Red 87 XR going under the knife!
Red 87 XR going under the knife!
I have been around for sometime behind the scenes; I have read many of the posts here on MCA, merkursport, and Turboford, however I rarely reply to any. I am one of the Greek brothers (Gus) from NY (long island area) with the white 88 xr4ti which I have modified greatly since I purchased it in '94 as my first car (picture below).
Anyway a couple years ago a friend of mine gave me a red 87 xr4ti for free; all it needed was a battery and brakes. So I fixed it up and drove it around on the weekends, since my white xr was a little too performance oriented for daily driving. Then one day a couple of months ago my wife (Rose) asked if we are ever going to paint it. The paint was faded and the drivers side rear quarter was primered due to a fender bender by the previous owner. That was like asking a child if they wanted candy. Basically it spiraled out of control and now the whole car is stripped with the wiring harness pulled inside to allow for the engine bay, door jambs etc. to be painted. We decided to change the color from the original Red. Don’t know exactly what color but it will be in the red family. I am also going to upgrade the look, performance and drivability...so much for just a paint job. Below are a couple of pictures of the current state of the car while it waits to go to the body shop. I also threw in some before shots.
Right now the engine is in stock form with some minor bolt on parts like the sierra cosworth 4x4 intercooler with shortened aluminum radiator, 120 degree turned intake, 3â€Â
Anyway a couple years ago a friend of mine gave me a red 87 xr4ti for free; all it needed was a battery and brakes. So I fixed it up and drove it around on the weekends, since my white xr was a little too performance oriented for daily driving. Then one day a couple of months ago my wife (Rose) asked if we are ever going to paint it. The paint was faded and the drivers side rear quarter was primered due to a fender bender by the previous owner. That was like asking a child if they wanted candy. Basically it spiraled out of control and now the whole car is stripped with the wiring harness pulled inside to allow for the engine bay, door jambs etc. to be painted. We decided to change the color from the original Red. Don’t know exactly what color but it will be in the red family. I am also going to upgrade the look, performance and drivability...so much for just a paint job. Below are a couple of pictures of the current state of the car while it waits to go to the body shop. I also threw in some before shots.
Right now the engine is in stock form with some minor bolt on parts like the sierra cosworth 4x4 intercooler with shortened aluminum radiator, 120 degree turned intake, 3â€Â
- DPDISXR4Ti
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- John Brennan
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I've been in project hell for 4 months! Don't let ANY time elapse between the tear down and reassembly process. You forget WTH you were gonna do!DPDISXR4Ti wrote: Don't you just love stripping these cars down to nothing? Wait until you go to put it all back together and you're saying, WTF is this and where does it go?
A good choice would be a colour that hides the red. Personally I don't think there are enough black Xrs around. If I ever reshell my car I'd find a mint black one. Or a dark metallic blue respray.
ella vre, pos xereis ellinika?
i have parts everywhere, the whole interior is in my basement, the garage is filled with the original parts. thank god i labled most of the parts, bolts, brackets, etc. it took about a week or so to tear it apart but i think it it will take much longer to put it together, especially after it is painted and i dont want to scratch it!! anyway i love a challenge
i have parts everywhere, the whole interior is in my basement, the garage is filled with the original parts. thank god i labled most of the parts, bolts, brackets, etc. it took about a week or so to tear it apart but i think it it will take much longer to put it together, especially after it is painted and i dont want to scratch it!! anyway i love a challenge
- John Brennan
- Level 8
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- Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2003 4:19 pm
- Location: Scottsdale, AZ "Summer Is Coming"
Enai Ellinitsa, y mitera mou-- Papou kai Yiayia etanai apo tyn Asea, to xopio soun mes to Peloponneses (epethanen, to thio... ). Toda, me excexase poli, yati...me pios tha milao? Milao Spanika! Ala, enai etho mesa sto kephali mou.
Boy, it's tough to write Greek in English-- you're not sure which letter to use-- hopefully, my phoneticization is good enough!
Boy, it's tough to write Greek in English-- you're not sure which letter to use-- hopefully, my phoneticization is good enough!
This is my car, and these are my people!
2015 Fiesta ST
2020 Edge 2.0 Ecoboost
2015 Fiesta ST
2020 Edge 2.0 Ecoboost
Here is a little update. i decided about a week ago to re-upholster the front and rear door panels since they were coming apart. They were redone in pewter ultra leather with black ultra leather inserts. in the front inserts i had the XR4TI logo embroidered in and added a 5-1/4" MTX speaker in the rear inserts. I also had the headliner redone. Here are some pictures.
The company that did all this work is located in Hicksville, NY and while speaking to one of the main guys there he told me that they have the pattern for the carpet including the cargo areas which would be contour-sewn, he said you should not be able to see the seams. I asked the price for it and he said for "nylon cut pile" with the padding it would be approx. $660 and for the "nylon dense pile" it would be around $990. If anyone is interested reply or send me a pm and i can give you their info.
As for the exterior, the car is going to the body shop on Monday, i will take pictures and update as it progresses.
The company that did all this work is located in Hicksville, NY and while speaking to one of the main guys there he told me that they have the pattern for the carpet including the cargo areas which would be contour-sewn, he said you should not be able to see the seams. I asked the price for it and he said for "nylon cut pile" with the padding it would be approx. $660 and for the "nylon dense pile" it would be around $990. If anyone is interested reply or send me a pm and i can give you their info.
As for the exterior, the car is going to the body shop on Monday, i will take pictures and update as it progresses.
- John Brennan
- Level 8
- Posts: 11630
- Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2003 4:19 pm
- Location: Scottsdale, AZ "Summer Is Coming"
- John Brennan
- Level 8
- Posts: 11630
- Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2003 4:19 pm
- Location: Scottsdale, AZ "Summer Is Coming"
Yep-- every bit as nice as I thought it would be...
I'm wondering what you're using for engine management. It's very cool to see so much less in an XR bay!
Here's another query: do you suppose it's possible that the very sharp bend right off the turbo outlet is a restriction? I really don't know, but it seems that a nice U-bend there would be a good thing.
I'm wondering what you're using for engine management. It's very cool to see so much less in an XR bay!
Here's another query: do you suppose it's possible that the very sharp bend right off the turbo outlet is a restriction? I really don't know, but it seems that a nice U-bend there would be a good thing.
This is my car, and these are my people!
2015 Fiesta ST
2020 Edge 2.0 Ecoboost
2015 Fiesta ST
2020 Edge 2.0 Ecoboost
i am using the Electromotive TEC3 for engine management, so much less wiring when you have a full stand alone system.
the 90 at the turbo probably is a restriction but to get a u-bend with a small radius to reach the intercooler is difficult, i think i have to change the turbo exhaust housing from a center to a tangential which will bring the turbo up and then i can rotate the compressor housing facing it towards the fender then maybe a u-bend will help.
i still have a bunch of things i want to finalize on the white car but the red one has most of my attention these days
the 90 at the turbo probably is a restriction but to get a u-bend with a small radius to reach the intercooler is difficult, i think i have to change the turbo exhaust housing from a center to a tangential which will bring the turbo up and then i can rotate the compressor housing facing it towards the fender then maybe a u-bend will help.
i still have a bunch of things i want to finalize on the white car but the red one has most of my attention these days
- Mike McCreight
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- Location: Ottawa! Well, Manotick, actually...