For more than 40-years, Ford’s European extension has been working on subtle-design Ford models, turning them into unrivaled track beasts. A legend born out of this collaboration is the 1984 Series 1 Ford Escort RS Turbo. It was so glorious, Ford made a limited black version for the Princess of Wales. Thirty-six years later, this hot hatch still garners respect from car lovers globally.
Riccardo Senior, better known as Ricky from the LivingLifeFast YouTube channel, got the chance to review a neat-looking 1984 Series 1 Ford Escort RS Turbo (MKIII).
The story of the Ford Escort RS Turbo wasn’t all rosy and began with a few hurdles. Its release faced delay several times, and when it finally went on sale in 1985, there was a lot of criticism on the chassis.
All the same, they only made 5,000 units marketed in a few European countries. All the units were in white, with one limited version for Lady Diana in black.
Riccardo’s guest Stephen owns a rare Series 1 Ford Escort RS. Its Ford Fiesta Cosworth wheels standout at first glance, giving it a chunkier aggressive appeal. Under the hood, It packs a stock engine with a t3 turbo, vernier pulleys, and a chipped ECU. It weighs about a ton and makes 180 bhp on the dyno.
The engine is a 1.6-liter turbocharged engine mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. It also features a viscous-coupling LSD to help stop torque steer, and the MKIII Escort RS Turbo was the first production car to use this technology.
The first drive impression of the Escort RS Turbo is that the car is rigid and quite noisy in the cabin. It’s an effort to drive and, unfortunately, doesn’t come with ABS or power steering (all-in-all, it’s an 80s car).
Riccardo notes it’s reasonably fast even though it doesn’t have an overwhelming amount of power. Stephen adds that many MKIII’s drive dreadfully, and you constantly need to correct the rear end.
This MKIII Ford Escort RS is undeniably a fun car to drive despite its tech deficiencies, limited power, and overall wear and tear. It’s incredible how neat and stock the car’s condition is considering its age.
Humphrey is a car enthusiast whose love and passion for automobiles extended into collecting, writing, driving, and working on cars. He got his passion for cars from his Dad, who spent thousands of hours working on his old junky 1970 E20 Toyota Corolla. Years later, he would end up doing the same with a series of lemons he’s owned throughout his adult life. Full profile
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