Spec-R BARN FIND!Rare Geoff Woods Mk1 Hart Escort Special Saloon

[SPECR]

We Found it lads! The Original Mk1 Spaceframed Ford Hart Escort Special Saloon of Geoff Wood.Stuck 25-30 Ft on a rack in a barn for 40 years! In the dry but covered in dust.
We only noticed it because of the distinctive Mk1 Front end sticking out of the rack.On closer inspection we noticed she still had everything, Hart BDA with the distinctive belt driven Lucas fuel injection,ZF Gearbox,LSD with inboard Discs etc.Plus the Magnisium Minilites and Alloy Wheels tyres straight out of the 70s.
Chassis etc all good no rot.All chassis wishbones etc all bronze hand welded.Proper old school race engineering.Real time warp
After a couple of visits and pics taken as she was found,she was taken down and there was even a dead rat under the drivers seat lol.Had eaten the Foam from the seat and died there.
This will now be a full sympathetic restoration to get her back to her former self.
Before we touch her this is where iam asking for your help to gather as much history of this Racing Hart Mk1 Escort.So any info pics etc no matter how small will be very much appreciated. There will be a step by step build on the Escort and all who help will be mentioned along the way and on completion.
The only names i have who owned/raced this Hart Escort was Geoff Wood ex Vita Mini(Grimsby)who raced the escort along side Gerry Marshall,Mick Hill etcetc.2nd Driver was Andrew Grover(Alton) raced her at Castle Combe 79 alongside (diff Class)Vince Woodmans Capri etc. I will post pics up couple for now and more to come.Thank you all for your time and potential help given.And iam sure to speak soon.Kindest Regards Pete@spec-R www.spec-r.co.uk.Sales@spec-r.co.uk 07879471021

[chunterer]

Great find!!!
Look forward to updates on the restoration.

[Neil Duke]

Hope to see that on the track.That engine sure is a long way back.

[SPECR]

Originally Posted by Neil Duke

Hope to see that on the track.That engine sure is a long way back.

One day Neil👍After full restoration she will be Racing again.Front pulleys inline with scuttle panel! She is and will be a butiful machine.thank you Neil regards Pete @ Spec-R Alloy

[SPECR]

Originally Posted by chunterer

Great find!!!
Look forward to updates on the restoration.

Thank you and hopefully by being on TenTenths the information we require will come and all will enjoy the sight and sound of this rare Hart Mk1 Escort.Thank you for your support kind regards Pete@Spec-R Alloy

[celes1]

You lucky sod Pete, for years we believed this car had been lost. I guess it was up in a barn rack hidden from prying eyes for the last forty years. The last time I remember it being raced in our series was with Woodsy in the early 70's, he could have driven it much quicker but he wore glasses and this brute of a machine use to make him feel quite sick and disoriented.
From what I can see in the images it looks to be the genuine Hart engine, oh so good!!
Have you images of the space-frame chassis, from what I can remember it was the first and only full space frame ever made in its day with the engine at the side of the driver, Woodsy was very fussy about that car and was always trying to shed the last ounce of weight off it.

[SPECR]

Bit more info coming in.spoke to Graham wood, son of Geoff Wood and he's told me his dad's Mk1Escort chassis was designed by the Famous Len Terry who was involved with F1 Eagle,BRM, Lotus,ERA etc.

[celes1]

Originally Posted by SPECR

Bit more info coming in.spoke to Graham wood, son of Geoff Wood and he's told me his dad's Mk1Escort chassis was designed by the Famous Len Terry who was involved with F1 Eagle,BRM, Lotus,ERA etc.

Len Terry was a brilliant designer, who did he contract the chassis fabrication to. There were several good chassis men around during the 1970's, it would be great if some of the forum members knew who it was. Have you any images of the chassis to put on the forum, this may help us to recognise it as many chassis workshops seem to use a certain technique, there might even be an ID plate somewhere.
Let us all see the chassis Pete.

[Dan Rear]

I think it dates from about 1974, I only ever saw it once at Mallory in mid-75. Very low-line car. Don't think it ever had a Hart motor, a BDE perhaps? The Hart 420R, only came out in 1975, and was 'too exotic/costly' for Spec Saloons until the late
70s.

[Alan Morgan]

Len Terry sometimes used Cyril Malem at CTG Engineering for fabrication work. He used to be based in Ferndown, I think.

[celes1]

Originally Posted by Dan Rear

I think it dates from about 1974, I only ever saw it once at Mallory in mid-75. Very low-line car. Don't think it ever had a Hart motor, a BDE perhaps? The Hart 420R, only came out in 1975, and was 'too exotic/costly' for Spec Saloons until the late
70s.

