Creating the £200,000 classic Ford rally car

This is what 1000 hours of modification work looks like.
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Graham Scott|Pistonheads30 December 2016

WRC cars are so incredibly fast through stages these days that it really blows you away when you see them in the flying metal. But at the recent Wales Rally GB there were reminders of how it used to be – similarly committed, but with different techniques and limits.

The run of rear-wheel drive Ford Escorts and Datsun 240Zs and other such throwbacks reminded us of how much fun it used to be. Of course, if you wanted to buy an actual pukka ex-works rally car then you’re looking at big six figures. However, even a superb converted Escort rally car is not going to be cheap.

This one isn’t at £79,500 but that figure is rather put in the shade by two other figures: it took 1000 hours of work to create this, and it also took £120,000.

It was built by Major Motorsport. Simon Mauger, the Team Principal, claims that he’s never been beaten by another Mk2 escort, so there’s a chance they know what they’re doing. There’s also another little phrase that might attract your attention when talking about this car: ‘there was no budget’.

There’s a Millington Diamond 2.5-litre four-cylinder under the bonnet, an engine that’s capable of making over 300bhp. This is linked to a Tractive sequential gearbox and you’ll be reassured to know that Brembo takes care of the braking. What a looker it is, what a lot of memories that would bring back to many people.

You might think that, nah, you’re looking for a track-day car, not an old rally car. But this has been built to tarmac rally spec. Which means you can race it round a circuit without even having to get it very dirty while you familiarise yourself with this blue chunk of rolling motorsport history.

Of course you could then move on to stage rallies if you felt like it so you’ve sort of got two cars in one. But in your first forays you would certainly stand out from, yawn, yet another track-day Porsche or whatever. This is rare, special, worth it.

KEY STATS - FORD ESCORT MK2 RALLY CAR

Price: £79,500
Why you should: Iconic rally car, beautifully built, ready to go
Why you shouldn't: The fear of crashing it...

Follow Evening Standard Motors on Twitter: @ES_Motors.

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