FORD ESCORT

FORD ESCORT

Four decades after the last Model T rolled off the
production line a new era was emerging for Ford.
As the ‘Swinging Sixties’ drew to a close, making
way for what Tom Wolfe described as the “Me
Decade”, there was revolution in the air. Not just
in the streets of Paris, or in music where the likes
of The Beatles, Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan
generated new formats, but also in fi lm – ‘2001 –
A Space Odyssey’ for example – and fashion.
And in its own way Ford was also undergoing a
revolution in Europe, although of a considerably
more peaceful kind.
In the decades following the end of the Model T,
Ford’s European empire had grown into two distinct
business operations: the British based company
headquartered at Dagenham on the edge of
London and a German business located by the
Rhine in Cologne.
There had been a rapid expansion in Ford’s UK
facilities with a new engineering centre and parts
depot at Avely eight miles (13 Kms) from Dagenham
and more manufacturing facilities at Basildon.
But more was needed.
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| Escort
European co-operation
was in the air
Prevented by the Government from further
expansion at Dagenham, Ford bought a 329-acre
(133 hectare) site at Halewood, near Liverpool in
1959. When completed in 1963 its annual volume
would be 200,000 units.
Between them Ford in Germany and the UK
developed and built largely unique product ranges.
Virtually, the only thing they shared in common
were the Blue Oval and the word ‘Ford’.
But European co-operation was in the air on a
much broader, political level. The European Union,
or Common Market, was underway with Britain
knocking on the door, although it wasn’t until 1973
that the UK finally joined.
In reality, the integration of Ford’s British and
Continental operations had already started in
1965 with the launch of the Transit medium van,
but Henry Ford ll was determined to drive integration
further to reduce duplication and improve efficiency,
not just in design, engineering and management

ut, also, to upgrade the distribution network. In
France and Italy, for instance, both British- and
German-built Fords were sold through separate
dealer networks.
Ford of Europe came into being following a meeting
in Paris during June 1967 after Henry Ford ll had
seen Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt notch up the
second consecutive victory with the GT40 at Le
Mans. Heading up the new organisation would be
John Andrews, previously managing director of
Ford Germany.
The mainstay of Ford Germany’s product line-up
was the Taunus range, but its appeal had been
waning by 1967 and 1968 both in Germany and in
other European export markets. A new product
was desperately needed.
Meanwhile Ford of Britain had been pressing
ahead with the development of a replacement for
the Anglia 105E which had been in production
since 1959 and proved hugely successful selling
nearly 1.3 million saloons and wagons.
The Escort prototype was
the start of a phenomenal
success story for Ford (far
left). The Escort’s interior
was simplicity itself, note
the rev counter mounted
on top of the fascia
Escort | 5

British engineers were determined
to keep to a simple, safe formula
| Escort
Planning the Anglia’s replacement – the car that
ultimately became the new Ford Escort – had
started in 1964. Its British engineers were
determined to keep to a simple, safe formula of
front engine, rear-wheel drive even at a time when
front-wheel drive and more sophisticated
suspension than the Escort’s MacPherson struts
and live rear axle were beginning to find favour with
British and, especially, European rivals.
The most novel feature of the Escort’s manu-
facturing was a one-piece pressing from the ‘B’
posts back to ensure, amongst other things, better
door fit. There were other novelties: its compact
29 ft (8.8mtr) turning circle, Ford’s patented
Aeroflow ventilations system that changed the
cabin air every 29 seconds, 5000-mile (8000Kms)
service intervals and chassis and suspension
systems that were lubricated for life.Otherwise
the simple, yet robust engineering was a then
contemporary equivalent to the original Model T.
Originally, the Escort was planned to continue
the Anglia name, but it was felt to be too ‘British’
and Escort was adopted instead. Ford of Britain,
though, had already used the Escort name in the
1950’s on a wagon version of the 100E Anglia.
German product planners and engineers were
more sceptical, fearing that the Escort’s simplicity
would count against its more sophisticated rivals.
Despite these reservations, Ford’s Genk plant
was tooled up to produce Escorts that would be
sold in Europe through a single Blue Oval network,
as the Ford Britain and Germany dealers were
gradually amalgamated.
Production began in late 1967, ensuring a
sufficent supply in the dealers following the first

