Buying Mk1 Esky. (new toy).

[at42]

Hi guy's, been checking out the forum and have found heaps of great info. Here goes - first time. HOLD MY HAND! Currently looking at 71 2 door. Can't get into car or under bonnet as the owner is out of town but have spoken to him on the phone. 1600 motor with Weber d/draft and extractors supposedly rebuilt 3 or 4 years ago. 4spd box , 15" alloy 5spokes / 195 50 15 tyres, horrible faded red interior (needs replacing), has front bumperettes, 3 50mm rust spots Lower front quarter panels & below tail light,car is reasonably straight & paint ok. 70,000 miles on clock. Unrego. Stored 3years. Everything works.
Now for the questions :
- How do I tell between 1100 / 1300/ 1600 motors? or do I have to pull motor down.
- Is a Cortina motor & Escort/Capri motor different? From what I've read on the forum they don't come with 1600.
- Anywhere else I should check for rust?
- Anything else I need to look for before I hand over the cash? ($1700).

Cheers
at42
Mackay, Qld

[whooligan]

The casting number on the side of the block (usually starts with 711M....) should end with AA for 1100/1300 or BA for a 1600. The 1600 is noticably taller, about 1 inch showing above the water pump. The engines are essentially the same, except the early Cortinas had a front bowl sump and different pick up.
They are old cars so they rust everywhere. Just have a good look and feel around everywhere you can imagine dirt and road grime can get stuck. Heater bowl, bulkhead, base of a-pillar inside, top of guards outside etc, etc.
Haggle him down if you can. I've bought cars with RW and rego for less than that. Tell him you really want a 1975 model (as this is the model with the revised suspension), this indicates to him that you know a bit more than actually do. If he thinks you know what you are talking about, he is more likely to be honest with you.

[at42]

thanks whooligan for your response,I'm not fully up to speed with my prices @ model options yet.Have some books arriving soon. I've been causually looking for a while now but not to many around Mackay Nth Qld area and freighting from the capitals tends to blow the price out a bit.Guess I got excited when one popped up in front of me.Maybe I should keep looking?.I want to do the whole 2.0lt,webers,brake@suspension package and after reading the forum Im more motivated

[bongo007]

Originally Posted by whooligan

The casting number on the side of the block (usually starts with 711M....) should end with AA for 1100/1300 or BA for a 1600.

Hi, i bought an mk1 escort panel van a while back. Owner said it was 1600, but i checked the block now and it says AA at the end... does that mean its not a 1600 for sure?

EDIT: Oh, the plate on the car says "L" under the engine... in my haynes restoration book it says that "L" engine was 1599, hence my confusion...

[whooligan]

Originally Posted by bongo007

Hi, i bought an mk1 escort panel van a while back. Owner said it was 1600, but i checked the block now and it says AA at the end... does that mean its not a 1600 for sure?

EDIT: Oh, the plate on the car says "L" under the engine... in my haynes restoration book it says that "L" engine was 1599, hence my confusion...

Unless you are posting from England or you car is an early 1968/69 Escort the "L" refers to the vin plate stamp number on UK cars only. The mk 1 Escort van was never fitted with a 1600 from the factory (as far as I know) but it was a common swap and straightforward swap. Check the gap btwn the water pump and the bottom of the head as described in my last post. If they are virtually touching its definately a 1100/1300.

[orangemk1]

i pulled the motor out of my 1.6litre mk2 escort a couple of weeks ago i had a look at the number printed on the side of the block is 711M6016AA does this mean its a 1300/1100?
thanks lawrence

[whooligan]

I'm afraid to say, yes.
This is what I've always thought to be the case, but I just checked my workshop manuals and found some more info on vin plate engine codes. "L" was used to denote the 1300 engine while "D" for the 1600 from 1975-1977 (Mk 2 Escorts.) After 1977 the 1300 was dropped and the code for the 1600 became "E." I'll have to check the Mk 1s once the rain stops.....both my cars are out in the weather.
Its probably worth hanging on to the 1300 if you intend to build a performance x-flow. The vast majority of engines in escorts were 1600 x-flows, so if you were to grab a decent 1600 block and wack in the 1300 pistons/rods you instantly increase the capacity to 1750 (i think).....Never bothered doing it myself. This is a common mod and is still popular in the UK with the old skool guys. Personally, I prefer the 2.0lt Pintos after driving them for nearly 20 years, but a nicely tuned 1600 x-flox in a lightweight Mk 1 would give most modern buzz-boxes a fair old schlacking at the lights.