It would be interesting to put the ID/engine number of your Escort up Pete as Hart produced some sensational engines for pre 1975 Fords. We used a 2.0ltr Hart engine in the late 1970's and it was producing about 270bhp, it had the same fuel injection as you show in your image.

[celes1]

Originally Posted by Alan Morgan

Len Terry sometimes used Cyril Malem at CTG Engineering for fabrication work. He used to be based in Ferndown, I think.

Didn't Cyril Maylem have his hand in motorbike fabrication Alan. Certainly if he had done any work on this Escort he would have records of it. Its certainly worth Pete to investigate, but do you think there are others.

[Gerry Taylor]

That really is excellent news. Wishing you well with the rebuild. GT.

[Mike Bell]

Fabulous car and an exciting restoration project! Look forward to seeing it on track sometime. Enjoy......

Very difficult to tell from the pic, but the engine looks like a BDA, so I'm guessing a Hart fettled Cosworth rather than a later and longer 420R?

Nice.

[Alan Morgan]

Googling Cyril Malem reveals that hs does indeed build motorcycle frames and may still be around.

[celes1]

Hi Spec-R, you have one seriously rare car. When are you hoping to start the restoration and are you going to do the work yourself.

[SPECR]

Sorry for late reply everyone,been doing more digging and you where correct in thinking Alan.It took a while but ive tracked Cyril Malem down and he is in Dorset (retired now)..I left a message with him and he phoned me back within 5 mins.What an amazing man he is and such a pleasure to talk to and the history behind this man is unbelievable. Cyril has now CONFIRMED that he built the chassis and the body on this Mk1 Escort.And Len Terry worked for Cyril at the same time and designed the chassis for the escort.Cyril said also this was the 1 and only FULL Spaceframed Mk1 Escort Chassis he ever built!
There was and is so much to talk about that he kindly offered to come up and see myself and the Escort @ Spec-R.What an amazing day its been and would like to thank Alan and the Forum members for pointing me in Cyril's direction thus far.Thank you.
More updates shortly

[celes1]

Cyril Malem was considered the best Grand Prix chassis fabricator of his time, manufacturing chassis frames for Collin Chapman's Lotus GP car's and Emerson Fitipaldi's GP car's chassis.
It's got to have been quite special for him to make this Ford Escort special saloon chassis. I wonder if he made any more, or was it a one off as I have never seen another. Get some images up Pete.

[celes1]

Hi Spec-R, this chassis on your car, are all the welds brazed and is the roll cage part of the space frame chassis. Looking at the pics, the cage tube thickness looks to be the original smaller diameter compared to the T45/50 of the present day race cars. When we restored our works car, we fitted the thicker steel tubing just in case the race scrutineers objected to the original cage being too thin and unsafe for circuit racing. On speed events many of the original roll cages can be used and the MSA allow for the smaller diameter roll cages of pre 1995 cars, I believe. But if this car is fully original and to be kept authentic, the qualification for an FIA certificate should be investigated, if you want to race the car in the future and keep a premium value.

[andy97]

If you haven't already, Spec-R, please join the CSCC Special Saloonscand Modsports FB group. It's a very active community and hey would love to hear about your car.

[SPECR]

Originally Posted by andy97

If you haven't already, Spec-R, please join the CSCC Special Saloonscand Modsports FB group. It's a very active community and hey would love to hear about your car.

Thank you Andy, spoke to Hugo @ CSCC yesterday and he mentioned that yesterday after Cyril Malem has been down to see the Escort.Kind Regards Pete

[celes1]

Any more pics of the car Pete, we would all like to see this rare Escort in its barn find state and make the images of the engine, chassis, interior and don't forget the dead rat you found in the seat, large pics.

[SPECR]

Originally Posted by celes1

Any more pics of the car Pete, we would all like to see this rare Escort in its barn find state and make the images of the engine, chassis, interior and don't forget the dead rat you found in the seat, large pics.

Ok I'll put some up later from here in workshop😉Never kept the Rat too far gone sorry lol

[SPECR]

Originally Posted by Alan Morgan

Len Terry sometimes used Cyril Malem at CTG Engineering for fabrication work. He used to be based in Ferndown, I think.

Your right Alan was in ferndown, retired now and have found and spoken to him. Len Terry worked for him at this stage and he confirmed Len designed the chassis on the Escort and he(Cyril) built it and body.Amazing Result! The one and only Escort they ever designed and built.Kind Regards Peter

[celes1]

This is the Geoff Woods Escort, showing quite a low line for the day.