Saturday 9 July 2011
Friday 8 July 2011
rs cosworth buyers guide
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TIPS FOR BUYING A USED EXAMPLE
by turbo tech
The first thing to ask anyone selling an RS500 is what the chassis number/vehicle identification number is. This is located on the front slam panel and under a plastic flap beside the driver’s seat. This number must read WFOEXXGBBEGG , RS500’s have unique chassis no’s they are a run of 500 in consecutive order GG38600 through GG39099 this will be either Stamped into (Down) or Pressed from below (UP) ,both are genuine Ford methods, This is not the Tickford 1-500 list , that list was in order of what cars Tickford put through first , I:e No 001 is not chassis 38600 likewise no 500 is not 39099 so quite random as you can see If it is not in that range of numbers, it is not an RS500.
There are only three colours, black, white and moonstone blue. Any other colour has been painted by someone else and not Ford. Don’t listen to anyone who tries to tell you it’s a one off Ford made because it is not true. Also, all RS500’s had sunroofs and all were right hand drive "we know of one car that was converted to left hand drive a the owners request once it had left FMC" . If it’s anything else then it was built out of parts and ask yourself, where did they come from?
Other things to look for are original spoilers, i.e. front bumper and splitters, rear upper spoiler. Engine parts - eight injectors, big turbo, and horseshoe shaped turbo damper, massive intercooler 73.5cm x 42 cm (29” x 16) smaller core plugs approximately 7/8” diameter. To check it’s an original engine, the GG and five digit number is stamped into a flat plate on the side of the block behind the alternator. If it’s not there, then take off the cam belt cover and look down between the thermostat housing and cam belt tensioner, where there should be stamped the YBD number. This is Cosworth’s identification number. RS500’s are designated YBD and this number should fall between YBD 0015 and YBD 0537. These numbers are not in any order and some are missing. If the YBD number is not present, then questions should be asked.
All Cosworth engines are fitted with hardened valve seat inserts and can therefore run continuously on unleaded fuel. With ordinary unleaded petrol it is necessary to retard the ignition by 4 Degrees. A power loss of approximately 10 bhp will be experienced after the ignition is retarded. Retarding the ignition may not be necessary if the engine is always run on Super Unleaded fuel (97RON or above).
The Cylinder head was also modified, having locating dowel’s on the inlet side, and slightly larger inlet ports.
Parts are becoming very hard to find. Ford themselves have no front bumpers, splitters or rear upper spoilers, no turbos, injector plenums or engine blocks, no interiors or dashes. These parts have to be found from other sources and people can name their price. For example, front bumpers are £1000 plus.
There aren’t very many problems with RS500’s, mostly the same as any Cosworth - check for smoky exhaust, this could be valve seals or turbo seals and bearings. Noisy gearbox, steering shake under braking, warped discs, no rust yet to speak of unless from accident damage.
A full service history is a must, but don’t just rely on the service book as anybody can get one stamped up in order to sell a car. Receipts for everything are the best guide, from services to oil changes, down to a light bulb.
Modifications are a minefield. There are just too many to go into here but whether you want a standard car or a modified car, the same principles cover both. If it is highly modified get a full engine build list, also details of what’s been done to the brakes and suspension.
After all that, which colour? Most people think that white is the rarest colour but in fact it is moonstone blue. Although there were four white prototypes, these prototypes were not planned for general sale but destruction after homologation approval was received however all 4 made their way in to general circulation. At the time of writing all 4 prototypes are still on the road.
The white and moonstone blue are in limited numbers, this is reflected in the price now never use to be back in the day as people believe it or not many did not like moonstone i remember seeing Moonstone cars in the back of Rally News and other motoring mags where they were priced £1000's below the other two colorus today though there desirable and the price reflects this again condition dictates and the buyers preference also ,recently a Black car sold for well over £40000 so for the right car there are buyers waiting no matter what colour .
The first thing to ask anyone selling an RS500 is what the chassis number/vehicle identification number is. This is located on the front slam panel and under a plastic flap beside the driver’s seat. This number must read WFOEXXGBBEGG , RS500’s have unique chassis no’s they are a run of 500 in consecutive order GG38600 through GG39099 this will be either Stamped into (Down) or Pressed from below (UP) ,both are genuine Ford methods, This is not the Tickford 1-500 list , that list was in order of what cars Tickford put through first , I:e No 001 is not chassis 38600 likewise no 500 is not 39099 so quite random as you can see If it is not in that range of numbers, it is not an RS500.
There are only three colours, black, white and moonstone blue. Any other colour has been painted by someone else and not Ford. Don’t listen to anyone who tries to tell you it’s a one off Ford made because it is not true. Also, all RS500’s had sunroofs and all were right hand drive "we know of one car that was converted to left hand drive a the owners request once it had left FMC" . If it’s anything else then it was built out of parts and ask yourself, where did they come from?
Other things to look for are original spoilers, i.e. front bumper and splitters, rear upper spoiler. Engine parts - eight injectors, big turbo, and horseshoe shaped turbo damper, massive intercooler 73.5cm x 42 cm (29” x 16) smaller core plugs approximately 7/8” diameter. To check it’s an original engine, the GG and five digit number is stamped into a flat plate on the side of the block behind the alternator. If it’s not there, then take off the cam belt cover and look down between the thermostat housing and cam belt tensioner, where there should be stamped the YBD number. This is Cosworth’s identification number. RS500’s are designated YBD and this number should fall between YBD 0015 and YBD 0537. These numbers are not in any order and some are missing. If the YBD number is not present, then questions should be asked.
All Cosworth engines are fitted with hardened valve seat inserts and can therefore run continuously on unleaded fuel. With ordinary unleaded petrol it is necessary to retard the ignition by 4 Degrees. A power loss of approximately 10 bhp will be experienced after the ignition is retarded. Retarding the ignition may not be necessary if the engine is always run on Super Unleaded fuel (97RON or above).
The Cylinder head was also modified, having locating dowel’s on the inlet side, and slightly larger inlet ports.
Parts are becoming very hard to find. Ford themselves have no front bumpers, splitters or rear upper spoilers, no turbos, injector plenums or engine blocks, no interiors or dashes. These parts have to be found from other sources and people can name their price. For example, front bumpers are £1000 plus.
There aren’t very many problems with RS500’s, mostly the same as any Cosworth - check for smoky exhaust, this could be valve seals or turbo seals and bearings. Noisy gearbox, steering shake under braking, warped discs, no rust yet to speak of unless from accident damage.
A full service history is a must, but don’t just rely on the service book as anybody can get one stamped up in order to sell a car. Receipts for everything are the best guide, from services to oil changes, down to a light bulb.
Modifications are a minefield. There are just too many to go into here but whether you want a standard car or a modified car, the same principles cover both. If it is highly modified get a full engine build list, also details of what’s been done to the brakes and suspension.
After all that, which colour? Most people think that white is the rarest colour but in fact it is moonstone blue. Although there were four white prototypes, these prototypes were not planned for general sale but destruction after homologation approval was received however all 4 made their way in to general circulation. At the time of writing all 4 prototypes are still on the road.
The white and moonstone blue are in limited numbers, this is reflected in the price now never use to be back in the day as people believe it or not many did not like moonstone i remember seeing Moonstone cars in the back of Rally News and other motoring mags where they were priced £1000's below the other two colorus today though there desirable and the price reflects this again condition dictates and the buyers preference also ,recently a Black car sold for well over £40000 so for the right car there are buyers waiting no matter what colour .
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