Tuesday 27 February 2018

My RS Focus 2.5 Stage 2 400 bhp


Hello and welcome to another installment from me about Ford's Focus RS 2.5 road munching machine. 


Here is my vehicle, My RS Focus 2.5 Stage 2 400 bhp












Originally purchased in April 2016 with 050880 on the clock, a dog smell inside and generally requiring some TLC.












After 2 days of driving it, up came the Lambda Sensor warning light. Grrrr, I contact the place where I bought from RevitUp who are located in Deeside UK.

After explaining what the issue was they agreed that if I produced an invoice to them, they would pay for both time and parts to rectify.

This led to my first [of my many visits] to Puma Build. Tune in for the next post, "those discs don't look too clever"

Monday 18 September 2017

Blame my Dad, Hello Focus RS


Hi and welcome to my blog post all about
Ford, RS and in particular the Focus RS 


Ford's where it all began


I have always had a fondness for performance vehicles and in particular Fords, You see my Dad, Edward, was a fanatic, of course, I am biased here, but more than that a feckin brilliant technician and mechanic, bodywork and repair, paint and finish.


My Dad, the biggest of influences

You see in those days, late 1960's through to 1996, you did not outsource, you got good at what you ...In short, that was my old man, he even had a nickname given to him back in Jamaica at time of colonialism and American influences. 

"Seh Kan" Edward Granville Smalling



The "gaffer" of the Amey roadstone quarry, used to call him"Second" pronounced, "Seh Can" with a patua slant, of course, not meaning second best, but Second to none! This was for his attention to detail in maintaining quarry plant.

Hello Great Britain Seh Kan is here

Ok so fast forwards and my Dad arrives in the sunny UK, and there he spent most of his day's as a mechanic working for a few companies, but mostly for himself. You see his reputation got around and by word of mouth, he had work, enough to do his bit as a dad and husband.


So that is the housekeeping went!

However, one of my dad's loves and of course curses was cars, and I remember a string of engines being rebuilt, heads be polished valves seating - cylinder reboard, valves being ground, panels being welded, oil and fumes.

Dreaming of cars

But I also remember Corsair GT


Zephyr 6 Mk 3


Hillman Minx



MK2 Jaguar


Lotus Cortina Mk 1


Lotus Cortina Mk 2 

Lotus Cortina, MK 2 Cortina GT, Cortina E, Cortina 1600e 


and a brilliant Escort 1300 Van


which was my dad's workhorse and where we all learned our first driving moves.

Come on bwoy, you coming to the garage!

We would sometimes go with dad, reluctantly while in school holidays to help out, you got a bollocking a few times when you did not listen or set fire to some newspapers used in masking up cars for the respray, as I foolishly did on the day, but that is another story.

My dad was a master at bringing engines and car bodies to life and although I never realised it then, I learned a lot even when I thought I wasn't listening.

tune in ext [pardon pun] I'll be looking a first car's, detailing the many vehicles I have had, some good some, well not so good.

Happy Safe motoring regards
Keith Smalling