The Classic Sale At Silverstone Festival 25th - 27th August 2023

+ buyers premium of 12.5% plus VAT (15% incl VAT) on the first £300,000 of the hammer and 10% plus VAT (12% incl VAT) thereafter 279 Registration: GUT 626L Chassis No.: BBATMT03880 Estimate: £25,000 - £30,000 Specialist: Joseph Watts Telephone No: 07779 082707 Lot 754 1972 Ford Escort Mk1 RS2000 Recreation With their Escort doing so well in the rallying world, it made sense that Ford would try and sell developed versions beyond the usual homologation specials. The job of creating more widely-produced fast Escorts was left to Ford’s new Advanced Vehicle Operations based in Essex. Following up on the RS1600 of 1970, which was quite a specialist car that demanded a lot of care and attention, came the Mexico and RS2000 which were far more suited to the man in the street. In June 1973, the Mexico was supplanted by the RS2000. The car fitted nicely into the AVO line up with its performance almost comparable to the complex RS1600, but with the same reliability and ease of maintenance as the Mexico and, importantly, the RS2000 utilised the same Type-49 body shell as the Mexico and RS1600. The RS2000 was the first Escort to be powered by the overhead cam four-pot, as Ford decided that their 2-litre Pinto engine was to be used in the new model, however Ford was faced with the problem of persuading the bulky Pinto engine to fit into the engine bay. The only way of achieving this was to discard the engine-driven cooling fan and replace it with a thermostatically controlled Kenlowe unit. When finally nestled in place, the Pinto engine produced 100bhp (2bhp more than in the Cortina). The RS2000 once again proved to be a quick and delightful car to drive, whilst being more accessible to buy and still offering customers a great choice in terms of colours and options. The car presented here is offered to auction from a Ford enthusiast, who recently bought the car from his friend (who’d had it for ten years), having known it for all this time. The friend owned another RS2000 which, due to the ravages of time, was beyond repair. Being a similar enthusiast, he bought this lovely (still with its original bill of sale) and extremely solid Escort and transferred all the RS2000 componentry over to this car - with a regular Mk1 Escort shell (chassis number: BBATMT03880 not an AVO BFAT******* number - hence ‘Recreation’). So, driving/performance-wise this is a full-spec and standard (apart from the Weber 40 IDF Carburettor conversion kit, a rear-axle tramp bar and a 5-speed gearbox ) RS2000. Our knowledgeable vendor states the car is in excellent condition and drives as well as any RS2000 could. With the best RS2000 examples now commanding £40,000-plus, this very capable and enthusiast-owned car offers great value and a real taste of that early Fast Ford magic. A full-spec and faithful RS2000 recreation, striking in Daytona Yellow with Ochre decals and offering great value. More Details Lot 754 Bid On Lot 754