If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, then you’re pretty sure what species of waterfowl is in front of you. But if it goes like a Ford Escort, sounds like an Escort and, perhaps most importantly, slides like an Escort, don’t be so sure there’s a Blue Oval fixed to the grille. This is because Welsh company, MST, has taken to building its own version of the classic rally car, in Mk1 and Mk2 form, each one completely new from the ground up, and not one of them bearing the name Ford.
MST stands for Motor Sport Tools, a company that its boss, Carwyn Ellis, set up to sell tools and equipment to the motorsport community from its picturesque base on a hillside farm near Pwllheli in north Wales. Ellis is a pretty good rally driver in his own right, having competed on tarmac and gravel in original Mk1 and 2 Escorts far and wide, and is a big fan of the model.
‘I grew up with Escorts,’ he says. ‘In this area of Wales there is a lot of rallying and they have always been very popular, while they also still perform very well. They’re just great rally cars. Even though it’s based on a 1960’s / 1970’s design, it’s still as competitive today as it was back then, and it’s still winning, both in historic rallying and more modern competition.’
Which means there’s still a demand for these venerable cars, especially in the very market Ellis was selling tools into.
We’re basically building an Escort, but it’s not an Escort, even though it’s identical to the Escorts you see out on rally stages
Carwyn Ellis, managing director at MST Cars Ltd
‘In 2008, when I first started , which was basically supplying tools and equipment for motorsport, rallying stuff
