MST Mk1 Evo is an extreme Ford Escort road rally recreation
MST’s Mk1 Evo is a tarmac rally weapon that only vaguely resembles a Ford Escort
When is a restomod not a restomod? Arguably, when the finished product bears neither the original badge and name, nor a single original part. It is simply its own thing, its own car that happens to look like a classic. That’s exactly what the MST Mk1 Evo is and indeed, as Ford’s lawyers would have it, what every MST is.
It looks like an Escort (in the Mk1 Evo’s case, from a distance), but really, very much isn’t one. Even the bits that look like a Mk1 Escort, those quintessentially '70s body lines, are broadened and distended in carbonfibre and alloy.
> MST Mk1 2024 review – £174,000 Ford Escort recreation driven
Indeed the Mk1 Evo is nothing short of a full-on tarmac rally car. Buyers have the choice of either a 2.5-litre Millington engine with 350bhp, a 2.7-litre engine or a 2.8-litre engine. The larger engines don’t yield a huge amount more power but the 2.8 does offer a useful bump in torque, of up to 300lb ft. All are dual-overhead cam four-cylinder engines.
It features a six-speed sequential transmission, as well as bespoke independent rear suspension developed with the late Colin McRae for his Mk2 Escort rally car. The car is suspended on WRC-spec Reiger dampers, while AP Racing braking hardware hides behind 18-inch wheels on Michelin tarmac rally spec tyres. If you want to drive your Mk1 Evo on the road, 17-inch wheels with Michelin road tyres are also available.
Inside the factory development car is pure race car, with a full cage, bucket seats with harnesses, a bare metal floor, minimalist dashboard and race-spec pedalbox. To the left of the race-spec steering wheel and instrument cluster, a sequential shifter and hydraulic handbrake. Should you wish your Mk1 Evo to be more of a road car, MST can create a more refined ‘touring’ specification.
Cars can be had in either right- or left-hand drive and cost from £195,000 plus local taxes. McLaren money for (not) an Escort surely requires serious commitment, but demand is strong. Customer cars are already in production, with build slots already almost full for 2027.
