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HOW TO MODIFY:<br />
ENGINE<br />
The XR4x4 came with two engines<br />
but we are just concentrating on the<br />
2.9 EFi Cologne six-pot. Decent and<br />
useable amounts of power and<br />
torque can be squeezed from these<br />
engines with the right mods.<br />
Start with the basics of getting the<br />
air in and out of the engine. To get the<br />
gasses out the back a full Mongoose<br />
exhaust with a 3 inch outwardly<br />
rolled pipe will cost you £423.59 from<br />
Collins Performance. For getting the<br />
air in, and adding a tasty induction<br />
noise, Amber Performance will supply<br />
a K&N induction kit for £123. If this<br />
seems steep you could always adapt<br />
a cheaper universal kit to fit.<br />
Bigger gains will be seen if you<br />
change the manifold for a nice tubular<br />
one. Tube Torque will be able to make<br />
one up for you for £285 plus VAT for<br />
mild steel or £375 plus VAT for the<br />
stainless steel jobbie. Tube Torque is<br />
currently the only firm which makes<br />
these and it has seen power gains<br />
/ MODIFYING GUIDE / SIERRA XR4X4 /<br />
SIERRA XR4X4<br />
Want a reliable daily-drive or a<br />
fun-to-run track toy? We<br />
show you how to<br />
make the most of<br />
the Sierra XR4x4.<br />
IF<br />
you’re in the market for a<br />
solid <strong>Ford</strong>-badged 4x4,<br />
it often involves grovelling to<br />
the bank manager and<br />
signing your life away into<br />
endless repayments.<br />
However, one car that is<br />
often unfairly overlooked<br />
is the Sierra XR4x4.<br />
Packing a useful and<br />
torquey 2.9 V6 powerplant and<br />
more grip than a jealous<br />
girlfriend, the XR makes a<br />
great and easy to live with<br />
daily driver, or something we<br />
are seeing more and more of is the XR4x4<br />
being used as budget track toys, providing tonnes<br />
of fun for very little cash outlay.<br />
Not to mention the Sierra engine bay is large<br />
enough for all manner of engine transplants<br />
depending on how deep your pockets are. Do it wisely<br />
and pick some quality mods and you will soon be<br />
biting at the heels of the Cossie and RS Turbo boys on<br />
the drag strip or your local track.<br />
between 18-24 bhp when used with a<br />
stainless system. From this point costs<br />
start to mount up as you will have to<br />
look into internal engine modifications.<br />
Specialised Engines offers various<br />
stages of tune. Stage 1 includes full<br />
reconditioning along with a gasflowed<br />
head and matched valve springs. Stage<br />
2 includes all of Stage 1 but with some<br />
bigger valve heads, inlet valve size of<br />
44.5 mm and exhaust valves sized<br />
38 mm. Cutting and throating of the<br />
valve seats is needed to accommodate<br />
the bigger valves. Included in Stage 2 is<br />
a <strong>Fast</strong> Road camshaft for maximum<br />
torque. Stage 3 is the ultimate. Priced<br />
at £1983, it features all of the prior<br />
stages such as re-grinding and polished<br />
crankshaft with new main and big end<br />
bearings, including genuine <strong>Ford</strong> seals<br />
and gaskets. The Stage 3 also comes<br />
with decked pistons and block, giving<br />
the perfect balance of compressions.<br />
With an overbore, SE can take this<br />
up to 3048cc so it’s just above 3.0. This<br />
Words: Neil<br />
Photos: Gerard Hughes<br />
will produce a solid 190-200 bhp on<br />
anyone’s rollers.<br />
This is really about as far as the 2.9<br />
can be taken in terms of keeping the<br />
budget at a sensible level. If you want<br />
more, Specialised Engines can up the<br />
capacity to 3.0 or 3.1. Although it can<br />
get expensive, SE has spent a lot of<br />
time developing these so they give a<br />
Get your engine up to this<br />
standard and you’re laughing<br />
nice slice of torque yet remain<br />
very driveable.<br />
For such complicated builds a<br />
detailed chat about your personal<br />
requirements will be a good idea.<br />
