Firstly please excuse my lack of ford knowledge!!

I have purchased an Endura DE 1.8td from a mk6 escort which i have chosen as a replacement powerplant for my boat due to the decent diesel performance and the built in water cooled oil cooler. The engine is basically ready to go, i have fitted new belts, a chargecooler in place of the inter cooler and a heat exchanger in place of the radiator but when i bought the engine i got it without a gearbox, although at the time i didnt see this as a problem.

I (wrongly) presumed that the starter wouldnt need a bellhousing to attach to which it does so i am left with 2 options...

1 - fabricate a bracket for the starter

or

2 which i believe may be the better option is to buy a bellhousing or a complete gearbox to bolt onto the back.

My question is what will fit, should i only be looking at 1.8td boxes or do a range fit. If i fit a complete box i will be removing all the internals and boring a hole right through the middle for my propshaft and the gearbox casing will become the guard for the shaft. The only thing i want to keep is the flywheel from the diesel as i believe this may be deeper than some petrol ones from what i have read from other sites??? Hope this makes sense to someone!!