Jump to content

Belkits Ford Fiesta WRC 2017


Recommended Posts

So here we go then on my third Belkits adventure , this time a bang update World Rally Car ( as they like to known ) ; a Ford Fiesta WRC 2017 . Designed for the new regulations that came in in , you guessed it , 2017 …. These allowed for more aerodynamic parts and more power form 1.6 litre engines , now about 380 hp . The Cumbrian based M Sport team designed , built and run the official Ford team , Ford as ever didn’t fully commit but took the glory when the Fiesta won both drivers and manufacturers championships that year . There’s two versions of the Fiesta ; the Red Bull Sebastian Ogier car and the Ott Tanak car . I have the Red Bull car in the Stash  , so bought the other version for the build . Welsh driver Elfyn Evans drove for the team in a car sponsored by tyre manufacturer D Mack . It is this car I’m am going to build with the help of a decal kit . 
  What I have 

51519755616_49317fd83c_c_d.jpg


The decal kit 

51105407051_062f84dffb_c_d.jpg


To hopefully make this 

51518972287_c6299efbd2_c_d.jpg


The base kit is a tarmac car , but the D Mack car i want to build is the winner of the Rally GB , which means higher stance and narrower wheels . I bought this hoping it might help 

51440911770_8b9acdb7bd_c_d.jpg

 

Not so sure though until I get into it as the subframes pickup points might be different , as it’s designed for Belkits other earlier Fiesta kits . Anyway , I have made a start on prepping the body for spraying and painting some of the components . Oddly the front wings aren’t complete  and the back edge is separate and needs attaching . 
51546340961_d3662e820d_c_d.jpg


And finally a shot of the box contents 

51520664290_29295e094c_c_d.jpg
 

Thanks for looking   

  Gary . 

  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It'll be good to see what you make with the newer Fiesta. A word of warning about those separate front wings though - if they're anything like the Belkits S2000 Fiesta the instructions make it look as though there's not really any reason to attach them as late as Belkits suggest. Then when it comes to fitting the body of the chassis BANG!, it turns out that that bit of wing fouls the chassis. I ended up having to cut my separate wing bits off (had already decalled) and refit which was a bit annoying, so be wary of that before fitting the wing bits to the body early.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Marco F. said:

I hope you will   at least,  enjoy the build. 

You said the instructions are bad...I hope you can beat this, good luck 

Marco F 

Ah yes , the instructions ……

51547027808_9e22161d49_c_d.jpg
 

Very shadowy , too small , too much information in one stage  . I could go on !

 Please follow along 

  Gary . 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Spiny said:

It'll be good to see what you make with the newer Fiesta. A word of warning about those separate front wings though - if they're anything like the Belkits S2000 Fiesta the instructions make it look as though there's not really any reason to attach them as late as Belkits suggest. Then when it comes to fitting the body of the chassis BANG!, it turns out that that bit of wing fouls the chassis. I ended up having to cut my separate wing bits off (had already decalled) and refit which was a bit annoying, so be wary of that before fitting the wing bits to the body early.

Hi Spiny . Your Fiesta S2000 build was one of the first I followed when I joined BM and I remember the wing problems you had . On this version it tells you to add , smooth with putty then polish . Too much faffing for me ! We’ll see if they cause problems in a few months time !    Did you use a brake upgrade kit ? There is a gravel spec upgrade from KMP , but it’s out of stock . 
   Gary . 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 minutes ago, Windy37 said:

   Did you use a brake upgrade kit ? There is a gravel spec upgrade from KMP , but it’s out of stock . 
   Gary . 

 

 

Glad that mine was helpful, good luck with this one. And I can believe what you say about the instructions - I think I commented in my build that Belkits seem to be very good with plastic, and rubbish with anything which involves paper.

 

As for brake upgrade kit, no I didn't use one. Mine was just straight out of the box.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can't help but think that the current WRC's are uglier than an ugly thing that fell from the top of the ugly tree hitting every ugly branch on the way down....!! :whistle:

 

But that's probably just me! :)

 

Glad you're doing Elfyn's car, hope he manages to win the World Championship one year, so close in 2020...  🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿    

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, keefr22 said:

Can't help but think that the current WRC's are uglier than an ugly thing that fell from the top of the ugly tree hitting every ugly branch on the way down....!! :whistle:

 

But that's probably just me! :)

 

Glad you're doing Elfyn's car, hope he manages to win the World Championship one year, so close in 2020...  🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿    

Elfyns won 1000 lakes , sorry , Rally Finland today , something C . McRae  ever did . 
I do tend to think hanging huge wings on the back of small hatchbacks doesn’t look great . But the downforce and grip they generate is amazing . The footage from Finland this weekend and how quickly the top drivers can change direction looks like it’s speeded up . 
 Gary . 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking forward to seeing this kit come together though I have to admit I think it certainly will provide you with a challenge....good luck mate I'll be following along 👍 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll be following along too. I've yet to dip into the world of Belkits, although I imagine I will at some point, if not that new WRC C3 (probable) then at least the RS200, whenever it should see the light of day.

 

I do like the current WRC cars. They are not beautiful but they do look purposeful.

 

A good win for Elfyn at the 1000 lakes this year.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Been making steady progress painting parts on the Fiesta . I like to paint as many parts in a certain colour as I can ; all the aluminium bits , semi gloss black bits etc . Just saves time on washing brushes out and stirring paint !  The chassis , interior tub and roof cage I sprayed Tamiya TS17 gloss aluminium . I’ve used this before and it goes on so well , only 1 good coat is necessary .  The body shell is sprayed in Tamiya pure white and is currently in its box curing . 
  Progress so far then 

51600343285_619ba7a785_c_d.jpg
 

Soon be able to start assembling . Not looking forward to this though as those instructions are horrendous ! 
Thanks for looking   

  Gary . 