unveiling at the Brussels motor show early the
following year.
The Escort was an instant hit with the public
with 12,000 cars, worth £7 million, exported in the
first three months, and much to the surprise of
Ford of Germany helping the company to recover
2.2 percentage points of the German market by
the end of 1969.
Four decades ago, manufacturing and
engineering techniques didn’t allow for the use of
sophisticated modular construction that is familiar
today. And, in any case, the concept of niche
products like the S-MAX and Kuga developed
from a shared set of components clothed in unique
body styles was way over the horizon.
Nevertheless, the Escort was made available as
a two- and four-door saloon as well as wagon and
van versions powered by a new engine range in
1.1-, 1.3- and 1.6-litre guise developing from
45 Bhp (33kW/60PS) to 88 Bhp (65kW/89PS).
It was also the first small Ford to be offered with a
three-speed Borg-Warner automatic transmission.
By the end of the first year of production there were
eight models on offer and plenty more would follow
over the years.
The choice ranged from the basic standard
models through to Super trimmed ones, lively
1300GTs to sporting Twin-Cams.
Three-door wagons were
part of the Escort line-up
(far left). But quite why this
four-door’s boot is full of
eggs is anyone’s guess
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19 RS 2000 Escort
| Escort
A portent of what was to come for the Escort took
place under the unforgiving television lens in Britain
just 17 days after it debuted. The occaision was a
programme called ‘World of Sport’ which was
covering rallycross at Croft, Yorkshire where the
new Escort won its very first motor sport event.
Its driver would beome synonymous with Ford
Escorts throughout his and the car’s motor sport
career: Roger Albert Clark.
Motor sport victories came thick and fast for the
Escort: Roger Clark (again) and Jim Porter drove it
to its first international rally on that spring’s Circuit
of Ireland and in May, Frank Gardner drove an
Alan Mann-prepared Group V Escort to its first
international race victory at Zolder, Belgium setting
a new lap record along the way.
Over the next four decades five generations of
rear-, front- and all-wheel drive Escorts would play
key roles in rallying, especially, and to a lesser extent
in circuit racing. But what is, perhaps, unique
about the Escort compared to rival competition
cars is that its relative simplicity, rugged build quality
and comparatively low cost meant that it became
the staple car for clubmans and beginners across
continents and for generations of drivers.
In the upper echelons of international rallying its
victories are legion, from the Monte Carlo to the
East African Safari, Escorts have won them all.
And that’s without counting marathon events like
the World Cup Rally, both the original in 1970 and
the 25th anniversary event, with the same pairing
of Hannu Mikkola driving and Gunnar Palm,
navigating, victors on both events.

19 0 and Hannu Mikkola
and Gunnar Palm
celebrate a famous victory
on that year’s marathon
London-Mexico rally
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10 | Escort
Top left: 19 1 East African
Safari Rally. Back in the
19 0s race and rally drivers
turned their hand to any
motorsport - that’s F1 pilot
Jackie Stewart and ace
rally driver, Hannu Mikkola
at a Rally-Cross meeting.
Night time ice racing
(far left)

