Tag: Fast Fords

  • TUNED FORD ESCORT RS2000: RENAISSANCE MAN

    Michael Hübner has been racing and refining this tuned Ford Escort RS2000 since the ’80s. And in its updated spec, it’s enjoying a most dramatic rebirth

    Feature taken from Fast Car. Words Dan Bevis Photos Ade Brannan

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    There’s an old saying that goes ‘Race cars never die, they just get faster’. It’s the nature of competition machines — they’re built to be the best they can be within whatever set of regulations they’re racing under, and over the years as the technology evolves, so does the machine. Inevitably racers get bashed and crunched, because the reality of driving on the edge at all times means that the risk of dipping over that edge is always a whisper away. Fortune has her whims, and some classic race cars somehow survive the generations largely unscathed while others limp through the decades like Trigger’s broom; either way, every such machine has a rich and varied past.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    The car you’re looking at here had an interesting tale to tell right from the off, as it actually began life as two separate (and genuine) RS2000s. Michael Hübner, now 52 years old, bought this RS2000 shell back in 1986, and at the same time purchased another one with a rotten body but solid mechanicals; the plan from the start was to combine the good parts of the two into a road-legal race car and, with the help of two good friends, that’s exactly what he did. “We originally painted it red, with white wheels,” Michael recalls. “The shade of red was inspired by a BMW M3 from the DTM championship at the time, and from then on I changed things year by year to suit how I was driving it — the interior, the suspension, the wheel size — until the Escort turned into a true race car, and I started taking it to slalom races and track days.”

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    Fast-forward to 1998, and Michael’s competing in regional slalom championships in the RS2000, the car prepared to German Group F regulations with its standard-issue Pinto running around 180bhp. Man and machine had well and truly gelled over these many years, with the spec sheet constantly developing, and after the turn of the millennium the chassis came in for a significant overhaul which would alter its character exponentially.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    “During the winter of 2002-2003 the car got four-link boxes and suspension turrets, and from this time I didn’t use leaf springs on the rear axle,” Michael recalls. “The Escort was then reworked to Group H regs, and I acquired a new engine with around 195bhp, on 48 IDF carbs, a home-made exhaust manifold and a five-speed gearbox.” With the architecture suitably beefed up, Michael began competing in national slaloms across Germany, which all went very well until the engine decided it didn’t want to play anymore in 2006.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    “In the first race of that season I suffered a total engine breakdown,” he recalls with a wince, still clearly pained by the experience. “The vernier pulley was cracked, and due to this a valve tore off and damaged the whole engine. This was the end of the season for me, and I started to build up a further RS2000 bodyshell that I’d bought in 2004. This was an interesting shell, because in its early years it was driven by Wilfried Eichen, Juergen Zanetti and Olaf Manthey at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring in 1986.”

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    With the old racer on the backburner, Michael threw all his efforts into this unusual endurance-racer shell, building it to Group H regs and painting it the same colour as the other car.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    By the time it was done it was boasting 217bhp from its fuel-injected Pinto and only weighed 825kg! The build was complete by the end of 2009, and Michael competed with this car from 2010 onwards, until 2016 when he sold it to a buyer in England.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    While all this was going on, the old race car had been waiting in the wings, biding its time, patiently awaiting its time to shine anew. Michael had been steadily working on restoring the RS2000’s body, which began as an intention to simply weld up three or four holes which had presented themselves as requiring attention, but ended up spiralling into a full-blown restoration to make every inch perfect.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    “The car’s new spec had to be superior to the old in all respects,” he assures us, “so I knew it would need a new engine, new suspension, 10×15 inch wheels, a weld-in rollcage with FIA certificate… and it should have a new look too. I love a classic design, so I decided to paint it silver with gold BBS E30 wheels.”

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    The decision on which engine to use was inspired by the race track — where else? “A few years ago I was at the Legend Boucle de Spa in Belgium as a spectator,” Michael explains. “In that year approximately 40 BDA-engined Escorts were on the startline, some of them driven by well-known drivers like Björn Waldegård, François Duval, Patrick Snijers… Due to the amazing sound of the BDAs I decided to put a 16-valve engine into my ‘new’ Escort.”

