Ford Escort (Mk1) Twin Cam | PH Fleet
Some cars it feels like you were destined to buy. RacingPete had a 54-year buildup to this one...
Back in 1971, my dad lined up for the start of the Daily Mirror RAC rally in his Ford Cortina GT. He was number 123 for his first attempt at 77 daunting stages across five days and nights around a very snowy Great Britain. Up ahead, seven cars in front of him and wearing number 116 (and sharing class 3) was Keith Edwards in a Ford Escort Twin Cam registered EDH6H.
The car was built for Keith by Broadspeed Engineering, the firm appointed by Ford UK to oversee preparation when it couldn’t cope with the number of Twin Cams requested for rallying. Broadspeed was contracted to build 25 rally cars; Keith’s was one of them.
Unfortunately for him, the engine blew on its way to the first stage so the car never saw a single competitive mile against my dad. Earlier in the year it had enjoyed better luck on the Gallagher Circuit of Ireland and the International Semperit Rallye, kickstarting a lifetime of blatting through forest stages, doing what Mk1 Escorts do best.
Roll on 54 years and guess where EDH6H turns up? Yep, right on PH auctions, where, misty-eyed with nostalgia and dreaming of this being in my garage, I had to watch nervously as it neared its reserve price last month. With mixed emotions, disappointed it didn’t quite get to the numbers to sell via the auction, I was excited, as this gave me an opportunity to put in a sensible offer to the seller.
As us staffers are all sympathetic PHers at heart, the team excels at supporting sellers and potential buyers to make sure each auction car can be sold even if the auction doesn’t complete on the day. With the seller negotiated, one six-hour return trip to Manchester later and there’s now a piece of automotive - and personal - history sitting in my garage. So what to do with it? Well, the same thing my dad would’ve done: go rallying!
Luckily, the two previous owners have put in some hard graft to get the car up to spec. EDH6H has always been a rally car - the records show it competing throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s - but inevitably that has meant it being rebuilt several times to keep it a Type 49 strengthened, seam welded and turreted shell. Impressively, the engine is also the original one that blew up in the RAC rally half a century ago, although it’s been treated to a very recent Ric Wood rebuild, giving it fully steel internals and a dry sump.
The rest of the prep was done to get it up to FIA Historic Rally Specifications, with the car earning its passport last year - one of just 34 Twin Cams worldwide, five of which reside in the UK, to have FIA Historic Technical Papers. In EDH6H’s case, it has been brought back to its original Circuit of Ireland spec in brilliant ermine white, with blue roof (to aid identification for the rally crews) alongside a few more period upgrades and all the modern safety equipment allowed on the FIA list to become a full Group 2 historic spec FIA Rally Car.
So what next.? Well, there are a few subsequent alterations that need to be undone to return the car to the required spec before it can be unleashed on a Welsh forest. These include replacing the wider 8J front and 9J rear wheels with homologated 7Js all-round, while the rear drum brakes it turns out are from a later Capri and have two pistons on the wheel cylinders, so they will have to go back to a single version to satisfy the regulations too. Happily, the seller provided these all with the car, so it is just a matter of fitting them.
As for the driver - and despite my dad being a prolific rally man - I have only ever gone round in circles on tarmac, so I am due an upgrade too. I have navigated several times in various HRCR and HERO-ERA events so am already up to speed on the maps and timing part, I just need to get used to the car and learn how best to drive it on the loose. So I’m planning on working my way up before unleashing EDH6H on the Roger Albert Clark Rally against Oliver Solberg and the likes… But it’s safe to say our journey together, more than fifty years in the making, is just beginning. Next time I should be able to tell you about how it’s gone sideways. Hopefully in the iconic sense.
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I learned to drive in an Escort identical to this apart from, well, pretty much everything that makes this car so special! I'd forgotten about that reversing light style. I remember fitting one to my Mk1 Cortina as follows:
- Remove the fuel filler from the outside at the back beside the number plate and mount it in the boot (so "bad people" can't syphon the fuel out!)
- Mount the spotlight over the hole and concoct a bracket to hold it in place
- Optionally, wire it up to a switch on the dashboard (no fancy built-in reversing light switches on the gearbox!)
- Remember, if you had wired it up, to fit a 21 watt bulb so Mr Plod couldn't put your name in his book
- Look cool!
Great story too!
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