Episode 8 of Retropower’s Gordon Murray Mk1 build is the end of the dry build. The car sits on its wheels at ride height for the first time, and Gordon Murray visits to sit in it, check the controls and inspect the suspension Retropower designed for him, before it is stripped again for paint.
Video: Retropower on YouTube · watch “Gordon Murray's MK1 Escort - Retropower Build Episode 8” on YouTube
What happens in Episode 8
Wheels on (0:00). The point of the dry build is to check that everything fits and moves through its travel before paint. A bonus is seeing the car at ride height, which gives the team a lift. Last-minute jobs include sculpted corner gussets in the engine bay and a strut brace that threads between the bonnet reinforcement and the coil packs, both there because Gordon wanted a stiffer shell. One front wheel droops more than the other because the team is trying damper inserts of two lengths. Those mock-up struts will go to Nitron, who will build the real ones to those dimensions. At the back, simple steel dummy struts that can be lengthened locate the wheels.
Gordon arrives (4:01). Gordon looks over the finished metalwork. The wings are still screwed on, because the area behind them will be blasted and zinc sprayed before they’re welded on for good. The main changes he’s shown are the rear bulkhead, the strut turrets and the new dash.
Driving position (5:22). The team’s biggest worry is the instruments, which already sit lower than standard. Because the steel pod is separate from the dash, dropping them further would be simple. In the seat, Gordon asks for the steering wheel to move up about an inch and towards him by about three quarters of an inch, which also frees up clearance. He says that although his hip point is very low, forward vision and the view up to traffic lights are still good. The car may run without door mirrors.
Gear lever and pedals (9:02). The gear lever is a mock-up bent up the night before, with no reverse interlock fitted yet. Gordon finds the throw fine but wants the lever a bit closer, as he prefers to drop his hand down from the wheel rather than reach forward. The team will make the final lever from scratch. He also likes the thin-rimmed steering wheel. There are three harness mounting points, so the belts can run back separately or to a single point.
Engine bay (12:46). The strut brace was a tight fit. A full cross bar wasn’t possible, because the carbon airbox sits only about half an inch from the gussets once the trumpets and airbox are fitted.
Suspension review (14:09). The front is mostly off-the-shelf parts set up with camber adjustment at the strut. Gordon notices how thin the front anti-roll bar is and estimates that it gives only around 10 to 20% of the roll stiffness, against the 35 to 40% he’d expect on a sports car. He suggests testing it on the road, and the team says changing it later would be a small job.
The rear end (16:39). Gordon checks Retropower’s own independent rear suspension. He agrees that the load paths into the chassis rails, the rear brace and the turrets look sound. The designer says the camber change through the travel looks, by eye, like what the computer model predicted, and that the layout is compact in height. The driveshafts use Ford CV joints (the team mentions Mk3 Mondeo and Focus RS parts).
Next steps (20:04). The car is stripped again to finish the metalwork and seam brazing. It’s blasted again and gets the zinc spray before going to the bodyshop for paint prep.
Parts, tools and suppliers mentioned
- Mock-up front strut inserts of different lengths, and steel dummy rear struts
- Nitron, who will build the final struts
- Engine bay corner gussets and a strut brace
- Carbon airbox and throttle trumpets
- Separate fabricated steel instrument pod
- Thin-rimmed steering wheel, mock-up gear lever, three harness mounting points
- Ford CV joints on the driveshafts
Lessons for your own Mk1
- Sit the owner in the car before paint. Moving a steering column or gear lever is easy now and hard later.
- Mock up struts to set the travel, then have a specialist build the final dampers to those lengths.
- Leave the wings bolted on until the hidden areas behind them are protected.
- Watch space in the engine bay. Airboxes and intakes limit where bracing can go.
- Treat anti-roll bar choice as a road-test item, not just a number on paper.
Mk1 context
A standard Mk1 Escort uses a live rear axle on leaf springs, so the strut-type independent rear end Gordon inspects here is a complete departure from the original layout.
Related
- Series hub: all Retropower Gordon Murray Mk1 episodes
- Background: the complete history of the Mk1 Ford Escort
- More builds on video: Mk1 Escort build videos