The Early Years
I have owned XMT 441G since 1987 when I paid £300 for it.   It started life as an 1100 Super but when I got it the engine was a 1300 GT Kent crossflow.  It was fitted with a pair of Cibie Super Oscars and a pair of Corbeau bucket seats.  The front struts and discs were from a Capri.

One of the first things I did was to fit a 6-dial dash with crashpad and an RS 3-spoke steering wheel.  During the next six months I had fitted a 1600 engine and was pleased to discover that it was not only quicker but more economical too.
The car sat too high for my liking so the suspension was the next thing to change.  Over the next couple of months I modified the suspension as follows:-

This was how I drove it for the next couple of years until yet another exhaust manifold cracked.  Rather than replace it I decided to remove the engine and gearbox and tidy up the angine bay.  This took me about eight years!!!  During this time I bought several cars one of them was YGC 975G which you can read about here.

After I removed the tuned crossflow from YGC 975G I stripped it down, de-glazed the bores, fitted new piston rings and put it all back together.   This was then fitted into XMT 441G and the car MOT'd and taxed.  The car was run for several hundred miles gradually increasing the maximum revs.  Unfortunately the engine started blowing oil out of the breather and dipstick tube.  A quick compression check revealed that it only had 130psi on all four cylinders.  This seemed to indicate that the bores are too worn/out of shape so I planned to prepare a spare block.  In the interim I fitted the engine from a 1600 Ghia Mk2.

The planned rebuild never happened. I was offered an injected pinto from Granada. This appealed because it would be a reliable and economical 115bhp. In the end I sold the tuned crossflow and the spare block to my friend Phil who persevered and got it all rebuilt and fitted to his Escort. You can read about Phil's car here.

Brakes
The rear brakes were uprated by fitting 9" drums from a 1600 Ghia Mk2.   The front brakes consist of 4-pot Princess calipers and Goodridge braided hoses operated by a Mexico pedal box.  I chose not to use a servo because, in my opinion, the brakes have more feel without one. I certainly don't regret it. The brakes have proved easy to use and anyone who has driven the car has agreed. Phil even removed the servo from his Escort.


part 2 The Track Day

part 3 The Current Setup

part 4 Bodywork repairs