I also want to come up with a better solution for holding the leads. I currently use the factory rubber block that just sits on top of the rocker cover, but have noticed all of them around that area have gone black from heat. Which tells me i need a solution to seperate them out away from each other and maybe isolate them from the rocker cover a bit more 

I have an idea for a centre cap yeah. But for now i also kind of like them as they are, makes it look a bit more “racy”, if you will. 
     

Possible your leads are the issue, resistance breaks down over time. You might have to take a plug in to Autobahn...... surprised they even know what a spark plug is, these days. New leads and plugs, with correct gap should wake her up. 

Love those rims, very Mexicana.  Could you get a low profile centre cap? or you happy as they are..

While you have the head off check for corrosion and see if the head is flat. Also pay attention to how tight the bolts are, if any are loose or tight then that might mean your engine has been overheated,

XC GS Falcons spare wheel is 12 slot as the rest on the car.

Well time for an update. 
  I was having ignition issues again, with a random misfire under load. I replaced the points in the dizzy, which helped but didn’t get rid of it. 
So I bit the bullet and bought an electronic ignition module to convert the Lucas points dizzy to electronic. Install was easy but wiring it (properly this time) into the car was a bit of work, and the car is definitely running better. 
- Lets start with the wiring. It turned out that the Escort is a resisted ignition system, so at the coil it only gets 9v. Much less than the 12v the electronic ignition required. It also turned out that the GT40 coil I was running was a 12v coil, not a resistor type. So, i did some trickery with the ignition. 
Ive installed a 12v relay which takes a feed direct from the battery, and used the resister wire (9v) to turn the relay on and off. The relay is then supplying the coil, and im powering the dizzy off the coil. 

Has it got more power? Not really. But, it has better power delivery right across the rev range, and is more linear. 
  Funny thing is, I still have not replaced plugs, leads or air cleaner. Bursons sold me the wrong plugs twice, and thats as far as i got. 
  I have finally got the 13” steelies on. The car looks completely different now. 
They didn’t come out as dark as I wanted. They are a bit grey, but they are metallic. 
  I installed new, longer studs. Funny enough, they were off the shelf from Autobarn, 10mm longer. The spline was just 0.2mm larger, and pressed into the hubs fine. 
Spacers are on, and it all clears. 
They fill the guards nicely. 
  The two rusty wheels were a bit too pitted for the powder coating to fill, so up close they are a bit bumpy. 
  anyway, the pics can do the talking             

I can't imagine a crossflow caring much,  i used to put HPR diesel 20/60 in my cars because a mate who worked at autobarn at the time got them for me below cost due to damage/leaky containers.. didn't see any change other than it shut one of the noisy lifter engines up    it's not ideal for the dizzy gear apparently, puts more strain on the oil pump. 

Just wondering could too thick oil make an engine run bad? I changed my oil and I put 20w60 in it and its running shitty.  

Well I got the ea seat in and it is way lower than the original. Its so low in fact that its getting jammed on the carpet and at full back the seat belts barely reach so I'll definitely need to hunt down an original seat.