RS’s In Finland – Lice’s ’88 Sapphire Cosworth

Org. words by Lice, adapted by W.Phillips

Lice started his search back in 1998, when after only 2 weeks he found his “true love” – a diamond white 1988 Sapphire Cosworth. The engine was standard and well driven and the only changes then were a set of 16” Borbet wheels. It stayed this way for about half a year and then a new wastegate and stage 1 chip were bought..to give it that extra “go”.

A few months down the line and the engine decoded to call to a day…so an engine build was planned over the winter months. New pistons rings , ball bearings and a reworking of the cylinder head were carried out, as well as a new clutch. Now that the spring was back, the car was road tested and given a dyno run. It was running at 21psi and produced 306bhp at 5100rpm (pretty low revs)

Now the engine was at a satisfactory state, it was time for the exterior. Namely, the twin spoiler effect (if you hadn’t noticed). The idea originally came from a friends cossie..way back in 1992. This gave the car a very “different” look. Today, there are about 3 twin spoiler Cosworth’s in Finland. This idea has nothing to do with aerodynamics, but it got a lot of attention from others. Some like it, some don't. Next came the wheels, changed to AZEV Type-A, wearing 215/45/17 rubber.

Once again the engine was looked at, as it appeared to be running a bit sluggish. A larger turbo was added (RS 500 spec), 803 green injectors and a modified map sensor. The car was now running at 26psi and produced an astounding 356bhp (496Nm of torque) on the next dyno run. Which made Lice a very happy man indeed, for a while !!!!

On one “outing” it was faster than a 2002 300 Series AMG Merc. Both in acceleration and top speed. Good job the Merc was restricted to 250 km/h (155mph) even though it produces 364bhp.

The car also now sports a ZF LSD as used by Ford Motorsport. It’s a two-way LSD, which is great for drifting, but not so comfortable for driving around town.

It was now the winter of 2002 and more changes to the car were planned. This time it was a bit more radical on the body side – the colour !!!!

The car was first dismantled and a few minor imperfections fixed and intakes cut into the bonnet. Then it was prepped and taken to the paintshop. The idea for the new colour came from the film “Fast and the Furious”. One car in particular, the lime green Mitsubishi Eclipse. The car now sports a light green shade and white wheels (colour chosen to suit the “new” car better). The whole process took about 600 hours (not the fastest, but the results have paid off) and cost around 1000€ (£600)

The car was now drawing a lot of attention and Lice was invited (well his car actually) to the Tuning Car Show in the spring of 2003. Winning an award as well…just to add to the attention.

Now, the engine decided to blow up again (which was actually expected), two weeks after the show. Back to the garage again, and start building a new one. The engine was rebuilt using WISECO pistons, lightened and balanced camshaft, flywheel and crank shaft (the compression ratio was raised to 8.4:1), high pressure oil pump, Siemens 522cc injectors, class A rally chip, RS500 intercooler (org. designed for track use) and a reworked head with a cometic metal gasket. The clutch was also changed for a six spoke copper plate, terrible to use everyday !!! ….and of course, the engine was sprayed to match the car.

Then is was dyno’d again. The PSI was the same but the car now produced 422bhp at 5200rpm (again, quite low) and a terrifying 596Nm of torque at 4730rpm. (all the dyno readings are “at the engine”)

Once again, the car was back at the Tuning Car Show in the spring of 2004, this time, just for fun..and also to have a lovely girl to model with the car..not too bad then ??

The car has now driven 35k kilometers (22k miles) without any real problems, except the rear tyres, which always seem to be smooth for some “strange” reason.