Sunday Sep 05

Ford Sierra


There are still plenty of RWD Sierras knocking about and they make an ideal cheap skid car. There are several different body styles: 3dr hatchback, 5dr hatchback, 5dr Estate and 4dr Saloon (the Sapphire, which was only in the mk2 shape). All are fundamentally the same, and almost everything is interchangeable.

The 1.6 and 1.8 models with either a CVH or Pinto engine will skid round fine in the wet, but will be a bit gutless in the dry.

For the purpose of cheap skidding the 2.0s are the cars you want to look for. They come with a belt driven Pinto engine or a chain driven DOHC I4 engine often referred to as a twink. Both engines come in carb and injection forms. They all have plenty of low down grunt.

Power figures were (when new):

  • 2.0 Pinto carb – 100bhp
  • 2.0 Pinto inj – 115bhp
  • 2.0 DOHC carb – 110bhp
  • 2.0 DOHC inj – 125bhp


Both engines are reliable and hardy, with few inherent problems - but frequent servicing is a good idea. Pintos are easy to tune, 150bhp is easily achieved with cam and carb changes, however they are fairly thirsty and tuning will make it worse. The twinks do much better MPG but don’t respond well tuning.

There are more powerful Sierras with Colonge V6 engines. Some early Sierras came with a 2.3 V6 which offers nothing over a pinto or a twink, and are all autos. There is always the mk1 XR4i which comes with a 150bhp 2.8i V6, although these are hardly a “fast” car. These are good but often go for double the money of a good 2.0.

Being an 80s Ford they do like to rot, however they aren’t any worse than a lot of its peers. Check the sills both outer and inner especially near the rear subframe mounts, front and rear strut tops, early Sierra also like to rot above the gearbox on the transmission tunnel.

For:

  • Cheap parts (I got a cam belt for £3 and a water pump for £14, to give you an idea).
  • Strong transmission.
  • Easy to fix.
  • Good handling (subjective I know, but a standard Sierra is better than a standard E30 or S13).
  • Plenty of interchangeable part from other Fords.
  • Loads of tuning parts available.

Against:

  • Poor steering lock.
  • Lots of turns, lock to lock.
  • Steering doesn’t self centre well.
  • Rear suspension gains a lot of camber, when lowered.

 

Written by RobinXR4i