Ford Saphire Cosworth ('88)
Discussion
555 Paul said:
And light too. My one above was 349.9bhp on the dyno and in a straight line it was quicker than my E46 M3, in the bends the M3 would have the edge though.
That's where the 4wd comes into it's own. Might not be as much fun for hooning around but as a point to point car it is deceptively rapid.A standard car is a very different animal, certainly not fast by modern standards but fun none the less. I was lucky enough to have both for about 6 months a few years ago. As a classic car to enjoy, the standard car was great, as a drivers car, the modified one was streets ahead.
Reality took hold and common sense (and SWMBO) told me that running both was a bit silly. Although the standard car is and was worth more, it's the modified one that I still have.
In answer to the question, the standard car was always quick rather that fast, but once you have them on the boil you can cover ground very quickly indeed.
Reality took hold and common sense (and SWMBO) told me that running both was a bit silly. Although the standard car is and was worth more, it's the modified one that I still have.
In answer to the question, the standard car was always quick rather that fast, but once you have them on the boil you can cover ground very quickly indeed.
Pommygranite said:
Thanks for the insight - I think with 360bhp they would feel nippy!
As standard though, do they feel quick now?
Quick now as standard? Maybe, it depends on your experience of cars and interpretation of the word 'quick'.As standard though, do they feel quick now?
Here are the stats from new
. . .,
They're an old type turbo so you have to be prepared to use the revs and wring it out towards the maximum ( there was no danger paint on the original rev counter ).
They're not like a modern turbo diesel where they have massive response low down and you don't need to go over 4k rpm. Put your foot down in 5th at 30mph and you won't be shooting off to the horizon. However those raw figures through the gears are as quick as something like a BMW 130i so that might give you a little perspective. I don't think you'd get left behind in modern traffic but you wouldn't be the fastest. A modern top of the range hot hatch with more mechanical grip and 50% more power will be off and away. The handling does help you make the most of the power like all great road cars though
They come, as standard, on narrower tyres than a modern GT86, but weigh a bit less than one too so they feel pretty agile and happy to take direction changes quickly if they're in good nick.
As for cross country pace - have a read of this from when they were new
. . .,
It gives an indication of what cars they were close to - you'll probably know in your own mind whether you consider the other cars mentioned as still quick or not!
djdestiny said:
Yes it had both of those too.
The only mods it had were stage 1, Mongoose exhaust, silver Roose water and boost hoses, lowered suspension (I can't remember what is was now) and the rest was as intended
The headlamp wipers had been removed at the time of the photos as I was replacing them
This made me look twice, my '92 2.0 GLS was J784BNO.The only mods it had were stage 1, Mongoose exhaust, silver Roose water and boost hoses, lowered suspension (I can't remember what is was now) and the rest was as intended
The headlamp wipers had been removed at the time of the photos as I was replacing them
LanceRS said:
Thank you, that was mine. Took littlest one out to his first SS. He seemed to enjoy it. 
I drove up in convoy with the 3 Nobles and the TVR. I spotted your Capri too, very nice. If I had been paying attention I would have suggested meeting up.
It was the headlight surrounds that made me recognise it! It looks in fantastic nick. Was an awesome day.I drove up in convoy with the 3 Nobles and the TVR. I spotted your Capri too, very nice. If I had been paying attention I would have suggested meeting up.
DougMcC said:
It was the headlight surrounds that made me recognise it! It looks in fantastic nick. Was an awesome day.
The headlights were on it when I bought it. I keep thinking about putting some originals back on but these work so much better. Had I known how long I would have it and how difficult it would be to get cheap parts (who ever imagined that the supply of old Sierras in scrap yards would dry up) I would have stock piled such things years ago.She's not in bad condition but is starting to show her age a bit now, unfortunately it seems that children need constant feeding and clothing. Thanks for the positive comments though, cheered me up no end, always nice when your pride and joy is appreciated by others.
There is a quite a merry go round of Cossies being broken, Escorts and Sierra'S....I POSTED ON Passion Ford formum that the Cossies would run out if they keep breaking them but it seems the shells get built back up and the parts move on to keep the other cars running so many never actually ghet crushed...they are just worth much more as a sum of desirable parts.
Engines in good nick with a good provenance are worth a decent amount on their own as are AP or Alcon brakes etc...
Cosworth bits are eye wateringly expensive now, a standard engine rebuild is £3500 and thats before you get in to any tuning such as a cam swap with pocketed pistond and long studding to hold the head on. I have recently spent the best part of £7500 on Borg Warner EFR twin scroll Turbo, manifold, New engine loom and Vipec ECU, that gave me 470bhp and I still need to do the engine internals so probably £5000k or more. The gearbox is £4000 to take the power....compare that to a VAG 1.8t...cheap as chips from a scrap yard and 400 bhp is peanuts in comparison.
It is not unusual to see a Mark Shead or Harvey Gibbs engine at £14,000 second hand and Rod Tarry's record attempt engines are around £25k to £30k a pop and he is doing 2 of them.
There is something about them if you were growing up in the Cossie era though.
Engines in good nick with a good provenance are worth a decent amount on their own as are AP or Alcon brakes etc...
Cosworth bits are eye wateringly expensive now, a standard engine rebuild is £3500 and thats before you get in to any tuning such as a cam swap with pocketed pistond and long studding to hold the head on. I have recently spent the best part of £7500 on Borg Warner EFR twin scroll Turbo, manifold, New engine loom and Vipec ECU, that gave me 470bhp and I still need to do the engine internals so probably £5000k or more. The gearbox is £4000 to take the power....compare that to a VAG 1.8t...cheap as chips from a scrap yard and 400 bhp is peanuts in comparison.
It is not unusual to see a Mark Shead or Harvey Gibbs engine at £14,000 second hand and Rod Tarry's record attempt engines are around £25k to £30k a pop and he is doing 2 of them.
There is something about them if you were growing up in the Cossie era though.
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