In this latest episode of The Driver’s Seat, Henry Catchpole gets behind the incredibly deeply dished steering wheel of the a fabulous Ford Escort Mk1. Beautiful red and gold livery aside, it might look like myriad other bubble-arched competition Ford Escorts. But this is very special. This is an Alan Mann Racing Ford Escort – not only the first fast Ford Escort, but also one of the most sophisticated, with suspension that took inspiration from the Ford GT40.
What’s also interesting about this Ford Escort Alan Mann 68 Edition is that it’s a brand new car. Built with painstaking accuracy, it has been reverse engineered using an original 1968 car as a blueprint and it is officially sanctioned by Ford. Yes, the Blue Oval has given its blessing. The company behind it is Boreham Motorworks, which itself is part of the DRVN Automotive Group. You will hear much more from them in the coming weeks and years (there’s a new RS200 in the pipeline!) but this is the first product to break cover.
As well as sliding around the wonderful M-Sport track in Cumbria and grinning from ear to ear, Henry Catchpole also chatted to Henry Mann (Alan’s son) about the company’s history with the GT40 and the Escort. Did you know about the lightweight GT40 project that was an alternative to the eventual MkII GT40? Mann also tells a fabulous story about Graham Hill at Le Mans and another about how AMR nearly let the Mk1 cat out of the bag.
Just 24 Alan Mann 68 Editions will be built and customers will be able to choose from a period correct facsimile or a car with a roll cage, safety equipment and a FIA Historical Technical Passport if they want to go racing. The price of around £300k will include a package over and above just the car, including things like track support and events. As revealed towards the end of the film, Boreham Motorworks is also working on another, even more limited run of cars from its past – the three ‘missing’ Lightweight GT40s.
Let us know what you think of this Alan Mann Racing Ford Escort in the comments below.
