Tribute: Ford Escort RS1800

Ford won one manufacturer title in World Rally Championship with the Escort RS1800, which was a Group 4 car.

Ford joined the International Championship for Manufacturers in 1970 and was competing with the Escort Twin Cam until the end of this year before the team switching to Escort RS1600 from 1971 to 1974. In 1975, the American car brand introduced the Escort RS1800 to the sport which was running at the top level until the end of 1982. Ford managed to become a WRC Manufacturer Champion with the Escort RS1800 in 1979 while two of its drivers, Björn Waldegård and Ari Vatanen, became WRC Champions in 1979 and in 1981 respectively.

The engine had a capacity of 1.840 or 1.975 cc, was located front longitudinal and was a naturally engine with one double Weber 36 DGAV or one double Weber 48 DCOE carburetor. Moreover, the type of the engine was a four-cylinder Cosworth BDA 1.8 or BDG combined with the five-speed manual gearbox ZF 5S18/3 and a rear wheel drive. The body was a steel monocoque chassis with roll-cage with McPherson struts on the front and live axle with 4 locating longitudinal links on the rear suspension. The total output of this car was at 190 hp. 

1975

Ford Motor Co was the factory team in World Rally Championship and signed Timo Makinen Roger Clark who participated in three and in two rallies respectively. Makinen's season started with the seventh WRC round which was held in Finland. He managed to finish at the lowest place of the podium on his first outing with the Ford Escort RS1800. Clark joined Makinen on the next WRC event which was Rallye SanRemo, but both of them retired due to tire issues. Ford skipped the penultimate WRC round of season, which was Tour de Corse, and competed in Great Britain where Makinen and Clard did the 1-2 for Ford. Eight drivers, also, participated on the season finale where six of them had DNFs while Billy Coleman finished sixth. Last but not least, Tony Fowkes completed the 1-2-3 for Ford in Great Britain with Ford making success on its third appearance with the new Escort RS1800 in World Rally Championship. Ford finished sixth on the manufacturer championship with 35 points from which B. Leif Andersson and Fernando Leguizamón Lezama scored one and two points in Sweden and in Portugal driving a Ford Escort RS2000 and a Ford Escort RS1600 MKI respectively.

1976

Ford renewed the contracts of Timo Makinen and Roger Clark for 1976, but at the same time they offered to Ari Vatanen a seat. The first two started their season from Rallye Monte Carlo where Makinen retired due to a gasket issue whereas Clark completed the top five. Afterwards, Ford decided to skip four rallies and was present on the fifth WRC round with the two drivers which was held in Morocco. Rallye du Maroc was disastrous event for Ford as Clark retired due to camshaft issues and Makinen's car caught fire. The American team confirmed that Ari Vatanen would replace Clark in Finland and had his compatriot as his teammate. Vatanen's first outing with the Escort RS1800 did not end well as he had an accident, but Makinen saved the game for Ford with his fourth place. Pentti Airikkala participated with the Escort RS1800 of the team Team Avon Tyres where he finished in second place overall. Rallye Sanremo and Tour de Corse were not in Ford's list, thus all of its factory drivers headed to the season finale in Great Britain where Clark won his home event. On the other hand, Makinen had an accident whereas Vatanen was forced to retire with engine problems. Björn Waldegård took part as a privateer there and did the 1-3 for Ford. Four points were scored for Ford in Portugal by Giovanni Salvi who got behind the wheel of the Escort RS2000 MKI. The result for Ford was to finish third on the championship with 47 points, 65 and ten points behind Lancia and Opel respectively.

1977

Björn Waldegård, Ari Vatanen, Kyösti Hämäläinen, Jean-Pierre Nicolas, Russell Brookes and Roger Clark were the drivers of Ford Motor Co for 1977. The factory team decided to skip the first two events of the season and took part in Portugal with Vatanen, Clark and Waldergard. Clark and Vatanen did not start their campaign in a positive way due to a retirement with a clutch issue and an accident respectively while Waldergard finished at the second place of the podium. The Swede driver continued his successful performance at Safari Rally Kenya where he claimed his first win with the Ford Escort RS1800 whereas his teammates retired again (Clark with water pump issues and Vatanen with halfshaft issues). Vatanen was the only Ford driver who competed at South Pacific Rally of New Zealand and finished at the top two. In Greece, Waldergard secured his second win of the season and Clark did the 1-2 for Ford while Vatanen had another crash. Hämäläinen took over the third Escort RS1800 and replaced Clark at Rally Finlald which was a clever move by Ford considering that the first one was victorious on his home soil. Waldegård completed the top three there as Vatanen had one more retirement as his Escort suffered from clutch issues. WRC visited Canada after the end of Rally Finland where Ford brought two cars. Vatanen's Escort faced engine issues and had to retire, but Clark managed to score valuable points for Ford with his third place in Canada. At Rallye Sanremo, Vatanen's season worsened as he had an accident and scored zero points for his team, but Waldergard finished at the top five. Afterwards, Ford decided to participate with Nicolas and Brookes in Corsica who retired due to transmission and differential problems respectively. At the season finale in Great Britain, Ford fielded five cars where Waldergard and Brookes did the 1-3 for their team while Clark and Hämäläinen finished fourth and sixth overall respectively. The fifth driver was Vatanen who was forced to withdraw from the final round due to an illness. Ford lost its chance to become a WRC Manufacturer Champion in 1977 as Fiat beat the American car brand for only four points. Last but not least, it must be mentioned that Ford scored 14 points in Sweden as Hämäläinen competed with the Escort RS2000 MKII on the second WRC round.

