The Ford Escort RS Cosworth is a sports derivative and rally homologation
special of the fifth generation European Ford Escort. It was designed to qualify
as a Group A car for the World Rally Championship, in which it competed
between 1993 and 1998. It was available as a road car from 1992–96 in very
limited numbers. It was instantly recognisable due to its large "whale
tail" rear spoiler. The main selling point was the Cosworth YBT engine, a
highly tunable turbocharged 2-litre engine which had an output of 220 PS in
standard trim. Tuning companies have achieved power outputs of over 1,000 hp.
The car was widely acknowledged to have excellent handling.
Development Ford developed the car around the
chassis and mechanicals of its predecessor, the Sierra Cosworth to
accommodate the larger Cosworth engine and transmission, whilst clothing it in
Escort body panels to make it resemble the standard Mk V. Designed under the
guidance of Rod Mansfield and John Wheeler of Ford's SVO department, the
styling was carried out during 1989, by Stephen Harper at MGA Developments in
Coventry. The spoiler was added by Frank Stephenson, who originally proposed a
three-deck piece. The body tooling was created by coachbuilders Karmann at
their facility in Rheine, Germany, where the cars were manufactured.
Changes were made to the engine management system and a new turbocharger
was fitted. Permanent four wheel drive with a 34/66% front/rear split came
courtesy of an uprated five speed gearbox as used in the Sierra Cosworth.
Recaro sports seats came as a standard fitment. Later production models were
available without the oversize tail spoiler although by far the majority
were still ordered with it. Like its Sierra predecessor, they are commonly
nicknamed "Cossie" by enthusiasts. The Escort Cosworth was a rare car, with
7,145 vehicles produced from the start of production on 19 February 1992 until
the last car rolled out of the factory on 12 January 1996. A tiny number were
unofficially imported to the United States, where it was considered one of
the greatest performance Fords of all time.
Two versions were produced. The initial 2,500 units were "homologation specials"
used to get the FIA accreditation for entry into the World Rally Championship.
They were fitted with a Garrett T3/T04B turbocharger. Among these initial units,
a handful were badged as Motorsport versions, these lacked certain
refinements such as a sunroof and sound deadening.
The initial cars included features that, although they made the Cosworth a more
effective car, did not enhance it as a road vehicle, and once the rules were
satisfied Ford attempted to make the car less temperamental and easier to drive
under normal conditions. The second generation, starting production from
late 1994, were fitted with a Garrett T25 turbocharger, a smaller unit which
reduced turbo lag and increased usability in everyday driving
situations. With these later models, the 'whale tail' spoiler became a delete
option. Performance
Max power of the road version is 225 hp at 6,250 rpm, while torque is 310 N·m at
3,500 rpm on 95 RON petrol. Max speed is 232–237 km/h, while the 0–100 km/h
sprint takes 5.7 or 6.1 seconds. The slower acceleration time is for the
heavier "Lux" edition. The Escort Cosworth was the first mass
production car to produce downforce at the front and rear
Motorsport The rationale behind the Escort
Cosworth's design was that it should win the World Rally Championship. This it
did not achieve, but it did win eight events between 1993 and 1996 as a Group
A car, and two more in World Rally Car guise in 1997-8, before it was replaced
by the Focus WRC. The Escort Cosworth was developed by the
Ford works rally team during 1991 and 1992. Its first appearances, prior to
homologation, were in the Spanish championship, in the hands of Jose Maria
Bardolet, and on the 1992 Scottish Rally, where it was driven by Malcolm
Wilson, who was also the lead development driver. Wilson was not
formally competing in the event, but his stage times were faster than those of
winner Colin McRae. During the latter part of the 1992 season, development of
the Sierra Cosworth came to an end, and the works team drivers Francois Delecour
and Massimo Biasion concentrated on readying the Escort for competition.
On the Escort's first outing at World Championship level, the 1993 Monte Carlo
Rally, Delecour took the lead with Biasion second. The pair led the event
until the final night, when a late charge by Didier Auriol, driving a
Toyota Celica, saw him win, with the Fords second and third. Nevertheless,
the new car had demonstrated its potential, which was underlined the
following month when Malcolm Wilson, driving a car prepared by his own team,
briefly led the Swedish Rally before retiring after an accident. The works
team returned for the Portuguese Rally: Delecour led almost from the start and
won the event with Biasion second, establishing both car and driver as
serious contenders for that year's World Championship. Delecour won again in
Corsica, and Biasion in Greece – his first win for three years – putting them
first and second in the drivers' championship, and Ford in the joint lead
in the manufacturers' title. However, during the second half of the season
Toyota driver Juha Kankkunen won in Argentina, Finland and Australia, whilst
with the exception of Delecour's second place in New Zealand the Fords' results
were relatively poor, giving Toyota the manufacturers' title. Both works Escorts
then retired on the San Remo Rally, Delecour after an accident and Biasion
with engine failure after a radiator hose split, but the event was won by
Italian Franco Cunico, in a privately entered Escort Cosworth. It was the
first time in several years that a privateer had won at this level, and in
doing so he outpaced the works Lancia Delta Integrale of reigning World
Champion Carlos Sainz, demonstrating the superiority of the Escort over the
previously dominant Lancia. Nevertheless, the result was a
disappointment for Ford since, although Delecour won the penultimate round of
the season, in Catalunya, he lost the world title to Kankkunen.
