Return of the Mk1 Ford Escort: 150 ‘new’ examples are being constructed – however the price ticket is astronomical
- Limited run of new Escorts are officially licenced to used Ford name and badges
The Ford Escort Mk1 RS is back… sort of.
A limited-edition run ‘continumod’ of the iconic 1970s car is being built for buyers with deep pockets – but there’s only 150 going so you’d better move fast.
Fifty years on from when the last Escort MK1 RS came off the production line, the new Mk1 RS models will be ‘an authentic continuation’ thanks to their ‘approved chassis numbers’.
Makers of the reborn Escorts, Boreham Motorworks, are in a unique position of being an official brand license partner of the Ford Motor Company, which means the high-performance variants will carry the Escort name and the Ford badge.
And while you’ll get 296bhp and 10,000rpm, you’ll have to part with a lot of cash for it.
That’s because the Ford Escort Mk1 RS Continumod costs from £295,000.
Production begins in late 2025 and order books are now open to put your name down… if you can afford to.
A new Ford Escort MK1 is arriving and it’s a ‘continumod’ of the original car that was so loved in the 1970s
The new Escort Mk1 is promised to be ‘blueprint-accurate and period-sympathetic’ to the original but will ‘combine the timeless spirit of classic cars with modern engineering, design and advanced manufacturing’.
Very different to other restomods that aren’t allowed to use the licenced badges and names of the original cars on which they’re based, these brand-new Escorts will have Ford-approved continuation chassis numbers, making them exceptionally rare buys.
Built new from the ground up, they won’t using ‘donor’ original Escorts.
Offered with a choice of two petrol engines, the Escort will either come with a reimagined Ford Twin-Cam four-cylinder 1.8-litre unit which produces 182bhp or a four-cylinder 2.1-litre motorsport engine making 295bhp.
The former comes with a four-speed straight-cut manual gearbox, while the latter comes with a five-speed dogleg manual transmission.
The brand-new Escorts will not have donor cars, and will have Ford-approved continuation chassis numbers, making them exceptionally rare buys
Boreham Motorworks promises the cars will be ‘blueprint-accurate and period-sympathetic’ to the original
Boreham Motorworks said the Escort will ‘proudly honour’ the Escort Rallye Sport line’s ‘exceptional performance and handling’ that ‘set a new benchmark or what it means to drive a high-performance car’.
To do this, Boreham added forged steel conrods, a billet crankshaft and advanced fuel injection.
To keep it feeling like a proper Mk1 Escort, it does without power steering, anti-lock brakes and traction control.
This will result in a ‘raw driving experience that made the RS Escorts performance icons,’ the maker said.
The Escort will come with a Ford Twin-Cam four-cylinder 1.8-litre unit which produces 182bhp and 9,000rpm or a four-cylinder 2.1-litre engine that produces 295bhp and 10,000rpm
Boreham said the Escort will ‘proudly honour’ the Escort Rallye Sport line’s ‘exceptional performance and handling’
Based on the two-door Escort RS bodies produced by Ford’s Advanced Vehicle Operations before it was shut in 1975, design director Wayne Burgess (who had a Mk2 himself) stuck to an exterior design philosophy of ‘simplicity and form, stripping away any unnecessary ornamentation to leave only what is essential’.
With a billet-machined aluminium grille, simple taillights, removed quarter bumpers, and new door handles, mirrors and billet components, the car looks phenomenal – blending the old with the new seamlessly.
Inside the driver benefits from the continued simplicity, with vintage style but modern day practicality; the low, horizontal dash opens the Alcantara-leather blend interior up, with a compact binnacle within the deep-dish, three-spoke steering wheel, an analogue-inspired instrument panel as well as heated screens and air con.
In keeping with the rally Escorts of old, there’s an optional four-point harness instead of the three-point inertia reel standard belts, and a rear compartment race helmet stowage and a full roll cage with removable door bars for enhanced stiffness.
Wayne Burgess commented: ‘Every detail, from the minimalism of the exterior to the thoughtful functionality inside, is about distilling the essence of what made the Mk1 so special.’
The design is all about ‘simplicity and form’ both outside and in with a mix of vintage and modern
The Alcantara-leather blend interior has a low dash, with a compact binnacle within the deep-dish, three-spoke steering wheel, an analogue-inspired instrument panel
There’s an optional four-point harness instead of the three-point inertia reel standard belts, and a rear compartment race helmet stowage and a full roll cage with removable door bars
While the pictures look great, there’s a heft price tag of £295,000 – and book are now open
As said though there are only 150 cars up for grabs, and to ensure a piece of this limited-edition rally-esque pie, enthusiasts will need to have at least £295,000.
Considering you’re looking at spending anything from £40,000 for a MK1 in good nick to £100k for a best ever seen RS2000 example, that’s a heft premium for a modern reincarnation.
The ‘best example’ Iconic Auctioneers said it had ever seen was sold for £108,000 in 2023 after a five-year restoration.
However, when a similar example came up for sale in November of this year – following a £130,000 rebuild – it failed to make its reserve price.
The new Escort comes with a two-year/20,000 mile warranty though, and will enter production in the third quarter of 2025.
Customers will get to see the car in the flesh next summer before production begins.
