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2redrovers

1972 Escort Panelvan

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Well we're off to a whirlwind start... What was it, three days ago? Mrs spots a rusty escort panelvan advertised on ebay at Harvey's Wrecker in Langwarren (about half hour from home). The listing started at a dollar and had a few bids bringing it up to $200. I've looked at esky vans for years as a yeah I wouldn't mind one of those one day.. Usually too expensive for what they are, this was just too cheap and tempting. OK it's rusty but I'd make my money back in a heartbeat if it was cactus by selling the front grill. I ummed and ahhed over it especially when it didn't climb in the last few hours. We talked it up and down and just decided it was too cheap to not try for it. A stupid low bid for a random number that I could manage (really can't afford it but after selling the spot welder this was kinda free money) and to our shock, it's ours!!! Gotta be the cheapest one around at $327 for an almost complete car. All that seems to be missing is the manual gearbox and tailshaft.

 

BGDAV gave me a huge help by providing the trailer and second pair of hands to pick it up today. The worker said to me that it should have gone for much more but someone stuffed up with the price (assuming they forgot the reserve) and deal is done. They wanted 500 at least for it, I thought it would have been more than that at auction but there we go.

 

A few photos at the yard..

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Offload was complicated by no keys to unlock the steering so dolly wheels were involved and the winch to help out.

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This will be a slow project guys, so don't get too excited as I don't have any free time just yet. Only plan so far is to fix the shell and probably install an auto box, maybe update the engine in the process for daily use. I will use this in the Metalworking tutorials to teach how to do everything you need to know.

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No idea what I'll do for power yet. I'm thinking simple 4cyl modern upgrade with auto but it's a blank slate and zero budget right now. It does have the 1300 in it but no understanding or details on it yet. I'm very unfamiliar with the details here

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Little Kents are good engines, always reliable.

 

Always liked the power in the 2 litre pintos in the small bodies.

 

Most common upgrades are those SR20? turbo engines these days.

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no dramas at all 

 

its a shit box, but its all fixable (from what we can see) it does have alot of good points, complete as a whole, besides tranny + carb 

 

needs everything touched but meh what 70s car dont, all sills gone, passenger door really fucked, passenger bottom roof is having issues, rear barn door, firewall has slight issues but could be alot worse

 

wil be pretty cool when its done 

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Whatever I do it won't be manual or turbo. I'd like an overdrive auto but will deal with all that later. I might go straight LPG too.

As BGDAV said, the body is as stuffed as any other 70s car but the back half isn't bad. It needs big surgery in the sills and windscreen pillars at very least. Roof gutter is bad on one side, better on other. Cargo floor is practically mint and the car seems to be complete an was looked after at some point as a work vehicle judging by the shadow of a sign on back window.

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2 litre pinto and auto would be ideal practically bolt in.. standard they went pretty well in the cortina.

 

i'd expect any other engine combo would require engineers certificate, and therefore need brakes and $$$ 

 

wonder if a commodore V6 fits? i'd sooner fit a CA18 from a nissan silvia that should have a 4 speed auto.. @Oscar of Markoz probably knows how to mount an SR20 fairly well and how to make it look like a factory fit(radiator hoses etc all covered in his videos... just need to mod everything they fit to)

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Yeah commodore wouldn't happen even if it did bolt in. Nissan stuff would be more likely. I don't mind upgrading brakes, I like ones that work

 

The 2L and auto could be a possibility if they are cheap to get and if they will be happy on gas. Last 2L I drove daily was in a pulsar that drank like it had a few more cylinders.

 

 

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Yeah commodore wouldn't happen even if it did bolt in. Nissan stuff would be more likely. I don't mind upgrading brakes, I like ones that work
 
The 2L and auto could be a possibility if they are cheap to get and if they will be happy on gas. Last 2L I drove daily was in a pulsar that drank like it had a few more cylinders.
 
 
2 litre pinto on gas with an auto behind it should drink about 12 to the hunge around town. Shouldn't be too hard to come by. 2 litre Cortinas had that combo. The vacuum modulator was a problem on those C3 autos, used to blow diaphragms and suck ATF up into the engine under vaccum.

Sent from my CPH1903 using Tapatalk

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While there is orange paint under the bonnet I'm 99% sure this was a white car and not a colour change. It's too consistent for a respray although it has had a blow over at some point because you can see acrylic primer peeking through the side panels.

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