Warspite Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 Hi all, have just bought my new to me Escort, a MK1. I suppose it is the least desirable model, being 4 door, left hand drive, and 1.1, but this is a budget daily driver, so I'm happy. Not many pics as I'm away on holiday at the moment, but I've tried to paste a picture from the ebay ad I bought it from. The big plus with this car is that it has never been welded, and runs like a dream. Thoses who remember the ebay ad will be pleased to know I have removed some of the horrible modifications it had made to it over the years, like strip light on rear number plate, yellow fog lights in grill, spagetti wiring and switches under dash. I've also fixed some non-working items, such as door switches, bonnet prop, interior light, wnidow winders, and numerous other issues. Plans????????? I desperatly need to sort out the gearing, these 4 speeds are just not up to motorway speeds, I need info on 5 speed box, but believe it may have starter on other side on LHD? 1/4 bumpers, I love the look of these Alloys, I want some with wider tyres, but don't want to play with arches, what width? Having steering rack rebuilt, £75, plus poly mounts. Engine wise I'm happy, 50 hp suits me at the moment, though I have changed oil and filter, and might go electronic ignition route. All help gladly recieved, its my first MK1, thanks. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vista Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 Welcome to the forum. A set of 5.5J RS alloys off a mk1 will fit fine, or 6J RS alloys of a mk2, or the budget option is Capri laser alloys but be aware that they take a different type of wheel nut to the RS alloys. There are plenty of other choices of after market alloys from Minilite, Alleycat etc but steels with polished hub caps are pretty fashionable right now too. As to 5 speed, the standard swap is for a type 9 but I'm not sure how being LHD would affect what you need for the swap, a different bellhousing than we would use on a RHD one I imagine? There are two types of type 9, the 2.8i Capri and the Sierra box. The former has a slightly taller 1st gear ratio but isn't as straight forward to install as the 1st motion shaft is longer and needs shortening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anglia58 Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 hi the starter ona lhd is on the righthandside when sitting in the car, if you need a lhd bellhousing i could bring one to the classic ford show, free of charge, let me know if you want one, and you come to the show, cheers marcel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich T Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 I think he'll need it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mexican Gerbil Posted May 13, 2019 Report Share Posted May 13, 2019 I like it as is. Not many left with those wheels. Is that a blue interior too?? If it's a manual 4 speed box you will have to modify the tunnel, mounts and the gear stick hole needs moving back to fit the 5 speed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana Posted May 14, 2019 Report Share Posted May 14, 2019 11 hours ago, Mexican Gerbil said: If it's a manual 4 speed box you will have to modify the tunnel, mounts and the gear stick hole needs moving back to fit the 5 speed All good points - would be a shame to cut the shell unnecessarily! The 1100 may actually struggle to put the overdrive 5th - what about just raising the diff ratio? I'm guessing the 1100 had a 4.11 ....... changing to a 3.89 / 3.9 may be a compromise - a 3.54 or 3.7 may prove to tall for a std. 1100? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danxr2 Posted May 14, 2019 Report Share Posted May 14, 2019 Cool car mate 4door or left hand drive it's still an escort 👍👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monza Posted May 14, 2019 Report Share Posted May 14, 2019 All good points - would be a shame to cut the shell unnecessarily! The 1100 may actually struggle to put the overdrive 5th - what about just raising the diff ratio? I'm guessing the 1100 had a 4.11 ....... changing to a 3.89 / 3.9 may be a compromise - a 3.54 or 3.7 may prove to tall for a std. 1100?Again all good points....also imo a 3.9 diff change prob better than type-9 box with the 1100 engine....Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warspite Posted May 14, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2019 Thanks to all for your suggestions and help. According to a recent post in technical section, it should already have a 3.9 diff, so the only up gearing i can do is a 3.77 off a RS or Mexico, which I presume are few and far between. The lack of pull with taller gearing would'nt be a problem, some one has set this engine up nicely, and with the lack of weight the car is supprisingly nippy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana Posted May 14, 2019 Report Share Posted May 14, 2019 All ratio's for the Crownwheel & Pinions are available new - just not cheap. A change from 3.9 to 3.77 will be about the same as the overdrive 5th but will apply to every gear so make every gear that little bit taller. S/hand C&P can be found - just gotta ask around if you want to go that route. Costs between the two routes are liable to be about the same, just the C&P maybe easier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warspite Posted May 15, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 15, 2019 Thanks again for all help, I think I'll move over to the technical section and start pestering you all with my newbie questions now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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