Escort Mark II
It took just five months for the first 100,000 Escorts
to be built at Halewood, with production running
at a thousand a day. More than half were destined
for export, many in knock-down form for local
assembly in countries like: Trinidad, South Africa,
New Zealand, Eire, Belgium, Portugal, Malaysia
and Thailand. Just like its illustrious forebear
the Escort was turning into another international
product for Ford.
Escort wagons and vans also attracted the
attention of specialist coachbuilders like Dormobile
and Canterbury in the UK who transformed them
into caravan conversions.
In 1968 Ford had its first cinematic encounter
with 007, when Escorts were used in an ice race in
‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service,’ starring George
Lazenby in his only appearance as James Bond
with Diana Rigg as the love interest.
By 1972 Escort customers could choose from
a range of 19 models with prices in the UK starting
as low as £853 and in the same year, Halewood
produced its 200,000th model. It would take just
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12 | Escort

another two years before Ford’s factories around
the world would produce the two-millionth Escort.
Even the Taiwanese were building the car up from
CKD kits following the formation of Ford-Lio Ho
Motor Co. Ltd.
On its way to achieving that success, the
1,288,957th Escort had been assembled in Britain,
beating the record previously held by its
predecessor, the Anglia.
Ford was always prepared to go that extra mile
to help meet local demands such as those for
Bermuda where the blanket speed limit was a
paltry 20mph (32 Km/h). To prevent the cars from
permanently stalling, Ford equipped Escorts
bound for the islands with special gear ratios.
By 1975, the Escort was ready for a face lift.
The new model acquired a much sharper, almost
Origami style, with a more angular profile that was
becoming popular amongst European car
designers at the time.
The new body shape provided greater interior
room and thanks to 25 per cent larger windows the
Mark ll gained 100 lbs (45 Kgs) in weight. It was an
ambitious product range as well with a new 1600cc
version of the Kent block which retained the same
cylinder bores as the 1300 so it could be machined
on the same production line.
Also appearing for the first time on an Escort
was the famous shield of Ghia, one of Turin’s best
known styling houses and now part of Ford.
The Escort Ghia featured with a wood trim, fully
equipped fascia and radio all as standard
equipment for the first time.
If the Mark 1 Escort had left its rallying rivals in
its wheel tracks then the Mark ll 16-valve RS1600
was destined to become the most successful rally
Escort of all time.
The fuel crises of the mid-70s hit motorists hard
leading Ford to launch an economy version of the
Escort Popular with cross-ply tyres and a 41Bhp
(30.6kW) engine. Test engineer Dennis Kemp took
the search for economy to extremes when he drove
a specially modified Escort with one gear, no front
brakes, stripped of trim and sound deadening and
with a specially lightened engine at tortoise-like
speeds to achieve 118.7mpg (2.4l/100Kms).
The search for alternative fuels had already started
and in 1978 at the Blackpool Mining Festival Ford
displayed a 1.3 Escort powered by ‘Cresto’ petrol
derived from coal. One ton of coal might have
produced 50 gallons of petrol and 80 gallons of light
oil, but subsequent events such as the 1984 British
miners strike soon ended such experimentation.
When Mark ll production drew to a close,
960,007 had been produced at Halewood and
848,388 at Ford’s Saarlouis plant on the border of
Germany and France.
Far left: In the mid and late
19 0s the Mark 2 Escort
RS models dominated
world rallying. Above is
the RS1 00 version and
opposite Hannu Mikkola
on the 19 9 Portugal rally
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1 | Escort

