Ford Sierra RS Cosworth/RS500

[conrod]

Great story Art! That brings back some memories for me. I was 20 years old at that time,an avid reader of CCC,(it was a great read back then) and you could say a bit of a Ford nut I loved the Cossies, and can remember the horsepower claims getting bigger and bigger all the time , BBR always seemed to be there or thereabouts in the "wild claims dept." In the early 1990's I ended up working in the UK for about 3 years on Cossies (building rally and race cars at Spooner Engineering) and that time holds many good memories for me

Conrad

[Steve Holmes]

When I was living in London in the early 1990s, I was desperately trying to save up enough money to buy a Sierra Cosworth (I was 21 when I arrived in London in 1992) with which to ship back to New Zealand when I left, and sell it for a huge profit back home. When new in 1987, Cosworths were few and far between in NZ, with asking prices of approx NZ$120,000, which was insane money at the time.

But when I was in the UK, 3 door Cosworths could be had for as little as 5 thousand quid then, and a 4 door Saphire Cosworth was even cheaper. I couldn't quite muster enough to both buy the car and bring it home, so gave up on the idea. But by the time I'd returned to NZ in late 1994, it appeared everyone else had had the same idea. There were heaps of them. The fact I couldn't ship one home was probably a blessing in disguise. But I still think sometimes I'd like to own one.

[conrod]

I can remember the $120K being asked for the Cossies here! And in the UK they were paying £15995 for a new one! Bring back the bad old days!
I had a similar story to you Steve. Looks like I am only a couple of years older than you, and back then the Escort Cosworth had just been released (1992) I saw a way of buying one cheaply, and did manage to get it back to NZ. I also built a mental spec. 400hp+ 2.3 engine while over there and shipped that back too. I sold it many years later, and still at a small profit (after blowing the big engine up and going back to a "small" 2.0) I think I have owned 4 or 5 Cossies since, and still think they are great cars. If I was in the market again I would try to find a nice unmolested 3 door, either an original Cosworth or an RS500, I think they will be the ones to put away under a cover and watch the value skyrocket

Conrad

[Art Markus]

Hi Steve,

Good question. It really had me scratching my head, and I'm embarrassed to say I can't remember the body style with absolute certainty. However the picture that comes into my mind is actually the six-light body of the XR4Ti, sold as the Merkur in the States ( so that another thing the PR guy lied about!). I have a vague recollection that the rules required the body to be based on a four-door 'shell. The bodyshell was a reasonably accurate facsimile, albeit looking rather odd due to the very different stance: skinny little front wheels tucked way up into the front arches, and monster rear tyres on a narrowed Ford 9-inch axle so the tyres appeared to be almost meeting in the middle, the combination giving the car a pronounced rake.

The car also had the giant air box perched on the bonnet which is typical of the breed. Again from (dodgy) memory, the engine was a modern (at the time) interpretation of a Chrysler Hemi based on a Milodon block; the rules obviously were pretty liberal, as the V8 swap was perfectly legit. I could probably check most of these details, as I kept sample copies of most issues of CCC, albeit with a few gaps, and we brought them with us when we returned to NZ in 2004, but they have never been unpacked. Maybe one day...

Wracking my brains to remember all this stuff made me realize that hey… it was about 25 year ago. The prodigious feats of memory and recall of many of the Roaring Season's contributors blows me away. My respects, guys. Love reading everyones' stories.

Art Markus

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Art, I don't really know what the rules are for this class, but obviously the big Hemi was legal. It may very well be that the cars only have to retain their outer silhouette and wheelbase, and everything else is free. A very cool story. I wonder where the car is now?

[Steve Holmes]

I can remember the $120K being asked for the Cossies here! And in the UK they were paying £15995 for a new one! Bring back the bad old days!
I had a similar story to you Steve. Looks like I am only a couple of years older than you, and back then the Escort Cosworth had just been released (1992) I saw a way of buying one cheaply, and did manage to get it back to NZ. I also built a mental spec. 400hp+ 2.3 engine while over there and shipped that back too. I sold it many years later, and still at a small profit (after blowing the big engine up and going back to a "small" 2.0) I think I have owned 4 or 5 Cossies since, and still think they are great cars. If I was in the market again I would try to find a nice unmolested 3 door, either an original Cosworth or an RS500, I think they will be the ones to put away under a cover and watch the value skyrocket

Conrad

Yep, I totally agree Conrad. I've watched the prices creep back up again in the UK. It was really the crippling insurance costs that had pushed the prices so low when I was living there. Cossie's were huge favourites among joy riders at the time. I recall a Topgear tv episode many years ago when the Escort Cossie was still new, and Jeremy Clarkson had one as his personal transport. He said the car cost 19K to buy, and annual insurance was 20K!

[Art Markus]

Conrod, here's a story you, as a devoted Escort Cosworth fan, might like. We usually had road test cars for a week at a time, and the three full-time staff members would take turns at taking them home, going on assignments etc. Over the years CCC had given a huge amount of coverage to Fords of all descriptions, and although we didn't do formal road tests like Autocar or Motor, say, we were always in good standing with Ford's Press Office, often obtaining vehicles for test before most of the other comics.

When the Escort Cosworth arrived, we were among the first to test one. Anyway, I drove it home one night, parked up, and was rummaging about getting my stuff out of the passenger seat when, unseen by me, a police car pulled alongside. When I went to get out, turned around and spotted the jam sandwich alongside I damn near had a cow. My mind was racing as I hastily rewound the last five miles of my drive home, trying to remember if I had inadvertently or deliberately done anything naughty. I couldn't think of a thing, but I was bricking it anyway!