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    Due to competition regulations it was necessary to retain the Pinto block, so the choice was made to fit a naturally-aspirated Cosworth head, with a dry sump and throttle bodies. The engine was built up with a new crank, rods and pistons, along with custom cams and bigger valves in the racy head; its first dyno run of 2018 yielded an impressive 275bhp and 177lb.ft, which is a very fitting set of stats for such a dramatic rebirth.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    “After the bodywork was done, all of the necessary holes were drilled and the rollcage was welded in,” says Michael. “Wolgang Pletsch from Sebastian Werner GmbH in Siegburg got the Escort for the paint job. Over the last two years I’ve assembled the car and in the middle of 2018 my new-old Escort was finished.”

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    It certainly looks the part, with those broad Group 2 arches stretched over the 10-inch-wide slicks, the custom droopsnoot nosecone acting as a statement of intent, and the upswept DTM exhausts and substantial rear spoiler presumably being the only parts most rivals will see. Michael’s story with this car stretches way back to the time of Chernobyl, the M25’s opening and Maradona’s Hand of God, and it’s seen countless evolutionary shifts since, but the latest spec is the most aggressive it’s ever been. He’s looking forward to a full slalom championship season to see what the old battler can do. See, race cars never die. They just get faster.

    tuned Ford Escort RS2000tuned Ford Escort RS2000

    TECH SPEC: FORD ESCORT MK2

    styling
    Escort RS2000, fibreglass front wings, Group 2 arches and front spoiler, lightweight bonnet with aerocatches, lightweight nosecone with small single lights and carbon fibre inserts, aero mirrors, alloy boot spoiler, bronze-tinted polycarbonate windows

    tuning
    2-litre Pinto, naturally-aspirated Cosworth 16-valve head prepared by Stefan Glass, dry-sumped, throttle bodies, Megasquirt ECU by Frank Hepekausen, Martelius exhaust manifold and custom home-made exhaust system with Powersprint components, alloy radiator, Quaife five-speed dog ’box, AP Racing 184 mm clutch, Atlas axle with 5.8 CWP and
    ZF LSD

    chassis
    KW Competition 2A two-way front coil-overs, adjustable TCAs and compression struts with anti-roll bar on drop links; six-linked, KW Competition two-way rear coil-overs; Wilwood Midilite four-pot calipers with 285 mm vented discs (f), Fiesta calipers with solid discs (r), Bias pedal box, hydraulic handbrake;10×15 inch BBS E30 wheels, 10.0/21.5 (front) and 10.7/21.5 (rear) Avon slick tyres

    interior
    Corbeau Revenge race seat, VDO gauges, Stack rev counter, OMP steering wheel with quick-release, weld-in Zelle multi-point rollcage by raceparts.cc, battery and 18-litre alloy race fuel cell in boot

    thanks
    “To my wife, and also to Stefan Glass, Frank Hepekausen at fh-Motorsport, Wolfgang Pletsch at Sebastian Werner GmbH, Stephan Korbach at www.raceparts.cc, Tosten Schmidt at GRP4 Fabrications http://grp4fabrications.com, KW www.kwsuspensions.net and all others who have supported me with words and deeds”

    Source

  • TUNED 1000BHP MK2 FOCUS RS: THE ONLY WAY IS UP

    Relentlessly pushing things forwards with his tuned 1000bhp Mk2 Focus RS for the entire time he’s owned it, Steve Johns is now left with a 1000+bhp hyper-hatch that’s single-handedly re-writing the rulebook…

    Remember when the Mk1 Focus RS came out back in 2002? Remember how its combination of 212bhp and front-wheel drive was enough for many who reviewed it to confidently state this was the sheer limit of what this kind of car could physically take, introducing a whole new generation to the phrase ‘torque steer’ in the process?

    If only they could’ve seen just how times would move on in the seventeen-odd years that would follow, with the introduction of the 300bhp Mk2 RS shortly after that promptly paved the way for some of the most monstrous FWD builds the world has ever seen, each pushing the envelope even further than the last.

