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Ford produced some unimaginable vehicles sporting the Cosworth badge within the mid-Nineteen Eighties and early Nineties, with Sierra and Escort variants dominating in racing and rallying – and on the road.
‘Cossies’, as they rapidly turned identified, acquired a cult following nearly as quickly as the primary Sierra RS Cosworth arrived in 1985. It wasn’t lengthy earlier than an enormous tuning business constructed itself up across the sub-brand, principally to extract most horsepower from the two.0-litre turbo Cosworth YB engine. A lot in order that it quickly turned uncommon to return throughout an unmodified instance.
The vehicles and the aftermarket business round them shone brightly for a few years. However because the saying goes, ‘you may have an excessive amount of of an excellent factor’, and that applies to Steve Richardson.
Today, as SR Autobodies, Steve has constructed up an enviable popularity as a high quality restorer of Nissan S and R-body vehicles. Many unimaginable examples have rolled out of his Lincolnshire, UK-based workshop – together with Mark’s Challenge Thirty 4 – however he started this journey messing round with Cossies.
“My dad was huge on the scene again within the day, and I grew up serving to out in his workshop at weekends surrounded by Cosworths and RS500s. I joined the military after I left college, however after I got here out I made a decision to deal with myself to a Sierra Cosworth,” Steve defined.
“The automobile I went to have a look at turned out to be a canine, however a mate of the vendor, who occurred to be there, talked about he had an R33 Skyline GTS25t on the market and requested if I needed to have a look. I had a take a look at drive and was bought — it was much more automobile for half the cash of the Cossie. To be sincere, I assumed I’d by no means drive a Ford once more.”
Time heals all wounds, although, and 12 years on, when HJA Group – certainly one of SR Autobodies’ common clients – referred to as to say they’d simply imported a T25 (aka small-turbo) Escort RS Cosworth from Japan and questioned if Steve would be capable to perform an underside and engine bay restoration, he jumped on the probability.
“We work on Skylines all day lengthy, so it’s good to do one thing totally different occasionally. The Escort Cosworth is a uncommon automobile in Japan and this one had solely lined 19,000 miles. Even higher, it seemed to be fully customary. It’s by no means been modified and, so far as we will inform, has had no bodywork or welding [repairs].”
HJA didn’t simply need Steve to present this unmolested Escort the works although. That they had already discovered the automobile a brand new house, and the UK proprietor was very particular along with his necessities. It wanted to be simply as it could have come from the manufacturing unit – overspray on the underside, liberally utilized seam sealer and all.
“It’s vital to level out that this automobile hasn’t been completed to a concours stage,” says Steve. “As a substitute, it’s precisely — so far as we will get it — as it could have come out of the Karmann manufacturing unit in Germany in 1995. Mainly, we’ve made it messier.”
“I spent hours speaking to my dad, as he knew these vehicles inside out once they have been new, in addition to staying up till 2:00am most nights researching particular objects. I’ve been down some deep web rabbit holes, let me let you know.”
A Clear One
Like lots of Ford of Europe’s output within the Nineties, the Mk5 Escort platform that the RS Cosworth is predicated on is liable to rust, however as soon as Steve and his crew had stripped the entire working gear from the underside, it confirmed to be in remarkably good condition.
“As soon as we’d cleaned the anti-rust coating off, we discovered it wanted no welding. The proprietor was adamant that it wasn’t to have any, so the place one of many jacking factors was broken, fairly than change it, we needed to pull it again into form,” Steve defined.
That small matter out of the way in which, Steve may then think about cleansing and stripping off the paint from the underside — earlier than reapplying seam sealer in a barely haphazard trend — then getting ready it for recent paint earlier than including the distinctly ‘manufacturing unit’ touches.
“I spent 4 days airbrushing within the numerous colors utilized by Ford on the underside — cream, child sick inexperienced primer, black for the wheel arches and even beiges. We received a neighborhood paint firm to return in and scan the unique colors, then as soon as they have been combined, tweaked them till they have been precisely proper.”
To present you one other thought of the loopy lengths that SR Autobodies went to with this restoration, the place the sills meet the floorpan they airbrushed a skinny black line on high of the seam sealer to make it seem like there was a spot. And the place bolt holes have been masked off on the manufacturing line to cease them getting clogged up with paint, once more Steve was cautious to method this in a barely slap-dash method – very similar to a barely disgruntled employee eager to nip off for a tea break might need carried out.
“It sounds odd, however it took longer to do all this in a less-than-neat trend fairly than making an attempt to make all the things look good,” Steve says.
Bay Watch
With the underside properly underway, Steve turned his consideration to the engine bay.
“The automobile had been parked up for a few years and YB engines don’t like that — there have been oil leaks in all places. We had no alternative however to tug the engine out, strip it right down to the block and go proper by way of it.”
SR Autobodies’ vapour blaster was put to good use, with each engine and chassis elements stripped proper again, cleaned up and zinc-plated or powdercoated the place vital. The YBP-spec engine was then constructed up with recent gaskets, seals, nuts and bolts – components sourced from throughout Europe by native Ford primary supplier TC Harrison, the place Mark photographed the automobile.
Engine and working gear fitted again up, Steve then reapplied the quite a few manufacturing line touches the Escort would have include, together with decals — faithfully produced and utilized in a barely wonky trend – and numerous paint blobs and markings that line employees used to indicate a selected job was full.
Was Steve tempted so as to add a number of mods alongside the way in which?
“No method, this one needed to stay customary. Actually, when it arrived, it got here with a pair of strut braces that I assumed have been aftermarket. However my dad identified they’re real, dealer-fitted Ford Motorsport ones, so we put them again on.”
So good is the end result, that when Steve took the automobile to TC Harrison for an MoT (automobile roadworthy) take a look at, they determined to PDI (pre-delivery inspection) it too, similar to any new automobile arriving on the dealership. It scored 97%, that means this Escort may, in idea, be bought with a new-car guarantee.
Constructed To Be Used
Is that this Escort destined to finish up in yet one more automobile assortment? Not fairly.
“The proprietor is decided to make use of it, so we’ve satin clear-coated the underside bodywork, so all they should do is strain wash it after a run. Sure, it gained’t final endlessly, however it’s higher protected than most fashionable vehicles,” says Steve.
“I’ve received good reminiscences of engaged on this automobile. It was an actual household affair getting it carried out, and even my four-year-old daughter helped out by paint-dipping the brake calliper bolts. All of us actually loved it. A lot in order that we’ve received one other Escort Cosworth lined as much as do quickly. Although, we’re not anticipating a lot to return again from the blasters with that one…”
Simon Woolley
Instagram: fireproof_simon
Pictures by Mark Riccioni
Instagram: mark_scenemedia
Twitter/X: markriccioni
mark@scene-media.com
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