September 1971 was a pretty joyful snapshot in time. John Lennon had just released his second solo album, Imagine, his new signature sound cementing the reality of a post-Beatles existence. Over in Denmark, the Free State of Christiania was founded, an independent commune within a squatted military base where mind expansion and free expression were encouraged and weaponry and negativity prohibited. Concorde made its first supersonic transatlantic crossing. And in Narborough in Leicestershire, a chap named Phil Wylie strolled into Roger Clark Cars with a spring in his step and a song in his heart, for the moment had come to collect his brand-new Escort Mexico.
The salesman had offered Phil the standard range of colours, but also tantalisingly dangled the possibility of Leappealing offer, combining his order with the stripe-delete option to create something that, for the princely sum of £1150.44, would be like no other Escort on the high street. And it’s clear that he was happy with his choices, as Phil went on to own and enjoy the car for the next 50 years.
