1998 Ford Escort GTI
2.0 Zetec Swap · Full Mechanical Rebuild · Daily Driver
My own 1998 Ford Escort GTI – dragged out of a bush, welded back together, engine-swapped, and driven every day. This car has had new floors, new arches, three different engines, upgraded brakes, and more hours than I'd care to count. It's not a show car. It's not a trailer queen. It's my daily driver, and it gets me to my workshop near Milton Keynes and back every single day.
How It Started
What I Found
- Sitting in a bush in London – hadn't moved in years after failing an MOT four or five years earlier
- Floors rotted through, rear arches gone, bottoms of the wings needed replacing, boot floor repairs needed
- It ran, and had a decent 1.8 Zetec in it – but everything else needed sorting
- A three-door, non-sunroof model – the one worth saving
"I dragged it out of a bush and made it into the car it is today. I can't afford a Cosworth, so this was the next best thing."It ran and it had a decent 1.8 Zetec in it, but underneath it was rotten. The floors were gone, the rear arches were gone, the bottoms of the wings needed doing, and the boot floor needed repairs. But it was a three-door, non-sunroof GTI – and that was enough for me to take it on. What followed was four months of welding in the cold, an MOT, eighteen months of daily driving, a blown head gasket, three engine builds, and more setbacks than I'd have liked. But it's on the road now, it's my daily driver, and it gets a lot of love.
Step by Step
Welding It Back Together
I spent four months over Christmas welding in new floors, new seals, new rear arches, the bottoms of the wings, and patching up the boot floor. Some of this was done in the snow. It wasn't glamorous, but it was necessary – without solid metal underneath, nothing else matters. Every bit of rust was cut out and replaced properly.Getting It Road Legal
I put it through an MOT to see what it would fail on, then ended up doing everything underneath mechanically. New brakes all round – upgraded to 300mm Mondeo calipers with Focus ST discs on the front, standard drums in the back, full ABS retained. New wishbones, most of the suspension brand new. I painted the front bumper and rear arches with rattle cans just to tidy it up, and it passed.18 Months on the Road
With the MOT in hand, I drove it every day for about eighteen months. Half leather interior, rattle-can bumper, and all. It wasn't perfect, but it was on the road and it was mine. Then the head gasket went – and that's when things got interesting.Going 2.0 Zetec
With the head gasket gone, I thought it was time to put something a bit quicker in it. I bought a 2.0 litre block, put the 130 top end and inlet manifold from the 1.8 onto it, and tried to get it running. It was noisy and tappy – not right. So I bought another bottom end, built it back up, checked everything I could. Still had problems.The "Fully Built" Engine That Wasn't
I bought another 2.0 litre off a friend who said it had been fully built – ported and polished heads, reworked, the lot. Stripped everything out and dropped it in with ARP bottom end bolts and ARP head bolts. Drove it for a week. Then the bottom end went. That's when I decided to do it all myself, properly, from scratch.New Crank, Pistons & Rods – Done Right
I bought a new crank, new pistons, and new rods – had them all checked. The block was fine, so everything went back together with new ARP bolts, new head bolts, and a new head gasket. Completely rebuilt from the bottom up. She's had her first oil change after 500 miles, passed a thousand miles, and she seems to be good. Finally.The Full Story on YouTube
I was featured on the Things We Do youtube channel and talked through the whole build – from pulling it out of a bush in London to daily driving it every day. Watch it below or check out the 2 Skint 2 Scrap channel for more builds like this.Photography
The Car Today
Reliable Daily Driver
After three engines and more setbacks than I'd have liked, the car is finally on the road properly. Over a thousand miles on the rebuilt 2.0 Zetec, first oil change done at 500 miles, and she gets me to work every single day. That's the whole point of it.
Everything Done Properly
New crank, new pistons and rods, ARP bolts throughout, ported and polished heads. The structural metalwork was done right too – new floors, arches, and seals. Nothing bodged, nothing skipped. If I'm going to tell customers to do it properly, my own car has to be the same.
Always Getting Attention
She gets a lot of interest everywhere I take her. Everyone's got a story – their dad had one, their granddad had one, it was their first car. I can't afford a Cosworth, so this was the next best thing. And honestly, I reckon she does alright.
Build Details
Got a Car That Needs Saving?
Whether it's a structural restoration, a full respray, or an engine bay that needs sorting – I work on classics and moderns at my workshop near Milton Keynes. If it's worth saving, I'll give you an honest assessment. Send me a few photos on WhatsApp and I'll tell you straight.