THE FORD ESCORT MK.III AT 40
8th September, 2020
September 1980 saw Ford unveil the latest Escort - and to celebrate four decades of what was once Britain’s most popular car, here are 21 thrilling facts:
1. The Mk. III was Ford’s third European FWD car - the first was the Taunus P4 and the second was the Fiesta.
2. The company originally considered replacing the Escort name with “Erika” – the latter was the codename of the development programme.
3. Ford of Germany was responsible for the “Areoback” hatchback bodywork – a “first” for the company in this sector of the market.
4. Development of the Mk. III cost £500million, and the latest Escort would also feature new 1.3-litre and 1.6-litre OHC engines. However, the cheaper models were still to use the venerable 1.1-litre “Kent” plant.
5. A further break with Escort tradition was the all-independent suspension.
6. The main rivals for the Mk. III were the VW Golf, the Citroen GSA, the Fiat Ritmo/Strada, the Opel Kadett D/Vauxhall Astra and the Talbot Horizon.
7. Ford GB marketed the Escort under the slogan ‘Simple is Efficient’ – and naturally Patrick Allen was responsible for voicing the television advertisements:
8. A Ghia 1.6 five-door would have set you back £5,033 – but your friendly local Ford dealer would probably tempt you to specify the optional electric front windows (£130.21), central locking (£150.04) and headlamp washers (£68.61).
9. At the opposite end of the Escort range, there was an even more elaborate range of extras for the basic 1100 3-door. You could order fabric in place of vinyl upholstery, halogen headlamps, servo-assisted brakes, a heated rear window, reclining front seats and even a ‘tilting rear package tray’.
10. The motoring press warmly received the Mk. III. Autocar believed it would take over the mantle of its ‘older relations without any problems’ and Motor Sport found the 1.6 GL to be ‘a very effective small car’.
11. The XR3 made its bow on 24th November 1980 and the famous press photos of an army of red-painted examples were shot on a section of the M4 -
12. When Car magazine evaluated the XR3 opposite the Alfa Romeo Alfasud 1.5 Ti and the VW Golf GTi Mk. I they concluded ‘the Ford clearly has the most potential, a great deal of which is still to be realised’.
13. The Escort Mk. III defeated the Fiat Panda and the Austin Mini Metro to become Car of The Year 1981 -
14. In September 1981, enthusiasts marvelled at the Escort RS1600i . Ford of Germany Motorsport originally planned to manufacture just 5,000 (to meet homologation requirements) but it proved so popular that 8,659 examples left the factory before production ceased in July 1983.
15. In 1982 the Escort became the UK’s best-selling car, replacing the Ford Cortina Mk. V. In that same year, the range was offered a (very welcome) five-speed gearbox.
16. The XR3i represented major Ford news in October 1982. It was developed by Ron Mansfield’s team at Ford’s Special Vehicle Engineering division and the major improvement over the XR3 was the Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection, resulting in a top speed of 120 mph. The price was now £6,278 and Autocar thought the latest Escort represented ‘a real threat to the Golf’.
17. A Karmann-bodied Escort Cabriolet, initially sold with either Ghia or XR3i specifications, became available in 1983. Motor Sport believed the latter was a not particularly distinctive car, ‘but it is economical to run, highly-equipped and has won a good reputation for reliability even if it does cost £12,337 to put new on the road’.
18. The five-door Estate – earlier versions were three-door only – was also introduced in 1983.
19. In September of that year Ford unveiled the four-door Orion, which was initially available only in GL and Ghia forms. Motor regarded it as ‘a highly pressive proposition’ when viewed as a compact alternative to the Vauxhall Cavalier II and Talbot Solara. Here is the splendidly dreadful TV commercial that was apparently targeting the “Yuppie” market -
20. 1984 marked the launch of the RS Turbo, capable of 127.1mph and 0-60 in just 8.3 seconds. A Motor Sport test concluded it was a ‘ well-engineered, tight, package which will doubtless fulfil Ford’s hopes on race circuits while giving private owners a distinctive sporting car’. Meanwhile, Autocar raved about the ‘superb driver’s car that is as refined as it is fast’.
21. The Mk. IV replaced the Mk. III in March 1986. By that time, the message of this agreeably naff advertisement was far from inaccurate…
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