Escort Mark III
Ford knew that if the replacement for the Mark ll
Escort was to stand a chance against its European
rivals then it would have to forsake rear-wheel drive.
It had already successfully produced the front-
wheel drive Fiesta and that provided the template
for the latest Escort.
A 500 strong engineering team took five years
to develop what Ford of Britain’s managing director,
Sir Terence Beckett described then “as the most
important car in our history.”
Code named ‘Erika’ it took 2500 hours in the
wind tunnel to hone its 0.385 Cd – 0.375 for
the XR3 – and exhaustive testing at Ford’s Lommel,
Belgium, testing ground. It also featured a new
family of overhead camshaft engines, known as the
Compound Valve angle Hemispherical chamber or
CVH for short.
But the £500 million investment was worth it
when it earned Ford the coveted European Car Of
The Year trophy in 1981.
Built at Halewood, Saarlouis and in the USA
(although that car had only a passing resemblance
to the European model) the new Escort passed the
million mark in September, was the best selling car
in the USA and the fastest selling car to date in
Europe. It would go on to be the world’s best selling
car in 1981 having sold 250,000 alone in the UK in
1980; the same year that the first diesel engines
featured in the Escort. Whilst the millionth Escort,
a red 1.3L, rolled off Halewood’s production at
11.30 am on Wednesday, 13th October, 1982.
It and the Model T were even featured on a 19.5p
British postage stamp of the time.
Three- and five-door
models proved popular
throughout Europe whilst
the XR3 (opposite) was
also a sales winner
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Above: 19 0 Escort Ghia
1. l. Right above: The
Wagon version proved
popular with families.
Bottom right: The first
Escort Cabrio comes off
the Karmann production
line
1 | Escort
The RS and Mexico badges had now been largely
replaced by the XR moniker applied to a range of
hot hatches with the XR3 accounting for one in
every 10 sold, although a limited edition German
developed and built RS1600i was sold in small
numbers in 1982 and ’83.
Niche models were now creeping into product
ranges and, following a 1981 concept study, Ford
joined forces with German coachwork specialists,
Karmann to develop and produce the first in a series
of Escort cabriolets.
A booted version, known originally as the Orion,
appeared in 1983 coinciding with the Escort’s third
consecutive year as the world’s best selling car:
827,000 to be precise. The Orion was sold very
much as a family saloon in GL, Ghia and Injection
trim with no sporty XR versions. Later, the Orion
name disappeared as the vehicle became a full
member of the Escort family.

‘Hot hatches’ were all the rage in the mid-80s and
Ford wasn’t going to be left out. Its answer was the
‘White Lightening’ RS turbo (this page), its 1.6-litre
engine pumping out 132Bhp (74.5kW).
By the end of 1987, 10 million Escorts had been
built globally with 949,000 sold that year.
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1 | Escort
Ghia’s 1991 Escort-based
concept, the Seeka
(above) and the XRV van
(above right) tested the
public’s reaction to new
ideas. Orion four-door
saloons were popular
company cars (right)
whilst the Eltec (far right)
was a test bed for new
technologies

A 1991 Escort cabriolet
and Orion with their
famous forebear in the
background (above).
A 1993 RS2000 (right)
and a group shot of the
range (left)
A makeover transformed both the Escort and
Orion for 1991, giving the car more elbow room and
improved comfort thanks to torsion bar rear
suspension and enhanced equipment levels such
as power steering, air-conditioning and ABS. Most
importantly a new range of 16-valve Zetec petrol
engines emerged to gradually supplement the
ageing CVH range.
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20 | Escort

