Behold the Boreham Escort Mk1 RS in all its glory
Officially licensed continuation makes full debut, priced from £300k
We love a rear-wheel drive Ford Escort on PH. RacingPete loves them so much he bought one, and races it. And never stops talking about it. The MST machines have been a huge hit, originals from the classifieds are always popular, and the work of Boreham Autoworks experienced so far - see the Alan Mann car - has been hugely impressive. Now it’s time for perhaps Boreham’s most exciting project yet, the full production debut of the Mk1 Escort RS ‘Continumod’.
You’ll probably be familiar with the idea, given it was first previewed in 2024, but as a brief reminder this is an officially licensed Ford automobile, an Escort built from newly manufactured parts rather than harvesting old ones. Boreham makes a point that this car, making its debut at the London Concours, is the first all-new Ford Escort seen in 50 years. The look is inspired by the touring cars of the late 1960s, complete with the bubble arches and front wheels nudged forward, while the very latest in suspension tech is used to thoroughly modernise the Escort’s front MacPherson strut and rear floating axle setup. Boreham Motorworks intends for this Mk1 RS to be ‘one of the most focused lightweight performance cars of the modern era.’
We’ll start with the inside, though, as that’s the only part of the car we hadn’t seen yet. As expected given the expertise lavished on the rest of the Escort, it’s a very special driving environment, a feast of expensive materials and neat touches. Pete, look away now. The instruments are bespoke, the dash is carbon, a body stiffening frame is incorporated somewhere and the switchgear should actually illuminate - a novel experience for an old Ford. Those clocks are Breitling. Even the window and door operation have been ‘engineered for exceptional tactile quality and operation’, so the RS should be a lovely thing to use before even moving an inch. There’s a discreetly integrated stereo that can talk to your phone, too. The seat and wheel can be tailored to individual requirements. The 150 buyers are paying at least £300k, after all, so personalisation inside and out will be the name of the game.
Central to the Escort’s enduring appeal over the years has been its delightful handling balance, with an engine up front, drive to the rear and not very much weight to haul around. Fundamentally the Boreham sticks to that mantra, albeit with materials and techniques that would have sounded space age in the late 1960s. A target weight of 895kg sounds very promising, too, especially with up to 330hp. Up front the Escort employs a bespoke front subframe, with the two-fold benefit of extending the wheelbase by 30mm (aiding stability and the proportions) as well as ‘overcoming the geometric limitations’ of the original design. So things like scrub radius, caster and camber can be better optimised now, to the benefit of front end feel and grip - marvellous. The back end now features a custom floating axle, a six link layout with four radius arms, using rally nous for optimum strength; the use of aluminium and titanium has taken 40kg out of the unsprung mass back there, says Boreham, compared to those classic competition cars. Dampers are by R53, the promise of ‘handling characteristics that no previous roadgoing Escort has ever achieved.’ Should the automatic torque biasing diff not be sufficient for your sideways sojourns, there’s ‘added analogue enjoyment’ in the form of a cable operated handbrake with its own pad material. Expect it to lock the rear wheels very easily, is what that sounds like.
Furthermore, while the Escort is famously quite an old school thing to experience, Boreham Motorworks has identified scope for optimisation. The architecture of the electronics and electrics here is all-new, employing Power Distribution Modules, bespoke harnesses and state of the art controllers. Perhaps not as sexy as the arches or the engine or the lightweight wheels on Yoko Advans, but crucial to making a car like this usable and exciting on a regular basis. Boreham are keen for these to be out and enjoyed properly, and that just wouldn’t be possible without that sort of work. ‘True to the spirit of the original RS cars, Boreham Motorworks encourages owners to use and enjoy their cars as intended — driven on road, experienced properly and connected to through every mile.’
The engines on offer should certainly do that. While we’ve covered the two RS powertrains already, there’s no harm in a brief refresher given how thrilling they both sound. The standard unit is a rejuvenated Twin Cam, making 185hp, revving past eight and driving the rear wheels through a Ford bullet straight cut ‘box. Expect absolutely none of those to be bought, however, not with the TEN-K on offer as well. The 2,152cc screamer goes all the way to 10,000rpm (clue’s in the name!) and makes 330hp in the process. It too is dry sumped, snorts through individual throttle bodies, and weighs just 85kg thanks to features like a billet crank, forged rods, single-mass flywheel and a 3D-printed block ‘formed tightly around the engine's internal architecture.’ And the airbox is carbon, of course. Expect it to be an epic engine, the BD10-330. And expect a Boreham Escort powered by it to cost rather more than £300k.
Boreham Motorworks CEO Iain Muir said: “The public debut of the Escort Mk1 RS marks a hugely important moment for the programme because it demonstrates how far the engineering and development process has progressed since the original reveal What matters most to us is ensuring the car delivers exactly what enthusiasts expect the moment they get behind the wheel. Lightweight engineering, immediate response, usable naturally aspirated performance and genuine driver connection have guided every decision throughout development.” It’s easy to imagine them being popular, then, even at supercar money. The 150 units will be mixed between RHD and LHD, with global availability, plus everyone gets a two-year, 20,000-mile warranty. So no excuse not to be at 8,000rpm and above at every opportunity…
If the numbers come up this would be ahead of the Bretling/Boreham one lol
Nothing looks worse, IMO than a resomod with huge rims and low profile tyres. Personally, I think Singers are all wrong on that basis, though the recent Lotus restomod really does look grim re wheel and tyre size.
I think getting the wheel and tyre right is one of the things that makes Eagles look so fantastic.
and I agree that 1" smaller wheels would probably make it look better, but what a machine in the top spec.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff