HMC- Return of the Cheeky 500

[wesacosa]

3 minutes ago, HMC said:

Quite an early mk2 !

yeah it had the F O R D lettering instead of the Ford badges,  some kind of crest on the key and on the blank in the dash where the fuel/temp gauge go on a rev counter model, an  orange oil pressure light and different script on the instrument markings 

[HMC]

I thought this would be Portuguese made ( like the shed of a galaxy currently on the fleet), but the Vin plate suggests Germany (Cologne?) Any recommendations for a Ford vin decoder?

[D.E]

This one (still with the first owner when I took this photo back in 2015!) went to the UK as well. Solid car, despite living near the coast its entire life. 

[wesacosa]

15 minutes ago, HMC said:

I thought this would be Portuguese made ( like the shed of a galaxy currently on the fleet), but the Vin plate suggests Germany (Cologne?) Any recommendations for a Ford vin decoder?

I thought the MK2 Escort only used to be built in Dagenham and Cologne  Saarlouis so that's probably correct 

[HMC]

3 minutes ago, D.E said:

This one (still with the first owner when I took this photo back in 2015!) went to the UK as well. Solid car, despite living near the coast its entire life. 

Great photo. Im getting a bit jittery about their rot prone-ness. Presumably they are typical for the period rather than more so?

[wesacosa]

[bunglebus]

1 hour ago, wesacosa said:

yeah it had the F O R D lettering instead of the Ford badges,  some kind of crest on the key and on the blank in the dash where the fuel/temp gauge go on a rev counter model, an  orange oil pressure light and different script on the instrument markings 

All like that up to about '77, along with loads of detail changes. Engine size on the wings for one, quite early autos have AUTOMATIC badges under the rear number plate, single number plate light instead of two etc etc.

Weirdest change I've discovered was door hinges on the estates. I put MK1 saloon doors on my '77 Estate after buying a '79 estate as a donor and funding they didn't fit, hard to describe but they swapped the sides on the top hinge.

[egg]

10 hours ago, HMC said:

Have you got any more pictures of STF?

Not many, because pre digital and all that - here's when I bought it from an ad in the Sporting Escorts owners club magazine

The whole reason I bought this one was because my parents had an identical T-reg (local FN registered) from 1980-until the mid 90's

As mentioned before, when dad sold it, I kept the Serck plates, which to this day are in the shed

[bunglebus]

Bought this in the mid 90s, I was still a teenager. Did lots to it but eventually it went on eBay. Still out there, last pics that popped up were someone proposing they use it as a drift car

Run to the Sun 1998 in my 1600 Ghia auto

The previously midnight blue 1300 Ghia I ended up with. Drove like a sack of shite

Signal amber 1300 Ghia I co-owned with my mate. Awesome colour

1600 Sport I bought out of the Basildon Evening Echo, fitted with a 2.0 Pinto using all the proper RS2000 mounts, bellhousing etc.

I ended up scrapping it before realising it was registered alongside some of the works rally cars

A random wide arch 4 door that turned up at work

My friend's 1300 Ghia (same silver/red colour combo as my 1600), that had been his mum's when we were at school. He spotted it for sale in the local paper years later and bought it back. Was a low mileage car and everything felt tight, best driving Escort I've experienced 

Should be black behind the grille though

[Stinkwheel]

17 hours ago, HMC said:

Once off loaded….

Thats lovely and reminds me of all the mk1 & 2's that used to litter the streets and cul de sacs when i was a lad, when i really wanted one as well. Im now jealous

[egg]

51 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Signal amber 1300 Ghia I co-owned with my mate. Awesome colour

Wow, don't remember that colour at all, must have been rare.

[andy18s]

I've never actually owned a mk2 as I'd driven a few but just felt they were good at being a car.Nothing more.

The only 1 that did peak my interest was a red mk2 Mexico that a local nightclub dj owned.

It had a 2.0 and 5 speed box fitted along with a few nice details,and probably the best paintwork I'd seen on a Ford.

When Furrows Ford of Oswestry had an Rs200 on display at their Rs showroom and we all went along to perve over it, they had a very late mk2 Rs2000 custom in Nordic Blue for sale..

[HMC]

1 hour ago, Stinkwheel said:

Thats lovely and reminds me of all the mk1 & 2's that used to litter the streets and cul de sacs when i was a lad, when i really wanted one as well. Im now jealous

Thats basically why i got it- bit of nostalgia as when i was about 10 it seemed every 17 year old had one near me. Much want!

Thanks to @wesacosa its a Saarlouis build (West Germany)

[HMC]

22 hours ago, wesacosa said:

love it. I'd be inclined to bin those red Ford badges too, even though I used to have them on my old Capri and thought they were cool 

[HMC]

Also a cool book arrived…..

[bunglebus]

4 hours ago, egg said:

Wow, don't remember that colour at all, must have been rare.

Best combo I ever saw was a 1300 Ghia two door in signal green with a green interior. Old boy in Brentwood had it for donkeys years.

I do remember an N plate near my mum's too, even in the early 90s they were unusual 

[Essex V6]

On 31/08/2019 at 17:58, BorniteIdentity said:

An old boss had one of these - a crazy 2.2 even though it was the year 2003 and big petrols were as popular as headlice. I still remember the reg: GY52ZMO (Gizmo)

I still remember how you can see SFA out of the back, and how the one touch indicators confused the fuck out of me.

Well bought! 

Aye those indicators were batshit crazy!

[mk2_craig]

On 21/04/2024 at 14:28, HMC said:

1990 just arrived with someones first set of wheels

Needs the same salvaged raised digit number plates as what the Rolls Royce was treated to. 

