1986 Ford Escort RS Turbo (Series 1) |

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1986 Ford Escort RS Turbo (Series 1)

This vehicle has now been sold - click ‘Register Similar’ below to get notified when we consign a similar vehicle.

Sold Price

£31,800

Mileage~67,579
TransmissionManual
Engine1.6L
LocationCanterbury

SOLD

1986 Ford Escort RS Turbo (Series 1)

I WANT ONE

Introduction

Alan Stuart

Professional Consigner

The 80s classic Ford Escort RS Turbo was something really special, the following has continued to grow over time.

The Ford Escort RS Turbo Series 1 is a performance model of the Escort Mk3. The car is turbocharged and very well equipped with alloy wheels and Recaro seats. Introduced by Ford's Special Vehicle Engineering Department in October 1984, it stood out from the previous XR3i with its enhanced features, upgraded suspension, improved brakes and a brand new (for the time) limited-slip differential. Originally, Ford planned to only produce 5,000 units of the car but due to high demand, a total of ~8,604 were made, with ~5,576 being supplied in the UK. The car featured a smart, boxy factory body kit and is powered by a 1.6L OHC engine and T3 Turbocharger paired to a five-speed manual transmission.

This example comes with what can be considered a low mileage for the model, and history to track it as such over time. 8 former keepers registered, it is clearly a cherished example and the condition is excellent both inside and out, not often you come across an example like this one.

This listing was written from information supplied by Alan after meeting Olly the owner, and having visited and photographed the vehicle.

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Secure Auctions

We verify all our sellers and buyers to keep our community safe whilst also providing the highest levels of website security.

Full Transparency

8 out of 10 people that buy cars via our service don’t feel the need to visit due to the transparency and thoroughness of our listings.

Vehicle Delivery

We're there every step of your buying journey and will even arrange pick-up and delivery of your new vehicle.

Meet the owner

With a car that looks as good as this one does, it's a head turner every time I'm out on the road with it.

Having owned the car for only a short amount of time, Olly the current owner, tells us "The car is so much fun to drive, I love getting out on the road in it and the performance from that turbo is truly incredible". He occasionally gets offered opportunities to work on and purchase interesting cars. When the RS Turbo came along he just couldn't turn the offer down to purchase it "I've always loved the Ford Escort, when I saw this model, I know I had to have the chance to drive and own it, the condition belies the miles, outstanding".

He is bringing the car to market, as what he is really after is a sporting Italian, a Ferrari. He's got his eye on one, and so is looking to free up the capital to make a purchase. As a matter of course, he has just had the car serviced and MOTd, Olly will be happy to answer any questions about the car in the comments below.

Olly

Vehicle Owner

Olly saved £5,580* when they
sold their Ford with us.

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EXTERIOR VIDEO

Exterior

The Series 1 RS Turbo really stands out from the pack, combining 80s boxy bodywork, subtle sporting features and rally lights to finish off the sporting look.

Wheels and Tyres

The Ford is complete with a set of RS branded 15" seven-spoke alloys. These are in excellent condition. It would appear that the wheels have been refurbished at some point over the history of the car given the quality on show here.

Equipped with a set of Michelin Pilot Exalto's tyres, the spec on these shows as 195/50 to the front and rear. Front and rear tyres are date coded from 2003. The tyres are noted to have age to them given the date codes are approximately ~20 years old. Despite this, we noted no signs of perishing or any concerns with the wear on these.

Bodywork

The car stands straight, shut lines look excellent and we could see no visible distortion to the panels. Both doors, boot, and bonnet open and close well, exactly as you would expect from a car of this high quality. We noted no dings or major areas of concern when looking over the car. A great note was that we saw no obvious signs of rust or corrosion over the car with all sections presenting to a great standard.

We've highlighted in more detail our observations through our hi-resolution images and videos, so please take time to look through all the media files for a detailed view at what’s on offer, and for you to assess the condition of the car for yourselves.

