Ford Escort Timeline 1970-1980

By: Unique Cars magazine

Date: 20.12.2017

Ford Escort - way more than small car buyers bargained for

Ford Escort History 1970-1980

1. EARLY MK 1 DESIGN

a)

b)

Ideas (a) were numerous but what we got (b) looked like the winner it would soon be.

2. TWIN CAM Escorts were the real deal for performance on road or track – real driver’s cars that flattered your talent.

3. FOUR DOOR versions offered decent ventilation for hot Oz summer days with wind-down rear-door windows.

4. UK AND EUROPE got an estate (wagon) version as well as sedans and vans. We made do without the little wagon.

5. LOTUS DESIGNED twin-cam, alloy, hemi-chamber, four-valve head transformed the Ford motor’s performance.

6. SEEING BUMPERETTES in your mirror was a dead giveaway that the Escort flying past was the’hottie’.

7. SIX GAUGE instument cluster sets this example apart from the more spartan set-up on the cars supplied to the Australian market.

8. BASIC COCKPIT belies the quality of the Escort driving experience – sweet shifting gearbox, precise rack and pinion steering and absolutely neutral handling.

9. MARK II arrived here in March 1975. More than just a quick restyle, Its development was a joint exercise between Ford Europe at Cologne and Ford Britain at Dagenham.

10. ENGINE OPTIONS for Mark IIs changed during 1977 – the 1.3-litre pushrod engine was discontinued and the 2.0-litre SOHC ‘Pinto’ engine was optional over the 1.6-litre ‘Kent’ .

11. AUSTRALIAN RS2000 was a late arrival, finally launching in 1979. Unlike the German built RS ours was offered in two- and four-door versions.

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