Four coppers levered themselves out of their vehicle and formed a circle around the Cossie as I apprehensively wound down the window. "Is this your car sir? "Yes… er, no" I spluttered. "Well, what I mean is, I don't own it, but it is in my care for now. It belongs to Ford's Press Office, and is on test with a magazine". "Ah, we wondered about that", their spokesman replied. "We often see high performance cars parked here. We thought that might explain it. What's it like then?" he asked as the other three wandered around admiring the Cossie.

I had to explain that I had only driven it the few miles from the office and had not yet had a chance to stretch its legs. "Don't suppose there is any chance you could take us for ride?" "Sure, jump in". (Anything to oblige several of the Met's finest, eh). "Oh, we're on duty; we can't do it now. But we're off in about half-an-hour. Any chance we could come back?"

True to their word, three of the four came back a bit later, and so we went for a little ride down the A3 which passed close by my flat in Wandsworth. I was driving like a bloke who's got three coppers in the car with him when one of them said "We'd like you to forget the fact that you've got three coppers in the car with you". I didn't need any more encouragement. Probably it was just as well the A3 was busy as always, as it meant I couldn't go too crazy. But whenever the traffic allowed I gave it a mighty burst, handily exceeding 100mph a few times, then braking hard to check my speed when the gaps closed. My passengers were having a high old time, egging me on, laughing and shouting. We turned back about Surbiton and I gave it a bit of a squirt on the roundabout and tore back up the A3. By the time I delivered them back to their car we were all giggling like naughty schoolboys. We parted the best of friends. If it hadn't happened, I wouldn't have believed it...

Best wishes,

Art Markus

[conrod]

Hello Art,

great story that Those cars were getting stolen all the time, and sold for parts to the rallying and racing fraternity, and probably the reason they decided to check you out! We used to look after a lot of the cars for Boreham, the protoypes and press/test cars mainly. Back then I was so busy working, I didn't stop and take any time to take photos, and really wish I had now. One particular Escort Cossie we did some work on was a jam sandwich! I think it was for the Kent Constabulary, it looked fantastic! I think we fitted a Mountune upgrade to the engine, and a suspension kit if I recall correctly? As if that wasn't wild enough, the boys at Spooners told me that Kent Police had a pair of Gp.B RS200 police cars back in the 1980's! Now that is something you would get to work early for!

You say "returned to NZ" in an earlier post, are you from NZ, or living here?

cheers
Conrad Timms

[Oldfart]

I spotted one of the RS200s parked on one of those "spy spots" on the M25 while trundling along in the work van. I was hoping someone would do something naughty, there must have been someone who obliged as not many minutes later the RS came past, let's say energetically driven! (or was it just time for a thrash?)

[conrod]

A quick google search brought up this:




Pretty sure that is the one we had in at work there.



Conrad

[Rod Grimwood]

Yeah im pretty sure that bits wrong. farily sure it was never a sports sedan, in this country at least

What was this

[seaqnmac27]

In the Paddock at Lakeside

[Frosty5]

What was this

Pretty sure this was the ex-Whittakers Peanut Slab Sierra converted to Sports Sedan mode. Robbie Francevic drove it along with Kayne Scott. Italian Ceramics was a sponsor of the Petch M3 also

[Frosty5]

Pretty sure this was the ex-Whittakers Peanut Slab Sierra converted to Sports Sedan mode. Robbie Francevic drove it along with Kayne Scott. Italian Ceramics was a sponsor of the Petch M3 also

Sorry, senior moment. Andy Greenslade has the Whittakers Sierra.

[rogered]

What was this

hi rod

this thing is the ex crition sunday star xr41 (egginberger), made in to a "cosworth" by petch then morfed to this
the oxton xr41 is missing in action.
correct frosty, the wolf rs500 is as you say

[Rod Grimwood]

hi rod

this thing is the ex crition sunday star xr41 (egginberger), made in to a "cosworth" by petch then morfed to this
the oxton xr41 is missing in action.
correct frosty, the wolf rs500 is as you say

Yea remember it turning up to 'beat' all the Sports Sedans but after a couple of shots disappeared (with tail tucked between legs). It went pretty good but had reliability problems. Maybe a V8 stuck in it would have made it a Sports Sedan.
Wasn't long after that Mr Petch along with couple of others appeared with the Trans Am things and most wandered off or parked their Sports Sedans as the cheque book boys took over.

[Rod Grimwood]

Yea remember it turning up to 'beat' all the Sports Sedans but after a couple of shots disappeared (with tail tucked between legs). It went pretty good but had reliability problems. Maybe a V8 stuck in it would have made it a Sports Sedan.
Wasn't long after that Mr Petch along with couple of others appeared with the Trans Am things and most wandered off or parked their Sports Sedans as the cheque book boys took over.

Manfield. The first of the invasion. Start of Trans Am, finish of Sports Sedans as we knew them.

[Steve Holmes]

I'm sure this has probably been covered before, but what became of the Eggenberger Crichton XR4i that then became the Croft Cosworth Group A, then the Francevic Sports Sedan?

[kiwi285]

The line up at Lakeside

[Art Markus]

Hi Conrad,

Returned to NZ in 2004 after 25 years in the UK. Was Features Editor of CCC from '85 to '98. More detail in my profile if you're interested. Now living in the motorsports mecca of Wanaka haha. I say that tongue-in-cheek of course, but there is quite a fraternity of petrolheads in Central Otago, with some very interesting machinery tucked away in garages all over the place, and with Highlands Motorsport Park now operational things can only get better.

Best regards,

Art