Wow, did not expect to see a 'Cossie' on your channel, great work. The American viewers must look at that engine and not be able to get their heads round how quick the car is. Hope you get to own it one day Jonny!
As a kid who grew up in the 80's, this was a car I lusted after. I remember when I was at Intermediate school, someone parked one at the school staff car park regularly (guessing it was a PTA member or something, not a teacher) and I'd just stop and stare at it every time - for me it was far more interesting than a Countach or Testarossa. Funny Jonny doesn't want to work on Fords - sure they are often horribly unreliable - but they are usually easy to fix... unlike BMW's which are often horribly unreliable and difficult to fix.
Fords have their own unique tools and used to change part numbers mid-year. They can be a real pain in the ass. I don't blame Jonny for wanting to avoid buying a whole new suite of specialist tools. Looks like his lifts are always full with Bimmers, anyways.
Absolutely agree - I bought a brand new Rosso Red Escort RS Turbo MK 2 in 1988 I paid £10,500 as I was in the trade. Loved it and it was totally reliable plus easy to work on.. I still have a sporty hatch - a 2011 Mazda 3 MPS, which I swear I'm never going to sell. I'm the same as you, I have always loved sporty versions of "normal" road cars. Forget the Porsche's, Maserati's etc.
@@TheJohn8765 I've only ever really done serous work on Aussie Fords, which are easy as anything to work on - though they do some oddball shit with assembly hardware - bolts doing the same job requiring varying socket sizes, mixing up torx and hex all over the place etc. (probably whatever they had on hand), but no real special tools, not like a lot of German cars I've worked on. Fortunately most of the time I'm working on Japanese cars, which are usually fairly logically put together.
Alongside Vauxhall's C20XE, which is a Cosworth engine, one of the best ever built as a daily and developed into a racing engine (oh, and BMC's A series like in proper Minis). All could be carefully tuned and some, more than others, callously tuned. Back in the days when we could do so!
Hi Jonny, you are a pro. Although I was born in Canada I am an Italian whose ancestry is originally Albanian. Our town can be traced back to the 1490s when it was settled by Albanians loyal to General Skanderberg. My first language is albanese dialect. Your patience and temperament reminds me of my uncle. Must be in the genes. Love your videos.
miredite! Glad you're keeping your albanian heritage alive! I'm in the same boat, Canadian raise but Albanian family from kosovo. Gezuar! Tip, jonny himself is albanian!
Its worth mentioning to US friends that this car is not a Merkur XR4Ti. The parent Sierra may be the same but the Cosworth was a very different car and the RS500 very different again as it was hand built by Tickford. The bodyshells are different and while the XR4i bodyshell was used to prototype the Cosworth concept they became two distinctive cars in production.
The differences with the 500 was a bigger turbo, eight injectors (4 connected), larger intercooler and different management. Externally Tickford added aero to the front, a lower spoiler at the rear with a lip added to the upper spoiler and your fog lights were in a box in the boot.
I used to live next to Keith Duckworth one of the two founders of Cosworth. Nice guy and very unassuming. He’d retired by the time the YB series engine had been developed, but Cosworth as an engineering company is still going despite some ups and downs.
Awesome Johnny. Working in one of my heroes… now you need to get a hold of a Renault R5 Turbo, Ford RS200, Mercedes 190e Cosworth 16V, and of course the best BMW ever produced.. the e30 M3
I owned the saloon version here in Scotland known as a Sierra Sapphire Ninja, it was 4 wheel drive and had 220bhp. Great cars the Sierras and worth alot of money these days.
My first car was 1991 Ford Sierra made in Belgium with 2.0 "Pinto" engine, with 5 speed manual. It did not have anything, no power steering, no abs :). Had it for 5 years, very reliable and fun to drive.
Just a note on power steering lines, hard and soft. I had a mech work on my F150 and the hard lines were rusted out and leaking and he said "you need a new rack because the lines aren't available from ford" A rack was $800 Cdn. I said hold up, wait a minute, ordered them from rock auto and including his labour came to $85.00 The lines were $30 including shipping.
Great video :D what are those worth in the US? Two weekends ago I saw a 5k mile Cosworth RS500 go under the hammer for £596,000 at race retro. I wasn't alone being shocked....
Back in the eighties i worked at a bodyshop in the north west of England that prepared and painted Sierra Cosworths for Jimmy McRae and then Colin McRae, also Didier Auriol, the cars arrived as brand new shells straight from a fabrication firm called Gartrac where they had been fitted with roll cages and fully seam welded, we painted them up in their rally colours and sent them on their way, most of them didn't survive more than a few rally stages.
