ERST - wah gwan.
Discussion
Hello!
I'm after a bit of advice... I'm thinking of picking up an ERST for a bit of summer fun but i'm just wondering if it'll be a money pit.
This is the sort of thing im looking at - http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2769058.htm
Could you tell me how reliable they are (mechanically, I know very little about cars) and if you think an example like the one above is going to rinse my pockets
Ta
James
I'm after a bit of advice... I'm thinking of picking up an ERST for a bit of summer fun but i'm just wondering if it'll be a money pit.
This is the sort of thing im looking at - http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2769058.htm
Could you tell me how reliable they are (mechanically, I know very little about cars) and if you think an example like the one above is going to rinse my pockets
Ta
James
DON'T DO IT!
Unless you're a Ford nut and you have plenty of free weekends, tools and love for the blue oval you'll hate it. Mine was up for sale after about 3 weeks of owning it.
Silly things like the actuator bar falling off on the way home from picking it up (drove 100 miles with no boost and when it was a rebuilt low comp bottom end it was bloody gutless!), dash lights coming on / off when they felt like it, boost was tempremental, pipes splitting....
Every weekend my brother and I were underneath it sorting something out, and I paid top dollar for one in absolute minty mint condition.
Jap turbo for a bit of fun makes sense.
Unless you're a Ford nut and you have plenty of free weekends, tools and love for the blue oval you'll hate it. Mine was up for sale after about 3 weeks of owning it.
Silly things like the actuator bar falling off on the way home from picking it up (drove 100 miles with no boost and when it was a rebuilt low comp bottom end it was bloody gutless!), dash lights coming on / off when they felt like it, boost was tempremental, pipes splitting....
Every weekend my brother and I were underneath it sorting something out, and I paid top dollar for one in absolute minty mint condition.
Jap turbo for a bit of fun makes sense.
Jellymonster said:
Marf said:
Throw £1000 at a Starlet Turbo and you have a reliable usable 200hp. Not to be underestimated in a 900kg car.
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2723353.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2732561.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2794664.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2262071.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2570484.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2798112.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2682748.htm
Edited by Marf on Monday 9th May 13:49
The Crack Fox said:
Rust. Everywhere. If you're looking at one get underneath and have a good poke about. Not sure I'd spend £2.5k on one myself...
This. I mean, look everywhere if you want one, I'd be ripping up the carpets everything. If it's got a sunroof make sure it works and goes all the way back... the 2 "skins" like to rust themselves together.
Trying to find a mint one these days you'll be looking at £5000 imo.
A starlet turbo would be fun, a 323 turbo, charade gtti, maybe even a pulsar gtir if you're wanting some retro fun. An impreza would be the easy option.
But an MX5, Clio 172, 106 / 306 Rallye / GTI would offer similar fun albeit NA for similar cash... but a lot less in repairs!
SteveS Cup said:
a 323 turbo, charade gtti,
Both too rare nowadays, and I say that as an ex Charade owner! Good fun little cars and I miss mine like crazy, but I'd not buy another, purely because the parts are an arse to get hold of.SteveS Cup said:
maybe even a pulsar gtir
There be dragons ahead with these. Would love one, just a shame they're pretty unreliable and like to spit gearboxes!Marf said:
You're not looking hard enough
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2723353.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2732561.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2794664.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2262071.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2570484.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2798112.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2682748.htm
ha.. thanks Marf. That last one looks a bit tasty, eh? http://pistonheads.com/sales/2723353.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2732561.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2794664.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2262071.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2570484.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2798112.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/2682748.htm
Edited by Marf on Monday 9th May 13:49
I'm not too familiar with the starlet, for one like this.. http://pistonheads.com/sales/2682748.htm what sort of performance would you expect?
Yeah its not bad, shame about the mismatched wheels though.
Personally I'd aim for a stock one then do the mods myself, but that one looks OK. The only thing that concerns me is all those mods but no remap. Should really have a Greddy E-Manage on there at least.
Also if it has a front mount, it'll have probably have had the A/C removed.
Might not be an issue for you but for me it's a dealbreaker!
Personally I'd aim for a stock one then do the mods myself, but that one looks OK. The only thing that concerns me is all those mods but no remap. Should really have a Greddy E-Manage on there at least.
Also if it has a front mount, it'll have probably have had the A/C removed.
Might not be an issue for you but for me it's a dealbreaker!
Gotta have the A/C. Marf+humidity=Road Rage 
In short, a fair bit! Not sure of a figure, but given the amount of mods it wouldnt be cheap.
Realistically though if you bought a standard car all you would need to do is
Decat+Exhaust
Air Filter
Boost Controller
Greddy E-Manage+mapping
To see you to 200hp. Front mount would probably be recomended.
200hp in a 900odd kg car is going to be a hoot. 222hp/tonne. Go look at other cars with that kind of P/W ratio.
