modify - Fast Ford

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