Ford RS200
Ford's purpose-built Group B rally car, built by Reliant.
The Ford RS200 is a mid-engined, all-wheel-drive sports car built by Reliant Motor Company for Ford Motorsport in Shenstone, UK, between 1984 and 1986. It served as the foundation for Ford's Group B rally car and was created to meet FIA homologation rules, which required 200 units to be finished. The car debuted publicly at the Belfast Motor Show.
Ford Motorsport initially aimed to develop a rear-wheel-drive, turbocharged version of the Mk3 Escort for Group B, called the Escort RS 1700T, after dominating earlier rally classes with the Mk1 and Mk2 Escorts. However, the 1700T project was plagued with issues and internal disinterest, partly because it shared little with the production Mk3 Escort. Ford abandoned it in 1983, leaving the company without a new Group B contender. Rather than exit the category or write off the development costs, executives used lessons from the failed car to create a purpose-built rally machine, insisting on all-wheel-drive to compete with models from Peugeot and Audi.
The RS200 was a unique design. Ghia shaped a plastic-fiberglass composite body, and the car featured a mid-mounted engine and four-wheel drive. Reliant, known for its fiberglass expertise, built the cars for Ford. To improve weight distribution, the transmission was placed at the front, requiring power from the mid-engine to travel forward to the front wheels and then back to the rear, resulting in a complex drivetrain. Former Formula One designer Tony Southgate handled the chassis, with Ford’s John Wheeler, also an ex-F1 engineer, assisting early development. A double wishbone suspension with twin dampers on all four wheels gave the RS200 what many considered the best-balanced platform among its Group B rivals. Ford raided its parts bin for a corporate look: the front windscreen and rear lights came from the early Sierra, doors were cut-down Sierra items, and switchgear was reused to save time and money.
Power came from a 1803 cc, single-turbocharged Ford-Cosworth "BDT" engine. Road-going versions produced 250 hp, while racing trims ranged from 350 to 450 hp; upgrade kits could push road cars past 300 hp. Although the RS200 had the balance to be competitive, its power-to-weight ratio was poor, and the engine suffered from notorious low-RPM lag, making it difficult to drive and less effective in competition.
Quick Facts
- Manufacturer
- Reliant Motor Company for Ford Europe
- Production
- 1984–1986
- Assembly
- United Kingdom: Reliant Motor Company, Shenstone, England
- Layout
- Mid-engined four-wheel drive
- Class
- Sports car (S)
- Engine
- 1.8 L Cosworth BDT straight-4 / 2.1 L Cosworth BDT-E straight-4
- Transmission
- 5-speed manual
- Wheelbase
- 2540 mm
- Length
- 3988 mm
- Height
- 1320 mm
- Designer
- Tony Southgate / John Wheeler / Ian Callum / Filippo Sapino at Ghia
- Predecessor
- Ford Escort RS 1700T
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Following the abandonment of the Escort RS 1700T project in 1983, Ford executives decided to use lessons learned from that development to create a new, purpose-built rally car with all-wheel drive. The RS200 featured a plastic-fiberglass composite body designed by Ghia, a mid-mounted engine, and four-wheel drive. The chassis was designed by former Formula One designer Tony Southgate, with early development aid from former F1 engineer John Wheeler. To aid weight distribution, the transmission was mounted at the front, requiring power from the mid-mounted engine to go first to the front wheels and then back to the rear. The car used a double wishbone suspension with twin dampers on all four wheels. Ford parts-bin items, such as the front windscreen and rear lights from the early Sierra and cut-down Sierra doors, gave the RS200 a corporate Ford look.
The engine produced notorious low-RPM lag, making the car difficult to drive. Its best-ever finish in Group B rallying was a third place at the 1986 WRC Rally of Sweden, driven by factory driver Kalle Grundel. At the Rally de Portugal, an RS200 was involved in a major accident that killed three spectators and injured many others. Another RS200 was crashed by Swiss Formula One driver Marc Surer during the 1986 Hessen-Rallye in Germany, killing his co-driver. The FIA abolished Group B after the 1986 season, making the RS200 obsolete after only one full year of competition. Ford had planned an Evolution variant with a 2137 cc BDT-E engine, but the ban forced it into retirement; however, more than a dozen Evolution models competed in the FIA European Championships for Rallycross Drivers, with Norwegian Martin Schanche winning the 1991 European rallycross title in an RS200 E2.
Reader's Guide
The Ford RS200's significance lies in its role as Ford's final Group B contender, built under the unique circumstances of a failed predecessor and a rushed development cycle. Its complex drivetrain—mid-engine with front-mounted transmission—and fiberglass body, constructed by Reliant, set it apart from contemporaries. Though it achieved only modest success in the World Rally Championship, its legacy is defined by the tragic accidents at Rally Portugal and the Hessen-Rallye, which contributed to the abolition of Group B. After the ban, the RS200 found a second life in rallycross, where Evolution models with up to 815 hp (depending on boost levels) competed successfully into the early 1990s. The car also appeared at Pikes Peak and in IMSA GTO circuit racing, though without major success. Its rarity—only 200 road cars built for homologation, plus spare parts for 20 more—and its association with the dramatic Group B era have driven values to over six figures, with Evolution models selling for record prices at auction, such as $550,000 in 2017 and £486,000 in 2023. In June 2024, Ford and Boreham Motorworks teased a 'Remaster' of the RS200.
Did You Know?
- The RS200's body was made of plastic-fiberglass composite, designed by Ghia and built by Reliant, a company known for fibreglass expertise.
- The car's best WRC finish was third place at the 1986 Rally of Sweden, driven by Kalle Grundel.
- A total of 24 of the original 200 cars were later converted to Evolution models, with engines producing between 550 hp and 815 hp depending on setup.
- In 1991, Norwegian Martin Schanche won the European rallycross title driving a Ford RS200 E2.
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