Put it this way, I had a Charade GTxx with 160hp. It weighed 820kg, would hit 60 in 6.5s and would happily cling to the back of most things until about 80mph. Certainly shocked a fair few Carrera owners.
In short, a fair bit! Not sure of a figure, but given the amount of mods it wouldnt be cheap.
Realistically though if you bought a standard car all you would need to do is
Decat+Exhaust
Air Filter
Boost Controller
Greddy E-Manage+mapping
To see you to 200hp. Front mount would probably be recomended.
200hp in a 900odd kg car is going to be a hoot. 222hp/tonne. Go look at other cars with that kind of P/W ratio.
Put it this way, I had a Charade GTxx with 160hp. It weighed 820kg, would hit 60 in 6.5s and would happily cling to the back of most things until about 80mph. Certainly shocked a fair few Carrera owners.
Marf said:
Gotta have the A/C. Marf+humidity=Road Rage
In short, a fair bit! Not sure of a figure, but given the amount of mods it wouldnt be cheap.
Realistically though if you bought a standard car all you would need to do is
Decat+Exhaust
Air Filter
Boost Controller
Greddy E-Manage+mapping
To see you to 200hp. Front mount would probably be recomended.
200hp in a 900odd kg car is going to be a hoot. 222hp/tonne. Go look at other cars with that kind of P/W ratio.
Put it this way, I had a Charade GTxx with 160hp. It weighed 820kg, would hit 60 in 6.5s and would happily cling to the back of most things until about 80mph. Certainly shocked a fair few Carrera owners.
HA... now THAT sounds like a lot of fun... would it need a break upgrade for that sort of power?In short, a fair bit! Not sure of a figure, but given the amount of mods it wouldnt be cheap.
Realistically though if you bought a standard car all you would need to do is
Decat+Exhaust
Air Filter
Boost Controller
Greddy E-Manage+mapping
To see you to 200hp. Front mount would probably be recomended.
200hp in a 900odd kg car is going to be a hoot. 222hp/tonne. Go look at other cars with that kind of P/W ratio.
Put it this way, I had a Charade GTxx with 160hp. It weighed 820kg, would hit 60 in 6.5s and would happily cling to the back of most things until about 80mph. Certainly shocked a fair few Carrera owners.
On the subject of the RST be very careful. They can only be as good as the maintenance they receive. The bodykit can hide a lot of rot - Sill/arches/rear chassis legs...
Like the others are saying, there are far more capable cars out there so you have to be a fan really. That said, they can be great fun.
If your not so clued up and wouldn't be doing the work yourself it could prove to be a lot of hassle, so for reliable summer fun i'd be tempted to look elsewhere. If you don't mind getting stuck in though then it's all good.
Like the others are saying, there are far more capable cars out there so you have to be a fan really. That said, they can be great fun.
If your not so clued up and wouldn't be doing the work yourself it could prove to be a lot of hassle, so for reliable summer fun i'd be tempted to look elsewhere. If you don't mind getting stuck in though then it's all good.
Had a grey one myself with a 1.8 zvh, was a good conversion that took a lot of abuse upgraded to the 2.1 later on which was fantastic
If your not mechanically minded its not the car for you though as they need constant 'tinkering' to keep them going.
You wont get 200bhp from a starlet for long without a front mount intercooler, exhaust manifold and hybrid turbo & ideally a forged engine. They are NOT reliable at these power levels & i have seen many with blown pistons among other faults.
There is also no way of mapping them unless you fit aftermarket management.
The handling can also be a bit unpredictable with a very light rear end but this can be sorted for not a lot of money.
This is no 3 piston on a 180 bhp one after it got to hot on the standard exhaust manifold. There is a huge restriction on the port which causes this even quicker when coupled with the stock top mount intercooler which overheats very quickly.
On the upside they can be very quick the one with the blown piston now is forged & runs 210bhp & can surprise an awful lot of cars up to around 100 leptons.
If your not mechanically minded its not the car for you though as they need constant 'tinkering' to keep them going.
You wont get 200bhp from a starlet for long without a front mount intercooler, exhaust manifold and hybrid turbo & ideally a forged engine. They are NOT reliable at these power levels & i have seen many with blown pistons among other faults.
There is also no way of mapping them unless you fit aftermarket management.
The handling can also be a bit unpredictable with a very light rear end but this can be sorted for not a lot of money.
This is no 3 piston on a 180 bhp one after it got to hot on the standard exhaust manifold. There is a huge restriction on the port which causes this even quicker when coupled with the stock top mount intercooler which overheats very quickly.
On the upside they can be very quick the one with the blown piston now is forged & runs 210bhp & can surprise an awful lot of cars up to around 100 leptons.
Gassing Station | Ford | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff