Blue Blood

The Mk1 Escort RS2000 was the car that assured the phrase ‘Made in Britain’ was a marker of quality across Europe. More specifically, these cars were proudly made in Essex, a couture approach to sporting upgrades in an altogether higher echelon to the humdrum mainstream Escorts. The spec was alluring to Fast Road hotshoes and motorsport concerns alike: derived from the RS1600, it had the same strengthened body, suspension and brakes, along with a 2-litre Pinto and an AVO-upgraded interior. And what was particularly important for the marketing bods was that this car aimed to take on the German market — while the RS1600 and Mexico hadn’t been officially