[HMC]

Went for my first spin in it. Wouldnt idle- noticed a split vacuum hose to the dizzy, which once sorted helped a lot; it seemed to also need a fair bit of choke. Its got an MOT currently so wonder if they leaned it off for a pass? So i ticked it a bit richer. After i got to a petrol station and added some fresh pez it ran better still. 

I think it probably still need needs a proper service and tune up but its running really nicely now…..

[High Jetter]

Are those screws holding the grille on? They don't look standard to me.

[artdjones]

On 21/04/2024 at 22:18, HMC said:

Great photo. Im getting a bit jittery about their rot prone-ness. Presumably they are typical for the period rather than more so?

They are a bit more rot prone than average but not in the Mk1 Golf league. They were awful up to 1980, then VW discovered cavity wax and seam sealer.

[bezzabsa]

is it going RHD or stopping LHD???

either way - JAMMY GIT 

but also much Kudos

[AnthonyG]

On 21/04/2024 at 22:06, HMC said:

I thought this would be Portuguese made ( like the shed of a galaxy currently on the fleet), but the Vin plate suggests Germany (Cologne?) Any recommendations for a Ford vin decoder?

Galaxy’s were made in a new factory (1990s) shared with VW Group. Ford never built cars in Portugal on their own. 

[HMC]

Escort news.

Its never run right basically.  I was told it “likes a lot of choke” which basically meant its hard to start, bogs down, isnt happy idling and when it warms up it gets worse.

Turns out after i broke out my strobe light the ignition timing was so far out as to be unbelievable it would run. Anyway whilst messing with that i decided to fit an accuspark electonic ignition into the existing distributor and a new coil. Starts and goes even better now!

 

[danthecapriman]

40 minutes ago, HMC said:

Escort news.

Its never run right basically.  I was told it “likes a lot of choke” which basically meant its hard to start, bogs down, isnt happy idling and when it warms up it gets worse.

Turns out after i broke out my strobe light the ignition timing was so far out as to be unbelievable it would run. Anyway whilst messing with that i decided to fit an accuspark electonic ignition into the existing distributor and a new coil. Starts and goes even better now!

 

Electronic ignition is one of those things all old cars benefit from imho these days. I’ve fitted it to both my Capri and the Mercury and it makes a big difference. 
Points and condenser was a decent enough solution to the job in the day but it was always an achilles heel on old stuff. Prone to cold and damp, wears and needs resetting and of course nowadays humanity seems to have lost the ability to manufacture decent quality condensers that actually work! 
Since fitting mine I’ve done absolutely nothing whatsoever to them. Though I do still keep the old pars in a box in the boot just in case.

Escort’s looking absolutely brilliant btw!

[ETCHY]

The mk2 Escort imo was one of those cars that really needed decent wheels on it. Get the right wheels & it transformed it. See one on crap wheels & maybe more than many cars it just kills the looks somehow.

Yours looks good.

[HMC]

21 minutes ago, ETCHY said:

The mk2 Escort imo was one of those cars that really needed decent wheels on it. Get the right wheels & it transformed it. See one on crap wheels & maybe more than many cars it just kills the looks somehow.

Yours looks good.

 Cheers!

just collecting an indian in it

[Yoss]

1 hour ago, danthecapriman said:

Electronic ignition is one of those things all old cars benefit from imho these days. I’ve fitted it to both my Capri and the Mercury and it makes a big difference. 
Points and condenser was a decent enough solution to the job in the day but it was always an achilles heel on old stuff. Prone to cold and damp, wears and needs resetting and of course nowadays humanity seems to have lost the ability to manufacture decent quality condensers that actually work! 
Since fitting mine I’ve done absolutely nothing whatsoever to them. Though I do still keep the old pars in a box in the boot just in case.

Escort’s looking absolutely brilliant btw!

My Triumph was on Luminition electronic ignition for about 15 years but did start getting harder to start until one day approaching a major roundabout in Southampton it just died. Fortunately Mrs Yoss was with me so we were able to push it up on to the grass. A quick check said we had no spark. 

Now for that entire 15 years I had a spare distributor with points and condenser set up ready to go, wrapped in a carrier bag and stowed under the boot floor along with many other spares (it's surprising how much stuff you can pack in and around the spare wheel). So I quickly fitted that and it fired first time. That was about five years ago and I keep thinking about going back to electronic ignition but have never quite got round to it. So the points and condenser are now at least 20 years old and still going strong. They are probably so old that they were not made in China.

I still think about going back to electronic ignition but other jobs always seem to come along first. There certainly doesn't seem any point replacing the points and condenser I have now because they will be cheap Chineseum.

[Bazfr69]

2 hours ago, HMC said:

Escort news.

Its never run right basically.  I was told it “likes a lot of choke” which basically meant its hard to start, bogs down, isnt happy idling and when it warms up it gets worse.

Turns out after i broke out my strobe light the ignition timing was so far out as to be unbelievable it would run. Anyway whilst messing with that i decided to fit an accuspark electonic ignition into the existing distributor and a new coil. Starts and goes even better now!

 

The accuspark that was on my beetle when I got it failed and I’ve heard of a few others who had issues with it. 
I replaced it with a Pertronix which has been excellent for the last year or so. 

[Matty]

I'm still on points and condensor. However even buying Distributor Doctor parts, I've got through a few condensors. I'm very much on the fence about going electronic though as it seems a 50/50 split of opinion in the old car world.

If I were to go for it I'd be going for a full Aldon dizzy I reckon. Bit strong at a couple of hundred but I can always save up 😄