Verdeckprofi.eu on ebay for quality roof skins at a good price. I'm sure it won't be anything they've done wrong since the fit in all other areas is literally millimetre perfect so it has to be the crap weather to blame either that or I didn't fit the rail properly (but I'm 100% it was "fully home"... being a bloke I tend to know when things are all the way in :wink: )

 

More to come when it's (hopefully) fully finished, but even with the silly gap at the back now it looks a thousand times better already...

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Well the sun came out briefly and I had another stab at it, and this time also added 3 extra rivets to hold the beading to the frame along the back edge. Roof is now shut but there are signs of it pulling free yet again, this time between the riveted parts! So next time of asking nothing is being left to chance and it'll be riveted seven ways from sunday all along the back edge...

 

Other than this small inconvenience (I now have no doubt it's weather related as before it "pops" the fit is spot on in every way) I'm quite happy and the car is for the moment semi-watertight. It'll be good when it's done lol

 

And for reference, I'd suggest it'd actually be easier to re-skin a Mk5 roof with it still fitted to the car. As long as you exercise care to ensure the spacers for the back rail don't come apart and drop into oblivion it's so much nicer to work on with the weight of the car to lean against while drilling/riveting/stretching etc. I just tied a bit of wire through the spacers when the bolt was removed & the arm they fit in pivoted up out the way, so they couldn't go anywhere...

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Roof is on all bar the flap glueing & back window (can't wait lol). Fits great now I've fitted the front rail the way it should have been all along :rolleyes: lesson learned, pay more attention to how it came apart and don't rely on the old engineering adage "if it looks right it probably is"... Seems the design of the front rail *looks* like it fits with the rubber trapped fully underneath, whereas it *actually* fits with just the lip pinched under, in a way that seems sure to pull out the moment tension is applied, but actually doesn't...

 

On the plus side, I've had a good workout and I didn't stubbornly monkey on the closing handles till I cracked the screen so that's a small mercy haha.

 

Now just need time/weather to allow the job to be finished.

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Bit of reasonable weather this evening has allowed me to get the flaps glued down & last couple of rivets fitted. Also had another play with the EFi setup and found that by tightening the TPS with it twisted as far as possible to the anticlockwise has improved a slight hesitation off idle no end, slowly coming together now... Oh and I bodged a bit of old lacquer over the dull quarter panel to make it look slightly less gash until budget/weather/time all align sufficiently to allow a proper paint job on it.

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I don't know how satisfying it is/will be to be honest. Probably would be easier to do another one now I know most of the pitfalls but if I had the money then it's one job I'd definitely farm out to a professional given how sore my shoulders/back and hands are plus the amount of sweat I've dripped all through the car lol & we're still yet to refit the back window...

 

That said, if I'd never even tried it then I would always have that niggling doubt of "could I have saved a couple of hundred and done it myself?" :smile:

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Going to take the cabby for a tentative run round town shortly to see if the stalling on approach to junctions has been sorted or not, it's becoming quite pressing to get the car in a daily usable state now as the insurance runs out on the missus 206 next weekend and so far at least the renewal quotes have been stupid considering her 11year clean licence and no claims, so the plan is take the pug off the road and use the escort for a while which will give me a chance to sort out some bits like the clutch that needs doing and a thorough service plus a few paintwork jobs. Here's to crossed fingers and toes haha

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Took mine for a quick run up the road and back yesterday after new plugs and fuel preasure reg fitted ,and guess what ,it stalled coming up to junctions,which it had not done before,not quite finished yet so will test drive prop 2moro ,hope its not worse than when it went in LOL

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Haha that's typical, if not the desired effect! :sad: Isn't the new item adjustable though so maybe a case of fine tuning?

 

If it's improved in other areas though and is suffering just the stalling now, definitely look into the air bleed screw on the throttle body just forward of the TPS. Ours has (thus far at least) behaved itself pretty well with that set to about 4.5 turns out from seated as opposed to the 2.5 turns out we had to start with.