Delecour and Ford were tipped as serious contenders for the 1994 World
Championship, especially after Delecour's victory on the Monte Carlo
Rally. However, Delecour retired from the second round of the championship, in
Portugal, with engine failure, and a few weeks later was injured in a road
accident, which forced him to miss the next four rounds. Biasion finished third
in Portugal, but he was unable to keep up with the Toyotas, and his results did
not improve thereafter, amid reports that his relationship with the team was
deteriorating. He left at the end of 1994, and did not drive again at World
Championship level. In Delecour's absence the second Escort was driven by
a succession of temporary drivers, including 1981 World Champion Ari
Vatanen,young Belgian driver Bruno Thiry and Franco Cunico. With the exception of
Vatanen's third place in Argentina, results were indifferent and the team
faced some criticism for its dependence upon Delecour. The final guest driver
proved a greater success, however: on a one-off drive for the team, Tommi
Makinen won the 1994 1000 Lakes Rally. Delecour returned to the team on the
same event but was still not fully fit and finished fourth, before retiring on
the final two rounds. Thiry rounded off a disappointing season for the team by
taking third place on the final round, in Great Britain.
The Ford works team closed at the end of 1994, and the rally programme was handed
over to the Belgian RAS Sport team. Biasion was replaced by Bruno Thiry,
whilst Delecour stayed with the team. The season was shortened to eight events
and servicing was much more restricted than in previous seasons. Group A cars
also had to run with a smaller turbo restrictor than previously, which was a
particular handicap for Ford, since the rally Escort's seven-speed gearbox was
not well suited to a lower-revving engine. Delecour, although complaining
volubly in interviews about the rule changes, finished second on the Monte
Carlo. Bruno Thiry then led the Corsica Rally and looked likely to win, until a
wheel bearing failure, which under previous rules his mechanics would have
been able to rectify, put him out of the rally. Delecour finished second, but
there were no further top-three placings that season and Ford finished at the
bottom of the manufacturers' championship.
The experiment with RAS not having been successful, Ford took its rally team
back in-house for the 1996 season. Thiry stayed as second driver, but Delecour
left the team and was replaced by Carlos Sainz. Sainz took third place in the
driver's championship, with a win in Indonesia and second in Sweden and
Italy. Nevertheless, the Escort was by this time outclassed by the Mitsubishi
and Tommi Makinen, who won that year's title, and towards the end of the season
interest switched towards the following season and the incoming World Rally Car
rules. Although it required some special
dispensation, Ford were allowed to adapt the Cosworth into a World Rally Car, to
serve as a stopgap until a purpose-built WRC was developed. The semi-trailing-arm
rear suspension, judged one of the Cosworth's weak points, was replaced
with MacPherson struts, and modifications were made to the bodywork
and transmission. The rally cars were to be run by Malcolm Wilson's team, now
known as M-Sport. During the 1997 and 1998 seasons, it went on to score two
more victories by Carlos Sainz. With Thiry, Ari Vatanen and four-time World
Rally Champion Juha Kankkunen now behind the wheel of the cars, the Escort name
finally bowed out of works rallying altogether after a double-podium at the
season-ending 1998 Rally of Great Britain.
Outside the World Championship, the Escort, like its predecessors, was
highly successful at national and European championship level, winning
many national rally titles and in 1994 Belgian driver Patrick Snijers won the
outright European Championship driving a RAS Sport prepared car . It was also a
successful Group N contender. Tuning parts were readily available, and
lower-specification Escorts became a common feature on even relatively
low-level rallies in Europe during the 1990s. They remain so, although many
have been converted at least partly to World Rally Car specification.
The Escort also had a foray in Formula One albeit as its Safety Car. It was, in
fact, used during two Grands Prix in the 1992 season to trial this new safety
concept, which was officially introduced in the sport the following year.
= WRC Victories= = Overall Winner in the W2L Series=
References ^ "JEMS Race Engineering - Ford YB
Engine Build Specialist". jemsracing.co.uk.
^ "JEMS Race Engineering - Ford YB Engine Build Specialist".
jemsracing.co.uk. ^ "Monster YB Cosworth Engine - JEMS
Race Engineering". jemsracing.co.uk. ^ Does this guy have the best job in the
world? - Drive, September 8, 2005 ^ "Cossie's Return | evo News | News".
evo. 6 May 2003. Retrieved 2011-03-20. External links
Media related to Ford Escort RS Cosworth at Wikimedia Commons