656of1000's 1988 Ford Escort GT turbo

[656of1000]

Thanks Kenny! Where did you see me? The Galant had been off the road for a while and I just started driving it again... What are you driving? Still the Evo X? I've probably seen you but you probably didn't recognize my truck.

The Escort project took the weekend off, as my Galant got a fresh head and new cams. Head is on...






Manifolds are on...





...more to come!

[jesse096]

Looks promising! What kind of power are you shooting for?

-Jesse

[656of1000]

Originally Posted by jesse096

Looks promising! What kind of power are you shooting for?

-Jesse

I'm shooting for around 200hp... Far more than the 117hp it came with from the factory!

[DocWalt]

Looking fantastic. Nice clean parts are always fun! How are you going to do the engine management stuff?

Nope, no Evo X anymore, sold that last December and bought a bike lol. I've also been driving my dad's old Toyota pickup. Saw you again Tuesday, and ended up following you for a little heh

[656of1000]

I see that it's been almost 5 years since I've updated this thread. What else can I say but "life happens". I got married (only a month after my last post), changed jobs a few times, and the car never quite had a good home for the build...

...until now

The project never died, just put on long hold. But finally some real progress has been made! The big news is that the engine is in the car. I'm currently fabricating a downpipe. I will have photos very soon: and I mean in the next few days, not years ;-)

Mark

[15psi88]

Back from the dead! Looking forward to more updates.

[mckpat03]

Wow, this is awesome to see resurrected. In for more!

[DocWalt]

Holy ****, you're alive! I'm glad to see you back at it, Mark!

[PAdutch]

Man and I thought I let my projects drag out haha.

[656of1000]

Originally Posted by PAdutch

ok. Here goes...





I discovered that the windage tray from a Focus 2.0 SPFI fits the 1.9 (with some trimming to fit the oil pan). This makes sense because they are both CVH motors (15 years apart).


Then I plumbed the oil feed line to the turbo:



I started with a brass "t" threaded into the oil pressure sensor port. I used brake line for the oil feed; flexible and durable.








Then I plumbed the coolant lines to the turbo. I started with a brass "t" in the coolant temp sensor port on the end of the thermostat housing. Then I threaded a brass barb into the head prior to the thermostat:





In effect, coolant flow will push coolant through the turbo while the thermostat is closed. Who knows what'll happen when the thermostat is open... I've never done this before!!



There was a boss in the block from the factory of unknown usage. I drilled the boss out, threaded it, and inserted the oil return hose AN fitting. Should work good.




The turbo is fully plumbed. The engine is basically ready to drop in.

[656of1000]

The car wintered in my garage with the engine next to the car... so close!!



Finally springtime, and finally some serious progress:




Now it's fabrication time. I started with the downpipe:





Flux-core wire SUCKS! I just bought a welder, but I haven't gotten a bottle of shielding gas yet, so it's flux-core for the time being. The welds are effective, but messy. The pipe was salvaged from the tailpipe of a Chevy Colorado.

And that makes this thread officially up to date.

This weekend, I plan to further fabricate the downpipe where it curves under the engine. I've ordered flex sections, v-band clamps, and o2 bungs to complete the exhaust. Also this weekend, I'll be going to the junk yard looking for a side mount intercooler from a Jetta- I think the Jetta intercooler is the best fit in the space I have. I plan to run the intercooler as a top mount, over the trans.

At this pace, I'll be on the road by 2021.

Mark

[mckpat03]

Awesome update. For what it's worth on the intercooler, a lot of the TDI guys use the cheap big side mounts from ebay and seem to have good luck. Currently, they are $110. The forums suggest a specific seller, but if I were to guess they're all the same units from the different sellers. I'm gonna throw one on my TDI this year at some point. They're supposed to be 5.125" thick compared to the stock VW 2.5" thick units. No idea if it fits your envelope or plans, but I wanted to throw it out there for you.

[schaffer]

Really cool to see some progress on this. I don't see many of these on the road anymore.


I had a 93 or a 94 four door as my first car back in 06. My dad bought it for me, paid around grand for it if I remember. I worked the whole summer at Knoebels to pay him back, only to blow the motor about a month into my senior year of high school.

[656of1000]

Update!

The trip to the junkyard was productive. I bought two intercoolers- one from an old Saab 900, and one from a 1.8t Jetta. Both would work for my setup, but I decided to go with the Jetta intercooler. Based on where I'd like to mount it, the inlet and outlet line up very well.





I just need a 45° coupler between the throttle body and the i/c outlet. I still need to install the BOV somewhere in there, though.




The biggest update, by far, is that the engine fired!

I assembled this engine 5 years ago, so I didn't know what to expect when trying to start it. After redoing the timing belt (the cam was 90° off- oops!), it fired almost immediately. No leaks so far. It doesn't stay running very long, probably because the gasoline is at least 6 years old!

More to come!

[656of1000]

I bought a parts car. It's a '90 LX, and I bought it for the interior- the dashboard is perfect. The inside of my 88 is pretty disgusting, so this needed to happen.

As it turns out, this is actually a pretty good little car! Only 85k miles, and it really only needs minor TLC to be good for the road. The body is a little banged up, but it was $300, I can't expect too much.

[DocWalt]

Hey Mark!

I stumbled on this pic from an autocross back in 2009, pretty sure it's you in the pic https://www.flickr.com/photos/autox4...7622538804793/

any progress on the Escort(s)?