Johnny, Enjoyed the video and thanks for sharing the unique Ford Sierra Cosworth! What type of fluid do you use in your spray bottle cleaner. It is a cool setup to spot clean after a repair! Thanks
The Sierra RS Cosworth is a fairly common car here in the UK but since a RS 500 Cosworth sold for over half a million pounds here in the UK a few days ago making it a world record price the value of them has shot up massively!!!
Pershendetje Jonny , jam nje ndjekes i joti qe kur ne nje prej videove te tua me Hoovis Garage pashe qe kishe flamurin shqiptar gjithashtu per videot interesante rreth makinave. Ndihesh gjithmone krenar qe sheh shqiptare qe fal aftesise , punes se palodhur dhe modestise kane arritur te krijojne dicka te bukur. Mu be shume qefi qe permende origjinen tende dhe besoj se e perfaqson denjesisht figuren e shqipetarit. Te uroj gjithe te mirat dhe shume sukese !
A ku je shqipe he traft e mira! Greetings from Ulqin MNE 🤗 This smile on his face is proof that you dont need 1000hp, big turbos, 2jz and all stupid stuff to have fun with car!
DUDE! NiNJA! freekin'Awesome choice Sir! My 1st car was 1989 escort & i saw less than TEN Xratti Cossies around VaBeach. I've drooled over them ever since. Even considered buying the euro-engine and swapping it into a U.S.escort
Lincoln Mercury sold that car in the US in the 80's as the Merkur XR4TI I think it came with a 2.3 L intercooled turbo. I test drove one new in 1987 Made in Germany
I always have a chuckle when Jonny pops the hood on something like that M6; I remember when I was learning to wrench on cars, I encountered my first 32 valve V8 and I thought my head was going to explode. These Bimmers are just in another plane of existence lol
Got to buy a load of Breakleen like Rainman Ray and Eric and shoot it all over the place. You're too neat Jonny! Love the car and videos needless to say!
In 86 there was a comparo article between the 86 XR4TI and an 86 BMW M3 both were very close. I'm sure the Cosworth Sierra would win in place of the Merkur.
I bought a 1988 Merkur Xr4Ti in 1990. I loved that car. It was fast in its day and was pretty sporty. Comparable to the Mustang SVO and thunderbird turbo coupe. They all had the 2.3l turbo.
@@MikeB4pl from the factory yes. But retrofitting a thunderbird turbo coup intercooler was common or an aftermarket unit. If I had one would immediately be done.
Back in the 1980's you could get the Merkur XR4Ti in the US which was modeled after the Sierra and built in Germany. I drove one from a rental company back then and it a great drive and really quick. So, you can scratch that Sierra itch with one of those if you can find a nice one. Enjoyed the video!
I’m always shocked by how cheap they sell for over here, considering how popular they are in Europe. You’d think someone would snatch them up for peanuts over here and export them back to Europe to be used as rust free donors for the rusted cars over there.
@@fw1421 Same engine was in Ford Sierra made in Argentina -- but without turbo .... Merkur was a Xr4i Sierra with some reinforcements for US standards and with US engine (the European original Xr4i had the 2.8i V6)
@@fw1421 I seen one on youtube when somebody travel in the US on the bridge in California in normal traffic .... so they are out there. Also Hoonigans have one or two, Jared of Questionable garage showed one. 1. they did not sold too much of them - it was expensive due to exchange rate German Mark / US dollar -- and they created new brand for them MERKUR (which is Mercury in German) 42 464 Merkurs were made the Sierra Xr4i (V6) 25 662 were made for European market 5542 Sierra Cosworths Mk1 were made (they were crazy expensive) The XR4Ti was a version of the XR4i European Ford Sierra (that had the 2.8 V6 150~~160 HP top of the line at that time 1983-1985, Merkur had the american drivetrain) in that time weight 500-600 lbs more Mustang 1982 had 157 HP and 1983 had 175 HP ? 5.0 V8 ? The XR4i also did not sell well in Europe because it was expensive. Most of the Ford Sierra sold were 1.6 (72 HP) or 2.0 4 cylinders (101~115 HP) cheap and economical engines.
Having also been born in Europe, I see where you're coming from (no pun intended). Ford built up a very respectable reputation in Europe back in the day, not the least of which through racing. Even their small models were held to a high standard. I'm not surprised you have a sweet spot for them, especially a Cosworth. In North America, the Escort was a different animal (some generations completely different) and lacked any of the love given to it in Europe. edit: on the subject of power steering systems, a note for those who may not know: a good hydraulics shop can usually make custom hoses and fittings, including oil cooler hoses, for cars that you may not be able to buy these parts for anymore.
