Tuning the Ford Escort

"We'll Escort you off the premises?"

The Escort is one of Fords most successful and certainly the longest running Ford model around. The Mark 1 escort included a super powerful rally derived Mexico model.

The mark 1s around today usually have had the later sierra 2.0 engines installed which works really well through the rear drive transmission.

Although some owners have managed to wire and plumb in a Cosworth unit.

The XR3 one of the first hot hatches and this evolved into the XR3i with the addition of fuel injection. The RS turbo came along with a turbo charged version of the original engine.

Later incarnations of the escort include the RS2000 based on the smoother 2.0 engine putting down 150bhp. A Cosworth unit powered the pinnacle of Escorts with way out in your face styling and four wheel drive. This was sadly the last of the performance escorts, as the range has been superseded by the Focus.

Although the Escort was replaced by the Focus, you will still find some die hard Escort fans around. There are still plenty of Escort tuning mods around for pretty much any engine size.

Stick to the later fuel injected 1.6 and greater engines for the best base to work from. Most owners add a sports exhaust and induction kit.

Bigger power gains come from engine swaps with the RS2000 and Cosworth engines providing the ultimate conversion donors.

FSE fuel boost valves will improve the throttle response. Fast road cams will also unleash some power from even the most docile of Escort engines.

Handling is often criticised, especially on the earlier models. Get some adjustable suspension and you will have a really fun track day car on your hands.

Read through our tuning articles for tips and pointers of the best modifications. We also highlight the downsides and pitfalls of many popular modifications.

Join us in the forum to discuss all aspects of Escort car ownership and modification. We have quite a few tuners who cut their tuning teeth on the Escort engines.