1986 Merkur XR4Ti - SOLD!
The idea behind buying this car was to be cheap, economical transport to my job. I currently drive the Dodge Ramcharger seen in picture two, which drinks gas like it has a raging thirst. I chose the Merkur because it reminds me of England, since it was sold there in vast numbers as a Ford Sierra. However, all was not well with the Merkur, and those who know me will know I cannot resist taking things apart.
This car has since been sold, however I am leaving this page up for the benefit of other Merkur owners.
Click on the pictures to enlarge...
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| In this view, it doesn't look too bad. The body has it's fair share of little dents. The Merkur was only offered in the "4-pillar" body style the same as the Sierra XR4i. | This view isn't so flattering. The drivers door had blown open at some stage and creased. Look at the horrible headlamps the US-spec cars have. | Another important difference is the engine. US Sierras had only one option : a 2.3 turbocharged 4 cylinder rated at 175bhp. |
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| The gearbox was noisy, so Toni and I took it out, and I rebuilt it with the aid of a Capri Haynes manual. This picture was taken just before I though "am I going to get this thing back together?" | I only removed one screw and it all fell apart, honest! The original dashboard was cracked, so I took it out and replaced it with another sourced from a scrapyard. | It's a lot easier to change a door with the dashboard out, so here is the car minus the drivers door. |
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| Here is the "new" door, which cost $100 from a junkyard. It did come with a mirror, glass, and electric window motor, which I could probably sell on eBay. | Here is the interior coming back together. I used some FoliaTec grey interior paint on the dashboard to brighten things up. I also gave the instrument surround a coat of black paint to make it look new again. The light grey colour looks so much like the half leather Recaro seats that were fitted to the Capri 2.8i Special. Hmmm... I wonder if they would fit in my hand luggage next time I go back to England? | |
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| Here is finished dashboard. Hidden behind the standard speaker grilles are a pair of 5x7" Kenwood two way speakers. The old Pioneer radio that was fitted when I bought the car gave way to a newer Pioneer CD player. | Another view of the dashboard. This freshly painted dash makes the rest of the interior look crap, but I can freshen the rest of it up as time and money allow. | What happened here? The engine is missing all of it's intake and exhaust systems. I tore it down to investigate some rough running problems. |
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| The Merkur 2.3 engine suffers the same problems as the Capri 2.0 engine. They both wear out camshafts. This cam will be replaced with a roller camshaft from a Ford Ranger pickup truck. | What are all these bits? Click on the picture to find out. Everything was either cleaned or replaced as necessary. | The exhaust manifold had cracked from the intense heat from the turbo. The cracks are highlighted in yellow. This is an "E6" manifold, which is supposed to be less prone to cracking. |
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| The turbo looked fine from the outside, no play in the shaft, and the compressor wheel seems in good condition. | However, the exhaust housing is starting to crack (shown in yellow). Not serious, but I'd rather replace it sooner than later. | Worn stock camshaft replaced with roller camshaft from a junkyard Ford Ranger. |
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| Cleaned lower intake manifold, fitted with new fuel pressure regulator and professionally cleaned injectors. | Intake side of the engine is coming together. | T3/T4 hybrid turbo fitted to Thunderbird Turbocoupe exhaust manifold. |