Oh man, my dream car as well! Living in Canada I only saw these pictured in books and still haven't seen one in person. I had an 87 Escort as my first car, but being the north american version it was dog slow. Thank you for showing this car on video!
I believe the Mecury Merkur XR4TI Rack is the same. I remember owning mine bought it new in 1985. Black with grey leather interior and a 5 speed. I installed an intercooler it had 200 HP and a big interior for 4 adults. Great handling. I installed Mustang LX 15" wheels with 205- 30 front and 225- 40 in the rear.(No problems)
I used to see XR4TI's (what they called them in Canada) a fair bit but haven't seen any in well over a decade. Pity since they're a cool car, imo. Edit: I have since learned the Cosworth was Def an upgrade to the XR. TIL!
RS was an upgrade to the XR .... had the Escort XR3i (Mk 3 and Mk4) and upgrade was an RS1600i or later Escort RS Turbo :) Same with Escort Mk5 XR3i was a sporty version (fwd ~~100 HP), then there was RS2000 (150 HP, still fwd) RS2000 4x4, and then there was the Escort RS Cosworth (4x4 Turbo longitudinaly mounted engine - basically a Sierra Cosworth 4x4 floor with Escort body on it )
I had one great trip over the pennines about 34 years ago. The fastest drive of my life. The cars brakes and suspension had to be replaced after the two hours of torture. The tyres were ripped to pieces. It took almost a full bottle of malt whisky to calm down.
My friend, I once had a Fiesta XR2i thought it was the fastest thing in Wales at the time, right up to the point I decided to race one of these dam Cosworth's. Yeah didn't end well for me !! Then had an escort RS. That thing moved ....
Maybe you can buy it from him someday when he is ready to sell it. I remember seeing the merkur xr4ti variant of these and i liked them too and the rear spoilers they have.
I cannot believe you had a Ford Escort, even if you were a young man when you had it. Now look at you. I can at least say I had the coolest '67 VW Bug when I got my learners permit and followed by my drivers license. Now that was a shocker (the Escort)!
When i was a young teen my mate dominico aka nico who's dad was the same name, his dad was a racer surname Nobel and in their garage in south london was a left hand drive metro 6r4, i didn't even touch it in fear he would lose his temper, and a very old vespa that was mint, was told that was just a small part of his collection, very hot tempered family but good people
I borrowed a Sierra Cosworth (4 door saloon version) for as my departure wedding car in 1993 - it was amazing to drive and of course I remember the day well!
Its funny I work on a lot of old german cars and was saying gee you know it would be nice to see Johnny do some old cars and the next day I see you got this literal unicorn in US delivered to you and I was like Fuck Yeah!
Good memories, my brother drove one likes this, his one was red. They were so popular in the rally cross in those days. This one looks to be in good condition.
You can try to get one cause sometimes they are still on sale and in mint condition or in a state that will require a lot of love. Right now I know some that rebuild 2 of these to previous glory. Also the had gotten a LOTUS OMEGA , the fastest street car of the era in the early 90s based on a Opel / Vauxhall Omega.
Used to see many of these in the UK as i was growing up. Bit of a rare beast these are these days. Most of them have either met their fate rusting out at the back of a scrap yard somewhere or been crashed by its owners then recycled into cola cans and ikea furniture.
@@Lukeywoodsey You are 100% correct. I watched a video from a different channel where the owner either submitted an FOI request or managed to get his hand on a breakdown of all the vehicles that were traded in. The breakdown/charts he had showed everything from types of vehicle to the year the vehicle was first registered and some other information and he did find out that there were a lot of really old cars, collectable classics like some Alfa Romeo's and early BMWs which are highly desirable in this day and age that were traded in. It was a very small number which i cant remember off the top of my head but the guy was also talking about how bad it made the second hand or collectors market because there were less second hand cars on the market to be sold thus bumping the prices up on secondhand cars (where found) exponentially.... I think the end result was some 7000 cars were crushed with some 100-300 out of the 7000 possibly being collectable/classic cars. One of the video creators arguments that some old boy that had bought the car when he was in his 20s or 30s might not know the value of his car as it stands today and just traded it in without really knowing what his car was worth on the market. I'll have to see if i can find the video somewhere.
@@Lukeywoodsey I found the channel and the video... The channel is called *'Geoff Buys Cars'* - Video is called *"All the cars lost to the 2009 Scrappage Scheme - Someone scrapped these rarities?!"* Geoff breaks down all the data he got from the DVLA regarding the cars scrapped in 2009
Not the car I'd thought would be your fav car. That said, it's a cool car. I love so many cars that I'm not sure what would be my "Holy grail". Maybe an Auburn Speedster 852 boattail.
