Ford Focus Mk2 [ST] Estate Sleeper - Build Thread

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Fastdruid said:

Personally I'd make the bother to fit the ESP... On the Mondeo it makes a massive difference in cornering, with it off it *feels* like a powerful FWD car and will happily go straight on with too much throttle, with the ESP it both prevents that and as long as you don't just bury the throttle actually oversteers slightly. Although oversteer is almost the wrong word as rather than the back coming round it's pulling the front in tighter under power.

Although I would like to ESP the car actually handles very well and neutrally without it. To fit it would mean a complete re-wire of the car from the dashboard back as the looms are significantly different. I'm not going to do it at the moment, but I have kept the ST rear loom so that I could splice it in at some point in the future.

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BigMon said:

Have another like from me. What a fantastic bit of engineering.

Have read the last few pages with a big smile on my face. You must be absolutely chuffed to bits with the end result.

I doff my virtual cap to you!

Thank you! I certainly am chuffed with the result!

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Fastdruid said:

KarlMac said:

BOBTEE said:

The ESP is worth it for the noise!

If you're cornering quite hard it'll introduce a misfire to knock some power off, sounds amazing! It will knock all the power off if you go full hooligan though, it can be annoying and a tad dangerous when you're trying to pull out of a junction in a hurry.

Sounds like yours is broke. Ford ESP uses a combination of braking force and torque limiting as far as I know and doesn't do anything with the timing. The engine does have an over fuel on throttle close for cooling which causes the bangs.

OP. ESP is absolutely not necessary, its a crap system and I had mine mapped out.

Having read up on it (just now) it looks like the Focus ESP isn't as good as the version on the Mondeo so it might not be worth it.

I personally do not think it would be worth sorting as apart from having to custom make the entire wiring harness for the system, I do not think it would be properly calibrated to the car as the weight is different, the weight distribution is very different and all of the spring rates are different too. So even if I did get it wired in then I don't know how it would perform when 'needed', therefore I think I will stick with a predicable, unassisted car.

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MajorMantra said:

Late to this party, but just thought I'd add my congratulations to the OP. Nice job.

I have a soft spot for Focus estates, being the proud owner of a slightly tatty Mk1. Mines a 1.8TDCi, so there's a massive lump of metal in the front trying to prevent you from changing direction, but it's still a half decent car to drive.

I've never totally warmed to the Mk2 shape, but all this enthusiasm might change my mind...

Thank you!

Having owned a mk1 and now a mk2, I think the mk2 is very much a progression of the mk1 is engineering and also in looks.

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I will be taking the car down to the Goodwood Sunday Service on 13th. My friend who helped me build the car is coming down from Manchester for the weekend anyway, so it will be nice to show the car off for the first time with him

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thespannerman said:

Fantastic thread and a fantastic car!

I'm going to be spending quite a bit of time down in Luton/MK after Christmas, I'll have my eyes peeled for this!

Thank you! I hope you don't spot me, and you rev your engine at a family at the lights!

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LanceRS said:

Looking forward to seeing this next week.

Thanks, come over and say hi.

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Good news! -the car failed its MoT. On a front tyre showing a piece of cord on the inside shoulder. Which means I stuck a new set of Pilot Sport 3s on the front, but more importantly-I can give the old ones a proper smokey send off!

Week long story short, but basically I could two full tests done as when I went back to the first place to get the re-test on the new tyres the tester was away, so I had to go somewhere else for a full test as I needed the car.

I'm pretty chuffed with it as they commented on how good it looked at both places, and no advisories or problems with paperwork etc.

Here's a picture of the engine bay as I don't think I've posted one yet.

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neilbauer said:

I'm hoping to make Goodwood on Sunday so look forward to seeing if your car looks as dull as should

Thanks, I'll take it as a compliment!

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KarlMac said:

Looks fantastic, I would look into fitting an RS air box as the DSCI is renown for sucking up water and hydrolocking the engine. Also has the benefit of having a few more ponies and a nicer noise.

I did wonder about hydrolocking when I was installing it. Noise is something I'm not lacking at the moment!

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maxypriest said:

Coker said:

Excellent stuff OP. Superb job.

maxypriest said:

Absolutely Brilliant. I too built a sleeper - out of an old merc and the concept is as good as it sounds; to you out there who are wondering – go for it if you can.

More info/link to build thread please!

http://retrorides.proboards.com/thread/182582/1990-mercedes-w124-superturbodiesel

Wow!

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Bungleaio said:

Brilliant work and super fast too!

Thanks!

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maxypriest said:

Any vid/ YouTube action?

Not yet, but I've got a dyno power run at the weekend which I'll get one of, and I'll try and do a drive by too.

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Man1c_M0nk3y said:

Lurked around for ages without signing up but had to just to say I absolutely love this, must be a right giggle and leave plenty of people confused.

Love it ??

Thank you!

My favourite people to confuse are pedestrians. They hear something, turn around, look at the car, then look everywhere else, then look back at the car and pull the most amazing faces. It gets me every time!

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Exhaust has dulled down nicely over the last few thousand miles.

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Rikki55 said:

Cracking car! Love it OP!

Thanks!

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OvalOwl said:

Have you seen the vid where the bloke who built the Volvo 245 sleeper goes looking for an M5?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymi0xkErqWI&t=...

Wow! I've seen it before but it still amazes! I'm not quite at those levels of power yet!

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Just finished on the dyno, and the headline figures are 325hp, 388 lbft. Happy with that!

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It was great to meet everyone this morning, and thanks for the positive reaction to the car too.

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Fastdruid said:

Nothing more than intake kit, intercooler and exhaust (and obviously the remap to make it work and an RS flywheel/clutch to handle the power)? Awesome.

Yep, that's all it needed!