MK2 Escort Exclusive am I having my chain yanked?
Discussion
Today I was at an address and a man next door was sweeping outside his house which had several vehicles under tarpaulins outside. I asked what was under the covers and he said a Mk4 Escort and 3 tractors. He then told me he had a rare 1979 MK2 1600 Sport with 2000 miles on it in the garage which he had owned since new.
He then proceeded to tell me that there was industrial action at Ford at the time and he struggled to get a car anywhere. He says he was contacted by Ford in Chepstow and told they had a cancelled order in their showroom. When he arrived the next day the car was a black 1600 Sport with no decals on it. He was offered silver or gold stripes or a limited edition stripe which consisted of the side stripes of the sport but instead of the words “1600 Sport “ it had a capital “E” instead. He says this at the time was a promotion within dealers in the south west of England.
I didn’t see the car and the guy was very knowledgeable about rallying etc. My brother still has Escort Harriers ( over 30 yrs now) and we between us spent many years in Escort circles in the 80s and 90s but I have never heard of this “special”.
My question is does anyone else know of these or am I having my chain pulled?
He then proceeded to tell me that there was industrial action at Ford at the time and he struggled to get a car anywhere. He says he was contacted by Ford in Chepstow and told they had a cancelled order in their showroom. When he arrived the next day the car was a black 1600 Sport with no decals on it. He was offered silver or gold stripes or a limited edition stripe which consisted of the side stripes of the sport but instead of the words “1600 Sport “ it had a capital “E” instead. He says this at the time was a promotion within dealers in the south west of England.
I didn’t see the car and the guy was very knowledgeable about rallying etc. My brother still has Escort Harriers ( over 30 yrs now) and we between us spent many years in Escort circles in the 80s and 90s but I have never heard of this “special”.
My question is does anyone else know of these or am I having my chain pulled?
I challenged him on the black as I don’t believe it was an available 1600 Sport colour. I have seen Mexico’s in black but these maybe non original colour resprays.
There were some unusual colours at the time with different markets sometimes having different options. A friend had a Cosmic Blue MK2 1600 Sport new in 78/79 and I never saw another. These options on colour are more recently evidenced by some of the South African imports we seem to be flooded by.
There were some unusual colours at the time with different markets sometimes having different options. A friend had a Cosmic Blue MK2 1600 Sport new in 78/79 and I never saw another. These options on colour are more recently evidenced by some of the South African imports we seem to be flooded by.
Mikebentley said:
I challenged him on the black as I don’t believe it was an available 1600 Sport colour. I have seen Mexico’s in black but these maybe non original colour resprays.
The Mk2 RS Mexico wasn't available in black either, only the RS2000 was.However, I do believe some of the very last 1600 Sports around 78/9 were available in the new colours that year before Sport production was ended (as you recall) but I'm pretty sure black wasn't one of them?
I've never heard of that and I've always been pretty clued up when it comes to old Fords, but it does seem to be a pretty random thing to invent with the Capital E etc, so it's very possible.
Regional Ford dealerships did have their own "Special Editions" to help shift stock. One that sticks out in mind was the Thames Area Ford MK6 Escort "GTi". Now, everyone knows there was an Escort GTi, but this came about 18 months before that, and was just a 5dr MK6, bog standard LX-ish spec with a 1.4 or 1.6, no bodykit, honeycomb grille or alloy wheels, just literally their own GTi badging on the front wings. Not even any colour-coded mirrors, bumpstrips etc. The only unusual thing about the spec was the sportier foglight front bumper, but with grilles in place of the foglights.
Regional Ford dealerships did have their own "Special Editions" to help shift stock. One that sticks out in mind was the Thames Area Ford MK6 Escort "GTi". Now, everyone knows there was an Escort GTi, but this came about 18 months before that, and was just a 5dr MK6, bog standard LX-ish spec with a 1.4 or 1.6, no bodykit, honeycomb grille or alloy wheels, just literally their own GTi badging on the front wings. Not even any colour-coded mirrors, bumpstrips etc. The only unusual thing about the spec was the sportier foglight front bumper, but with grilles in place of the foglights.
mbwoy84 said:
I've never heard of that and I've always been pretty clued up when it comes to old Fords, but it does seem to be a pretty random thing to invent with the Capital E etc, so it's very possible.
The connection with the capital E emblem is plausible given that it was only a few years after the demise of the E for Executive models (Cortina 1600E, Corsair 2000E, Capri 3000E, Escort 1300E etc.,etc) which were all replaced by the Ghia models as top of each range after Ford had acquired the Ghia design studio.He claimed the “E” was for Exclusive. I will be back there the next couple of days so will ask for a look. Didn’t want to be too pushy. He was a very knowledgeable man with maybe 10/15 yrs on me. I am 52. We talked at length about old RAC rally stages and I told him how as a kid I went to the West Mids Safari Park stages and he said he used to marshal at it.
He seemed genuine with no reason to BS me but you never know. I suggested it might be worth a few quid but standing still won’t have done it any favours. He seemed to think £40k value but there are many factors to that. If he did buy it new and has reciept, paperwork, provenance and it has done only 2k miles etc he may well be on the money.
He seemed genuine with no reason to BS me but you never know. I suggested it might be worth a few quid but standing still won’t have done it any favours. He seemed to think £40k value but there are many factors to that. If he did buy it new and has reciept, paperwork, provenance and it has done only 2k miles etc he may well be on the money.
aeropilot said:
Also, I don't recall the Sport being able to be ordered in black either.
I had a black 1600 Sport (VOT 650T) with silver striping back in around 1987/8, definitely a factory car that hadn't been sprayed. Haven't ever seen another since though.The Exclusive sounds like a dealer special to me as I used to be bit of a Mk2 geek back in the day and I've never heard of it.
wal 45 said:
aeropilot said:
Also, I don't recall the Sport being able to be ordered in black either.
I had a black 1600 Sport (VOT 650T) with silver striping back in around 1987/8, definitely a factory car that hadn't been sprayed. Haven't ever seen another since though.Could have been a special order option?
aeropilot said:
I certainly don't recall ever seeing one back in my 1980's Mk1/2 Escort days, and I've just dug out a few of the late 1970's Ford sales brochures/colour charts I still have, and black isn't listed as an option on the Sport in the ones I've got up to Spring '78.
Could have been a special order option?
Yes it could have been but had definitely been black from new, it was a 79 model with a vinyl roof. Shame really as the guy I sold it let it go down hill pretty quickly I guess as it was scrapped within a couple of years of me selling it. It looked pretty tidy but as you know the Mk 2's loved to rust and they weren't worth much back then....Could have been a special order option?
Wish I had some photos of it but it was all pre digital and none of them have survived unfortunately.
Sheepshanks said:
The big Ford Strike was late 78 so he's thereabouts with the timing.
The car in black with gold or silver decals make me think of the John Player special Capris, but they were a bit earlier. Local dealer group special editions used to be quite common, so anything is possible.
I was thinking along the same lines.The car in black with gold or silver decals make me think of the John Player special Capris, but they were a bit earlier. Local dealer group special editions used to be quite common, so anything is possible.
The JPS Capri MK2 was around 74 / 75 in the usual black and gold but was also available in white and gold.
I've been an avid Capri fan and owner for over 30 years and had never heard of the White JPS until last year.
It seems that anything's possible.
Mr Tidy said:
I don't ever remember there being a MK2 Escort Exclusive, and I was a big Ford fan back then although the only MK2 I had was a red RS2000 with a vinyl roof.
But it could have been a dealer offering.
Likewise, and agree the dealer special would seem to be the answer here.But it could have been a dealer offering.
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