West of Scotland RSOC

well this is what im up to atm..

1998 Ford Ka2, and a Fiesta RS Turbo engine that was RR'd at 202bhp.

Had this idea for quite a while now since i pretty much gave up on the escort - i simply could not be fecked with the bodywork.

plan for this is to leave the outside exactly as is, inc rust to fit the turbo engine but try and keep the power steering set up - something that most of the ka turbo projects ive seen online has avoided due to lack of space. I would change it just to be sure there was no probs but even the Ka i have for spare parts has PS, and i cant be arsed going to a scrappy to pull off a manual rack and the full steering column.

the engines gonna be trial fitted 2moro so i can check it for space, ive got escort and fiesta brackets that will hold a power steering pump but if none of those will work i'll maybe have a look into an electric pump from the likes of a saxo.

so aye, alot of this is trial and error so we'll see how it goes. ive already had a lot of rubber-duckin' about to find a gearbox that bolts straight in (from the later duratec ka - pics show the difference).

oh, and im planning on having this on the road for under £500, which still looks hopeful

piccys.
the car its going into.



engine out already.


turbo engine taken out the escort (and fly in place..)


you can still see the escort power steering setup attached, will see how that fairs 2moro.


the original gearbox (rear mounted starter - you can see where ive cut a space and planned to weld in another starter housing to change location, but ended up buying the right box, next pic)


box from the later duratec ka (front mounted starter. still from a 1.3 though so ratios will be poop. once the cars running i'll be transplating either fiesta ST or s2 RST internals.


will be hopefully hitting this pretty hard over the next few weeks!

comments/opinions welcome as always.

engines in!

only a trial fit tho to see exactly what else needs done, will add ino after the pics!

getting started.



before too long we had it in, although there were quite a few problems getting there!


custom engine mount (but bottom pulley fouls it)


absolutely no space in the bay, the turbo sits unde the slam panel!



engine in and bonnet shut, might need 10mm bonnet raisers to get a charge carrier in right enough - although you'd never guess theres a 200bhp engine under there eh?



and finally, the coversion team.


so aye, big step taken tonight and its done exactly what i wanted from it, shown up all the wee problems thats gonna come up, ie;

i'll never be able to keep power steering, in such a wee car i dont think it'll make much difference though.
i'll need to find a smaller rad to give the turbo space.
intercooler size will be restricted depending on shape.
will need to use the RST alternator bracket and V belt pulleys so they dont hit the mount.

theres a load of wee things i want sorted aswell, but i'll get those done when the engine comes out again. hopefully keep on it and see how quickly i can get it on the road!

looking good m8 hope you finish this one great wee sleeper

looks a bit tight in there, but everything is do-able if you put your mind to it, just ask IMSY

crackin wee sleeper, good luck with the rest of the build

nice work mate! its obv possible as seen a few of them done but didnt realise how tight it was.

bet it flies like, anyone seen the black one running a Focus RS lump?? that must be mental!

i just looked at an old ford mag and the guy fitted a 2.5 v6 from the vx stable under a ka's hood

Good luck with it all..it will be fab when its done

was down doing a bit on the motor 2night, gonna keep at it next few weeks to make sure its on the road for the summer.

anyhoo,

managed to fit my old bracket that holds the PS pump and alternator, so the pump itself fits in place JUST below the slam panel but the original pulley wheel for it is no use (its both too big, and i need a 'V' belt pulley), i might have to chop a bit of the headlight casing aswell but should be alright if i can find a pulley for it. (ps is the 3 bolt triangle)



the other problem now is a radiator. there isnt much space in there at all so i either need a thing (width wise) but gat and long one, or some expensive custom jobby which completely kills the budget idea. im open to suggestions for this!



hoping to have it road legal for the end of may, fingers crossed.

stick the rad in the back. simples.

cheeRS john

great project matey ,the rad prob can you not cut down or remove the front crossmember and replace it with 2x2 box section(shaped to fit round your rad of choice) i had the same prob with a nova turbo a few years back i just could not get the rad and intercooler to fit so i removed the whole crossmember and a bit of front panel ,welded in box section and fabed up new mounts etc for the bumper etc .it all work ed out very well on the nova and has proved to be strong enough as well .also just use the skin of the bumper and scoop out and remove the foam (if there is any )from behind the outer part .

i dont really know what a ka is like be hind the bumper but i am sure if you done it this way you would get a lot of room back

hope this helps ,i went from having no room to having loads to play with and in the end we managed to fit a larger intercooler because of the work i had done .