Model Page
Ford Escort Mk1 Twin Cam
Production Run: |
883 |
|---|---|
Production Date: |
1968 - 1971 |
Engine: |
Lotus Ford 1,558cc In-Line 4 |
Built: |
Halewood (UK) |
0-60: |
9.9 secs |
Max Speed: |
113mph |
The Escort Twin Cam project was codenamed J25 – the name was derived from the fact that the project outline was produced on January 25th 1967 by Bill Meade and Henry Taylor. Bill had seen a prototype Escort driving past his window and thought that fitted with the Lotus Twin Cam engine the car would offer superb performance, his manager Henry Taylor agreed and the seeds of the project were sewn. The project fitted in well with Ford UK’s desire to replace the Lotus Cortina and produce a new performance vehicle with the ability to win in rally and track racing.
Escort TwinCam
The Escort was developed from the Lotus Cortina, it made perfect sense to install the Lotus Cortina running gear in the lighter, stronger more agile Escort body shell. During March 1967 a plastic body shell was used to test the feasibility of fitting the engine and running gear into the Escort, it was found that it was entirely possible. Some issues did surface with the installation but this was solved by mounting the engine at a slight angle and relocating the battery to the boot of the car. The positioning of the battery in the boot along with storing the spare wheel on the boot floor gave rise to a criticism in the production model of having limited boot space. Later in the year a prototype was built for evaluation using a test body shell, pleased with the results Walter Hayes finally gained approval for the car to be into production. Progress was rapid, Engineers developed the car and in January 1968 a publicity car had been manufactured and was ready to make its debut.
The Twin cam utilised a modified Type 48 body otherwise known as the Type 49, this was essentially a strengthened and modified body shell from the Escort GT. The Escort body shell had less frontal area than the Lotus Cortina upon which it was based, consequently the car had a better drag coefficient and the slippery shell helped to provide the Escort with superior top speed and sprint timings. The wheel arches were flared slightly to accommodate the larger tyres fitted to the car (165 x 13” rather than the 145 x 12” fitted to the standard cars). The exterior package was finished off with chrome front quarter bumpers and discreet twin cam badges. The first models were fitted with square headlamp units, but these changed on cars produced after July 1969 to the circular units to give better night vision in response to criticism with the earlier units.
Twin Cam Engine Bay
The car utilised the Lotus Ford Twin Cam engine, in 1961 Colin Chapman of Lotus hired Harry Mundy (who had previously designed the Coventry Climax engine) to design a new twin overhead cam engine based on the Ford 105E/109E engine. The design was expanded upon and refined by Richard Ansdale before the engine first ran in November 1961. Cosworth’s co-founder Keith Duckworth developed the cylinder head and camshaft design and production began in late 1962. The engine manufacture was contracted out by Lotus until the company moved to their new factory in Hethel at which point the manufacture was taken in-house.
The engine was fitted with an oil cooler as standard and twin Weber side-draught dual choke 40 DCOE carburettors and produced a peak power of 109 bhp @ 6000 rpm with a respectable torque figure of 107lb/ft @ 4,700 rpm. Whilst not being high by modern standards when released the car was very fast with a 0-60 time of 9.9 seconds and a top speed of 113 Mph.
In comparison with the lesser models the twin cam setup featured lowered and stiffened suspension all round, twin radius arms were used to keep the rear axle in location. A quick steering rack was fitted that required only three turns being required lock to lock, the wheels were setup with a slight negative camber and the brakes were a direct carry over from the Lotus Cortina (front discs and rear drums) and were generally described as being superb.
Rally Twin Cam in Action
The vehicles interior was trimmed to the same level of equipment as the GT Escort identical down to the instrumentation and steering wheel. To control manufacturing and tooling costs every Twin Cam was finished in white and had a standard black trim – the car was never available as a LHD model, only during the latter part of 1970 through to the final vehicles in 1971 could a choice of colour be made.
When launched in 1968 the car was priced at £1,123 and production continued through until April 1971, the Twin Cam remained in production alongside its replacement the RS1600 that was released in 1970. By the end of production 883 vehicles had been produced, the car can be seen as being incredibly influential as it formed the basis upon which subsequent RS Escort was based and can therefore be considered as the birth of the RS brand.
The car first competed in 1968 and during the first season the Escort secured major triumphs winning the Circuit of Ireland, Austrian Alpine, Acropolis, Scottish and Finnish Rallies. The Escort went on to win the World Rally Championship in its first season repeating the success for Ford in 1969.
The Facts
Engine: |
Lotus Ford 4 Cylinder In-Line 4 Twin Cam |
|---|---|
Capacity: |
1,558cc |
Valves: |
8 |
Compression Ratio: |
9.5:1 |
Fuel System: |
Twin Weber Side-Draught Dual Choke 40 DCOE Carburettors |
Maximum Power: |
109bhp @ 6,000 rpm. |
Maximum Torque: |
107lb/ft @ 4,700 rpm. |
Transmission: |
Manual 4 speed. |
Top Gear: |
17.8 mph per 1000 rpm. |
Brakes: |
Servo Assisted Front Discs / Rear Drums |
Kerb Weight: |
849kg |
Max Speed: |
113 mph |
0-60: |
9.9 secs |
