Hi, just looking for some RS buffs now i think!!

I'v done an RS2000 conversion to a mk5b escort van, using the entire front end/subframe the lot out of a mk5b RS2k. The RS drove horrible so while i was swapping everything over to the van, i fitted new wishbones and KYB gas front struts, and changed the upper-rear gearbox mount for the diesel one as the one that was fitted was almost ripped in half.

Now i know that there is no play in the wishbones, the shocks are good, the rack and trock rod ends have no play, the tracking is ok-ish, yet I have a horrible vibration when accelerating (even just cruising-throttle), and the offside front wheel VISIBLY toes in! This causes a strange sensation as the steering wheel moves through my hands to the right, and when i let go of the throttle the b****** veeres to the right! If i floor it, it pulls to the left a bit but the wheel mainly seems to compensate by itself so i guess its also pulling the nearside wheel over to the right.

WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!! lol i spent hours messing about trying to find play in something, getting my mate to 'drive' it with the handbrake on on the ramp, the only thing i can see moving is the engine/gearbox mounts; i changed the front gearbox one as i had a spare and it was visibly ripped, but it made no difference.

The engine seems to tilt back a bit under load, but if i do the same in reverse gear there isnt much movement. But could a gearbox mount really affect my steering that much? these symptoms arent slight theyre pretty much in your face, accelerating through long bends is very sketch and the vibration is so bad that i cannot drive on the motorway!!

Any ideas or knowledge on RS2000 mounts much appreciated guys

Could my diesel upper-rear gearbox mount be a problem? it looked the same as the old one, but the donor car drove terrible anyway so its no safe assumption that it had the right parts to begin with!

 

Get the tracking setup either at a tyre shop, or make some changes yourself by eye to see if it helps.

Also by grasping the engine diagonally, can you rock it to and fro? it should hardly move.

 

the symptoms you have are generally wishbone symptoms, pulling one way under acceleration and the other when braking/turning = wishbones normally, are they defo new wishbones? and id strongly advise genuine ford parts as aftermarket parts will have had it in no time, if the engine rocks about excessively then its normally the rear mount that has had it but could also be one of the others, if its not any of them causing the vibration/pulling then i havent clue what it is, hope this helps

 

if you used cheap wishbones then this will be your problem,only use ford ones, you can even get van arms but these are £100+ each,j bought a set of lower arms for £40 the pair and they lasted a week the car was all over the road,took them off and had a good look at them but they showed NO sign of wear,changed to ford arms and years later still got them on and running fine on my mk5 rs2k

 

Trackrod arm ball joint?

 

its stable under braking, only acceleration (well, any throttle at all) causes the problems