    And all of this escalation arguably culminates right now with this rather unassuming pearl white Focus here that’s normally found tucked away in its garage in South Wales. Owned by Steve Johns for the past eight-or-so years, it’s gone on one hell of a journey in the time he’s been fettling with it to now officially stand as one of the most powerful Mk2 RSs to grace this entire country, if not the planet…

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    Those with a particular loyalty to the Ford scene might actually already recognise Steve’s mighty machine, as it was featured in our sister mag Fast Ford, about five years ago. If so, you’ll remember the story of how the Focus was snapped up back in 2011 as Steve was itching to get back into the performance car game following the recent sale of his beloved Subaru Impreza and Renault Clio V6.

    With the seal of approval from various pals who all loved the Mk2’s crazy styling even in factory trim, the hot hatch soon took pride of place on the driveway over the other cars that made an appearance on the shortlist such as a BMW M3.

    Steve initially promised himself the RS would remain in a nigh-on standard spec as it flawlessly performed its daily duties, but, as so many of us will be able to relate to, things didn’t stay that way for long; the car ultimately ending up in a seriously impressive, 460bhp state of tune (with plenty of interior and exterior styling goodies to match) by the time it last graced the pages of a publication.

    But if it’s already had a feature before, why are we putting Steve’s Focus back under the microscope? Well, as it turns out, that initial 460bhp tune really was only the tip of the Frozen White iceberg; the story only getting more and more bonkers as time went on, as Steve best explains. “The car was running around 580bhp soon after its last feature, thanks to an even bigger turbo and some better fuelling bits making an appearance,” he recalls. “I still wasn’t happy though and was looking for someone to take things to the next level when I was recommended to chat to Lee at Devil Developments…”

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    Known for his world-class knowledge of eking every last drop of safe performance from this boosted five-pot engine, especially when it involves bespoke Syvecs ECU maps, Lee seemed certain that he could help upon his first chat with Steve, prompting the first of many visits to this West Sussex workshop.

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    This pattern continued as over time, Steve’s Focus became something of a flagship demonstration vehicle for just what Devil Developments could do, to the extent that the car was tuned to ensure it was the most powerful of its kind to attend the Ford Fair show for three years on the trot. Soon boasting a 6466-sized Precision blower that meant 849bhp was rippling through its muscular skin, Steve could be found once again leaving Lee’s premises with his mind already swimming with thoughts on whether it was possible to boldly crack the 1000bhp figure where so few had gone before him…

    Before this wild idea materialised into anything solid, however, Steve’s life was tragically flipped on its head as his business partner and best mate became seriously ill, with Steve’s time suddenly drawn between juggling the entire business alone and providing a support network to his best friend at such a devastating time.

    “He unfortunately passed away not long after, which kind of spurred me on to get my hands stuck in with my car once more,” Steve emotionally explains. “Hitting 1000bhp is what he would’ve wanted.” With that in mind, it brings us to the start of 2018, with Lee and the Devil Developments team looking towards that year’s Ford Fair and giving Steve’s block and head a full tear-down and re-build in anticipation of what was to come next.

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    With oversized Wiseco pistons and con rods making an appearance, as well as a new factory crankshaft (which seems to take remarkably well to big-power applications as long as you’re not too brutal in your driving style) and a fully ported and flowed big-valve head, the five-banger now has a frankly massive Precision PT6870 turbo tucked away behind it on a Nortec tubular manifold, with Devil’s bespoke twin Nissan GT-R fuel pump upgrade and whopping 2000cc injectors also featuring.

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    With the gearbox also re-built and housing a much sturdier clutch, Lee soon got down to business mapping that Syvecs ECU to perform its very best when potent E80 race fuel was added into the equation. And the end result of all this hard work? 1036bhp and 788.2lb/ft of torque at 2.6bar of boost – figures that would seem absurdly impressive from any car, especially a FWD Focus!

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    Despite the fact it’s also wearing huge K-Sport stoppers, a raft of suspension upgrades and the stickiest of rubber to help matters, we know exactly what you’re thinking: how on earth do the front wheels cope with 1000bhp? “A lot of people wonder what the point of it all is, but the traction control on the Syvecs system is so clever and limits the torque in the lower gears, meaning it’s actually a lot easier to drive than you might imagine,” a proud Steve explains. “It’s crazy fast and makes insane noises from that screamer pipe too… it’s absolutely nuts!”

