Well, thats the last time I buy a car off of eBay without looking at it first.
The eBay listing described the car as having the Zetec 2.0ltr engine fitted. Last weekend we began work on the car and it became apparent immediately that this was bull:censored:... The engine mount brackets on the chassis didn't even line up with the car, the brackets themselves were just tacked in place, the chassis had been grinded into poorly and not welded up again and the whole 'subframe' that the previous owner had bodged together to attempt to make this engine fit was unbelievely unsafe. It was obvious the guy had had a go at making the zetec fit, realised he couldn't do it and tried to sell it on. The only reason we didn't notice this was because he told us the engine was loose in because he had to remove it to get his gearbox out. Unfortunately I am too trusting and have now paid a rather hefty price. I have opened a dispute with PayPal and although they agree with my claim, apparently they cannot retreive any money from him account which makes me question the point of me spending £50 extra for protection. Anyway!!! I am not a quitter! And luckily my pal is awesome at fabrication...
Here is the 🤬🤬🤬 engine mount brackets that the previous owner had 'fabricated'
Here is a video of my friend pulling the welds off after cutting the tubular section out...
The car came with a sheet stainless steel floor which weighed an absolute tonne, this was stripped out and there was found to be no chassis rails or anywhere to bolt the seats to, so this will need to be rectified before I put in a lovely carbon fiber floor.
I think the picture above, my friend is starting to regret helping me with this project.
The picture below shows one of the rear coilovers. Anyone who knows what they are looking at here will spot the issue. The coilover mounts should be facing the laser line, which is where the bushes align on the suspension. The tool who had built the car this far, however, was clearly unaware of this. Also, the mounts themselves look way too weak. Another thing to rectify!
And on with the build!
So this is currently where the car is at the minute. The engine is sitting on blocks of wood on the floor, but it is all aligned with the differential and is exactly where it needs to be in the car, which makes our job of welding in a subframe a hell of a lot easier. I have just ordered loads of box section and tubular mild steel to refabricate the front end and strengthen the rest of the chassis too, so when this is done it'll be strong enough to handle the ~300BHP from the turbo engine. Work resumes after christmas