Paint

Presented in the iconic "Diamond White" colour, the paint is finished to a lovely standard, with even coverage and colour across each panel. Looking around the exterior showed the condition of the paintwork to be of a very high standard, we noted very few issues over the panels and was a real joy to look over. If we were being extremely picky, there was a very minor chip to the drivers door paintwork.

Again, we have taken high resolution images and videos of the car for you to assess the condition of the bodywork for yourselves. The images are taken from a few different angles to show off the car as you would see it if you were standing there for yourselves. So please take the time to fully assess these high resolution images and videos of the car, for you to make up your own minds about the condition of the paint.

Glass and Trim

Overall the glass and trim on the RS Turbo showed in a great condition with no major cause for concern that we noted looking over the car. The side windows and rear window both look great with no significant scratching, marks or chips. We noted a very minor stone chip in the front window although we had to look fairly closely to spot this. The seals look great around the outside and in line with the rest of the condition of the car. Rubber sections on the interior edges looked great and only showed a few signs of wear which is to be expected.

We've taken you around the car in greater detail in our exterior review video, please take the time to look over the video and see how the glass and trim look from different perspectives.

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INTERIOR VIDEO

Interior

Taking a seat in the stunning Recaro seats, the interior of this RS Turbo is something to behold.

Seats and Carpets

The 80s Recaro cloth seats hold you in place comfortably, and these present in excellent condition for their age and recorded mileage. We noted no signs of wear or tear to the seats themselves or the bolster sections.

Carpet sections look great finished in 'Shark Grey' cut pile in the main cabin area. Throughout the car we noted no problems and the flooring underneath the car mats looked great as well. Looking over the interior it is remarkable how clean and well kept the cabin area is, truly a credit to the previous owners. We've captured high-resolution photos and a full interior video tour through the car. This covers off the angles inside the car for you to review and appreciate the condition of what's on offer here in our interior review section.

Dashboard

The dash section is free from any splits and cracks and showed very well on our visit. Finished with a quality black-plastic finish, this is in excellent condition, including the centre console. Clocks and dials showed nicely with ~67,579 miles at the time of our visit.

We noted no warning lights on the display when the car was started up and on the road. The dash area showed with a lovely level of presentation and all dials are functional showing clearly with no obvious scratching to the facings. Please take a look at the gallery images for a closer look at the interior sections.

Steering Wheel / Gear Stick

A straight forward 'soft-feel' 3 spoke steering wheel sits at the hands of the driver when entering the cabin area. Overall the steering wheel looks great and presents in a smart way for the age of the car.

The 5-speed manual gearstick looks excellent with very minimal wear to this area and in line with the well kept nature of the rest of the interior. We've captured high-resolution photos for you to review and appreciate the condition of the interior in our gallery section.

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'ON THE ROAD' VIDEO

Mechanics

These cars produced ~132BHP from the factory thanks to the turbocharged set-up on the tried and tested 1.6L CVH engine.

Engine and Gearbox

We noted no issues from start up either which we've highlighted in the cold start section of the mechanical review video. Take a look over the video for yourselves to hear the RS Turbo start up from cold and take in the lovely sounds of the engine. We go into further detail about the Ford and take it out on some local roads to get a better sense of what this car is all about.

Olly has had the car serviced, after it has been in long term storage. Looking through the paperwork, the engine has had tuning work to take the RS Turbo up to around ~175BHP. As mentioned, there's a wealth of MOTs, service stamps, parts invoices etc that track the servicing and mileage on this car.

Suspension and Brakes

On the drive out, Olly took us around some local roads, we heard no unwanted knocks, bangs or noise from the suspension which provided an enjoyable journey. The Ford handled really nicely and felt solid on the road when we were out on the road. We cover off the underside of the RS Turbo's exterior in our Mechanical gallery section.

The brakes felt to have no pull or vibrations that stood out to us when on the journey and brought the car to a stop without a problem and with the kind of stopping power you'd expect. Overall the car performed as to be expected with no observed issues. Please take a look over the mechanical videos and photographs to see close-up images from under the car.