 

Still no idea what they were set to from the factory, but at a guess the orifice starts to close up over time with carbon gunk buildup on both the hole and the screw's taper so a throttle body clean and play with the settings might help

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Seriously covered in sweat now, humidity is off the scale here! Still, that's the car fully back together again now all seats in etc and just about to go give it a proper test run see if it's behaving itself... Only 3 days now until it becomes our only road-legal car, unless the insurance bods decide to stop pulling numbers out their arses and give us a sensible quote on the 206. :smile:

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40 miles down with the throttle stops reset & the bleed screw at it's new setting, so-far no weird revving behaviour nor any cutting out at junctions. Of course 40 miles is nowhere in the big scheme of things but I'm hopeful.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest cossiolet

Hope you get it sorted and we'll done with all the progress you've made so far ☺ will you be taking her to ford fair if you finally sort the issues your having?

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Not been online for a while due to illness and so much going on at the moment, but small update in that the Cabby has been our only transport for 10 days now. The 206 decided to throw a wobbly the day the insurance was due to run out and it's rear brakes stuck on but that's now sorted. Still waiting for insurance to come down before we renew it though.

 

Stalling issue and indeed flat spot appear to be sorted for now, but nearly 2000 miles down since it's 8 year lay-up and we're beginning to see the start of the perished rubber issues appearing. So far one exhaust rubber has gone AWOL and the nearside wishbone bushes have collapsed but we've got a pair of replacements on the way.

 

Another unrelated issue was the rear gearbox mounting lost both it's bolts, resulting in a very wobbly power unit and a very gently driven few miles home. I can only assume this is something that the guy who did the clutch change had missed on reassembly nearly a decade ago, as they're in a rather awkward and hidden place. I've managed to replace them on a temporary basis with a couple of French wheel bolts as they're the same thread but will be getting something more suitable. And yes, since that episode I've gone over all the other mounting bolts, bellhousing bolts etc and all appears good there. Remind me to slap the "mechanic" we got it off though, next time we see him lol... As a silver lining though, I discovered where the fuel filter is hidden while I was rectifying that, Can't believe I never noticed it there before haha! So that little job can be seen off too.

 

Not going to have enough money to get to Ford Fair I don't think, sadly. We will be taking the Cabby on holiday to Scotland with us soon though so it'll have a good run out once the tracking is back under control.

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New wishbones are on, tracking desperately in need of professional help though lol. Got it closer than it's first tyre-squealing, wrist-snapping effort with a few minutes un-seizing the locknut on the O/S but I want it at least verified. Was shocked at kwikfit's price of 35 quid... Not had a car tracked "properly" in years and I thought it'd be about 10-15ish cash in hand... :/ ringing round proper garages today though...

 

More perished rubber reared it's head during the wishbone swap too, CV boot on the offside has died a death and found a little play in the joint but I'm not too worried as yet, I have a couple of complete front struts/brakes/driveshafts in the shed somewhere along with other bits from my old estates.

 

I only wish (no pun intended!) all wishbones were as easy a job as they are on the Escort, no more than 15min per side just wheel off, unbolt the old and pop in the new with a little help from the jack to line the bushes up (mind you, I did get a lucky break with the drop link bolts being free so it was easier to move stuff about with the ARB disconnected). A far cry from the last wishbone change I did on the old Citroen ZX, that was a nightmare of snapped P-bushes, sheared and seized bolts and random parts-bin-availability ball joint sizing (ended up being that our 1.9TD had 14mm balljoints specced for a little 1.4i petrol with no PAS, presumably the hub carriers too).

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  • 2 weeks later...
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Well impressed by the cabbie this last week, it's done sterling service transporting us on a holiday to Scotland. Around 800 miles all in, with 90% of that being fully loaded and running near flat out on the motorway. My philosophy to motorway travel is get it over and done with as quickly as reasonably possible as it's boring, so the old girl was hanging with the Audis & Jags in the outer 2 lanes mostly between 80-95mph (on the private bits we own, of course).

 

Apart from a blown headlight bulb the day before we set off, and a few leaks on the return trip, the car has been faultless and very comfortable. Best bits were seeing at least 10 modern cars stuck on the hard shoulder, and the ease and confidence with which we dispatched the driving rain and galeforce winds for a couple of hours southbound on the M6 yesterday. The only thing I wanted for was some front fogs and perhaps another 2 or 3 extra speeds for the wipers as they just couldn't clear the spray fast enough during the worst of it.