The most impressive model of the new range was,
undoubtedly, the road-going version of the 400Bhp
(298kW) rallying RS Cosworth. With all-wheel drive
and 227Bhp (169kW) it had breath-taking road
performance and outstanding dynamics.
It took only four years before the Escort received
another batch of improvements aimed at improving
interior quality and reduced Noise, Vibration and
Harshness for increased comfort.
After 30 years and 20 million cars – over 12 million
in Europe alone – the writing was on the wall for
the Escort. With a new millennium two years away,
Ford needed a new, dynamic product to challenge
its European and Japanese competitors. That,
though, is another story altogether…
The awesome Escort RS
Cosworth was given its
competition debut on the
1992 Centurion Rally (left).
Cutaway of the road going
version reveals its
complex four-wheel drive
system and, yes, that wing
was standard
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22 | Escort
Harry Calton, former head of
Ford public relations, recalls
the complexity of organising
the Moroccan launch
Ford was the first manufacturer to stage overseas
press introductions taking advantage of uncrowded
roads in countries where security and spy shots
would not be a problem. For this was an era
where everything was held back until the public
introduction and any premature leak of information
was regarded as a disaster by the sales and
marketing fraternity.
Discussions with the Moroccan Tourist Board
promised much in terms of favourable hotels,
simple customs and passport formalities and
immunity from speeding fines ...
However, despite these promises no one had
foreseen the bureaucracy which had been instilled
into the systems as a legacy of French rule and the
tradition of everyone expecting a small financial
inducement to speed up the job.
Forty Escorts,spares and the necessary customs
papers duly arrived in Casablanca one week before
Christmas 1967. Yet, despite the Tourist Board
assurances that the decisions had been made 70
documents needing 10 different signatures from
varying officials, in order of seniority, were required
before customs clearance was achieved. Christmas
and Boxing Day that year remain memorable for all
the wrong reasons.
Despite the promised immunity from speeding
tickets I was stopped every morning commuting
from Rabat to Casablanca and handed a ticket.
My international driving licence was the RAC version
with the director of the RAC, Wilfred Andrews’,
name emblazoned on the front cover. So, each
morning Andrews got a ticket.
The launch was a two-day, 1000mile (1600 Kms),
drive to Marrakech and back with the great and the
good of the Fourth estate competing for the
performance models of the new Escort. Although
the only prototype Twin Cam was reserved for TV,
much to the disgust of the others.
But good as its word the tourist board did provide
a police escort for the exodus from Rabat, but
10 miles (16 Kms) outside the town this ground to a
halt as the King of Morocco and his escort pulled
rank and swept by en route to the golf course.
Despite route guides, maps and Ford arrows at
strategic points people strayed off route and one
crew even ran out of fuel.
After lunch the plan was for journalists to change
cars and experience a different model, but the
representative of the Birmingham Post explained
grandly that his readers would not expect him to
drive a base model and that only the Escort GT
would be adequate and of interest to them.
Miraculously not a windscreen was broken nor
any paintwork scratched and 24 hours later the
French and Belgian press set out on their own
appraisals with similar results.
The only exception was the precious prototype
Twin Cam which a TV crew modified over rocks
wrecking the front suspension anad rendering it only
just driveable.
In order to connect with the freighter returning the
cars and spares to the UK local drivers were hired to
ferry the Escorts back to Casablanca including the
Twin Cam whose driver claimed it was the best
handling car he had ever driven ...

Retired motoring journalist,
Richard Feast recalls his first
encounter with the Ford Escort.
Eye witness: the road to Morocco
The media introduction of the Escort in January
1968 was an epic of its day. As northern Europe
shivered, the poor old motoring correspondents
were obliged to tackle a gruelling three-day test
drive across Morocco, taking in the Barbary coast,
the Atlas mountains and some of the tourist
highlights – and finest hotels – of Rabat, Meknes,
Casablanca and Marrakech.
Such a lavish launch was an indication of the
Escort’s importance to Ford. The event was also
significant for me – in more ways than one.
The Escort was my first international new car
launch. For a little-travelled youth from the flat, black
fens of Cambridgeshire, a driving adventure in
Morocco at someone else’s expense was the high
life. Working for Motor Sport at the time, I was also
one of the handful of hacks allowed behind the
wheel of the racy Twin Cam version.
Hmm, this was a very agreeable way to earn a living.
Many more car launches in many more locations
followed. From the perspective of retirement, few
stay in the memory like the Escort in Morocco.
Over the years, I came to understand how clever
Ford’s product planners were when they conceived
an affordable new family car. Working for Autosport,
we reported on the Escort’s latest wins in races and
rallies around the world. When I switched to What
Car?, the model’s tremendous sales appeal meant it
was seldom out of the magazine’s pages. Later, as
European editor of Automotive News, I watched
Escorts being made and learned what made it such
a business success.
The formula for the car we drove in Morocco
proved to be the right one at the right time.
On a personal level, I have another wonderful
memory from that launch. My then-new wife met me
at Gatwick airport on our return with the news that
she was expecting our first child. Even 40 years on,
that’s something one can never forget.
Note: Ford of Europe has endeavoured to ensure that the information contained in this press pack is, to the best of our knowledge,
accurate and based on detailed research.
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