Check out this Mk2 Escort project that belongs to Youshen Mangaroo, from South Africa! 😃
It's a 1980 1600 Sport which Youshen aquired last year. He is restoring the car with his Dad Raj, who is a retired boiler maker, meaning he is a wizard when it comes to metal work and welding. After sandblasting, this Mk2 revealed some heavily corroded a-posts but Raj has now transplanted in some posts which were taken from a 4 door donor car. You can see how Raj fabricated some clever inserts to help him attach the new posts to the Escort, very clever stuff!
Youshen and Raj are planning to build the car as an RS2000 replica and luckily it came with a genuine Ford RS nose cone.
The planned power plant is a trusty Pinto lump which will be run on a set of 45mm individual throttle bodies and with have a 5 speed type 9 gearbox bolted behind it.
For the interior Youshen and Raj are going for a bit of a modern twist with a set of leather seats from a Fiesta ST150.
Youshen grew up around Fords and his Dad Raj, and other members of the family owned Sierras, Sapphires, Cortinas, Granadas, etc, and Youshen's own first car was the 1600 Sport Mk3 Escort (dubbed 'The Smurf') that I have included in the pics. Youshen worked at Lillywhites sport shop, in London for 2 years when he was younger, and this is what funded the Mk3 purchase.
This is such a cool father-son project and I cant wait to see the build progress. Thanks for getting in touch Youshen and Raj! 👍
#southafricanfords #mk2escort #rsrep #welding #fathersonproject