There’s no point in shelling out on a<br />
lumpy and very thirsty race cam<br />
when you’re only nipping to the<br />
shops and back.<br />
ENGINE SWAPS<br />
The Sierra has a huge engine bay which leaves<br />
you with loads of options for a transplant. A<br />
Cosworth lump will obviously just drop in or you<br />
could opt for a monster V8.<br />
More realistic is the 24-valve Cosworth<br />
engine. The guys at Top Boss Performance are<br />
the people to speak to as they have done this<br />
type of conversion many times. The V6 is not a<br />
bad starting point either with 200 bhp and 205<br />
lbf.ft before you even start tweaking it. Top Boss<br />
can do the conversion for £1850.<br />
If you’re a power-hungry type you are only<br />
limited by your wallet, you could go crazy with<br />
the V6 and have it turbocharged or<br />
supercharged for more ponies. The daddy<br />
engines will cost anything up to £6500 (twin<br />
supercharger) but they will have tubular<br />
manifolds, internal and head work along with a<br />
suitable management system to cope.<br />
24-valve Cosworth lump<br />
equals big-torque, N/A fun<br />
FAST FORD JULY 2006<br />
0 1 3 6 JULY 2006 FAST FORD 0 1 3 7
EXTERIOR<br />
Starting with the <strong>Ford</strong> stuff you could get<br />
some bumper extensions, although these<br />
are hard to get hold of now. <strong>Ford</strong> also<br />
produced a Sierra XR4x4 RS bodykit which<br />
included front and rear bumpers, plus<br />
sideskirts. These are very thin on the ground<br />
too, so a call to <strong>Ford</strong> may surprise you.<br />
Realistically you’ll need to keep your eyes<br />
on the classifieds or call a specialist breaker.<br />
An easier to source option is to dress your<br />
XR in full RS Cosworth trim, the kit should fit<br />
without any major hassle.<br />
Now you’re onto the aftermarket goodies,<br />
there is a whole world of parts which can be<br />
WHEELS & TYRES<br />
/ MODIFYING GUIDE / SIERRA XR4X4 /<br />
The 4x4 rolled on some measly 5.5x14 inch wheels on a 41 offset. This can easily be<br />
sorted though as some 7x16s will pop straight on without any real worries. Just be sure<br />
to use 205/45 tyres (this keeps a similar rolling radius), provided that you get them as close<br />
to the original offset as possible.<br />
As the 4x4 works with the Ferguson 4wd system each wheel and tyre size will<br />
need to be exactly the same in all four corners. If not it will have a negative effect<br />
on the handling but more importantly it could cause problems with the<br />
transmission transfer box, which can be costly to fix.<br />
You can fit 17s, but the arches may need rolling as the later XR4x4s had a<br />
slightly wider wheel hub and could cause scrubbage on full-lock. 18s can be<br />
modded to fit but would compromise the handling.<br />
Run on mismatched tyres<br />
and it will cost you<br />
modded to fit, although lairy kitted<br />
Sierras rarely work well so tread very<br />
carefully. We recommend keeping it<br />
simple with some clear indicators and<br />
side repeaters. Essex Racing stocks<br />
crystal-style side repeaters for £14.<br />
While upgrading the lights it<br />
might be worth checking out<br />
Auto Tint Design which stocks<br />
Morette twin headlamps for<br />
£292. If you’re tuning your 4x4<br />
the inner lights can be removed for<br />
cold air ducts for your engine. Look<br />
tough and serve a purpose.<br />
Add leather and a few personal<br />
touches and you’re away<br />
TRANSMISSION<br />
The transmission on the 2.9 XR<br />
Sierra is actually quite good<br />
because it’s a MT75 box as seen on<br />
the Saph Cossie 4x4. Let’s face it if<br />
the MT75 is capable of handling<br />
300-plus bhp from a modded Sierra<br />
Cosworth it should easily be up to<br />
the stick your XR4x4 will give it.<br />
Third gear is the only real weak<br />
spot as they have been know to<br />
shear the teeth when pushing a<br />
big torque figure, something<br />
V8 owners will have to bear<br />
