Hi guy's, has anyone heard of a guy in California building a Pinto with a 1.9 Dual o/h cam Cosworth motor? I saw it on a site once but I can't remember what it was. I looked for on different sites but no luck. Wondering if he ever got it done and how it turned out.
little thunder
I do not have the history on the Pinto application. But I thought you might be interested in looking at a Cosworth engine on ebay. Looks like it is from a Merkur.
http://cgi.ebay.ca/Cosworth-16v-turbo-engine-package-Merkur-xr4ti-kit-car_W0QQitemZ270070188662QQihZ017QQcategoryZ33614QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
The pinto I'm talking about was being built by someone in Cal. not a production piece. I think all the Merkur's were built with 2.3T motors. The Escort GT used a detuned version in 88. I believe his Cosworth was from England, this would be the 224 H.P. one without the turbo. Thanks for the reply though.
little thunder
I may be the guy you're asking about, blue thunder; however, I'm in Texas. The Cosworth I'm building for my Pinto is a 2.0 production engine on Webers I bought from Cosworth in Torrance, CA a few years ago. The Pinto is a 74/trunk model. I've been working on it in my spare time (and with spare change) for a few years.
It is totally disassembled right now, but the components are as follow: 4-wheel disc brakes by Wilwood, mini quick-change rear and hubs by Speedway Engineering with matching front hubs, Koni shocks, Heidt's tubular front a-arms, Landrum leaf springs, ADDCO sway bars front and rear, custom 6-point roll cage, all aluminum dash and some interior panels, Corbeau roadrace/rally seats and harnesses, ATL fuel cell, and custom everything else. About the only thing left that's "Pinto" is the body shell and glass.
I have yet to purchase the transmission I want, which is a Quaife-modified 4-speed. I haven't yet settled on wheels, but I'm leaning towards Compomotive wheels with the vintage "minilite" look. Until I get the front end back under the car, I am not able to properly measure for backspacing. Compomotive offers a wide range of backspacing alternatives in the sizes I'll need.
I promised myself that I'd finish the thing someday, but time and money are elusive at times. I'm at a bit of a standstill until the transmission is here. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I should log on more often and will again until the "Cosworth Pinto" story dies down again. Paul
Sorry, little thunder, I called you "blue thunder" by mistake. Althugh it has a nice ring, it wasn't your name. I should clean my glasses before I read this forum. My apologies again. Paul
post up some pictures!
Heh cossiepinto I'm a little slow checking sometimes myself, glad to see I wasn't imagining it. Would ,ike to see more pics if you have some only had one of the engine in the car. How fast do you think it'll be when you're done both drag and top end. You can e-mail me if you like. thanks, little thunder
Little Thunder,
I have the car completely apart, down to the shell right now, so I don't think pics would be that interesting at this point. I just finished the aluminum work in the back seat area and am trying to finish any welding in the tub (fuel cell mounting, for example) before taking it to get the interior/trunk area "rhino-lined".
I'm also working on reassembling the suspension. I have a Speedway Engineering mini quick-change rear end under the car (4:11 primary/4:86 optional high/3:48 optional low) and I'm finishing up the swaybar mounts. The front end is Heidt's tube type a-arms with standard spring/shock arrangement. I bought Koni single-adjustable shocks from Racer Walsh awhile back for all four corners and will use them. I promise once I get the suspension under the car I'll take a few pics to show the progress.
At this point, I'm just piddling with it, waiting for permission from the Dept. of Finance (aka, my lovely bride) to release more funds, so I can purchase a few big ticket items (Quaife gearbox, wheels and tires, etc).
As far as top speed goes, I guess it will depend on the gearing. Right now I have the quick-change at 3:48, so I figure it'll pull on up to 120 or so. If I can keep the weight down to under 2200 pounds, I think acceleration should be in the six-seconds-to-60 mph range.
Paul
Heh Paul, I think you underestimated top speed. Useing an old Moroso slide scale, if it'll pull 7000 in high with a 24 plus inch tall tire you're looking at 140 mph or more. I'll be watching for the update and good luck.
little thunder
Little Thunder,
You're right about top speed, but I'm estimating on the conservative side. I don't think 135-140 is out of the question with no headwind and plenty of room, but I wouldn't want to overstate and then not be able to back it up, except in theory. The engine was rated at 205 horsepower with the hydraulic valvetrain head, but I wanted to lower the compression a little from 12:1, so I swapped for some Cosworth flat tops (nominally 10.5:1) with the Cosworth folks. I want to be able to gas up on 91-92 octane at the local Stop'n'Rob and still run the recommended timing advance. Also, Cosworth supplied the engine with Weber 50DCO/SP carbs, again a bit much for the lower compression and street driveablility, so I traded for some 45 DCOEs. Those two changes might have dropped the engine to the 190 horsepower range, but with much better throttle response for everyday driving. I hope the thing won't run out of breath in top gear as it tries to pull to redline (7,500), but it might. The quickchange rear will help me with quickness to whatever top speed I can muster. Right now at 3.48 (26:22 gears) it'll run fairly easily about town and on the road. The 4.86 (22:26) alternative would be for autocross only. I am picking up a set of 24:24 gears for the QC so I can use the 4.11 primary ratio, too. That gear would make it easier to pull all the way to redline in a reasonable amount of road and still give me 130+.
Update: I dropped the front strut rods and sway bar brackets off at the powdercoating guy today. They'll be ready by the weekend, and those are the last two things I needed to prep before putting the front end back under the car. Once I get that done, the car should be a bit more worth snapping a picture or two of, so I'll figure out how to post them here then.
Regards to all, Paul
I am so looking forward to the pics as it progresses. I have a drag pinto with a 2.3 5 speed, not a killer car but fun when not working on it. Have pics on your racer subject 75 pinto.
little thunder
Little Thunder,
Your car looks neat. Always great to see a Pinto racing. Pics should come soon. I got the front end parts back from the powder coater yesterday.
Paul a.k.a cosworth pinto guy
Heh , whats up with that cossie Pinto. Is it running yet, was hoping for an update.
little thunder
Back in the 80s Ben Ma (RJ Simrock driving) bought this Focus with a turbo 2.0 cossie from a fellow in England,
The car went a 7.31 186.0
Sure got the Import guy's attention quick!
(http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/ca/reviews/20031028/peterson5f.jpg)