Registration: H239NUH
Chassis: SFAVXXBBAVKE73408
Odometer: 6,000
Transmission: Manual
- Needs restoring, but appears to be very solid
- Becoming quite collectable
- Low ownership
- Good panel fit
Here we have an opportunity to get a rewarding recommissioning project, a Ford Escort Van 35. These are becoming very rare now and have been changing hands in some cases for over £25,000! Whilst this van is not in that category, with some vision and attention it could be in the future. It is finished in white, as most were, but has a black bonnet. The panel fit is good, and the vendor tells us that despite its appearance it is in good condition underneath, but as with any project we always recommend viewing first hand to satisfy yourself. The van has only had four previous owners and the HPi states it has not changed hands since 2002. It has a very ingenious immobiliser system, which is very clever, and will be shared with the new owner.
The two-door Escort Van was first sold in February 1981, a slightly delayed introduction caused by large remaining stocks of the Mark II Escort Van. The Van has twin rear doors and unusual small side windows behind the front doors, necessary to provide more over-the-shoulder visibility which would otherwise be limited by the use of the short front doors from the five-door Escort. The main engineering change was to the rear suspension - namely the use of a solid beam axle on leaf springs in place of the fully independent set-up found on the hatchback and estate. At launch, the Mk3 van was available in two versions - 3.5cwt capacity (with the 1.3 engine) and 5.5cwt capacity (with the 1.6 engine). Both versions were offered in two trim levels - standard and ‘L’, which mirrored the base and L models of the cars. For the 1984 model year the engines options were revised with the 5.5cwt version now available with either the 1.3 CVH petrol or 1.6 diesel, whilst the 3.5cwt version reduced to 1.1 Valencia power. Equipment levels were improved slightly, with the standard van now gaining the better ‘L’ spec dashboard with an opening glovebox, centre air vents, and 3-speed blower fan.
Encouraged by the success of recreational vans in Europe such as the Matra Rancho, Ford toyed with a concept ‘XRV’ version of the van, which used the XR3's uprated engine and a fully trimmed interior, but decided against putting it into production. Interestingly many people have made a success of making their own interpretation of this idea, this van lends itself to become just that, or with a strong classic commercial following take it right back to standard, which would be straightforward to do. The van variant remained in production in a facility located behind the now Jaguar plant at Halewood until October 2002 when the new Transit Connect model was introduced. The Escort hatchback and estate were produced in Argentina until 2004, having been sold alongside its successor (the Focus) during the final stages of production. Escort-based light vans had been offered since 1968, although the market sector, always larger in the UK than in continental Europe, dated back beyond the 1950s when successive Ford Anglia’s had been available with a van variant. After the demise of the Escort, Ford would be represented in this niche by the Turkish assembled Ford Transit Connect. Today many manufactures have started making Escort size vans as part of their main stream offerings for the commercial market, so if you want one of those, why not buy the best that was and be a little retro in your look, not a bad idea, you’d certainly be one of the coolest workman around.
