My name is Ian, some of you know me as Smudge and this is 'Han' my '02 Fiesta Zetec S and over the last 6 months has been through quite a change.


However it hasn't always looked like this...

The car was bought from a dealership just outside of Birmingham, in Bedford. Was originally taken as a part-ex and the dealer just wanted to get rid. Was advertised at a little over 1k and after going to view the car I knew I would be able to get it for less.
However there was more to this car then I originally thought. The car had only had 4 owners from new, with the last 2 owners being from the same family (Father and Son, which becomes clear later on) It also had a complete service history which apart from the last 4 years was all completed at a Ford Dealership, however the remaining work was also done at a recognized dealer.

But the car had a few issues to begin with...

The previous owner had tried doing some work to the car himself in the form of some rust repair on the offside rear arch. Wasn't the highest standard of work I have seen but then again I've seen a lot worse than this as well. From a distance it just looks like he hasn't applied any top coat causing not only a matt finish to the arch but some rust start to appear again. He had also attempted to remove the badges on the rear of the car and from what I can see on the bootlid didn't really do the best of jobs so yet again a poorly finished attempt but atleast he tried.

This led to a few lesser issues but equally irritating problems with the car. He had decided that he didn't know what the car was he driving so started placing Mk6 Fiesta ST 'S' badges all over the car (Well when I say ALL Over I mean the interior, lower front grill and on the bootlid) But the SINGLE most irritating issue with the car was this...


Tinted or Smoked Rear Lights, I HATE this mod. More than any other issue with the car this really got to me purely because the tint applied to the car was so dark he had to fit extra reflectors underneath the lights to make them legal...(This however was the ONLY issue with the car during its MOT, which was brought to my attention as an advisory only which wasn't the end of the world)He has also fitted a new headunit as well which for now will do the job since it has an Iphone AUX in port so until I can find the headunit I really want is worth keeping.

As for the purchase of the car, the dealer didn't really know much about the car or whether there were any common issues with the ZS. So during a test drive I discovered that this one did have a faulty HCV as well as a faulty battery so after a bit of a barter I managed to get the car for £800 with a diagnostic check done and a new battery fitted as well so all in all was a good buy on my part.

After a few days of owning the car the heat got unbearable (especially since at the moment the UK is in the middle of a heatwave) so the first thing on my list to address was the HCV. Hoping that this was the issue and nothing to do with the panel itself I decided to fit an after market unit just to see whether or not it fixed the issue and luckily enough it did. So further down the line this will be replaced with a genuine Ford unit. So now having some AC in the car I could finally get to sorting out the rear lights and badges. Thanks to Mclaren Dan I was able to get hold of a set of original brake lights so that I can start getting the body back to the level it should be at.

I WAS tempted not to fully modify this car but keep it as standard as possible. With all this talk of whether or not the Mk5 ZS is a future classic or not got me to thinking that since this one is in such good condition it might be more beneficial in the long term to keep it going as an ongoing restoration rather than stripping it out and using it on the track.

This, as with everything when it comes to projects might change as I already have some plans if I decide to go another route. Time will tell which idea I choose and whether its successful but in the mean time will be posting updates here to see which way I decide to go.

Let's give y'all some details about the car in it's current Specification:

Exterior:
- Rear 'Smoked' Lights replaced with Standard Lights
- European Brake Light fitted
- Trim Panels Painted in Gloss Black
- Upper and Lower Grills Painted in Gloss Black
- Roof Rails painted in Gloss Black
- Door Handles painted in Gloss Black
- Removed 'Zetec S' Badges
- Team Heiko Wind Deflectors Fitted

Interior:
- Black Leather Steering Wheel an optional extra from the Ford Puma
- Black Sparco Turino Seats with Ford Racing Puma Bases
- Black Leather Rear Seats fitted from Black Edition Fiesta
- Black Leather Door Cards fitted from Black Edition Fiesta
- Ford Puma Gearknob
- Fascia adaptor for stereo
- Kenwood Stereo
- Alpine 10" Sub
- Alpine Amp

Chassis:
- Lowered on GAZ GHA Coilovers
- Fiesta ST150 Calipers
- Fiesta ST150 283mm Discs
- Ferodo Fast Road/Racing Pads
- Rear Drums Painted Black
- Ford Racing Ka 15" Alloys Painted in BMW Sparkling Graphite
- OMP Upper Front Strut Brace

Engine:
- K&N Panel Filter Fitted
- 4-2-1 Milltek Manifold
- Milltek Non-Resonated Centre Pipe
- Milltek Cat-Back Exhaust

Upcoming Modifications:

- 12.5mm Rear Axle Spacers (Purchased)
- OMP Lower Front Strut Brace (Purchased)

Future Plans/Purchases:
- Pair Shawspeed SS4 Blank cams
- MSD Evolution Chip Remap
- Heavy Duty big end bolts
- Omex rev limiter
- Rear Drum innards upgraded
- Braided Hoses
- Polyflex Bushes
- Ford Racing Ka Alloys refurbished and finished in Moondust Silver
- Fiesta Ghia Rear Leather Seats (with Headrests)

I am aiming for a about 150bhp in a car that is comfortable and used on a daily basis. Nothing over the top but something that is still noticeable as being a OEM modified car.