I had the family version with a 1,6l engine. This Cosworth Turbo version was used successfully by Ford in various European Touring Car Championships. They even did a 4WD V6 version. A low milage RS 500 version of the Cosworth Turbo recently sold at an auction for the rediculous amonunt of £109125 !
Man, we did have some cool cars back in the 80s, didn't we? 🙂
We had better ones in the fifties😎😎😎
@@isleofthanet we had better ones in the 60’s!😊😂😎
Well specifically speaking, in the 80's you had the cool 50's, 60's and 70's cars as well. So best of everything lol
Sierra Cosworths were used as police cars here in Northern Ireland....
Absolute beasts
and Northumberland
Yeooooo!
Same here, Marlborough police had a burgundy Sierra Sapphire they used to zoom about in.
They had to used them as police cars. The thief’s were out running them in the in the Sierras.
@@dR-bh9kt "Oi, boss, the old bill have got cozzas now, we can't outrun them."
"Right, get in the Lotus Carlton boys"
Hi, Jonny! Greetings from Kosova, Prishtina. I watched almost every your video! Keep up with good work.. Puna e mbare..💪
🙏🇬🇧
Wow, did not expect to see a 'Cossie' on your channel, great work. The American viewers must look at that engine and not be able to get their heads round how quick the car is. Hope you get to own it one day Jonny!
Can't believe Car Ninja's favourite car is a Sierra Cozzie! I'm so happy!!
Right! I would have never guessed it!
I’m swedish and this was the dream car for many of us, together with the Celica gt4. ❤
Yes those Celicas are great cars too! 🙏
I had a Celica GT4 from 1993-1996. Loved it. Great car and looked awesome with the air scoop.
As a kid who grew up in the 80's, this was a car I lusted after. I remember when I was at Intermediate school, someone parked one at the school staff car park regularly (guessing it was a PTA member or something, not a teacher) and I'd just stop and stare at it every time - for me it was far more interesting than a Countach or Testarossa. Funny Jonny doesn't want to work on Fords - sure they are often horribly unreliable - but they are usually easy to fix... unlike BMW's which are often horribly unreliable and difficult to fix.
Fords have their own unique tools and used to change part numbers mid-year. They can be a real pain in the ass. I don't blame Jonny for wanting to avoid buying a whole new suite of specialist tools. Looks like his lifts are always full with Bimmers, anyways.
Absolutely agree - I bought a brand new Rosso Red Escort RS Turbo MK 2 in 1988 I paid £10,500 as I was in the trade. Loved it and it was totally reliable plus easy to work on.. I still have a sporty hatch - a 2011 Mazda 3 MPS, which I swear I'm never going to sell. I'm the same as you, I have always loved sporty versions of "normal" road cars. Forget the Porsche's, Maserati's etc.
@@TheJohn8765 I've only ever really done serous work on Aussie Fords, which are easy as anything to work on - though they do some oddball shit with assembly hardware - bolts doing the same job requiring varying socket sizes, mixing up torx and hex all over the place etc. (probably whatever they had on hand), but no real special tools, not like a lot of German cars I've worked on. Fortunately most of the time I'm working on Japanese cars, which are usually fairly logically put together.
@@rogerbarrett9920 p p
That 2.0 Cosworth engine really is something special 👍❤️👍
Alongside Vauxhall's C20XE, which is a Cosworth engine, one of the best ever built as a daily and developed into a racing engine (oh, and BMC's A series like in proper Minis). All could be carefully tuned and some, more than others, callously tuned. Back in the days when we could do so!
Hi Jonny, you are a pro. Although I was born in Canada I am an Italian whose ancestry is originally Albanian. Our town can be traced back to the 1490s when it was settled by Albanians loyal to General Skanderberg. My first language is albanese dialect. Your patience and temperament reminds me of my uncle. Must be in the genes. Love your videos.
miredite! Glad you're keeping your albanian heritage alive! I'm in the same boat, Canadian raise but Albanian family from kosovo. Gezuar!
Tip, jonny himself is albanian!
An Italian who’s Albanian but speaks French and lives in Canada lol nice to meet you 😂
Fun fact. Skanderberg was Serbian knight. :P
You're not Italian if you're Albanian
If my experience memory is correct the Albanians were the best at forging documents, passports, immigration etc very creative and precise
Its worth mentioning to US friends that this car is not a Merkur XR4Ti. The parent Sierra may be the same but the Cosworth was a very different car and the RS500 very different again as it was hand built by Tickford.