1978

Hannu Mikkola joined Ford Motor Co in 1978 and had Bjorn Waldergard, Kyösti Hämäläinen and Ari Vatanen as his teammates. Ford decided for one more year to be absent from the season opener which was held in Monte Carlo, thus they brought three Escort RS1800 cars in Sweden. Waldergard and Mikkola did the 1-2 for the American car brand on the winter rally of the championship as Vatanen finished in fifth place overall. Safari Rally Kenya was the next round, but the factory team of Ford did not choose to compete there. However, Frank Tundo took part in Kenya as a privateer and scored seven points for Ford as he finished eighth with the Escort RS1800. The fourth WRC round was Rallye de Portugal where only Mikkola managed to collect points for his team with his second place as Vatanen and Waldergard retired due to halfshaft issues. Billy Coleman's name was at the entry list of Acropolis Rally and competed with the Ford car where he scored nine points for the blue oval with his seventh place as the factory Ford drivers skipped this event. It was time for Hämäläinen to make his only outing with Ford in Finland in that year and replaced Waldergard. He was the only from his Ford teammates, who managed to get to the finish line of his home event, and finished eighth overall, whereas Mikkola and Vatanen retired with distributor and oil pipe problems respectively. Ford was not present on the following four events after Rally Finland, but Carlos Torres and Angelo Presotto scored points for Ford in Canada and in Italy respectively with their sixth place driving the Escort RS2000 MKII. The Ford drivers headed to the season finale in Great Britain where it was Mikkola's time to be at the top step of the podium and to leave Waldergard behind at the second place whereas Vatanen was excluded from the rally. Moreover, it must be mentioned Russell Brookes drove the Escort RS1800 from the private team Andrews Heat for Hire and finished behind the two factory drivers of Ford. Ford and Opel had identical points at the end of 1978 and share the second place on the championship while Fiat became a WRC Manufacturer Champion for a second consecutive year.

1979

Bjorn Waldergard, Ari Vatanen and Hannu Mikkola extended their contract with Ford for one more season. Waldergard and Mikkola started their season from Rallye Monte Carlo where they finished second and fifth overall respectively. Vatanen returned back to the wheel of the Escort RS1800 in Sweden, but he was not able to complete the rally due to a head gasket problem, while his teammates finished at the same positions as in Monte Carlo. Rally de Portugal was next where Waldergard and Mikkola did the 1-2 for Ford while Vatanen was forced to withdraw due to an illness. Ford was absent from the fourth WRC round, which was held in Kenya, thus two of its drivers participated in Greece. Waldergard was victorious at Acropolis Rally and secured his first win of 1979 while Mikkola retired due to an engine issue. Moreover, Roger Clark made his comeback with the Escort RS1800 of the private team Equipe Esso, but he retired with an engine problem. At Rally New Zealand, Mikkola and Vatanen did the 1-3 for Ford while the team finished at the top four as the privateers, Blair Robson and Paul Adams, were second and fourth overall respectively. At Rally Finland, Ford competed with all of its drivers with Vatanen and Waldergard doing the 2-3 for their team while Mikkola retired due to a head gasket issue. In Canada, the Datsun driver, Timo Salonen, finished second overall between the two Ford drivers with Waldergard taking his second win of the season and Vatanen completing the top three. Afterwards, Ford decided not to compete in Italy and in Corsica, but Angelo Presotto scored twelve points for Ford as he drove the Escort RS2000 MKII. The Ford trio took part in the penultimate round of the season which was hosted in Great Britain. Mikkola secured his third victory with the Escort in 1979 with Vatanen and Waldergard finishing in fourth and in ninth place overall respectively. In addition to that, Roger Clark made his second outing of the year with the Ford car, but once again he retired with engine issues. However, Russell Brookes drove the Escort RS1800 in Great Britain and finished second overall. The factory team of Ford was not present at the season finale in Cote d'Ivoire, bur the American car brand claimed its first manufacturer crown in World Rally Championship with 122 points leaving Datsun behind for 14 points. Last but not least, Waldergard became the 1979 WRC Champion and was his maiden title in WRC and finished just one point ahead of his teammate, Mikkola, with both of them driving a Mercedes-Benz 450 SL that year apart from the Ford Escort RS1800.