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    What makes the whole story that little bit more impressive is the way that Steve has unconventionally resisted the temptation to go for the functional stripped-‘n’-caged look that so many other big-power cars run these days, instead keeping that comfortable, plush and usable vibe that he started out with in the early days of ownership. As a result, it’s a machine he uses a whole lot more than you might think, and you certainly can’t argue with that, can you?

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    By keeping a level head and ensuring the usability and drivability aspects were never put in jeopardy, Steve’s story is the perfect illustration of how chasing huge power figures can indeed be done properly and enjoyably. We’d just love to see the faces of those who thought 200bhp was too much for the front wheels when they saw this brute.

    tuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modifiedtuned mk2 ford focus white 1000bhp modified

    TECH SPEC: TUNED 1000BHP MK2 FOCUS RS

    ENGINE
    2521cc 20v turbocharged 5-cylinder Duratec RS engine, Devil Developments fully forged and rebuilt block (featuring 9.1:1 Wiseco oversized pistons and con rods with factory crankshaft), Devil Developments ported and flowed big-valve head (featuring enlarged valves and stage 3 camshafts), Precision PT6870 Gen II ball-bearing turbocharger, Nortec tubular turbo manifold, custom screamer pipe, custom Anembo inlet manifold, custom 80mm throttle body, custom enlarged alloy boost pipe kit, Airtec intercooler, WRC oil breather, Airtec oil cooler and radiator, custom 4in exhaust system with twin 4.5in tailpipes, 2000cc fuel injectors, custom Devil Developments twin Nissan GT-R in-tank fuel pump conversion, uprated fuel lines, 90mm Syvecs crossover pipe, Cosworth Group A filter, Spec-R water tank and power steering rack, full black silicone hose kit, Syvecs ECU conversion with bespoke Devil Developments mapping (running E80 fuelling)

    POWER
    1036bhp and 788.2b/ft of torque @ 2.6bar of boost

    TRANSMISSION
    Devil Developments fully re-built factory six-speed manual gearbox with LSD, Xtreme twin carbon rigid blade clutch, Elevate torque link

    SUSPENSION
    BC Racing coilovers with custom springs, Whiteline anti-roll bars, JWR front strut brace, Powerflex bushes

    BRAKES
    K-Sport 8-pot calipers and 356mm discs (front), K-Sport 4-pot calipers and 330mm discs (rear), EBC Ultimax pads

    WHEELS & TYRES
    9.5x19in (front) and 10.5x19in (rear) MMR GF7 alloy wheels with custom diamond-cut spokes, 235/35×19 (front) and 265/30×19 (rear) Michelin Pilot Super Sport tyres

    EXTERIOR
    Full custom pearl white re-spray with gloss black roof, rolled wheel arches, Maxton Designs front, side and rear splitters, rear spoiler splitter, custom Monkey Wrench headlights and fog lights, Pro LED rear lights, de-badged and relocated bonnet pull, gloss black plastics and vents, FA57 FRS (‘FAST FRS’) number plate

    INTERIOR
    Custom black-and-white leather interior, re-trimmed diamond-stitched heated front seats with carbon-dipped backs and side covers, custom rear centre drinks holder, armrest with stitched ‘RS’ logo and build number, custom floor mats, blue LED light kit, MOMO snap-off steering wheel, carbon fibre kick plates,

    Audio
    ICE install comprising of full sound deadening and Huets custom boot build, Kenwood touchscreen headunit, Audison Voce 5.1k amplifier, Audison Voce AV due amplifier, twin Audison Voce AV10 sub woofers, Audison Voce AV 6in speakers, Audison Voce AV 6.5in speakers, Pro Series 3600-watt amplifier wiring

    Thanks
    “Lee at Devil Developments, Dayne at Touch of Class, Andrew at AWL Body Repair, Alan at Auto Specialists – www.autospecialists.co.uk, and Jason at JW Racing”

    Words Sam Preston Photography AS Design. Don’t forget to subscribe to Fast Car magazine

    Source