Ford Escort RS - 1000 Lakes Rally 1979
It's quite sad that there is only one 1:24 scale plastic kit of the Ford Escort RS Mk II. It is, after all, an iconic rally car. But thankfully there is at least one.
The first publication of the kit was by ESCI in 1979. Since then the kit has been re-released by other manufacturers, Revell 2005 and Italeri 2017. I have the impression that Humbrol has also packaged the kit at some point, and maybe someone else too. The contents of the box are identical for all manufacturers. Only the decals are different. The aim was to build Hannu Mikkola's Ford Escort RS which he used to compete in the 1979 1000 Lakes Rally. Mikkola was sponsored by the Finnish motorsport magazine Vauhdin Maailma. And this was very much the reason why I wanted to build this model.
Test build. Hmmm..
The model kit is already old, and not really up to today's standards. So I knew there was a lot of work to be done to achieve a good result. The first task was to modify the fender flares to the correct shape. I used Tamiya two-component putty as the material. Next, I carved openings in the front panel for the headlight surrounds and made openings for the cooling air. The original grille was replaced with a photo-etched grille. The photo-etch grille has a view through it, so there can't be a solid wall in the back. The grille in front of the windshield was carved also open and replaced with a photo-etched part.
Reshaped fender flares and opened front panel.
The original grille and the photo-etched version.
Attention also had to be paid to the position of the wheels. The front wheels are too far forward, and the rear wheels sit deep in the wheel arches. At the front, I solved the problem by redesigning the suspension and front crossmember using FreeCAD software. FreeCAD software was in heavy use anyway, as I also designed the engine, gear box and accessories to engine, as well as the rims and tyres. All the parts were 3d printed at Shapeway, just before it went bankrupt.
On the left the original, on the right the repaired place.
Front suspension designed with FreeCAD.
Printed and painted 3d parts. Original parts at the rear.
The engine in FreeCAD.
The rim and the tyre in FreeCAD.
Printed 3d parts.
The insides also need a lot of work. I raised the inner panels of the doors a few millimetres upwards so that the top edge was level with the bottom edge of the side windows. The result was that the original glass part could no longer be used. So I replaced the windscreen and side windows with 0.15 mm clear acetate sheet. The rear glass is original. I shaped the roll cages to better fit the lines of the roof.
Original position of the door panel on the left, repaired on the right.
New side window from the acetate sheet.
The original shape of the roll cage is not very good.
The dashboard is initially set too low and the steering wheel almost hits the driver's seat. So some adjustment work had to be done. I replaced the steering wheel with a version where the spokes are photo-etched, and the rim is from a steering wheel I found in an accessory box. There were various switches and buttons on the dashboard from the accessory kit. Also found in the cockpit are fire extinguishers and seat belts.
Picture of the interior, arrow points to the repair part of the door panel.
So the front suspension on the chassis is made from 3d printed parts, on the rear I used original parts from the kit. The exhaust pipe I rebuild from 2 mm styrene rod. The original is a very thin material. The tyres in the kit are for asphalt rally. And the rims are also different in size from those used in gravel rally. So I designed the new versions using FreeCAD.
New exhaust pipe under construction.
The decals are from Spain, by Angel Sergio. The quality is not up to Cartograph's standards, but they are still quite usable. As the film on top is uniform, care must be taken when cutting out the decals.
Working with the decals.
It took a lot of work to build the model, but I'm quite happy with the end result.
Pictures of the finished model will appear in the gallery in a moment.
The first publication of the kit was by ESCI in 1979. Since then the kit has been re-released by other manufacturers, Revell 2005 and Italeri 2017. I have the impression that Humbrol has also packaged the kit at some point, and maybe someone else too. The contents of the box are identical for all manufacturers. Only the decals are different. The aim was to build Hannu Mikkola's Ford Escort RS which he used to compete in the 1979 1000 Lakes Rally. Mikkola was sponsored by the Finnish motorsport magazine Vauhdin Maailma. And this was very much the reason why I wanted to build this model.
Test build. Hmmm..
The model kit is already old, and not really up to today's standards. So I knew there was a lot of work to be done to achieve a good result. The first task was to modify the fender flares to the correct shape. I used Tamiya two-component putty as the material. Next, I carved openings in the front panel for the headlight surrounds and made openings for the cooling air. The original grille was replaced with a photo-etched grille. The photo-etch grille has a view through it, so there can't be a solid wall in the back. The grille in front of the windshield was carved also open and replaced with a photo-etched part.
Reshaped fender flares and opened front panel.
The original grille and the photo-etched version.
Attention also had to be paid to the position of the wheels. The front wheels are too far forward, and the rear wheels sit deep in the wheel arches. At the front, I solved the problem by redesigning the suspension and front crossmember using FreeCAD software. FreeCAD software was in heavy use anyway, as I also designed the engine, gear box and accessories to engine, as well as the rims and tyres. All the parts were 3d printed at Shapeway, just before it went bankrupt.
On the left the original, on the right the repaired place.
Front suspension designed with FreeCAD.
Printed and painted 3d parts. Original parts at the rear.
The engine in FreeCAD.
The rim and the tyre in FreeCAD.
Printed 3d parts.
The insides also need a lot of work. I raised the inner panels of the doors a few millimetres upwards so that the top edge was level with the bottom edge of the side windows. The result was that the original glass part could no longer be used. So I replaced the windscreen and side windows with 0.15 mm clear acetate sheet. The rear glass is original. I shaped the roll cages to better fit the lines of the roof.
Original position of the door panel on the left, repaired on the right.
New side window from the acetate sheet.
The original shape of the roll cage is not very good.
The dashboard is initially set too low and the steering wheel almost hits the driver's seat. So some adjustment work had to be done. I replaced the steering wheel with a version where the spokes are photo-etched, and the rim is from a steering wheel I found in an accessory box. There were various switches and buttons on the dashboard from the accessory kit. Also found in the cockpit are fire extinguishers and seat belts.
Picture of the interior, arrow points to the repair part of the door panel.
So the front suspension on the chassis is made from 3d printed parts, on the rear I used original parts from the kit. The exhaust pipe I rebuild from 2 mm styrene rod. The original is a very thin material. The tyres in the kit are for asphalt rally. And the rims are also different in size from those used in gravel rally. So I designed the new versions using FreeCAD.
New exhaust pipe under construction.
The decals are from Spain, by Angel Sergio. The quality is not up to Cartograph's standards, but they are still quite usable. As the film on top is uniform, care must be taken when cutting out the decals.
Working with the decals.
It took a lot of work to build the model, but I'm quite happy with the end result.
Pictures of the finished model will appear in the gallery in a moment.