John loves a Mk1 Ford Escort, so guess how happy he is about a 1600 GT...
Where does the Ford Escort 1600 GT sit in the pantheon of great Escorts? I ask that as genuine question. I’m familiar with the Twin Cam, RS1600 and RS2000, but the 1600 GT is not one I remember seeing before. Which makes this all the more appealing, because I might learn something from those with more knowledge. But it’s a Mk1 Ford Escort, and even if it were a boggo-spec I’d still be happy as a pig in the proverbial.
It's not just its haunches, though. The whole design is harmonious. It has barely a straight line anywhere on its pressings; instead, its collection of soft curves creates beauty, but also presence. There’s a substantialness to it, thanks to those rounded sides and protruding arches that give it three-dimensional depth. And more than a little swagger – certainly more than a compact, affordable, family saloon had any right to have.
Half a century ago, the all-new Escort was hardly a technical tour de force; but it wasn’t without merit in that department as it took the fight to the arch-rival Vauxhall and its Viva HB. It had rack and pinion steering, MacPherson struts and disc braking up front, plus a range of Kent engines in a variety of sizes and outputs. It was quite the antidote to the ageing and angular Anglia it superseded, although rumour has it the Anglia name almost survived until Escort was decided upon.
As you know, the Escort was a huge hit. Just six years after launch, Ford had rolled the two-millionth Escort off the production line, which, until then, was the sort of build numbers only heard of Stateside. Us Brits loved it, and it’s said 60 per cent of those two-million Escorts had been made here.
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