RE: Ford Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth | The Brave Pill
Discussion
Notsofastfrank said:
My memory is that there were only a couple of Imperial Blue ones, the last off the production line and Ford kept one of them. Was it one of those or had it been resprayed? The only time I saw one in Imperial blue was on display at Dunton.
The lhd K reg one is Smokestone Blue rather than imperial blue - that’s the one in the Heritage collection at leastI was lucky enough to own or drive all the different Cosworths back then. The 4x4 was the nicest to drive, the later Escort could keep up with most things on a twisty road, but my (mildly tuned) 3-door was the most raw and brutal. Loved it, used it as a daily, and kept it on the street - it never got touched! Even now I think fondly of the excellent Recaros fitted to all of them. Never got out with any aches or pains. But I was a lot younger...
What’s funny is how these things look so compact compared to modern saloons.
What’s funny is how these things look so compact compared to modern saloons.
sideways man said:
No one seems to answer the question, brave pill or not. It’s hero worship and rose tinted glasses all the way!
Not quite.I used to live quite close to the European head office in Warley. ALL of the senior employees had them as fleet cars ( then it was Cosworth Scorpios )
Those that didn't have them for free bought them with hefty discounts. They were EVERYWHERE. No nostalgia here. I'm still weary of the sight of them even 30-odd years later.
sideways man said:
No one seems to answer the question, brave pill or not. It’s hero worship and rose tinted glasses all the way!
I've never owned a Cosworth but have coveted them since my early teens, it was always my ambition to own one so did A LOT of reading up on them, from what I gather they're fairly bulletproof unless you're running big power (400+ bhp) and/or driving them hard all the time, allegedly they actually had to be de-tuned before Ford could sell them to the public, rust will be the biggest issue these days I think.
I had a few V6's back in the day (and with the exception of one very noisy gearbox they were bulletproof) with the intention of upgrading to a Cosworth but by the time I could actually afford to run a Cosworth I couldn't justify spending that much money on what is essentially just an old Sierra with a turbo so I bought an e39 M5 instead. I'd still love to own one though, I'll have an RS500 when my numbers come in.
Edited by njw1 on Saturday 23 November 12:54
I had a white 4x4 Sapphire. Originally bought a rusty one as a base for a 4x4 Dax Rush. Got attached to the car and never actually turned it into a Dax.
Probably the best point to point car I had. Could point it at any roundabout at any speed pretty much and get round. Great fun to work on and tune.
Even then, a good few years ago, good heads were hard to come by. Mine warped and was beyond skimming and I had a hell of a job getting a replacement.
In the end, the rust got it and it was broken for parts. Fairly typical end for a 90s Ford ... G69 CJM - still remember the reg
Probably the best point to point car I had. Could point it at any roundabout at any speed pretty much and get round. Great fun to work on and tune.
Even then, a good few years ago, good heads were hard to come by. Mine warped and was beyond skimming and I had a hell of a job getting a replacement.
In the end, the rust got it and it was broken for parts. Fairly typical end for a 90s Ford ... G69 CJM - still remember the reg
sideways man said:
No one seems to answer the question, brave pill or not. It’s hero worship and rose tinted glasses all the way!
So my view is - not really a very brave pill as hard to loose money on one of these Could cost a fair amount to run and take up a fair amount of time, but it is basically guaranteed to increase in value to financially a safe bet
s m said:
They all handle a bit differently depending on whether you’re on about the 3-door, 4-door or 4-dr 4wd
They had a 4wd version at the Autocar Handling Day back in 1990
Did a pretty good time for a 4wd in the dry hot on the heels of the E34 M5. 2wd version was a bit quicker on that circuit but the 4wd version was new that year so got the invite. Panther Solo had the same engine but was a lot slower
They have narrow tyres ( 205s ) by today’s standards so they’re not ultra-grippy but pretty adjustable
Which 944 were they driving in this test?They had a 4wd version at the Autocar Handling Day back in 1990
Did a pretty good time for a 4wd in the dry hot on the heels of the E34 M5. 2wd version was a bit quicker on that circuit but the 4wd version was new that year so got the invite. Panther Solo had the same engine but was a lot slower
They have narrow tyres ( 205s ) by today’s standards so they’re not ultra-grippy but pretty adjustable
blade7 said:
s m said:
They all handle a bit differently depending on whether you’re on about the 3-door, 4-door or 4-dr 4wd
They had a 4wd version at the Autocar Handling Day back in 1990
Did a pretty good time for a 4wd in the dry hot on the heels of the E34 M5. 2wd version was a bit quicker on that circuit but the 4wd version was new that year so got the invite. Panther Solo had the same engine but was a lot slower
They have narrow tyres ( 205s ) by today’s standards so they’re not ultra-grippy but pretty adjustable
Which 944 were they driving in this test?They had a 4wd version at the Autocar Handling Day back in 1990
Did a pretty good time for a 4wd in the dry hot on the heels of the E34 M5. 2wd version was a bit quicker on that circuit but the 4wd version was new that year so got the invite. Panther Solo had the same engine but was a lot slower
They have narrow tyres ( 205s ) by today’s standards so they’re not ultra-grippy but pretty adjustable
I had a grey 2wd, dyno-ed at 360 ish at the wheels. Really great to drive and felt astonishingly fast.
Unfortunately I was doing a lot of miles at the time and relaxing it was not so it had to go. I think I took 4 grand for it. Right at the top of my 'cars I should never have sold' list.
Unfortunately I was doing a lot of miles at the time and relaxing it was not so it had to go. I think I took 4 grand for it. Right at the top of my 'cars I should never have sold' list.
martin12345 said:
So my view is - not really a very brave pill as hard to loose money on one of these
Could cost a fair amount to run and take up a fair amount of time, but it is basically guaranteed to increase in value to financially a safe bet
Just wondering why you think this? Market for many 90s/00s cars seems to have started trending downwards of late from what I can tellCould cost a fair amount to run and take up a fair amount of time, but it is basically guaranteed to increase in value to financially a safe bet
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