 

Shocking how many people were continuing to try and do 80+ in the conditions though, and use of lights was around 50/50 with even less of us using fog lamps (definitely needed, spray made other vehicles invisible down to about 50 feet or so without them on).

 

Through the whole week the car has used barely a drop of oil and I've not worked out the MPG yet but the fuel cost came out about 10p/mile using a tank of regular unleaded at 112.9/l and a second tank of Scottish price juice at 106.7/l...

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Grab your self an xr3i /rs2000 bumper they have fogs and indicators although in your case just wire up the fogs on ours we have the full xr3i set up so side lights are where your indicators are so on ours we use the indicators in the bumper can't load pictures on here but you will see pictures of her on the club facebook page you even have a spare blank for the switch as well

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Hopefully the atrocious weather combined with the long motorway journey were a one-off or at least a rare enough experience to make them less of a pressing issue than a bit of extra midrange torque (specially when Ebay breakers of escorts seem to be so hit & miss as to whether they actually have or want to sell the parts for sensible money, and that's rather more miss sadly too). I do like the look of the '3i front end though, maybe one day.

 

On a lighter note though I've worked out our average MPG for the trip (repeatedly, as I was very suspicious!) and it's come out at over 41mpg over the week and near 48mpg on the motorway legs... Shocked isn't the word as like I say the poor car was fully loaded and running hard with the repmobiles and hire cars most of that time... Maybe we don't need more oomph after all, seems she likes to be driven hard. I thought 8v engines were less rev happy than 16v but this one seems to thrive above 4500rpm.

 

Hoping to get a bit of free time to work on the 206 soon though so the Cabby can stand down from daily duties and hide in the garage when the salt comes out.

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Glutton for punishment me, instead of using any free time to get the 206 ready for winter duties we've ended up digging a pond, getting a kitten and dragging home another 206.

 

This one's a 3 door 1400 petrol with electric windows/mirrors, front fogs and air con. It cost us the princely sum of 99 quid but came with half a tank of petrol and 3 brand new tyres which went straight onto the other 206 so it's basically a free car. It's done over 180k miles but the engine's been replaced at some point as well as the rear axle and loads of other stuff so aside from a notchy gearbox it runs & drives better than the diesel with less than half the miles! It's been off the road for some 4 years and the body is a little tatty in places but on initial inspection I think it's solid in the right places and worth saving (was going to break it for the axle etc), should pass the MoT fairly easily with little more than new wiper blades and a little work on the brakes.

 

So looks like the cabby bodywork might wait till it's off the road (better for me to be able to do it properly without needing it driveable I suppose) & we have a dilemma now of which 206 to get on the road & what to do with the other one... Think it'll come down to whether the petrol falls into a cheap tax bracket or not.

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Just wundrin can nybuddy help me? I have 1991 ish, 1.8 efi. The radiator is obviously too small height wise. The width looks OK at core size around 520mm, but there is a gap above the rad and overlong bolts holding it in place. The height is around 320mm but the 'unused' space above the rad is around 30mm so that the correct height may be as much as 350mm. Is this a 1.6 rad fitted to my 1.8?

I already have a XR3I front bumper! Fog lights NOT wired, a job for another day. What rad do I need? Car is in a hot country although it has never overheated, and the fan cuts in, a bit late tho, I think.

Also what is the name of the metal pipe that comes across the rad and joins the top hose and a smaller hose, (heater hose?) a metal T junction. Is it part of the rad? I think not, mine is well corroded and has ny1 a good spare 1 or what do I need to get namewise?

 

On another topic, I was running the car on 95 octane fuel as recommended (I think), attendant filled tank with 98 octane. WOW, stand back, big difference in performance. Car actually accelerates now instead of just 'getting there' at its own pace!

 

Good luck to everyone, Nick.

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  • 4 months later...
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Wow it's been a while since I got on here! Escort did sterling service over the rest of summer, being our only roadgoing car until late September when we finally bit the bullet and paid over the odds to get the 206 insured again (worked out about £10 a month dearer than the previous year even with the NCB :sad: )

 

IIRC we put the Escort on SORN mid November time & then life took over and it's pretty much sat as it was left until yesterday when I opened her up to a hazing of mould on the wheel/gearknob and back seats/belts :sad: still started on her own though, albeit only just. Not bad though considering it's still on the battery that stood flat for 8 years!!!

