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Making an Oil Pickup Pipe – Dave's Garage Zetec RWD Mk1 Escort Ep 1

Dave's Garage UK Zetec RWD Mk1 Escort – Episode 1 title card: DIY oil pickup pipe for the ST170 sump

A Zetec in a rear-drive Mk1 Escort sits the other way round from how Ford designed it, so the standard sump and oil pickup no longer fit. Dave’s Garage UK made a new sump for its Mk1, and this video covers the part inside it: a home-made oil pickup pipe for the 2.0-litre ST170 Zetec. It’s the first entry in the channel’s Zetec RWD playlist and was filmed to go alongside the sump video.

Video: Dave's Garage on YouTube · watch “Ford Escort MK1 MK2 DIY Zetec RWD Conversion Sump - Oil Pickup Pipe” on YouTube

What happens in Episode 1

Why make one from scratch (0:00). On a regular silver-top or black-top Zetec, Dave explains, the existing pickup can simply be lengthened. The ST170’s pickup doesn’t lend itself to modifying, so for this engine it’s better to start again. He adds that ready-made RWD sumps are expensive because they take so many hours to build, even though the materials are cheap, which is the case for doing it yourself.

The parts and the route (2:16). The strainer on the end is borrowed from the air-cooled 1.6 VW Beetle-type engine, and the pipe is steel tube of 16mm inside diameter with a 1.5mm wall. Holding them against the engine, he plans a route that comes off the oil pump, swings round clear of the crank’s big ends (leaving extra room, because the ST170’s are chunkier) and drops into the centre of the sump.

Making the flange (4:40). A cardboard template is cut around the pump’s pickup point, and the same shape will later be cut in gasket material. The flange is 6mm steel plate. To locate the bolt holes, he screws nuts onto cap-head bolts with a washer between them, welds the nuts to the washer, and clamps that to the plate as a drilling guide. He drills and bolts one hole before the second so it can’t swing, and the washer’s centre marks the oil hole. Only after a trial fit does he cut the flange out with a plasma cutter.

Bends and welding (10:56). A short, bevelled length of tube is welded under the flange and ground back so the cap-head bolts still seat. The tube gets a kick with a bender, which squashes it slightly, then a sharper turn made from two pieces cut at 45 degrees and welded together. A second bend brings the pipe to the centre of the sump with about 5mm of clearance.

Height, strainer and bracket (18:58). A strip of card trimmed to the sump’s depth becomes a gauge for cutting the pipe to length. The strainer pushes onto the end, and a bracket holds the assembly steady.

Testing still to come (21:14). The pipe runs under suction, so any pinhole will pull in air and froth the oil. Everything will be pressure tested on a rig and flushed out before it goes near the engine. As for the tight bends, he built a pickup the same way for an earlier car and says it never suffered oil starvation.

Parts, tools and suppliers mentioned

  • Ford ST170 2.0-litre Zetec engine and its oil pump
  • Oil strainer from an air-cooled 1.6 VW Beetle-type engine
  • Steel tube, 16mm inside diameter with a 1.5mm wall
  • 6mm steel plate for the flange, with gasket material for the joint
  • Cap-head bolts, nuts and a washer for the drilling guide
  • Plasma cutter and compressor, grinder, tube bender and welder
  • Retro Ford, named as a source of ready-made sumps

Lessons for your own Mk1

  • Check which Zetec you have first. On a silver-top or black-top, lengthening the original pickup may be all you need. The ST170 is the one that pushes you towards a scratch-built pipe.
  • Make the jig before the part. Welded nuts as drill guides, and drilling one hole and bolting it before the next, give a flange that lines up first time.
  • Leave room for the rotating parts. Plan the route around the big ends with the engine in front of you, and allow extra if your engine’s are bulky.
  • Treat the pickup as a vacuum line. Pressure test every weld and flush out the swarf before fitting; an air leak here aerates the oil.
  • Weigh the hours against the price. Ready-made RWD sumps are expensive because of the labour, not the material.

Mk1 context

The Mk1 Escort was built from the start as a front-engined, rear-drive car with its engine mounted north–south, from the Kent crossflow to the Twin Cam and the BDA. The Zetec was designed for front-wheel-drive Fords, which is why a rear-drive conversion needs its own sump, pickup and mounts, as this mini-series shows.

Mk1 EscortZetec