It's 4.3 V6. held up pretty well. I left the dog door on inside the van to cover the engine. But yea, it's scary having a overheating engine that close to your face. I used the "mini donut" tires on the front so when they do go flat they don't drag me down as bad. It was a derby of only van's and small SUV's. To tell you the truth there was only 5 of us in it and one was my brother, two were my friends, and the other was a poor soul. You should watch the video, it's actually pretty funny.
Both the Escort and Astro are good for another race or two!