1980

Rothmans Rally Team was the representative team of Ford for that year and signed Ari Vatanen and Hannu Mikkola as its drivers. Vatanen started his WRC season from Rallye Monte Carlo where he had an accident while his teammate, Mikkola, drove a Porsche 911 SC there, but Ford scored eight points due to the fact that Salvador Servia finished ninth with the Fiesta MK1 1600S on this iconic event. In Sweden, Mikkola took over the Escort RS1800 and finished fourth overall. Rally de Portugal was a disastrous WRC round for Ford as both drivers had accidents, but the home hero Carlos Torres scored 12 points with his seventh place driving the Escort RS2000 MKII. The team decided to skip Safari Rally Kenya and to head to Acropolis Rally with Vatanen taking his first victory of the season with the Escort while Mikkola retired due to an electrical issue. WRC visited Argentina next, but once again Ford did not bring any Escort there. However, the team collected eleven points on this South American event with the sixth position of Domingo De Vitta with the Escort RS1600 MKII. Vatanen returned back to the wheel of the Escort RS1800 after two rallies on his home event where he finished second overall. Rally New Zealand was the following event after Rally Finland, but Ford did not compete with its drivers there, but Paddy Davidson scored eight points for the blue oval as he drove the Escort RS1600. Rallye Sanremo was the first event of the season in which Ford secured a double podium with Vatanen and Mikkola doing the 2-3 for their team. Rothmans Rally Team offered to Timo Makinen one outing with the Escort RS1800 in Great Britain and finished sixth while Mikkola was the top Ford driver after his having finished in second place. However, Vatanen had his third accident of the season with the Escort RS1800 in Great Britain. Cote d'Ivoire hosted the final WRC round of the championship and Ford was absent from this event and scored zero points. At the end of that season, Ford was unable to defend its manufacturer title and finished third on the standings with 90 points, 30 and three points behind Fiat and Datsun respectively. Last but not least, it must be mentioned that Mikkola drove a Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC in the rallies that he did not compete with a Ford car resulting in finishing second on the drivers' championship behind Walter Rohrl.

1981

Ford had two teams running at the top level in 1981, the Rothmans Rally Team and the David Sutton Motorsport. Ari Vatanen continued his cooperation with Rothmans Rally Team and was the #1 driver of the team while he had Pentti Airikkala, Malcolm Wilson and John Taylor as his teammates. On the other hand, David Sutton Motorsport competed in a limited number of rallies with Bjorn Waldergard, Raymond Rue, Lasse Lampi, Bror Danielsson, Yves Loubet, Domingo De Vitta and Roger Clark. The best result for Ford in Monte Carlo came from Waldergard with his eighth place while Vatanen was forced to retire due to engine issues. In Sweden, Vatanen and Airikkala did the 2-3 for Rothmans Rally Team and Lampi finished seventh overall. Wilson made his first outing of the season with the Escort RS1800 in Portugal and was not able to complete the rally due to an accident while Vatanen was forced to retire due to driveshaft issues. However, "Cid" finished in seventh position at Rally de Portugal with the Escort RS2000 MKII and collected nine points for Ford. At Safari Rally Kenya and Tour de Corse, there was not any Escort RS1800, but Jean-Michel Tichadou scored twelve points with his seventh position in Corsica with the Escort RS2000 MKI. Vatanen scored his first victory of the season at Acropolis Rally while Wilson was forced to retire due to gearbox issues. In Argentina, Vatanen had an accident and did not score any points for his team and for himself, but he was victorious on the following two events which were held in Brazil and Finland. Airikkala and Lampi finished in fifth and in seventh place overall at the WRC Grand Prix. Vatanen continued his campaign with Rothmans Rally Team by finishing seventh and ninth in Italy and in Cote d'Ivoire respectively while Taylor retired with a driveshaft issue on the penultimate WRC round. At the season finale in Great Britain, Rothmans Rally Team fielded three cars where Wilson had another accident while Vatanen and Airikkala finished second and fourth respectively. Ford finished third overall with 80 points on the championship standings, but Vatanen managed to win his maiden title in World Rally Championship with the Escort RS1800 and it was Ford's second drivers' title in WRC.

1982

Ari Vatanen and Lasse Lampi were joined by Harri Toivonen at David Sutton Motorsport, but the Ford Escort RS1800 made its appearance only in three rounds of that year's championship. Vatanen and Lampi started their season from Rally Sweden where the first one finished in second place while his teammate completed the top six. Toivonen made his debut with the Escort RS1800 at Rally Finland where the team brought three cars there. It was a disastrous rally for Ford as Toivonen had an accident while his compatriots were forced to retire with engine issues. Lampe's and Vatanen's campaigns ended at their home event whereas Toivonen's next outing with the Ford car was at the season finale in Great Britain where he had a DNF. Moreover, many privateers participated with this car during the 1982 season with the best result being the third place of Domingo De Vitta at Rallye do Brasil. Ford managed to finish in fourth place on the manufacturer championship with 55 points, just two points behind the third Nissan. However, it must be mentioned that Ford withdrew its team from World Rally Championship at the end of 1982, but the Escort RS1800 continued its appearance in WRC from 1983 to 1985.

1983-1985

Some privateers continued running the Ford Escort RS1800 in some rounds of World Rally Championship. The best two results were a sixth place of Malcolm Stewart and José Miguel Leite Faria at Rally New Zealand 1983 and at Rallye de Portugal 1985 respectively. Lombard RAC Rally of 1985 was the last time that we saw the Ford Escort RS1800 at the top class of World Rally Championship and it must be mentioned that five competitors drove this car on this event.