Specification
| Engine Size | 1596cc | Max BHP/Rpm | 132bhp/ 5750rpm |
| Weight | 980 Kg | Power/weight | 135 bhp/ton |
| 0-60 | 7.9 secs | Max Speed | 129mph |
General Information
The Ford Escort RS Turbo S2 (series 2) was available from 1986 - 1990, it retained the 1600cc CVH engine from the Series 1 RS Turbo, but used a water cooled Garret T3 turbocharger, and improvements to gearbox, LSD clutch and intercooler, as well as suspension improvements and a mechanical ABS (Anti Lock Braking) system powered by rubber bands !
Johns Car History
John bought this car in May 2005, as it looked like a good clean car, which hadn't been mucked about with too much, the instruments have had a white background sticker fitted, which isn't too Johns taste, so he will change that back to standard, also the rear badges have been removed, but again, John will get these and fit them. Diary entries below will be kept up to date with progress with the car.
Johns Car Diary
30th May 2005 Update - full service, but turbo has blown up
Just as with any car recently bought, the first thing was to do a full service on the car, replacing oil, filters etc and checking everything looked OK. Obviously followed by a test drive to 'see how she goes'.Unfortunately, it was just at this moment that the turbocharger self destructed - we managed to catch a photo moments before this failure, of the turbo running happily:
This was probably a relief for John, as the last thing he wanted was to worry about whether his turbo was on its last legs, and this gave him the oppurtunity to make friends with his local turbo reconditioning company - who are very friendly, and took a note of Johns tea/coffee preferences, and he has his own seat in their waiting room now. Anyway, a few biscuits later, John left with a sparkly reconditioned turbocharger, which was soon fitted into the car.
24th June 2005 Update - new Stereo and speakers fitted
No chance to drive the car much however the stereo is rubbish, so a more pressing task was to resolve this, fitting a fantastic stereo and speakers soon sorted this out, and the car now sounds as good as it looks (non-running obviously).1st July 2005 Update - Clutch is now slipping - suspension also replaced
First proper chance to drive the car, and the good news it the engine is running much better with the new turbocharger, however unfortunately it now seems the clutch was on its last legs as well, and the mighty power from the reconditioned turbo completely overwhelmed it, so the clutch is slipping badly, and needs to be replaced - still, its my own fault, as really clutch and turbo should both have been changed as servicable items, so lesson learned !! Clutch was surprisingly cheap as well, so thats all good news !Another thing which we noticed is the suspension is far too bouncy, so whilst car is off the road for the clutch, we have also replaced the suspension (springs and shock absorbers all round), as clearly it would be a false economy not to ensure the car handling is top notch !
3rd July 2005 Update - Coolant hose burst
Starting to get a little dispondent, as first chance to drive the car and everything is looking great, till I notice steam coming from under the bonnet - knowing the harm which can be done if this is ignored, I immediately pulled over to investigate, and found the small coolant hose which feeds the turbo housing has burst, venting steam and coolant over the engine bay.Luckily I stopped before any damage had been done through over-heating, however this small hose is no longer available from Ford, so have decided instead to order a full set of uprated SAMCO blue hoses, as the rest of the hoses are just as old, so it is safer to bite the bullet and replace them all before running the car again.
8th July 2005 Update - small problem with the new coolant hose 'full set'
Was pleased to see a big parcel delivered by postie, and opened it to find lovely blue samco hoses, and lots of them. Took me a couple of seconds to realise that the hose to the turbo (the only one I really needed) is not included - apparently its not included in the 'full set' - I am going to have a cuppa and a think (not a cappucino either before Dan starts gloating)! - Still, I knew there would be days like this, so I am still looking on the positive side !! Thanks for the kind words in the guestbook!Afternoon Update I got a call from the Ford garage this afternoon, to say they have managed to get the hose I need - for £7, so I could have saved a bundle by not ordering the full set of hoses - oh well, I guess they will come in handy anyway !!
