ok first things first... ive been offered a swap for a supposed escort gti. its a zetec with a metal rocker cover however there is no gti badge on the back, just escort and 16v (badge could have been swiped). its modded a little so i dont know if the gti/rs2k skirts and rear bumper splitters are genung or not (skirts have jacking point covers). its on steelies all round but the spare is an rs2k wheel. there is no log book for it so how do i find out if she is a gti or not as im not sure if the metal rocker covers were on others besides the gti? ive driven it and it can shift rightly for an 1800 but it still may not be a gti.. im still interested if its not but if it is it would be an added bonus. also its purple metallic.. i didnt think gti's came in this colour?

on to my second question. i drove it and it goes like stink for an 1800 (mind i am driving a citroen zx d-turbo atm and a 2.5 v6 slowmega before that). there is a fairly loud whine off the engine and it idles a little rough (very little, probably just the filter/exhaust).. it has an exhaust system or backbox, red champion leads and a cone filter plus the EGR valve control solenoid was completely closed the first time i looked at it so i opened it up about 1/2 way as ford had intended it to be. but what on earth could be the cause of this whine!?! it sounds like a moderatly quiet supercharger and its not the gearbox. from my experience with my wee fezzy zetec they do have a slight whine about them but this is much more than my wee fezzy had. ill also be giving it a once over at a garage but it would be handy to know the symptoms for things that make this noise.. there is no foam on the oil cap or white/blue smoke and the car has done 74k and driving it it feels fine but the whine is easily noticable even with the windows up.

thirdly.. the clutch biting point is very high, i think it needs a clutch. but anywho.. whenever i pressed the clutch pedal it would make noises like darth vader???