FIESTA DUO
What do you get when you mix red and blue together? If you’re anything like Ed Spencer, the answer is a startling blur of horsepower…
Two Mk5s, two inspiring and very clever engine swaps...
The red vs. blue debate is one that’s been posing an interesting head-scratcher for generations. We’re not talking politically, but psychologically; whereas so much of life is black-and-white, yin-andyang, clearly defined by polar opposites, there’s a lot more to think about when you consider red and blue. And not just in terms of that old Milky Way TV advert (remember that? “The red car and the blue car had a race…”). When it comes to sports, video
games, even the plumage of birds, there are key characteristics which define each one; reds tend to be more aggressive and dominating, blues are wilier and sneakier. So how does this translate to the cars you see here? Well, Ed Spencer’s pair of outstanding Mk5 Fiestas totally turn the very rules of nature on their head: the blue car is the aggressive one, the red one impressively stealthier. Both enjoy amusing power and smart engineering solutions, and you wouldn’t bet against either in a straight fight. But just what are we actually looking at here?
For starters, what we have is an unassailable Mk5 Fiesta enthusiast. “I’ve owned Mk5s since I was nineteen,” Ed explains. “My first was a 1.25 Freestyle, before stepping up to Zetec S at 23. I started modifying that into a decent road car with a Ford Racing Puma [FRP] engine, but in 2010 it caught fire and left little but a few salvaged or unfitted parts and a cheque from the insurers. I was gutted, but I soon saw
Fully stripped and caged, this Fiesta is light, nimble, and ready for the track
the bright side…” Around this time, Ed found himself wanting to learn more about working on cars and, having done a few track sessions at Ford Fair, all of the pieces started to slot into place. He wanted to build a track car. A really good one.
“I bought the blue car from a forum member, and immediately took it apart in preparation for the roll cage,” he recalls. “It had all the wrong mods, but it was a clean shell which is what I was really after. I towed it up to Manchester for the fitting, and while this was going on I sourced a donor Puma conversion kit, and sent it off to Lightning Motorsport to rebuild my FRP engine with. The gearbox I had was bought new from Ford, and thankfully hadn’t been fitted to the old car before the fire!”
As the build progressed, it became increasingly obvious that the iconic Racing Puma was to serve as more than merely inspiration for the track Fiesta; indeed, the exercise inexorably morphed into one of squeezing an entire FRP into the Mk5 shell, more or less, which is an idea so impressive that you can’t help but applaud it.
With the ’cage fitted, Ed then spent the next two years methodically piecing the car together in his garage at home, debuting at Ford Fair back in 2013 (albeit not totally finished at that point!). The spec is formidable: that FRP engine sports a Lightning Motorsport baffled sump, a Zircotec-coated Janspeed stainless exhaust manifold mated to an Alison Automotive exhaust system, Mocal oil and power
“The iconic Racing Puma was to serve as more than merely inspiration for the track Fiesta... squeezing an entire FRP into the Mk5 shell...”
steering coolers, and a Direnza Mk7 alloy radiator – all the key upgrades to ensure reliability and an absence of histrionics on track. The Racing Puma also donated wishbones, knuckles and track rods to the chassis, which work hand-in-hand with GAZ GHA coilovers, and the brakes are impressively serious: Hi-Spec 4-pot fronts, FRP rear disc conversion, and a Mk2 Mondeo V6 servo and master cylinder. “I drove it for a couple of years, improving as I went, until a saved eBay search brought up a job lot of FRP parts including the widetrack kit,” Ed elaborates. “They needed refurbishing, but I took the challenge and started cutting up the arches to make it all fit! I’ve been running the car like this for four years now; it’s had a different set of arches each year, but I’m getting closer to something with both form and function. It’s a never-finished project, but that’s what I enjoy – I have the freedom to do whatever I like to it, and learn more as I go.”
Ed’s considerable natural flair for engineering was truly flourishing with experience by this time, (and it’s also worth noting that he took a night class in automotive mechanics to further his skillset), and it was perhaps unsurprising that he’d have a hankering for another project to run alongside this one. It had to be a Mk5 Fiesta, naturally, but this would be one with an entirely different focus: a stealthier aesthetic, with some truly surprising modern firepower hiding within.
“I wanted more power, and the more I looked at the EcoBoost engine, the more I convinced myself to try fit it,” he reasons. Can’t argue with that, really. “I didn’t want to experiment on the track car though, so I found a standard Zetec S for sale on eBay to use as a test bed – it was a little rough around the edges, but a good base to work with.”
Ed’s a methodical worker who likes to take a measured scientific approach rather than charging into a project like the proverbial bull in a china shop, so instead of a full Mk7 ST drivetrain swap he opted to start with just the engine. With this in mind, the IB5 gearbox was retained, and with a bit of planning and lateral thinking he was able to mock up the EcoBoost in the engine bay using largely stock fixings for an OEM appearance. Things ramped up a level as Ed started to draw up brackets in CAD, something he’d never tried before but he watched a few tutorials and got stuck in; he then 3D-printed his design as a mock-up to check it’d fit. As you’re probably beginning to realise, there aren’t many things this guy won’t have a go at himself, just to see if he can. It’s an admirable approach. “My friend Lee, who also owns a Zetec S,
“I wanted more power, and the more I looked at the EcoBoost engine, the more I convinced myself to try fit it...”
then stepped in and took the final model on to the CNC machine to be made for real, for which I can’t thank him enough,” says Ed. “I’ve tried to keep the conversion simple, so it uses the Mk5 power steering pump in place of the ST’s aircon pump, and I’ve removed the electric thermostat system and retro-fitted the Mk5 housing in its place. The ECU is another item that makes it possible; SCS supplied me with their Delta GDI4 unit, and they rework the Ford engine loom to run without the need for any other ST parts. They also supply a throttle pot that allows me to keep the standard throttle cable but drive the EcoBoost’s electric throttle body. It’s almost a turn-key kit, and is pre-mapped for the stock turbo.”
The exhaust proved to be an entertaining challenge as there wasn’t much room for the downpipe, but Infinity Exhausts were able to make up a custom 2.5in turbo-back system that works perfectly with the setup. With the stock turbo and standard engine specs, the car’s running around 220bhp – although Ed suspects this is right at the edge of the operating window for the IB5 ’box; once he’s sorted out a new transmission arrangement then 280-300bhp will be just a hybrid turbo away.
“I’ve pretty much left the rest of the car stock, for purposes of nostalgia,” he grins, “but I’ve gone through the running gear refreshing everything, to make it feel new and safe to drive. Now the car runs and drives I’m gently putting it through its paces to see how it handles the EcoBoost – I have a few upgrades planned, including a Puma ’box with Quaife LSD which is ready and waiting to go in.”
The ultimate goal is to transplant the EcoBoost engine into the blue car, although Ed’s got a fastidious programme of testing lined up before that happens: he’ll be stretching the red Fiesta’s legs at Brands Hatch and Cadwell Park and all sorts to ensure that everything’s up to scratch and it’s all proven for durability. So you see, this was never about having two concurrent projects, not really – the blue car is the linchpin, the red car is the test mule… although, given the endeavours and adventures he’s enjoyed with both, you can understand how he’d lavish equal affection on each. There is no red vs. blue debate here; playing the long game, Ed’s got an idea in his head to fuse both together. Aggression and sneakiness, working in perfect harmony.