9th July 2005 Update - Drove to Castle Coombe for RS owners day
John fitted the £7 hose on Friday night, and drove to Castle Coombe for the RS owners day - drive there was fine, however on the way back the engine started to overheat, so John had to stop to let the car cool down before continuing - will update when we have more news !11th July 2005 Update - Photos taken
John has fitted new badges on the boot (it had been debadged by previous owner), and also changed the dash clocks over to a set with the original black background, as someone had fitted a white background set, which wasn't to Johns taste.The blue samco hoses are all fitted, as you can see, and look very smart, but annoyingly they don't make two of the hoses, so these are still black which is a shame ! Engine is still running a bit hot in traffic, so John is thinking of replacing the radiator, either with a standard one, or possibly a copper one for improved cooling - if anyone has any advice please put it in the guestbook !
13th July 2005 Update - Still running very hot - new radiator ordered
The car is still running very hot, John is convinced its the radiator (the current one looks fine externally and we all think the head gasket has gone), but John is sure he knows best so has ordered a new standard radiator for £85 (couldn't find a copper one at his supplier) and hopes this will fix it - will update with outcome in a few days I expect !15th July 2005 Update - started to fit new radiator
John started to fit the new radiator last night, but its a bit of a fiddly job, as the bumper, intercooler and fan all need to be removed out of the way to get to it - still John set to it, but unfortunately slipped and gashed his hand on the old radiator tearing a load of skin off, and getting blood all over his Haynes manual !! John decided to give up and have a can of cider to calm down !Dan pointed out that the RS has now driven John to drink, but John pointed out that he took the Focus (his other car) to Sainsburies, so thats not even right !
16th July 2005 Update - wrong radiator delivered
Just to update this, John has now removed the old radiator, and tried to put the new one in only to find its the wrong radiator ! He ordered the Escort RS Turbo radiator, but they somehow managed to send him one for a Diesel Escort.Needless to say John is not best pleased, and may hit the cider again !! He has been looking in Ford mags at the custom copper radiators, which give better cooling at around the £240 mark, so may decide to get one of those instead !
18th July 2005 Update - Uprated radiator ordered
Having thought about it, John decided to bite the bullet, and ordered a custom copper radiator to increase cooling, should be delivered tomorrow, so assuming its the correct one, he can get on and fit it !25th July 2005 Update - Overheating seems to be cured !!
John has fitted the new radiator, which was a pig of a job, but is pleased to say that he has done 90 miles since changing it, with no overheating problems whatsoever, so hopefully this has sorted it out ! Nice picture with the radiator and intercooler out showing the turbo nicely!
Latest news is that with all Johns recent expenditures, he has had to get another credit card - he chose the Capital One Platinum card as the official credit provider for RS Turbo ownership !
16th September 2005 Update - temp sender replaced
Temperature still a bit high, so changed temperature sensor to see if this helps. Looks a bit better !7th October 2005 Update - Samco turbo hoses replaced
Car is running well, so changed the turbo hoses, as new blue ones look smart, and the old ones were pretty tired, car still doesn't seem to have quite the performance it should, but not sure why ! Thinking about changing the exhaust, for a slightly quieter one, and wonder if a little more backpressure might help the turbo out !18th February 2006 Update - Head Gasket gone and cracked Head
John finally accepted the head gasket might have gone, and on inspection this was confirmed, also head was cracked between 2 and 3, so luckily John had another head 'in stock' so this has been skimmed and rebuilt, so will go on shortly.
6th April 2006 Update - Heater Matrix and Radiator replaced
John had to change the heater matrix on the RS (We think he should fit quick release pins on the dash as he has had it out so often), and noticed when he refilled the coolant and was bleeding it, that his super-dooper copper radiator was leaking on one edge !He contacted the maker of the radiator who said his serial number was a bad batch of faulty units and they hadn't sold them for ages, so it looks like he got some old stock from a dodgy supplier - but they have replaced it with a new radiator without the flay.
John is fitting the new radiator this week, but seems reluctant to get on with it, despite the nice weather ! He has some hairbrained scheme to leave the radiator out, as it will stop him spending any more money on it this month :-)
August 2006 Update - Car now sold
John has finally sold the RS, he has been trying for a few months, and finally decided to drop the price and get rid. Final statistics are John spent £5,130 on the car and covered 4174 miles, so final score was £1.23 per mile, £88 per week !John is planning to re-invest his winnings in either a Mitsubishi Evo, or a Focus ST so watch this space for announcement !