1970 Ford Escort RS1600: the first RS!
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Every car manufacturer has a special suffix to indicate sporty intentions and for Ford it is the RS (Rallye Sport) badge, and most recently ST as well. The first ever Ford to carry the RS badge was the Mk1 1970 Ford Escort RS1600. The body used was a 2-door body and was reinforced to make the chassis stronger. Wider wheel arches showed the car’s sporty intentions. Ford’s ad campaign for the car used the tagline “The Potent Mix”.
It was the first ever Ford road-going car to be fitted with a 16 valve DOHC engine. The RS1600’s engine was based on a Ford Kent engine block. The 16 valve DOHC cylinder head came from Cosworth. It produced about 115 PS and was mated to a 4-speed manual, a pretty impressive power to displacement ratio back in the 1970s. It could reach a top speed of 180km/h and got up to 100km/h in 8.9 seconds.
July 3, 2008 @ 11:24 pm
my late father use to own an escort (the 4 door wan) but sold it due to the hard times. the car was is superb condition and well maintained. seeing this reminds me of him. i’m very much a fan of this car. hope i can afford one in the future. FIRST EVER road going car with a 16 Valve engine. super cool. i want one
July 4, 2008 @ 6:46 am
We can still find good and beauty escort in suc a quantity at Kedah today. they did a really great refurbishment work.
July 4, 2008 @ 8:23 am
My late father own this car..Exactly this model..1600 RS..I loves this car very much..the plat PQ 7425..My brother learn to drive with this car..He rampped..until today the gate still have the mark from tha bang..my house gate with this car..My neighbour’s daughter born in that car..many memoirs with that car..If I found that car I think I will bought it back..
July 4, 2008 @ 8:25 am
Sory..My father Ford Escort RS1600 4 doors..
July 4, 2008 @ 9:58 am
Even my father never driving or own this car, I still love this car…hihihihi
July 4, 2008 @ 3:46 pm
Ford = tough
this is a good example, its rare to see such a nice old car….
regular maintainence and servicing, then a new paint job and new wheels will make this car happily on the road….
somehow, this car reminds me of my grandpa’s Datsun 120Y, with a special number plate…..
July 4, 2008 @ 3:47 pm
Oh gosh. Wat an ancient!
July 4, 2008 @ 11:17 pm
wow,8.9 sec for the century sprint in a 1970 1.6 liter. Can beat our present day civic 1.8,altis 1.8,lancer GT ,and even a BMW 320.impressive.
July 5, 2008 @ 6:55 am
That is actually faster than some proton cars
July 6, 2008 @ 9:07 am
I DREAM OF OWBING THIS CAR SINCE I WAS HIGH SCHOOL BUT NOT A GOOD UNIT FOUND. SO I JUST PUT OFF THE DREAM AND DREAM FOR A SUZUKI SWIFT AND I BOUGHT A SWIFT IN 2007 AND I DREAM AGAIN TOO BOUGHT A SWIFT SPORT……… THE DREAM GOES ON……….
IN 2008 I GOT MY DREAM! AHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHA GOOD TO DREAM AND TO HAVE WHAT U DREAM!
July 6, 2008 @ 11:39 pm
it’s great to see a classic car on your blog!
keep up the good work, thanks for all your updates
July 7, 2008 @ 8:45 pm
Hmm…many here seems to go back down memory lane. Geez… what a car…
But hey, my dad used to own one too. It was the 1st ever car that he owned. But I don’t remember if it’s the RS1600 or not. All that he told me about the car was, he kicked the front tyre once because the bloody engine won’t start in the morning. He had to go off to work on foot. Hoho…
Yeah, I agree with Azrai. There are a lot of these in the northern region with good restored/upgrade jobs done to it. They even put in the Skyline RB20 in it!
July 10, 2008 @ 8:39 pm
I don’t think there’s any RS1600 Escort in Malaysia bar a racing unit which is not road legal. The only 1600cc Mk1 Escort in Malaysia I know of is a Mexico model which is a pushrod, not a DOHC. Most Mk1 Escorts here are either 1100s or 1300s.
This model is too expensive to run day-to-day unlike the lesser-spec Escorts. Just over a 1000 units built by Ford..Not many people can afford it back then..
RS Escorts only ever came out in 2-door (or 3-door hatchback in case of Mk3,4,5 models) form so your father’s 4-door Mk1 wasn’t an RS1600. I’m sure of that..
By the way, I have two 2-door Mk1 Escorts and buying another
October 16, 2009 @ 5:11 pm
Am In Mauritius, my dad owned a unique type of Ford Escort for thirty years! he won many rallies in his times but due to hard times we had to sell it!
Only the Rally Photos remain ! and its really painful
Cant 4 get that Ford which was a STAR in Mtius!