Another vote for the Duratec Plus 4, the port injected 2.0 variant really is an outstanding engine!
The best of the modern Plus 4 breed was the Supersports model as it received the best Mazda L variant of the Duratec, this version benefitted from variable valve timing, better rods, a steel crank, and made 200hp on throttle bodies while retaining simpler port injection, the trouble is they only made 60 Supersports so they're rare and when they do come up for sale they tend to be pricey.
Ignoring the Supersports for a minute, don't forget a regular port injected Duratec Plus 4 will be usefully cheaper to buy than the direct injected GDI, and other than the engine difference it's essentially the exact same car, this makes the cheaper to buy Duratec Plus 4 a far better value proposition.
Finally, don't ignore a narrow body 4/4 75th Anniversary model as Morgan gave it the 143hp 2.0 Duratec from the Plus 4, this one recently sold for just £26,000 which was somewhat of a bargain if you ask me!
And for just £2,500 you can take any standard Duratec from 143hp to 180hp, all you need is a Fusion Fabrications inlet, their Supersports replica exhaust manifold and an ECU reflash. The above narrow body 4/4 75th Anniversary probably only weighs 900 kg, so 180hp would give you 200 bhp per ton!!! This would make for a very nippy little depreciation proof classic car with the modern and bombproof Duratec engine paired with the super slick five speed Mazda transmission.
All this for just £28,500, try building a resto-mod Duratec MGB for that and you'll soon be spending more
Well there's a real lot of information here for you to get you head around RoyBoy. I can really get all of it! I have in the last year done exactly what you are doing when looking for my new car and went for a low milage Duratec 2010 car which was well loaded with every extra. Believe me, those extra's cost a fortune and really aren't reflected in a used price so stick out for what you want!
The Duratec 2.0 L for the general user is in my opinion the best by far. It has the fuel injection system that keeps the intake valves and ports clean as it washes them on injection whereas the GDI direct injection doesn't and the intake side can soon gum up and cause problems when that happens. The GDI is fly by wire and I don't think the throttle potentiometers are great and this reflects the throttle response throughout the range of position and revs whereas the wire driven throttle body of the Duratec reflect a standard carburetor car and gives smooth response throughout the the range and speed. It drives as you'd want and expect!
The Mazda gearbox! Yes it has a sublime selection but mated to a Morgan the bell housing sticks out the bottom and becomes the lowest part of the car ..... yep! you'll Twa...t it guarantied! as the Morgan is really low to the ground, 4" ground clearance to the Chassis cross member and its below that! Big bill on it's way! The Ford MT 75 can be criticized for the chunky change but remember this, its bomb proof and Ford did fit it to the Cosworth cars and have you heard a Cosworth driver complain! There is an alternative gearbox oil designed to enhance gear changes by Castrol and if you keep the clutch fluid fresh and the remote gearbox selector linkage clean and lubricated you won't go far wrong! The radiator is the plastic end type and not all are crap but do expect to upgrade to a mulfab all alloy option in the future. do this as soon as you have a suspect leak or dribble and you'll not have a catastrophic failure! priced at roughly £500' an easy diy job!
A 2009-2010 I found to be the ultimate Duratec/MT-75 set up. 2009 were the centenary cars and are usually really well spec'd, mine was registered in 2010 but date stamped parts all 2009. Its finish is excellent and the spec is the same! The selector on the gearbox of the Mazda option is also a fail point and it seems is not available as a spare so a repair would be required although Vitesse fit Mazda upgrades so might be worth seeking their advice here! The Gdi can't really be modified/upgraded whereas the Duratec can and if you ask the sports car world for their advise they would tell you to opt for the Duratec. The Gdi I believe originated from the US market but had a turbo fitted and they called it the worst engine ever fitted to a car! but in all fairness it doesn't seem to suffer with those issues without the turbo. The best variant then must be the later Mazda with VVT and uprated crank and con rods. However this is not your run of the mill option.