The bodyshells are different and while the XR4i bodyshell was used to prototype the Cosworth concept they became two distinctive cars in production.
Thanks for clearing this up. I was wondering.
the RS500s were all right hand drive weren't they.
And an RS 500 has just sold for over £500,000
@@ianmontgomery7534 The original Tickford RS500s were all RHD but some aftermarket tuners have produced LHD replicas.
The differences with the 500 was a bigger turbo, eight injectors (4 connected), larger intercooler and different management. Externally Tickford added aero to the front, a lower spoiler at the rear with a lip added to the upper spoiler and your fog lights were in a box in the boot.
I used to live next to Keith Duckworth one of the two founders of Cosworth. Nice guy and very unassuming. He’d retired by the time the YB series engine had been developed, but Cosworth as an engineering company is still going despite some ups and downs.
You should check out the engine they've done for Gordon Murray's T50 on the Gordon Murray automotive channel!
@@buggerlugz6753 That, and the one they did for the Aston Martin Valkyrie!
Wasn’t near long Buckby was it?
Costin and Duckworth. Name a better duo
Awesome Johnny. Working in one of my heroes… now you need to get a hold of a Renault R5 Turbo, Ford RS200, Mercedes 190e Cosworth 16V, and of course the best BMW ever produced.. the e30 M3
The series 1 Sierra and Escort RS Cosworth... absolute dream cars 🥰
Another fantastic video, I head to Italy on Sunday, a trip with my son we will be visiting the Ferrari and Lamborghini museums!
Love a good YB powered Sierra. Puts a smile on your face when you drive it.
A RS500 just sold for £596k here in the UK.
I owned the saloon version here in Scotland known as a Sierra Sapphire Ninja, it was 4 wheel drive and had 220bhp. Great cars the Sierras and worth alot of money these days.
I prefer the sapphires they look great in moonstone blue, I also really like the cav 4x4 turbo really rare cars today 🏴
My first car was 1991 Ford Sierra made in Belgium with 2.0 "Pinto" engine, with 5 speed manual. It did not have anything, no power steering, no abs :). Had it for 5 years, very reliable and fun to drive.
That's a neat Cosworth, awesome that you got a chance of working on it and drive it.
Just a note on power steering lines, hard and soft. I had a mech work on my F150 and the hard lines were rusted out and leaking and he said "you need a new rack because the lines aren't available from ford" A rack was $800 Cdn. I said hold up, wait a minute, ordered them from rock auto and including his labour came to $85.00 The lines were $30 including shipping.
Great video :D what are those worth in the US? Two weekends ago I saw a 5k mile Cosworth RS500 go under the hammer for £596,000 at race retro. I wasn't alone being shocked....
There were mainly two cars ether drifting or doing a burnouts at a UK cruise way back when, sierra cosworth (3-door and sapphire) or BMW E30 M3.
Love it. Finding survivors like this is rare. Thanks for the content today, keep it up.
Back in the eighties i worked at a bodyshop in the north west of England that prepared and painted Sierra Cosworths for Jimmy McRae and then Colin McRae, also Didier Auriol, the cars arrived as brand new shells straight from a fabrication firm called Gartrac where they had been fitted with roll cages and fully seam welded, we painted them up in their rally colours and sent them on their way, most of them didn't survive more than a few rally stages.
I feel the same way about the 1987 Chrysler Fifth Avenue
Now that ladies and gentlemen is a proper car. A genuine 150mph rocket from the 80s.
If that’s your merchandise, when you showed that sweatshirt "German Motorworks" you need to start selling those. I would love to have one.
Johnny, Enjoyed the video and thanks for sharing the unique Ford Sierra Cosworth! What type of fluid do you use in your spray bottle cleaner. It is a cool setup to spot clean after a repair! Thanks
The Sierra RS Cosworth is a fairly common car here in the UK but since a RS 500 Cosworth sold for over half a million pounds here in the UK a few days ago making it a world record price the value of them has shot up massively!!!
Absolutely right! And in another ten years we won’t even be allowed to make ICE performance cars anymore so they will double in value AGAIN !!!
@@philtucker1224 Totally agree 👍
Fairly common? They've all been crashed, rusted or scrapped sadly. I've seen a few but most of the time is a Sierra RS Turbo
Pershendetje Jonny , jam nje ndjekes i joti qe kur ne nje prej videove te tua me Hoovis Garage pashe qe kishe flamurin shqiptar gjithashtu per videot interesante rreth makinave. Ndihesh gjithmone krenar qe sheh shqiptare qe fal aftesise , punes se palodhur dhe modestise kane arritur te krijojne dicka te bukur. Mu be shume qefi qe permende origjinen tende dhe besoj se e perfaqson denjesisht figuren e shqipetarit. Te uroj gjithe te mirat dhe shume sukese !