 

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I’ve finally managed to put glue to plastic after a long pre painting session . I wanted to try and use the Belkits gravel conversion kit , this being a Rally GB winning car and the base kit being a tarmac car . I was kind of hoping the parts in this kit would fit , but sadly they don’t , so to save a lot of headaches with wheel geometry etc , I have decided to build the kit as a tarmac spec. car ; imagine , if you will ,  the car running on the old Sunday stately homes and park stages , before the forest action began . 
  Anyway , some pictures of progress 

The driveshafts mount under the bottom of the engine , initially I couldn’t get them to fit but then realised one mounting peg is bigger than the other , so the part can’t be glued the wrong way round …. I painted the area around the engine Matt black so it looks dark , as it should with the bonnet shut . At front is the radiator pack , PE mesh painted semi gloss black . The front valance then sits over the radiator . The panel over the exhaust and prop shaft is part of the floor pan , but I have highlighted the bolt holes with Matt black . Research shows black plastic wheel arch liners that I have painted in . 

51632920272_b760d6bf8c_c_d.jpg

Modern World Rally Cars have brake cooling pipes directing air to the disc and into the caliper and these are replicated on the kit . These are the parts that need to be squeezed into the wheelarch , the rubbish instructions don’t help at all ! The pipes fit into the front valance and go behind the suspension strut , a very fiddly task ! 

51633747896_cb983e28b1_c_d.jpg
 

So after much head scratching I have come to the conclusion the cooling pipes in the instructions are the wrong way round . They should be the opposite side to what is shown . The ends of the pipes should curl to reach the brake disc ; if done the suggested way they curl to the engine . I will dry build the whole of the front suspension to be sure  . On the photo below the pipes are now on the right hand side , top of the picture, originally meant for the left ! Another niggle is the parts numbers on the sprues are very faint , so that’s not helping  ! 
 

51633747841_b074368390_c_d.jpg
 

Pleased I’ve made a start , thanks for looking   

  Gary . 

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Belkits really don't help much mate do they with the dodgy instructions 🙄. It's a shame because they manufacture some great looking kits but shabby instructions let them down repeatedly. Good progress so far mate keep dry fitting as you go and I'm sure you'll sort this one out 🙂👍

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Windy37 said:

imagine , if you will ,  the car running on the old Sunday stately homes and park stages , before the forest action began . 

 

Ah, the good old days (remember Tony Pond crashing into the 'lion enclosure' at Longleat....?! 🤣 )

 

Shame about the gravel kit not fitting, was it designed for one of their earlier Fiesta's then? 

 

Still you've made a good start Gary, despite Belkit's best efforts with their 'instructions'!

 

Keith

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, keefr22 said:

 

Ah, the good old days (remember Tony Pond crashing into the 'lion enclosure' at Longleat....?! 🤣 )

 

Shame about the gravel kit not fitting, was it designed for one of their earlier Fiesta's then? 

 

Still you've made a good start Gary, despite Belkit's best efforts with their 'instructions'!

 

Keith

Yes , Keith . The gravel kit fits Belkits S2000 and earlier , non aero WRC Fiesta . The mounting points and hubs are all different and like I said I didn’t want a lot of hassle getting things to fit where they are not meant too . 
  The old Sunday run was great . We used to go to Clumber Park , near us , and watch at the humpback bridge that had to be insured for 1 million pounds in case of damage ! 
 Gary . 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking very good. Just a thought if the numbers are hard to read, but you could try going over the number tabs with matt black to make them a bit easier to see - same principle as going over a body with primer in that the matt black brings out all the seams etc. you missed.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Front suspension assembly finished on the Fiesta . This will be a non steering model mainly due to how the suspension is fastened together . Unlike standard kit practice , the steering arm is held in place by a tiny stepped piece that then fits onto the bottom of the shock absorber , therefore allowing for no steering movement . There wouldn’t be much anyway due to the brake cooling pipes probably fowling the tyres . 
Here you can see the steering arm built up 

51641041352_556a90dfb0_c_d.jpg
 

Research shows the shock absorber struts have remote oil reservoirs finished in a purple colour . Oddly the kit doesn’t have these so I made some from plastic rod and coloured them with a Sharpie . The brake disc faces come to life with photo etch, a nice Belkits detail . There is no Brembo decal for the caliper which is a shame as this would have been a nice touch . 
51645351755_000c67810a_c_d.jpg
 

51645351705_7cb7be2212_c_d.jpg
 

And so to the rear suspension . The instructions here are even worse than the front end . There’s no logic to them , hard to see parts positioning , left and right parts such as struts and brake discs are not called out and are generally doing my head in !!! These tiny parts fit inside the wheelarch and the locating holes aren’t drilled , the instructions making no mention of the fact they need to be drilled out !  The brake cooling pipes also need holes drilling . 
Before drilling , as least you can see where to drill !

51645152074_5c8e4c949f_c_d.jpg
 

Once the holes are drilled , this what goes in them  . The brake pipes are not marked left or right . They need to be as they are specific for each side . It’s a case of “ you decide “ ! 

51644497161_6282321b84_c_d.jpg
 

And this is where I’m up to for now 

51644496936_0f2e839dcf_c_d.jpg
 

Thanks for looking   

  Gary . 

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...