in mind.<br />
To uprate from here, call CTS who<br />
will be able to tailor-make a box for<br />
your requirements. If your power levels<br />
are more sensible we’d recommend<br />
uprating your clutch just for peace of<br />
mind when<br />
launching.<br />
Sprayed dash creates<br />
an original feature<br />
INTERIOR<br />
The standard XR came with an uninspiring interior from <strong>Ford</strong>. The<br />
front seats for example are great for shopping but poor for a fast<br />
<strong>Ford</strong>. Remedy this by fitting some RST Recaros or ideally a nice<br />
Sierra Cossie interior.<br />
Either the fabric or leather interiors will really bring your XR up<br />
to a worthy standard (bear in mind that a quality Cosworth<br />
leather interior will still command good money). For something a<br />
little different we recommend some nice aftermarket race seats.<br />
Try Demon Tweeks as it has a huge range. Some two-tone OMP<br />
Comfort sport seats will work a treat on the XR; these have holes<br />
should you later decide to fit race harnesses.<br />
While we’re on that subject why not strip the interior to the<br />
bare bones? Shed some of that lardy weight and make the 4x4<br />
into a track menace. Bolt in a pukka cage for safety and strength<br />
of chassis and a hoard of gauges to keep watch on your engine.<br />
The dash board can be cut down or removed for weight saving<br />
purposes but some food for thought if you’re keeping the car<br />
street, source a black Sierra Cossie dash as they are a direct swap<br />
and get rid of the dull grey.<br />
Leathers fly in, but they’re<br />
not usually this nice<br />
0 1 3 8 JULY 2006 FAST FORD FAST FORD JULY 2006 0 1 3 9
White dials can refresh a tired dash<br />
SUSPENSION<br />
Although the 4x4 can give great grip some are now<br />
getting a little long in the tooth, and years of hard<br />
driving can cause the old rubber bushes to deteriorate<br />
and fail.<br />
Start as you mean to go on by providing a solid base.<br />
Contact Powerflex for a full set of polyurethane bushes<br />
this will refresh your car and give you a great starting<br />
point when it comes to sorting the handling. A full<br />
Powerflex kit will cost £299.<br />
Next is the suspension, with full kits being so cheap<br />
nowadays it’s better to avoid just using lowering<br />
springs and plump for a full suspension kit. Not only<br />
will they lower the car’s centre of gravity, they will<br />
come with the correct dampers for a better ride.<br />
Try Jondel Motorsport for an AVO adjustable kit for<br />
£362.50 or a coil-over kit for £548.50. The coil-overs<br />
will give you much more flexibility if you’re trying to<br />
build a budget track toy.<br />
With the suspension and bushes in place the XR<br />
should be handling sweet and making the most of the<br />
4x4 set-up. For the final piece of the puzzle it’s<br />
recommended you fit front and rear strut braces.<br />
These will stop the car’s chassis from flexing when<br />
cornering hard.<br />
FAST FORD’S TECHNICAL SECTION<br />
Fit quality suspension to<br />
make the most of that 4x4<br />
Although not bad to start with,<br />
the 4x4’s brakes can be improved<br />
BRAKES<br />
The 4x4 came equipped with some respectable 260 mm front discs and<br />
252 mm rears. This provided a safe enough amount of braking power,<br />
however, if you’re upping the power or making a track toy then<br />
upgrading is the only option.<br />
A cheap way of adding more feel and braking force would be to fit<br />
some braided brake lines along with some uprated fluid such as 5.1<br />
Dot, then call Proven Products for some Black Diamond drilled and<br />
grooved discs for £124.50 for the front and £101.50 for the rears. Be<br />
sure to uprate the pads to some <strong>Fast</strong> Road ones at the same time.<br />
If this doesn’t provide you with enough stopping power then you will<br />
have to uprate your callipers and discs. For a more budget conscious<br />
