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The Finished Car Driven – Retropower Gordon Murray Mk1 Escort Ep 17

Gordon Murray Mk1 Escort by Retropower – Episode 17 title card: the finished car driven

Episode 17 is the payoff for the whole series. Retropower’s own videos stop at the rolling road in Episode 16, but this film, made by Jonny Smith of The Late Brake Show and included in the official build playlist, shows the finished car in use. Gordon Murray takes Jonny out in it, explains the thinking behind it, and then hands over the keys.

Video: The Late Brake Show on YouTube · watch “Gordon Murray's Restomod MK1 Escort Cosworth” on YouTube

What happens in Episode 17

How it started (1:17). In his collection building, Gordon explains that he grew up with 1960s Fords (he once bought a rolled Anglia 105E to use its mechanicals in his first racing car) and always liked the Mk1 Escort, especially the Twin Cam. The first plan was modest: a stiffened shell, a Lotus Twin Cam engine and enough comfort to use it into the winter. Talking to Retropower changed that. A Cosworth Duratec meant more power, more power meant the live axle had to go, and independent rear suspension meant a stiffer shell. He’s clear that the details were decided jointly with the team, but he set one rule himself: it must not look like a hot rod. Hence the Twin Cam colour, the steel wheels and hubcaps, and the split front bumper. The giveaways are the Cosworth badge and a rear valance with two slots to match the front.

Driving with Gordon (6:44). The shell is an original right-hand-drive car from South Africa, seam welded and stiffened, and Gordon says the bodywork alone took about a year. He uses the car a lot, including to work. It was built with manual steering, but the geometry and wheel offsets made that uncomfortable, so it now has electric power steering. The suspension is deliberately soft for the road. He quotes “just over 240 horsepower” and about 910kg, and puts the handling down to the rear end: Chapman struts give very little camber change, which suits the MacPherson struts at the front, and lowering the rear roll centre stops the tail-happy feel of a live-axle Escort.

Engine bay (11:38). The Duratec carries a Cosworth dedication to Gordon’s first Grand Prix win with Cosworth power, in South Africa in 1974. He praises Retropower’s packaging, such as the billet top of the dry-sump tank. A heat shield was added because the carbon bonnet’s resin doesn’t like heat, and temperature stickers keep an eye on it. He says the build took a year and then another year of sorting, much of it chasing driveline slack that turned out to be a faulty clutch.

Jonny drives (21:17) and the interior (21:42). Jonny finds it smooth over broken roads, and the rear end, which he understands to be Sierra-based with a Quaife ATB diff, feels even more planted than the front. Inside, the dash is all new, with extra instruments and touches like the Murray logo on the dials and a little tartan, which Gordon credits to the interior designer. He says ergonomics mattered most: the seat sits low and far back, which is why there’s no rear seat, and the gear lever was cranked back so his hand drops straight onto it.

Verdict (30:06). Gordon’s favourite thing is that it came out looking like a Twin Cam rather than a hot rod, and he calls it a keeper.

Parts and suppliers mentioned

  • Cosworth-built Ford Duratec with dry sump and carbon airbox
  • Mazda MX-5 six-speed gearbox
  • Independent rear suspension on Chapman struts; Nitron dampers, as Jonny recalls them
  • Electric power steering, added after the car was first built with manual steering
  • Carbon bonnet and boot lid, steel doors, and bumpers remade in stainless steel
  • 13-inch steel wheels with chrome hubcaps, on Yokohama tyres
  • Column stalks Gordon thinks are Opel, and vents he believes are Audi

Lessons for your own Mk1

  • Decide the look first. Gordon’s “no hot rod” rule kept a 240hp car looking like a period Twin Cam.
  • Set the car up for how you’ll use it. Soft road settings soak up broken roads; resist stiffening it for the odd track day.
  • Build around the driver. Seat height, pedals, wheel and gear lever position came before anything else.
  • When the driveline misbehaves, check the simple parts too. Months went into joints and mounts before a faulty clutch was found.

Mk1 context

The Lotus-engined Twin Cam was the first performance Mk1, and its plain look with steel wheels is what Gordon chose to copy. Road Mk1s left the factory with a leaf-sprung live axle, which is why an independent rear end like this one changes how the car drives.

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