1979 Ford Escort RS2000 Custom

Description

• UNSOLD at auction September 2023
• Recent Full Restoration 
• Engine rebuilt 
• Absolutely stunning example 
• Wants for nothing 
• Brand new interior 
• Recent Cambelt service 
• Superb Upgrade 

Ford’s long awaited MkII Escort RS2000 was launched at the 1975 Earls Court show. It was the most luxurious of the sporting Escorts of the time and was powered by an uprated version of the 2.0 litre OHC Pinto unit employed in the Capri, Cortina and Granada. A four-into-two exhaust manifold coupled to a big bore exhaust system raising its output to 110bhp. This was sufficient to help sprint the Escort to 60mph in 8.5 secs and on to a top speed of almost 110mph. The foam-filled plastic snout and flexible rear spoiler were said to give a significant reduction in drag. 

Our vendor explained that the last owner, an engineer who owned a garage, was responsible for the restoration and had owned it for 22 years. During the last of those years, he spent thousands bringing it up to the standard that can be seen today. 

Our vendor also advised that the car has hardly been driven since the restoration, this can be backed up by the MOT history as the clock has only moved 2000 miles since 2006 – and only 125 miles since 2012. In fact, the brand-new brakes are still not bedded in properly. 

This spectacular example will be supplied with 2 sets of keys, a handful of old MOTs from 2006 and a handful of receipts including one for the interior that totals over £3200. 

Exterior 

If you have managed to pull yourself away from the images of this wonderful RS2000 and have reached this point of our article you’re probably wondering if it is even worth your time reading this part; it is clear to see that the car is visually stunning in its signal green livery.    

If we were to find, and it was a struggle, a small negative then it would be that the car has had a colour change, not that you could tell.  It only came to light when our vendor, whilst scrutinising the car for signs of welding lifted the carpets. Still in its original yellow colour, the floor is very solid and shows no signs of welding, and being a welder in his previous life our vendor knows what to look for. An almost unbelievable feat for a forty plus year old Ford Escort. 

That said, the colour change should not be of concern to you at all, you will be extremely hard pushed to know of its previous colour as there are no obvious signs from the outside; the door shuts and engine bay are all signal green and immaculate. 

Anyway, back to that stunning paint job. Once all the metalwork was up to the expected standard the paint preparation was carried out before liberal coats of signal green were applied, giving it the wonderful shine that is clearly present. 

The bumpers and grille all present well with no dents, cracks or damage. The rest of the contrasting black trim, including that rear spoiler and door handles all look great. The glass seems to be original, and all the lamps are in great nick. 

The underneath is just as impressive. Pop back to the image gallery and see for yourself. It is very tidy indeed and has been treated to a good coating of Lanoguard so will stay that way for years to come. With a solid base to start with, it didn’t take much to bring it to the standard you see now. 

The RS wheels have been fully refurbished and are wrapped in matching 185/60 R13 rubber that look virtually brand new. 

Interior 

The rally inspired interior is another sight to behold. The first thing you will notice as you lower yourself in are the fantastic, fully adjustable and forward tilting seats that feel and look brand new – that’s because they are. Our vendor shared that the originals just did not look right so they were sent to a specialist down south. Unfortunately, he found that they had somewhat been chopped and changed and were the wrong seats, he believed them to be Capri seats. Our vendor then commissioned them to be completely replaced with the correct seats, all to the tune of £3,200.  

Once settled, you will then see that the dash is in place with no cracks or scuffs; predominantly due to a brand spanking new, old stock original padded top section being fitted. The door pads are in great condition, the offside rear quarter inner trim has some blemishes that can be seen in the images, but this does not detract from how impressive the whole interior is. The carpet looks perfect and the RS mats protecting them look brand new. 

There is a period Pioneer head unit with a CD changer in the boot which is connected to four speakers with the rears fitted correctly under the undamaged rear parcel shelf. The roof lining is also in fantastic condition.   

All, in all it is a lovely place to be. 

Engine and Mechanicals 

The RS2000 featured the Pinto engine from the Cortina, which was announced in the UK in March 1975. It provided a claimed 110 bhp and a top speed of 110 mph. For acceleration to 62.5 mph, a time of 8.9 seconds was claimed by the manufacturers. The 2.0 litre engine was also easily retro-fitted into the MkII, alongside the Ford Sierra’s five-speed gearbox, for rallying and other sports.  And let’s be honest it worked extremely well with a string of rally wins under its belt. 

Well forget everything just stated above because this is where this Escort RS2000 gets really interesting.  The fully serviced 205 block Pinto engine has been given the same attention to detail as the exterior and interior, fitted with a fast road cam and bored out to the obligatory 2100cc (the V5 still states the original engine size of 1993cc).  Add to that the intake being a set of four Mikuni carbs with Pipercross filters and the output being a full four branch Janspeed stainless-steel exhaust that looks and sounds fantastic, you have one seriously quick car. 

Once on the move you will notice that the slick, quick shift gearchanges from the type 9 5 speed box and the quick rack steering all add to the splendour of being in an 80s Fast Ford. Move onto the suspension and you will find it handles as well as it goes, being fitted with fully adjustable Spax Coilovers. Also, at the front corners are oversized vented disks and pads that, as previously mentioned, still need a little bedding in due to the small amount of mileage travelled since the restoration. 

An extremely well-built car that starts on the button with a new battery fitted in the boot, and electronic ignition. With the cambelt service also recently carried out this really is ready to go.  

Our view  

With the short-throw gearbox, uprated Pinto 205 block four-cylinder motor and paper-cut sharp turn-in, our winning bidder is really going to enjoy their drive home. If they don’t immediately feel like a rally driver, then I’ll eat my hat. A spectacular car in standard format, an unbelievable one in this guise. Especially in this condition, it will be a very long search if you think you are going to find one better than this superbly restored iconic Fast Ford. 

Prices have been following the upward curve of the Escort Mexico and you’ll be pressed to find a decent MkII RS. Let alone one in this condition. Really nice Escort RS2000s like this are bound to keep on rising, simply because there are so few original survivors left. With thousands spent bringing it up to this condition, we would recommend that you don’t waste a minute more – get bidding. 

Good luck! Please note that there is no anti-sniping functionality so to ensure that you don’t miss out, there’s a facility to allow you to place your maximum bid for a lot. When you do, the system will bid up automatically on your behalf. 

Vehicle Location: Kilvaree, Scotland PA37 – it’s the responsibility of the winning bidder to make collection / transportation arrangements directly with the vendor.