HI All,
I am trying to find out what height my escort should be.  At the moment its a bit of 4WD.
I have played with the suspension but just cant seem to get it low enough so it looks OK.
What height do most people have their headlights at? I figured I would use the center of the headlight as a reference and then go  about trying to get it right.
What would be standard height for MK1 Escort headlight? mine is about 675mm I reckon it needs to come down 4 inches !
Fixing the rear wont be the problem as I havent yet bought/installed the rear springs.
The fronts are 2L struts converted to coilovers. I had the threaded tube installed lower to compensate for the extra height of a mk2 strut in a mk1, even purchased lower springs  but that just killed my suspension travel.
 
Any Ideas please !! Help!!
Rds
Emil
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Hi Emil. A measurement from the bottom of the sill to level ground is a good place to start. I can measure mine tomorrow if you like. The fact you have bubble arches doesn't help. Even twin cam guards come up a lot compared to standard MK1 guards.
Capri struts are ideal. They can even be shortened and fitted with 2 way adjustable Konis (86111259RACE) which will get the car very low whilst retaining optimum shock travel.  That could be an option for your 2L struts because they have the same ID as capri/ twin cam

Off topic, but it's good to see progress on your Escort Emil.  Mine's finally underway too, but got badly delayed due to illness, so I hope you aren't in a hurry for your spit back!

No hurry for the Spit mate,
trying to get this car a little further along, I havent looked at it for 12 months!
Dad is sick of it in his shed!
Rgds
Emil

I have just been past that stage with my Mk1 project - it took ages to get it right.
I am running Capri struts in the front with lowered King springs - I think they are 2 inches lower.
In the back, I found that the Mk1 leaves are too soft - even after having an extra leaf added. So I modded Mk2 springs to fit - tapered the ends to fit the chassis rail. Then I had the eyes reversed - and an extra leaf added at the same time - and straight away this looses a couple of inches but it still wasn't quite enough so I had them reset another inch lower.
Measurement from sill to ground is roughly 220mm. Looks great and still legal!

Thanks all,
I will remeasure to the sill and wheelarch this weekend.
rgds
emil
 

Sorry if this is a little 'Captain Obvious' but from the photos it looks like there is no driveline in the car?  If there is no motor, box etc dont waste a second worrying about ride height because you have no chance of knowing what it will sit like with this much weight yet to be fitted.
 
On another note, the only correct way to measure ride height is from the centre of the hubs to the wheel arch as this makes wheel diameter and tyre profile irrelevant.  This is of course made very difficult on a car with aftermarket fitted arches ...

Agreed. And I should have added that I have 13" rims with 205/60 tyres fitted...

off topic as well, but had to ask, is the grille from Group 4 in Ireland? looks like a good quality one with defined edges.

Celtic,
I found it in a suburban shed, the person had no idea .It was of her sons old car he had thrashed and wrecked.
You never know what you find sometimes.