Hi Paul, and welcome to the forum! There’s quite a few Gp2 Escorts Racing, but the spec varies considerably. To my knowledge, there is only one genuine ex Zakspeed Mk1 running in original 1974/5 spec, and that lives in the UK. The owner is Ben Gill, but it mostly races in Europe in the Peter Auto Heritage Touring Cup. Ben did also race it in the HSCC ‘Escort only’ race at Brands last year, and possibly may enter their similar races at Brands and Cadwell this year.
The big problem with trying to replicate a period car is that the specification would quite likely have changed as it was developed, or rules changed. Most of the Gp2 Escorts racing, including mine, are built to a straightforward spec using off the shelf components. Fibresports ‘Zakspeed’ fibreglass arches (instead of ‘bubble’ rally versions) were available, and hopefully still are. You also need to be careful not to copy something done in period that was in fact illegal, as if you want the car to be compliant now, and be able to complete in FIA events, it needs to be as the rules said it should be, not how it actually was.....
You’re asking an awful lot of technical questions at once. It would probably help to slow down a bit and start with the basics. The cage is the first bit to get right, and it will have to meet modern regs. It won’t be allowed to strengthen chassis suspension mounts, and a plastic boot floor is definitely not allowed.... A lot of people have spent a lot of time looking for proof of ‘this and that’ based on period anecdotal evidence, and if they had found it, it would be in common use. So if something isn’t, it’s likely that there is no proof....
As Tel says, you need to decide what level of competition the car is going to be used for before starting work. Then, and especially if you’re wanting an FIA compliant car, you need to look at as many as possible. If you’re able to visit Norfolk at any point, feel free to ask to have a look round mine.