A ku je shqipe he traft e mira! Greetings from Ulqin MNE 🤗
This smile on his face is proof that you dont need 1000hp, big turbos, 2jz and all stupid stuff to have fun with car!
Ford Europe made amazing cars, this is one of them.
DUDE! NiNJA! freekin'Awesome choice Sir! My 1st car was 1989 escort & i saw less than TEN Xratti Cossies around VaBeach. I've drooled over them ever since. Even considered buying the euro-engine and swapping it into a U.S.escort
Lincoln Mercury sold that car in the US in the 80's as the Merkur XR4TI I think it came with a 2.3 L intercooled turbo. I test drove one new in 1987 Made in Germany
That is a first real car here! I love rallying.
Also, glad you had the opportunity to work on your dream car! Was nice to hear the lifters quiet down!😄
🫡👍🇸🇪
I owned a 1985 Sierra 4x4.
V6 2.8l
4wd with 64% rear and 36% in to the front wheel.. it was so fun to drive in the winter.
I miss that car.
She was ticking pretty loudly on start up and the filter was last changed in 2016, think it needs some more love Johnny.
What a cool looking Merkur XR4Ti!!! Oh wait it has the DOHC Cosworth Head not the SOHC version....
How this whole time I thought he was Italian. Did I make this up in my head?🤔
I like how BMW makes a repair kit for that engine. Hoses, clamps, and heat shields. I have done several.
I always have a chuckle when Jonny pops the hood on something like that M6; I remember when I was learning to wrench on cars, I encountered my first 32 valve V8 and I thought my head was going to explode. These Bimmers are just in another plane of existence lol
The Sierra Colmworth RS 500 is one of my favourite cars too. Awesome car.
Got to buy a load of Breakleen like Rainman Ray and Eric and shoot it all over the place. You're too neat Jonny! Love the car and videos needless to say!
Nice job as always Ninja 😉
considering the sierra was built in Germany cologne it wouldn't be suppressed if the hoses are from the same supplier as BMW
I always wondered where you were originally from, Johnny. Albania is definitely on my list the next time I go over to Europe.
I want more cosworth content, this is awesome
Unless he end up buying it, thats about all u get :D
In 86 there was a comparo article between the 86 XR4TI and an 86 BMW M3 both were very close. I'm sure the Cosworth Sierra would win in place of the Merkur.
That was the Merkur XR4ti in the US in the late 80's. I always thought that was one of the best looking cars ever.
I bought a 1988 Merkur Xr4Ti in 1990. I loved that car. It was fast in its day and was pretty sporty. Comparable to the Mustang SVO and thunderbird turbo coupe. They all had the 2.3l turbo.
i remember back in the 90's i read automobile magazine,,,one issue had a guy who had stuck a v8 into a merkur xr4ti
The sierra is glorious. I would accept the US equivalent the Mercur XR4ti with the inter cooled 2.3 turbo
XR4Ti had no intercooler
@@MikeB4pl from the factory yes. But retrofitting a thunderbird turbo coup intercooler was common or an aftermarket unit. If I had one would immediately be done.
First and last Ford in the shop? You really wouldn’t work on a Ford GT?
Back in the 1980's you could get the Merkur XR4Ti in the US which was modeled after the Sierra and built in Germany. I drove one from a rental company back then and it a great drive and really quick. So, you can scratch that Sierra itch with one of those if you can find a nice one. Enjoyed the video!
I’m always shocked by how cheap they sell for over here, considering how popular they are in Europe. You’d think someone would snatch them up for peanuts over here and export them back to Europe to be used as rust free donors for the rusted cars over there.
@@fw1421 Same engine was in Ford Sierra made in Argentina -- but without turbo .... Merkur was a Xr4i Sierra with some reinforcements for US standards and with US engine (the European original Xr4i had the 2.8i V6)
@@fw1421 I seen one on youtube when somebody travel in the US on the bridge in California in normal traffic .... so they are out there. Also Hoonigans have one or two, Jared of Questionable garage showed one.
