1986 Ford Sierra RS Cosworth review from UK and Ireland

Blown head gasket (replaced)

Propshaft coupling knocking (replaced)

Smoking turbocharger (replaced with recon unit)

A bit of cosmetic tidying here and there.

Bought the car as a stolen recovered in 2000 with all the above faults present. The car had been stolen and raced around by some local youths before being abandoned in a lockup. The police raided the lockup and recovered it, but only after the insurers had paid out. I bought it from auction for just UKP 1500 which considering these original 3-drs are going for UKP 7000+ in good condition was a bit of a bargain.

It was in a pretty sorry state when I got it, but it ran and drove. One cylinder was down on compression and the cooling system pressure was excessive. Sure enough the gasket had popped, but luckily the head was OK. The turbo worked okay, but showing signs of wear and this was exchanged for a reconditioned unit which I fitted myself. A knocking on taking up drive was traced to a brittle propshaft coupling bush which was an easy and cheap DIY fix. I spent about UKP 1500 on top of the cost of the car on mechanical and cosmetic bits, and ended up with a car which is in absolutely stunning original condition.

Despite standing for over a year in a dirty lockup garage, the car cleaned up really well. However, my local bodyshop spent some time cutting the top coat and repolishing to remove the little swirls in the lacquer, and now the Moonstone blue paint polishes up like new. As did the wheels which are aftermarket BBS items. The car came with a documented main dealer service history, a wodge of bills and receipts, and all old MOT's.

The car was stolen during a burglary, so there was no lock damage. There is no rust which isn't surprising as the 3dr Cosworth shell is much upgraded over the standard Sierra item, and this includes better quality rustproofing.

To drive, it shows its age a little, although still has searing performance. Even in standard trim (which this is), it will crack 0-60 in around 5.7 seconds and I've seen 145 on the clock in Germany with a bit more to come. It has that unmistakeable feel of a grunty engine in a light shell and even under small throttle openings, the Cosworth developed engine puffs out its chest and squeezes you into the seat. Unfortunately it lacks stability at speed and is very nervous in crosswinds. The slightly laggy turbo and RWD also make it a swine in the wet!

In the dry however it is fast and capable. The car had huge tarmac rally success (back in the days when rally cars were actually based on road cars) and it shows. It also shames a lot of modern cars in terms of the lovely mechanical feel of all the controls and proper responses instead of electronic intervention and a handful of three letter acronyms driving the car for you.

I love this car, and it was especially satisfying to slowly restore it back to full health after its time with some of the thieving lowlives that pollute this country. It is now a real treat to drive, and even without an aftermarket chip or tuning, a seriously fast car by even today's standards. I even love the styling. I could sell it tomorrow at a profit, but I can't bring myself do do it!