CCA December sale preview

What's the catch with a cheap Escort RS2000? Er, it's a van...

By Matt Bird / Thursday, 30 November 2017 / Loading comments

We love a project car here at PH - who doesn't? We especially love one that represents good value, as

this Escort van

appears to. Bear with us...

Phwoar.

Yes, it's a van, but it's also running a 2.1-litre Pinto engine with around 180hp. So when the advert in the CCA lot list says 'RS2000 specification' it's actually a little bit beyond that, including motorbike carbs as well. The interior also mimics an RS2000, and the Modena Green paint looks good everywhere.

That's not even the best bit though - despite a build cost in excess of £40K, this Escort RS2000 van goes to auction with an estimate of £12-£15K. When that normal two-door Escort sold for nearly £100K the other week - albeit in immaculate condition - this van represents a proper bargain if it sells for anything near the estimate.

Being a CCA sale however, the auction house that prides itself on selling 'everyman classics', there's plenty more available besides. How about an Accord Type R with less than 50,000 miles and just two owners, at a £5K estimate? For the same money this Corrado VR6 is going under the hammer too; it scored 108/135 on CCA's pre-sale inspection, has just over 100,000 miles and an MoT until September. Tempting...

PHWOAR.

Up the budget just a tad and a

Renault Alpine GTA

comes into view, a UK-supplied car that's recently been recommissioned after five years in storage. Going from the estimate it could sell for a four-figure sum.

There are hundreds of interesting cars being sold at The Warwickshire Exhibition Centre this weekend, too many to list here, so we'll finish with a few particular highlights. There's this glorious Manta 400 (just two marks off perfect by CCA's judgement), a very interesting Type RA Impreza, a nicely presented Integrale (during Lancia's birthday week, too) and a 205 GTI 1FM that's expected to make upwards of £20K. Blimey. And perhaps most surprising of all, this whole auction story hasn't mentioned a Porsche even once... Oops.

See the full list of lots here.