1. they did not sold too much of them - it was expensive due to exchange rate German Mark / US dollar -- and they created new brand for them MERKUR (which is Mercury in German)
42 464 Merkurs were made
the Sierra Xr4i (V6) 25 662 were made for European market
5542 Sierra Cosworths Mk1 were made (they were crazy expensive)
The XR4Ti was a version of the XR4i European Ford Sierra (that had the 2.8 V6 150~~160 HP top of the line at that time 1983-1985, Merkur had the american drivetrain) in that time weight 500-600 lbs more Mustang 1982 had 157 HP and 1983 had 175 HP ? 5.0 V8 ? The XR4i also did not sell well in Europe because it was expensive. Most of the Ford Sierra sold were 1.6 (72 HP) or 2.0 4 cylinders (101~115 HP) cheap and economical engines.
@@fw1421 In 1986 the Mustang GT started at 10,691 $
These cars ( RS500 ) came first , second and third in Australia's iconic Bathurst 1000 km race in 1988.
Amazing performance against the big V8 's.
Having also been born in Europe, I see where you're coming from (no pun intended). Ford built up a very respectable reputation in Europe back in the day, not the least of which through racing. Even their small models were held to a high standard. I'm not surprised you have a sweet spot for them, especially a Cosworth. In North America, the Escort was a different animal (some generations completely different) and lacked any of the love given to it in Europe. edit: on the subject of power steering systems, a note for those who may not know: a good hydraulics shop can usually make custom hoses and fittings, including oil cooler hoses, for cars that you may not be able to buy these parts for anymore.
How Jonny talks about this Ford Sierra is how I talk about the Toyota MR2 from the 1980s.
Oh man, my dream car as well! Living in Canada I only saw these pictured in books and still haven't seen one in person. I had an 87 Escort as my first car, but being the north american version it was dog slow. Thank you for showing this car on video!
I believe the Mecury Merkur XR4TI Rack is the same. I remember owning mine bought it new in 1985. Black with grey leather interior and a 5 speed. I installed an intercooler it had 200 HP and a big interior for 4 adults. Great handling. I installed Mustang LX 15" wheels with 205- 30 front and 225- 40 in the rear.(No problems)
I used to have a Mercur XR4ti, which I believe was a distant cousin to this. I really liked it because it was fast and very comfortable…
I drove one back when they were somewhat affordable. Just awesome. One of my favourite cars.
Hi Johnny!! And here I thought that you only worked on fancy luxury vehicles! 😊😊
Guys, please make more videos!
I know your customers come first! As they should!
Johnny, your are so good at what you do! Please give us more. Much ❤️
I used to see XR4TI's (what they called them in Canada) a fair bit but haven't seen any in well over a decade. Pity since they're a cool car, imo. Edit: I have since learned the Cosworth was Def an upgrade to the XR. TIL!
RS was an upgrade to the XR .... had the Escort XR3i (Mk 3 and Mk4) and upgrade was an RS1600i or later Escort RS Turbo :)
Same with Escort Mk5 XR3i was a sporty version (fwd ~~100 HP), then there was RS2000 (150 HP, still fwd) RS2000 4x4, and then there was the Escort RS Cosworth (4x4 Turbo longitudinaly mounted engine - basically a Sierra Cosworth 4x4 floor with Escort body on it )
It's nice to see Jonny having fun
I had one great trip over the pennines about 34 years ago. The fastest drive of my life. The cars brakes and suspension had to be replaced after the two hours of torture. The tyres were ripped to pieces. It took almost a full bottle of malt whisky to calm down.
2:34 that hoodie John was wearing is so dope!!! 👍🏻
My friend, I once had a Fiesta XR2i thought it was the fastest thing in Wales at the time, right up to the point I decided to race one of these dam Cosworth's. Yeah didn't end well for me !! Then had an escort RS. That thing moved ....
Ninja, my dream car is the newer one...1990-92 4 door Siera Sapphire Cosworth 4x4.
wow what a car epic to watch very well done
Closing in on 100k subs!
Very good camera work.
Thank you!
Jonny that’s awesome! What a car. I’m thinking they are just too valuable to get here in the states now 😢
In the UK also, rare as hen's teeth.
You are working on Fords and the wizard is working on Minis, is this opposite world we are living in now ?
Why not work on it. It’s just as European as any of the other cars that are in the shop.
Maybe you can buy it from him someday when he is ready to sell it. I remember seeing the merkur xr4ti variant of these and i liked them too and the rear spoilers they have.
I cannot believe you had a Ford Escort, even if you were a young man when you had it. Now look at you. I can at least say I had the coolest '67 VW Bug when I got my learners permit and followed by my drivers license. Now that was a shocker (the Escort)!
Jonny, your attention to detail is uncanny when doing work on any of the vehicles in your shop. Wish there were more mechanics around like this!
