Dream-grade Ford Escort RS1600i for sale

If it isn’t already, now feels like the Escort Mk3’s time to shine as a classic fast Ford. The rear-drive cars are already sufficiently celebrated to be earning their own factory-supported restomods; these days you’ll seemingly do well to find a Cossie that isn’t basically £100k. It’s a bubble that seemingly will not burst. Yet there’s a whole generation of car kids who grew up lusting after XR3s and RS Turbos, wishing for all the world that their Mum’s 1.3L was something spicier. And while still incredibly valuable – helped of course by so many being biffed in the Max Power era – the Mk3 is still less than those later Cossies and potentially a bit more usable than those rear-drive originals. 

An RS1600i was never quite as lairy as the turbocharged cars or as accessible as either XR3, but it did have the cachet of homologation on its side. Ford needed to make 5,000 to race a similar-looking Escort in Group A, so the road car featured fuel injection for the old CVH lump; a new cam meant the race cars could rev higher, aided by solid tappets. All RS1600is were five-speed as well, and the suspension overhauled to feature a front anti-roll bar. More than 8,500 were sold in just a couple of years. 

And it probably wasn’t just the allure of Bosch K-Jetronic that drew folk to the RS1600i. It was the look, surely, far racier than an XR3 and probably a better-resolved bit of fast Ford design than even the RS Turbo. The graphics, wheels, stripes and spoilers of the 1600i still sit so nicely on the Mk3’s distinctive shape. Those who know will know from a mile off. And smile a lot.

This particular Escort is notable as a Sunburst Red car. According to the RS Owners Club it’s a much rarer colour than Black (560 cars against 820), which feels very familiar as an RS1600i shade. Presumably any left in Graphite Grey, Strato Silver or Caspian Blue (all less than 300 for the UK) are going to be megabucks. This red is also significant for having just three owners since new in 1983, and one of those is the selling dealer now. It’s original and unrestored, which is really something more than 40 years later. 

The first owner’s care is described as ‘fastidious’, with a great sheaf of paperwork from his quarter of a century with the car. If anything the second owner from 2009 – ‘a dedicated RS enthusiast’ – was even more careful, because the Escort just didn’t really go anywhere. Indeed there wasn’t an MOT from ‘09 to ‘19, and fewer than 300 miles covered. Since then there’s been another clean test last May, though the age means this Escort is now exempt. 

At £45,000, clearly it’s a valuable old car that’ll require careful consideration before using. You’d understand if it went straight into another collection with a host of other Blue Oval heroes. But wouldn’t it be great, after so many years of inactivity, for a few more miles to roll under those unmistakable alloy wheels? They’re fundamentally quite simple cars, after all, even if spares might take some tracking down. And icon status is guaranteed by now – a few more miles won’t hurt. Memory lane awaits…