In conclusion, when you drive the plus 4 it'll be a totally different experience to what you are used too but you will love it once you get used to the foibles of the car. People describe the dive as supple and only a well set up car that is looked after will produce that, I can now testify to that statement. learn all you can about the car you want, test drive a prepared one from a dealer as this will give you a benchmark as to what they should drive like but don't take any money with you! If you are handy and intend to work on the car yourself I'd suggest you look for a private sale as you will save a lot of money. Most cars have fairly low mileages and suffer the problems of this, like the sliding pins not being correctly greased making the front end overly harsh and crashy and with a variable steering load even overly stiff throughout the steering range. This will also present with alarming steering kick-back at the steering wheel. Rear leaf springs inadequately cleaned and lubricated which makes the back end feel like a wheelbarrow on a cobbled street. You'd be surprised how many times a car could change hands due to these simple fixes not being done and the difference it will make to the drive is unbelievable. Do your checks to the front end and make sure the pins aren't worn and look at the rear springs and suddenly you have a very favorable purchase option! The seller doesn't want or like it and you can sort it in a weekend! When you know what it should drive like you can point out its faults but not its quick fixes and start negotiating! Really, expect to save thousands on dealer prices!
They really are simple cars to work on and will give pleasure in that as well. Don't accept poor bodywork, its aluminum and harder to repair without filler. remember you are buying an expensive fairly deflation proof car so don't get desperate to get the folding out. Play hardball, make your offer and walk away...... expect the phone to ring!
Best of luck, do these things and you will be happy with your car, Don't get desperate it will appear sooner than you think and enjoy your search!
Dave, I’ve been reading your posts on the mods you have made to Montegue with great interest. Can you clarify a couple of points please:
Is 180 bhp available without changing the cams on a standard Duratec.
Absolutely
Did you use the standard cat and if not, are there any emissions problems
No, I used a 200 cell cat and my MoT tester flexible
Does the guide price you mention include fitting?
Yes, because Fusion Fabrications will build the exhaust and inlet manifolds on the car.
Many thanks Bob.
In addition to the above, if you're setting your goal at 180hp and you want a quiet car that passes the emissions test, save the money on the 200 cell cat, sports silencer and tailpipe that I went with. Ask Matt at FF to integrate your factory cat and keep the rest of the system as is, the big power gains come from the long tube Supersports exhaust manifold which you definitely want.
The inlet manifold works brilliantly, but with the exhaust manifold your Duratec is now shifting a lot more air so without a remap the engine will run lean and feel as flat as a witch's mammary gland! Putting a richer fuel table into the Ford/Visteon ECU sounds easy enough and on the face of it, it should be. However, I found it 'nigh on impossible' to find someone prepared to work with the old Mondeo ECU, saying that 'Rog' who regularly posts on these pages has a remote mapper who can hack the ECU so he should be able to help?
I became inpatient to find a solution and because I already have quite a bit of experience with aftermarket ECUs and I was taking Monty to the next level I fitted a plug-n-play EMU Black from ECU Masters which is an exceptional engine management system that will allow further development of Monty such as the installation of a Rotrex supercharger.
However, don't rule out the old Ford/Visteon Ford ECU, it's a quality and very capable system (if rather outdated) that can easily cope with 180hp on the stock injectors, all it needs is a richer fuel table and your Duratec Plus 4 with the FF manifolds installed will easily make a healthy 180hp. The standard setup with the plastic inlet, restrictive swirl flaps and the dreadful exhaust manifold makes 143hp, now add the best part of 40hp and because the car only weighs 900kg or so you'll really notice a big improvement in performance.
The Duratec is one of those rare naturally aspirated engines that responds brilliantly to a few simple breathing mods, the reason for this is Ford got it right first time with this engine, despite the engine being fitted to really boring cars like the Focus and Mondeo if you actually take a look at the cylinder head it's an absolute work of art, the ports are huge and well designed and the combustion chambers are pure race car.
Testament to the brilliance of the Duratec is the fact that the factory cast ports are thought to be so good straight out of the foundry that it's common knowledge there's little or nothing to be gained from CNC or hand porting the cylinder head, and that's very very rare indeed!