Great engine 👍 unbelievable condition 😎👌
When i was a young teen my mate dominico aka nico who's dad was the same name, his dad was a racer surname Nobel and in their garage in south london was a left hand drive metro 6r4, i didn't even touch it in fear he would lose his temper, and a very old vespa that was mint, was told that was just a small part of his collection, very hot tempered family but good people
I borrowed a Sierra Cosworth (4 door saloon version) for as my departure wedding car in 1993 - it was amazing to drive and of course I remember the day well!
Its funny I work on a lot of old german cars and was saying gee you know it would be nice to see Johnny do some old cars and the next day I see you got this literal unicorn in US delivered to you and I was like Fuck Yeah!
Good memories, my brother drove one likes this, his one was red. They were so popular in the rally cross in those days. This one looks to be in good condition.
That's a sweet looking Cossie.
I’d have never known you were Albanian… by the way my tool box matches yours but I have the tech 6725pdp
You can try to get one cause sometimes they are still on sale and in mint condition or in a state that will require a lot of love. Right now I know some that rebuild 2 of these to previous glory. Also the had gotten a LOTUS OMEGA , the fastest street car of the era in the early 90s based on a Opel / Vauxhall Omega.
Used to see many of these in the UK as i was growing up. Bit of a rare beast these are these days. Most of them have either met their fate rusting out at the back of a scrap yard somewhere or been crashed by its owners then recycled into cola cans and ikea furniture.
Worth between 100k and 500k now! 🥰
The 2010 UK scrappage scheme probably killed a few of these. It's a beautiful car. The Escort Cosworth is my favourite
@@Lukeywoodsey ha ha! You must be joking! (The scrappage scheme was not for valuable modern classics!) These cars are worth thousands! 😂🤣😂🤣
@@Lukeywoodsey You are 100% correct.
I watched a video from a different channel where the owner either submitted an FOI request or managed to get his hand on a breakdown of all the vehicles that were traded in.
The breakdown/charts he had showed everything from types of vehicle to the year the vehicle was first registered and some other information and he did find out that there were a lot of really old cars, collectable classics like some Alfa Romeo's and early BMWs which are highly desirable in this day and age that were traded in. It was a very small number which i cant remember off the top of my head but the guy was also talking about how bad it made the second hand or collectors market because there were less second hand cars on the market to be sold thus bumping the prices up on secondhand cars (where found) exponentially....
I think the end result was some 7000 cars were crushed with some 100-300 out of the 7000 possibly being collectable/classic cars.
One of the video creators arguments that some old boy that had bought the car when he was in his 20s or 30s might not know the value of his car as it stands today and just traded it in without really knowing what his car was worth on the market.
I'll have to see if i can find the video somewhere.
@@Lukeywoodsey I found the channel and the video... The channel is called *'Geoff Buys Cars'* - Video is called *"All the cars lost to the 2009 Scrappage Scheme - Someone scrapped these rarities?!"*
Geoff breaks down all the data he got from the DVLA regarding the cars scrapped in 2009
Not the car I'd thought would be your fav car. That said, it's a cool car. I love so many cars that I'm not sure what would be my "Holy grail". Maybe an Auburn Speedster 852 boattail.
You have the best taste my friend. In the UK an impeccable example of the rarer RS500 Cosworth has just sold for £596,000. Unbelievable!
Just needed some opera music and the Italian Alps and I'm sure we have seen Johnny cry tears of joy.
I had the family version with a 1,6l engine.
This Cosworth Turbo version was used successfully by Ford in various European Touring Car Championships. They even did a 4WD V6 version.
A low milage RS 500 version of the Cosworth Turbo recently sold at an auction for the rediculous amonunt of £109125 !
It was £596,250 it sold for actually.
Awesome! I have not seen one of those in years! Thanks Jonny!
Jonny, you were traveling 87 mph!
luckily still got mine :)
Crazy the cars we love from our past..
Saw one of these in Boulder, CO at a car enthusiast's house. Very nice.
Growing up i didn't like the way the car looked, but now that RS has massively grown on me. Hopefully you'll get one for yourself Ninja
I had a Ford Escort Mk II 1980 RS2000. Fast little car in its day. The RS Cosworth was a beast by comparison. Great cars!
2 very special cars, that cosworth is awesome, very rare for the US! State of the art! 🇦🇱 😎
Sadly only drove a Sierra 1800 but could only imagine driving the Cosworth....Also 140 kmh = 87mph.....
Nice car 👌🙂
The Australian Dick Johnson Cosworth Sierra's are THE best examples of the RS500 in racing form..... ever..
Anyone know what flashlight Johnnie uses?