choice try Wilwood or Hi-Spec. Hi-spec has a Billet 4 kit which is usually<br />
enough stopping power for most applications. If you have cash to<br />
splash call AP Racing or Brembo, they won’t be cheap but do come<br />
strongly recommended for track days.<br />
If you have the bottle make your<br />
own bumper for a sure fire one-off<br />
FAST FORD JULY 2006<br />
0 1 4 0 JULY 2006 FAST FORD 0 1 4 1
MINE ALL MINE...<br />
The immaculate XR4x4 for this month’s<br />
guide is the pride and joy of Norman<br />
Brooks. Norman has owned this car<br />
since it was 18 months old, and is still as<br />
happy with it as the day he bought it.<br />
Just in case you can’t tell, he is bang<br />
into the concours scene with the Sierra.<br />
So far Norman and his 4x4 have picked<br />
up a first, second or third in any<br />
concours contest he has entered to<br />
date, not bad going at all. It’s an even<br />
more impressive feat when you<br />
consider the fact that the cherished<br />
4x4 is still sporting the original paint it<br />
left the factory with.<br />
But it hasn’t all been polishing and<br />
easy driving. Norman’s XR has eaten<br />
two gearboxes in the past before<br />
changing to an uprated MT75 gearbox.<br />
The reason for an uprated box is simple;<br />
Norman wanted some reliability and<br />
when you have 220 bhp tweaked from<br />
the engine it makes perfect sense,<br />
0 1 4 2 JULY 2006 FAST FORD<br />
/ MODIFYING GUIDE / SIERRA XR4X4 /<br />
rather than keep getting the weaker<br />
gearbox replaced or refurbished.<br />
The horsepower was squeezed<br />
from the 2.9 lump with the help of<br />
Specialised Engines. Amongst its many<br />
mods the engine features a rebuilt<br />
Stage 1 powerplant that has been bored<br />
and balanced. It has then been fitted<br />
with a half-race cam and modified<br />
injection system to produce the ponies.<br />
Besides being unbelievably clean, the<br />
XR also has some tasty and unique<br />
mods such as the spotless Sierra<br />
Cosworth interior that Norman informs<br />
us, “had never been sat in when I got<br />
my hands on it.” Result!<br />
Norman then turned his attention to<br />
the exterior styling with a Cosworth<br />
bonnet to let the heat out. “For the<br />
front bumper I used a Cosworth item<br />
which I then chopped and had a play<br />
about with. I then rebuilt it, building it<br />
up slowly and supporting it before fibre<br />
glassing it over,” he tells us when<br />
quizzed about his one-off bumper.<br />
Nice work, and a possible future<br />
sideline maybe?<br />
As with any true project, they are<br />
never finished and Norman’s is no<br />
exception. He already has some fourpot<br />
brakes impatiently lying around<br />
which he got from an RS500. Besides<br />
these waiting to be fitted he’s seriously<br />
looking into changing the management<br />
for a more modern system. More<br />
horsepower on the horizon and we<br />
couldn’t be happier.<br />
World’s tallest man struggles<br />
to fit into Sierra XR4x4<br />
SPECIALISTS<br />
Amber Performance<br />
01582 664735<br />
www.amber-performance.co.uk<br />
Auto Tint Design<br />
0113 2891500<br />
www.autotintdesign.co.uk<br />
Collins Performance<br />
01260 279604<br />
www.mongooseexhausts.com<br />
Demon Tweeks<br />
www.demon-tweeks.co.uk<br />
Essex Racing<br />
01268 680580<br />
www.essexracing.com<br />
Jondel Motorsport<br />
01604 499300<br />
www.jondelmotorsport.co.uk<br />
Power Engineering<br />
01895 255699<br />
www.powerengineering.co.uk<br />
Powerflex<br />
01895 460033<br />
www.powerflex.co.uk<br />
Specialised Engines<br />
01375 378606<br />
www.specialisedengines.co.uk<br />
Top Boss Performance<br />
01332 347406<br />
www.topbossperformance.co.uk<br />
Tube Torque<br />
01625 511153<br />
www.tubetorque.co.uk<br />
TYPICAL PRICES<br />
Uprated brake pads £35.00<br />
Stainless exhaust £430.00<br />
Lowering springs £80.00<br />
Uprated brake discs £124.50<br />
CLUBS<br />
XR Owners’ Club<br />
www.xroc.co.uk<br />
XR4 Register<br />
www.xr4register.com