 

It's sat on the charger overnight & I'm hoping to get a bit of time to clean her out over the weekend in between looking at a poorly 2004 Vectra C, for friends, that I suspect will need a starter motor rebuild as well as a new battery... And this after I've only replaced the glow plugs and aux belt tensioner last month too... Modern cars, who'd have them? :biggrin:

 

I'm really missing the cabby experience now though & can't wait for the gritters to finish making the roads a corrosion-fest for old Fords, really hoping to get the bodywork all finished and ready for paint this spring. Not sure how we're going to tackle the respray though, as that's what it really needs rather than blowing in the odd panel, I'm not really equipped/confident enough to do the work myself (nor do I particularly relish bodywork, mechanical/electrical stuff is my "thing"). Really could do with sorting the stem seals too, fairly stinks the street out when she kicks into life now! Still undecided on what to do engine-wise, I think it'll probably stay fairly standard though and just try to make the best of the EFi seeing as that's the road less travelled and if we do stumble across any "silver bullet" that makes it run as good as a carbed motor then we'll be able to share...

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Cleaned out, taxed again and managed nearly 100 miles when weather allowed. Still not too keen on the amount of salt around but it had to be done... Cars like to be used not sat waiting & I like driving the Escort over the 206 even if late model diesels do give much better low speed driveability and economy. Just ain't the same when you're all warm, dry and quiet and relaxed. Modern cars are like white goods, you don't drive them, you use them... Shove anyone who's not driven a pre-1997(ish) car in the driver's seat & guarantee first thing they'll do is stall it trying to manoeuvre out of the driveway :biggrin:

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Mines a MK6 and used daily trhoughout all weathers, usually on bike carrying duty.

 

I like the fact you don't see many escorts on the road now (even the MK6 type as I have), so its nice driving something different to most of the population.

 

The only downside is the post 1990 fords seem to rust more than pre 1990.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest Davesic

Hi

 

Been reading your blog and found it very interesting. Sounds like your having fun restoring your gem of an Escort and thought I'd share a pic of mine :

 

<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/DaveSic/media/IMAG1258_1_zpsisajjk99.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah40/DaveSic/IMAG1258_1_zpsisajjk99.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo IMAG1258_1_zpsisajjk99.jpg"/></a>

 

(hopefully that works)

 

Bought her for £500 back in December last year. She'd be stood still on a main road garage for around 3 months. The garage was shutting down and they were about to sell her for parts when I decided (with the backing of a very supportive partner) to take her home and give the old girl a new lease of life.

She hadn't been cleaned (inside or out) in about 6 months from the state of the floor (Even had some signs of mould in the glove box from an old orange carton left in there). No MOT, no Tax when I got here either however a quick trip to the local mechanic saw her pass her MOT 2nd time round (with only £100 worth of work needed to get her ready).

 

Had no air filter (at all), green roof, black (from dirt) wheels, stained seats and carpets, rust starting to appear where rubber sills had come loose and not been refitted...

 

Despite a lack of TLC from the previous owner she had all over her old paperwork (including a 1995 service receipt) and ran OK (not so much with an old battery and no air filter)

 

In little over two months (in between the rain) I have fitted a new induction kit, cleaned all the paint work and roof down, removed the stains from the carpets and seats, replaced wipers, replaced bulbs, cleaned the inner boot (it was absolutely filthy in there!), detailed the dashboard (even got the cotton buds out to clean the vents!), replaced the rubbish aftermarket gear knob with an original, bought an original steering wheel (currently has an aftermarket one on that needs to go) and bought & fitted new plates (bought a registration for it).

 

Managed to treat the rust ok with Kurerust. Amazing what that stuff can do.

 

Now running much better, looking better (smelling better too) and proudly sitting on our driveway (undercover when it rains of course!)

 

I'm having an issue with my instruments tho, speedo, rev counter and engine temp gauge not working. Haven't since I bought her. Think its the cable, they've (previous owner) changed the steering wheel and probably not connected the cables properly. That's my next job!

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