formula ford advice please

[puddle jumper]

Hi all, I'm hoping that I can get some information from your goodselves regarding which way to go purchasing and running a formula ford for the 2009 season.
We've heard so many conflicting stories about kents, duratecs and zetecs i.e running costs, cost of parts and so on, that we are uncertain which way to go.
Our budget is around £5000-6000 for a complete and ready to go car, but a bit of a project would be considered. We are looking to do a full semsec season at lydden and brands, but also want the option to look at other club racing i.e 750 monoposto and other racing.
We've heard that the ff1600 kent engines are now getting expensive to rebuild and obtain parts for, and that the duratecs and the zetecs are becoming more popular and is the way to go. Is this correct?
Also, we're led to believe that the duratec unit will only sit in a newer chassis from about 2000 onwards so would put us out of our budget. Again, is this correct?
The zetec seems to be the more viable option from what we've heard, but we wanted to see if anyone has any advice or indeed experience of the above and can point us in the right direction.
We've run in fv's in the past so mechanically we have some knowledge!
Looking to purchase asap, any info greatly appreciated

Thanks all.

[JohnMiller]

Originally Posted by puddle jumper

We've heard that the ff1600 kent engines are now getting expensive to rebuild and obtain parts for, and that the duratecs and the zetecs are becoming more popular and is the way to go.

Kent motors have become a little pricier to rebuild, but most reports of scarcity and cost are exaggerated. When you consider Ford built something 28,000,000 of these engines, they really aren't that scarce.

Also, there must be about ten plus Zetecs racing competitively in the UK, compared to over 250 Kents so I think I know where the popularity is.

[FFmygale]

Yep, Kent engined cars are certainly the most popular of all formula fords (by a wide margin!) but by the sounds of things, with you looking to do the Semsec championship, a Zetec would probably be your best bet. Of all 3 types of FF, Zetecs are probably the best value (as John says, due to the lack of demand for them) and in the main the engines (and the electronics) are pretty bullet proof.

[Pink Panther]

You might consider Classic Formula Ford 1600. Its very competitive and great value for money.

It is administered by the BARC with 10 rounds at top UK tracks as well as Lydden & Brands Hatch.

Good quality drivers and very close clean racing. A good selection of cars available and a very friendly club ready and willing to offer advice and assistance.

It fits with you budget and also allows you to do the Formula Ford festival, Carnival and WHT knock-out events.

If you are interested follow the links below and contact the club. Hope to see you on the grid in 2009.

Andy

For General Information see http://www.classicformulaford.com/

For details see;
http://www.classicformulaford.com/CF...yer%202008.pdf

[driftwood]

If you are looking at running in SEMSEC the FFords do not yet run in a stand alone race they are in with the open wheeler sereis with thier own clas
so you have 2 options
1 is to buy a kent car and help promote the FFord series down there so it has its own race ten later you can have abash at any FFord kent seresi that drops into Brands and do the FFfestival and then the WHT in Nov at silverstone for abit of fun
2 buy a Zetec car cos they are cheap motors are 6 7 800 ish as a few zetec cars mainly VD99-02 cars have been made into kent cars so lots of motors around and you can run at Lydden and have some fun with teh 5 or 6 similr cars running in FFord kent/zetcs
Then later you can easily convert the car to run kent motor if you want to do more kent races
OR leave it as Zetec and run some Mono /F4 races in theor zetec/1800 classes
OR add wings make a F4 / Monoposto car and still do some SEMSEC open wheels races

how much money do you have to spend on a car

I have kent engine VD2000 for sale if it doesnt sell i will run it in some SEMSEC events next year
also Mygale 99 2000 zetec coming up around £6500 = a lot of choice for the money

[puddle jumper]

Thanks for all the advice and input from everyone, it's been a great help.

We have pretty much concluded that the zetec route is going to be our best option. The kent cars are going to be out of our budget for the time being and with the running costs being substantially less for the zetec overall it seems the sensible route.

So, we are on the look out for a zetec for around £4-6000, preferably ready to go but if it needs a bit of TLC, that's viable. The only problem that might arise is a height issue! I'm 6ft 2, so a chassis that accomodates the taller driver is vital. If you know of a car available you can PM me or leave details here and we'll get back to you.

Thanks again.

[driftwood]

aha now 6ft 2 does create another issue of fitting into cars are you of slim build or a bit chubby as the width will also cause a problem
im 5ft 10 but 95 kg and i struggled to drive mygale2001 car ( elbows to side chassis rail stopped me getting opposite lock quickly- but was fine in VD2k hence why i bought one

May i be so bold and suggest that you literally go and sit in as many cars as you can just like trying on shoes dont even bother to worry about make price etc just sit in see what you do and dont fit THEN start to think of i like that red car over the blue car etc

I have VD2000 car coming home at weekend yr welcome to come sit in it
Car will be down in sussex

[FFmygale]

Likewise, I have a Mygale sitting here. you are welsome to come and try it for size if you are anywhere near me (Herts). However I agree with Driftwood that the cockpit on a VD does feel slightly wider than the Mygale - although the Mygale should be fine length wise - a couple of previous drivers have been 6 footers.

[HH Tech]

Hello
Here is an older Swift for sale in Sweden it has probably done a lot fewer races than the UK cars.
http://rejsa.nu/forum/viewtopic.php?...t=formula+ford
Asking price is 75000sek with spares, owner claims that fitting a 190cm driver is no problem
Henrik

[SAMD]

By the look of things this guy wasn't too impressed by the ad!!

Hej! Vet inte om du fick mitt förra meddelande. Har en kompis som är intresserad av bilen. Hur är längden i sittbrunnen? Får en 193 cm-gubbe plats?

Mvh

Jörgen

I'm glad I aint racing him!

[Gavin4BRM]

I read with interest about the steadily inflating price of Ford Kent engine parts. I am finally coming to grips with the idea that I will not race my car again competitively, A Mondiale M88S. Therefore I am selling a lot of my spares ie. Cylinder Head, Cams, Crank, Carb & manifold, Dizzy, Rods etc.
I am looking for a rediculous low price and have placed all items on a well known auction site. Contact me if interested or just bid.

[Gavin4BRM]

I am 6'3" tall and during my 10+ years of racing drifted between 80-90kgs. I originally had a Royale but needed something faster. The newer generation of cars were decidedly narrow and short of leg room. I eventually settled for a Mondiale, the older 87 and the 88,89 & 90 are all most suitable, mine being an M88S. I was very happy and extremely comfortable in my car and ended up leading the Champion of Cadwell from the off. I lead for the entire season as well as winning the BRSCC(N) open Wheel Championship.

[Triple J Motorsport]

You can fit tall guys into the SJ00 - onwards by moving the wheel and pedals

this does mean the gear level is not readily to hand (it's means moving your hand back a number of inches) you get used to it but it's not ideal and your right elbow gets black and blue.