The Drive

Fun and sporty, the RS Turbo offers an incredibly joyful ride. The car really looks the part with its boxy good looks and updated stainless steel exhaust at the rear.

It's not only looks that sets this car apart, with a chipped engine, the Ford's 0-60 time has been improved to approximately ~7.5 seconds and raised the performance to around ~175BHP.

Electrics and Other

The RS Turbo has additional security features installed including an immobiliser and Chubb deadlocks which are capable of securing the boot and doors with a greater level of security. Factory fitted sunroof, electric front windows and rear quarter window sections which open, as noted in our exterior review gallery sections.

The stereo to the car has been upgraded from the original Ford version. The front rally type headlamps were tested and working as part of our review. Olly let us know that he has had no issues with the electrical elements on the car and to the best of his knowledge, everything was working as it should do.

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History and Paperwork

This car has covered just ~2,500 miles in the last 20 years, has just 8 former keepers registered and presented in excellent conditoin, if you're in the market for a Series 1 RS Turbo this is a remarkable example.

The Ford Escort comes complete with its owners and owners club folder, original vehicle document folder, original owner certificate, Ford service plan booklet with Ford dealership servicing stamps, original motorists guide and 2 sets of keys. You may note that the original dealer supplied number plates are still present on the vehicle which we've featured in our exterior gallery sections. New rear bar links were fitted in October 2011 and in February 2000, the car had a replacement K&N filter, performance HT leads and new spark plugs. The car has just had a service as mentioned along with a fresh MOT.

Should there be any questions required, Olly would be happy to answer these in the section below.

We’ve done all our usual seller checks including photo ID, V5 and actioned a HPi check on the vehicle.

We've summarised our own view on the car based on information gained from the seller in the listing above, however, and as you can see, we go to great lengths to photograph and video the car in hi-resolution detail - this has been done for you to make your own assessment from the comfort of your sofa. So please sit back, have a cuppa and take your time to review everything on this listing in order to make your own assessment on the vehicle's condition. Viewings are also welcomed with all our listings, so please get in touch with us to arrange a suitable time - we just need to speak to you first and receive a valid photo ID before confirming.

If there's anything you're unsure about, no matter how small, then please first ask the owner in the comments area below before placing your bid/s, as bids can't be retracted and form a binding contract if you win the car - just like a traditional auction house. This is an auction on behalf of a trade seller and normal auction rules apply, i.e. there is no warranty, no return policy and bids are binding with more info in our terms and conditions.

Service History

Date	Type	Mileage
16.06.2023	MOT	67,476
16.06.2023	Service	67,476
08.06.2022	MOT	66,868
12.06.2021	MOT	66,763
04.09.2018	MOT	66,685
04.08.2017	MOT	66,681
29.07.2016	MOT	66,671
09.07.2015	MOT	66,625
22.07.2014	MOT	66,603
01.08.2013	MOT	66,582
23.07.2012	MOT	66,566
02.07.2011	MOT	66,489
16.06.2010	MOT	66,286
29.05.2009	MOT	66,046
11.06.2008	MOT	65,924
06.06.2007	MOT	65,805
19.05.2006	MOT	65,727
16.05.2005	MOT	65,672
14.05.2004	MOT	65,474
29.04.2003	MOT	65,175
05.04.2002	MOT	64,869
06.04.2001	MOT	64,456
16.03.2000	MOT	62,232
16.03.1999	MOT	59,064
31.01.1998	Service	55,819
27.10.1997	MOT	53,927
05.06.1997	Service	51,600
12.02.1997	Service	49,513
26.10.1996	MOT	49,300
25.09.1995	MOT	48,637
26.09.1994	MOT	43,371
21.09.1993	MOT	36,256
30.10.1990	Service	25,394
06.02.1990	Service	19,598
22.09.1988	Service	12,073
18.11.1987	Service	7,702
14.04.1987	Service	4,516
20.10.1986	Service	2,793