I needed a sensible modern daily driver...
- Thread starter Lopéz
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- carlosfandango essex wtf xr3
Caporegime
I must say though @Lopéz - research and throw a bit of coin at the suspension and you’ll find a handling sweet spot, mine ended up with Spax suspension iirc and it handled beautifully, could never match it with the subsequent RS Turbos no matter what I did to them, the ‘3i was just at a different level somehow.
The ride ends up FAR worse but the handling grip and payback is more than worth the sacrifice imo.
The ride ends up FAR worse but the handling grip and payback is more than worth the sacrifice imo.
Soldato
- Joined
- 22 Aug 2004
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- 7,607
Hero!
Soldato
Now that's a blast from the past. Noice
Soldato
Loving that, so will this be a daily then or keeping it away from the elements to avoid it turning into a pile of rust?
Caporegime
Pretty bomb proof iirc, the only weak spot was the cam belt that tended to snap 5k before Ford said it needed changing and the valve stem seals tended to fail fairly frequently.
My biggest bugbear was rotten battery trays, a very common issue.
Soooo true. The CVH was pretty much bomb proof, like you said the cam belt needed to be changed quite regular, even when i had my RS Turbo, that lived for 5 years with 25 PSI running through it towards the end.
TBH i always wanted the series 1 Mk3 Escort RS turbo, but ended up having the mk4 LOL.
That also looks like it has a RS1600i front splitter on your mk3, definately not a original XR3 item
Yep, apparently when it came in from France and they scraped all the moss off, there was almost no corrosion, just abused paint. So it was resprayed and probably sold on for a fat profit.
The previous owner fitted the RS1600 front splitter (which is a huge improvement on the standard item IMO), spotlights, cloverleaf wheels and a few other bits.
The battery tray isn't perfect, I can see corrosion under the tray which to be honest is pretty much par for the course on these. I need to get the correct LHD panel and probably do the job in the summer. I'll get the door shuts done at the same time as they are beginning to show primer.
Interior is perfect other than the dash, which is utterly ruined like most of these. I'll need to find a replacement from the continent as this one is beyond repair really and lets down what is otherwise a very nice car.
Cambelt on this one has just been done - the CVH likes it's oil and belt changes so I will need to keep on top of that.
The previous owner fitted the RS1600 front splitter (which is a huge improvement on the standard item IMO), spotlights, cloverleaf wheels and a few other bits.
The battery tray isn't perfect, I can see corrosion under the tray which to be honest is pretty much par for the course on these. I need to get the correct LHD panel and probably do the job in the summer. I'll get the door shuts done at the same time as they are beginning to show primer.
Interior is perfect other than the dash, which is utterly ruined like most of these. I'll need to find a replacement from the continent as this one is beyond repair really and lets down what is otherwise a very nice car.
Cambelt on this one has just been done - the CVH likes it's oil and belt changes so I will need to keep on top of that.
Caporegime
I was lucky enough to have both, an S1 first followed (after the S1 got stolen) by a “90” Spec S2, whilst the S1 got all the plaudits and certainly looked the part the S2 was vastly better imo to drive and it had a water cooled Turbo as well as oil cooling rather than an just the oil cooled jobbie in the S1, the S2 ended up being stolen also and I gave up on fast fords after that due to them being uninsurable for me especially after two theft claims.
How I wish I had either still mind you, they’d be worth a small fortune especially the S1.
Caporegime
I’ve heard a rumour he’s getting a pipe & slippers next...dear or dear . What have you done to the real Lopez ? Rear wheel drive and drifting and rallying .. Now buying crap cvh engined fwd cars and mopeds
To be fair, I bet it gets much more attention than many a far more exotic car would.
If they were so crap - in their era - they wouldn’t have been the huge hit that the XR Escorts undoubtedly were.
Soldato
- Joined
- 22 Aug 2004
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- 7,607
I thought the CVH was none interference?
Bent a valve on mine and was never right after being fixed so sold it a month later.
I had a vary rare 1.3 CVH Ghia Mk2 that even Ford fans (so called) told me never existed
1.3 CVH Mk2 Fiesta Housey? Very rare!
CVH is an interference engine and the belt was done about a month ago.
It's interesting - the XR3 (and associated models) are pretty divisive. What you have to remember is where they were in the market at the time.
You had the Golf GTI, and that was pretty much it. There was the Alfasud but that wasn't a hatch. Things like the Sunbeam Ti were considered very old hat.
When road tested, there wasn't a lot in it.
The XR3 made the Golf look like it was standing still from a styling perspective. Ford absolutely nailed the XR3 look, the Golf looked like a grandadmobile in comparison.
The XR3 had a higher top speed but a lower 0-60.
The Golf rode better but the XR3 gripped better and the two were considered about equal handling.
The Golf engine was more tractable and less harsh, but the brakes were terrible and the XR3 shone in that area.
Interior and seats were judged to be about the same, and the Escort had more interior space.
The XR3 is far from perfect, I'm the last person to think that - but at the time, it was exactly what the market demanded. When they tweaked the ride and gave it injection it was considered even better, but by then all sorts of other stuff was waiting in the wings and by the time we hit the Mk4 it was basically outclassed, albeit still good fun.
CVH is an interference engine and the belt was done about a month ago.
It's interesting - the XR3 (and associated models) are pretty divisive. What you have to remember is where they were in the market at the time.
You had the Golf GTI, and that was pretty much it. There was the Alfasud but that wasn't a hatch. Things like the Sunbeam Ti were considered very old hat.
When road tested, there wasn't a lot in it.
The XR3 made the Golf look like it was standing still from a styling perspective. Ford absolutely nailed the XR3 look, the Golf looked like a grandadmobile in comparison.
The XR3 had a higher top speed but a lower 0-60.
The Golf rode better but the XR3 gripped better and the two were considered about equal handling.
The Golf engine was more tractable and less harsh, but the brakes were terrible and the XR3 shone in that area.
Interior and seats were judged to be about the same, and the Escort had more interior space.
The XR3 is far from perfect, I'm the last person to think that - but at the time, it was exactly what the market demanded. When they tweaked the ride and gave it injection it was considered even better, but by then all sorts of other stuff was waiting in the wings and by the time we hit the Mk4 it was basically outclassed, albeit still good fun.
Caporegime
Nice one Lopez looks fab, you still looking at getting the 205 roadworthy?
Dagenham parts bin special?
I had a vary rare 1.3 CVH Ghia Mk2 that even Ford fans (so called) told me never existed
Dagenham parts bin special?
The Fiesta Mk2 top model was the 1.3 CVH at launch, but it moved to a 1.4 version fairly early into it's life and not many 1.3's were out there. Mine was a launch day Fiesta Mk2 1.3 Ghia that I bought off my friends mum who bought it new. Good little car until the cam belt broke coming out of Birmingham near Perry Barr, ironically my place of birth. I tried to start it several times having no idea what the issue was, of course not helping matters. Got trailered to my preferred garage who repaired it at cheap mate rates but it was never right, so sold it.