Celebrating the 40th anniversary of its famous victory, the Ford Escort, which was driven by Hannu Mikkola and Gunnar Palm, will be on display from 12 – 14 November at the NEC, Birmingham, as the showpiece of a stand celebrating the gruelling 16,000-mile rally.
In 1970 Ford Escorts secured one of the most spectacular results in rallying by taking 1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th and 8th places in the six-week event. Ford celebrated this success by launching the iconic Ford Escort Mexico. The original winning Ford Escort, registration FEV 1H, is retained by the company as part of the Ford Heritage Collection.
Forty years after the Ford Escort proved so unbeatable, the Ford Focus is continuing the legacy. Earlier this year the Focus WRC of Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila won Rally New Zealand, providing the company with its 75th win and making Ford the most successful manufacturer in the history of the FIA World Rally Championship.
John Nevill, heritage fleet administrator, said: "There are few endurance events that compare with the 1970 London-Mexico, which was held to mark England's 1966 football World Cup victory and the start of the following World Cup in Mexico. During this anniversary year our most famous Escort has been in great demand and we are pleased to end the year with an opportunity to display this great car to so many fans."
Source: Ford
The Daily Mirror World Cup Rally 40 – The World’s Toughest Rally in RetrospectBy Graham Robson
Continuing for six weeks, and covering 16,000 miles from London to Mexico City via some of the most varying, tortuous and difficult terrain on three continents, the 1970 World Cup Rally was a unique high-speed event, attracting many serious works teams such as Ford and British Leyland.
Despite the tremendous amounts of money spent choosing and developing new cars, completing months-long route surveys, and analysing every detail of diets, oxygen provision, and the number of crew members, out of an entry of more than 100 cars, only 23 cars made it to the finish.
It was then, and remains now, the toughest rally of all time. More info.
Robson on YouTube!
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