A series of fast Fords celebrate anniversaries at this years Fast Ford Show at Silverstone.

• Survey reveals Ford Sierra RS500 is the ‘Ultimate Cosworth’
• RS500’s 30th anniversary will be celebrated at Ford Fair, along with Escort Cosworth’s 25th
• UK’s biggest Ford show takes place at Silverstone, Northants, on August 6
• Thousands of classic and modern Fords to attend, along with Ford itself
• mountune to be headline sponsor

One of the most iconic performance cars of the 1980s is celebrating its 30th anniversary in style, having been named the ‘Ultimate Cosworth’ by one of the UK’s biggest one-make car shows.

The Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth pipped its spiritual successor, the Escort RS Cosworth, to the post, securing over 55% of the votes in an online survey carried out by Ford Fair to determine which of the two icons was the daddy. The Escort also has a major anniversary in 2017, celebrating its 25th birthday.

A special display celebrating both of these famous fast Fords will be one of the main features of this year’s show, which takes place at Silverstone, Northants, on Sunday August 6.

The RS500 was originally developed for homologation purposes to give the Eighties’ favourite repmobile, the humble Ford Sierra, a chance to compete in World, European and British Touring Car Championships. It was famous in the UK, where it performed in the British Touring Car Championship in the hands of drivers such as Andy Rouse, Steve Soper and Tim Harvey. It also competed in the 1988 World Touring Car Championship and enjoyed success in Australia, too, in the hands of legendary Touring Car driver Dick Johnson.

Just 500 RS500 road cars were made, 75% of which were finished in black, the rest in either white or Ford’s distinctive Moonstone Blue. They were finished by Aston Martin Tickford, with a bigger turbo, while the main external identifier was its outrageous ‘whale tail’ spoiler – a far cry from the average showroom Sierra. 

In addition to the Cosworth anniversary feature, there are some other birthday’s being commemorated in special display areas. These include 15 years of the Mk1 Focus RS, 15 years of the Mondeo ST220 and 15 years of the Focus ST170 – yes, 2002 was a great year for fans of fast Fords.

Ford Fair will also have over 4,000 club cars on display, including many other classic and modern Fords, plus a special selection of cars from Ford itself, including the all-new Fiesta.

Other star features will include The Live Action Arena, which will once again be at the centre of the show, a live performance from stunt driver Paul Swift, bookable track time for show visitors and a dedicated Classic Zone, hosted by Classic Fordmagazine, which will play host to all manner of historic heroes from Anglia to Zodiac.

Once again, the event will see headline sponsorship from aftermarket Ford specialists, mountune, while Hardrace, KSport, BC Racing, BC Forged Wheels, Goodridge, Sky Insurance and ValetPRO are other key sponsors.

New for 2017, Ford Fair will also host the inaugural Fast Ford Awards sponsored by Sky Insurance. This special display will form part of the Fast Ford stand at the show, and will include winners of various categories, such as ‘Best Street Car’, ‘Best Engine Swap’, ‘Best Modern Ford’, ‘Best Old School Ford’ and many more.

This epic display of the UK’s finest fast Fords will coincide with the very latest issue of Fast Ford magazine – available to buy at the show a week before it hits the shops. The ‘Fast Ford Awards’ special issue will include full details of the various categories and all of winners. And, with all of the winners proudly on display at the front of the Fast Ford stand, you will be able to get up close and personal with the very cars in the magazine.

At the show, all of the Award winners will be entered into the Fast Ford People’s Choice Award, which will be decided on the day.

Also, you’ll find the Ford Fair merchandise marquee on the Fast Ford stand, where you can pick up the latest issue of the magazine, take advantage of some show-exclusive subscription deals, or get your hands on the latest branded goodies.

Other show highlights will include a Show & Shine sponsored by ValetPRO, individual entries, public track time and a packed retail village.

Already, over 4,000 Fords are booked into club displays, promising a fun-filled day for all fans of the UK’s most popular car brand.

For the chance to buy discounted tickets*, visit www.fordfair.co.uk

Former World Rally Champion Hannu Mikkola to race Audi quattro in the McRae Rally Challenge.

Former World Rally Champion Hannu Mikkola together with a number of rare and exotic Audi quattro rally cars are heading to Knockhill next month (16-17 May) - Group B machines that changed the sport in the 1980s for ever.

The “Flying Finn” and long standing co-driver Arne Hertz will be in attendance with the four-wheel-drive “supercars” that are part of demonstrations and displays at the McRae Rally Challenge, a special two-day rally event celebrating the 20^th anniversary of Colin McRae’s World Rally Championship win.

Mikkola, who celebrates his 73^rd birthday next month, was active in rallying between 1973-93 and two years after joining Audi, won the 1983 Driver’s World title achieving four wins and three second places in the revolutionary Audi quattro with Hertz.

Hannu commented: “It’s always nice to get back behind the wheel of an Audi quattro rally car and never fails to bring back special memories for me. Scotland has always been a favourite place of mine to rally in the UK, and I have been fortunate enough to do really well there too. It’s also great to support this event and celebrate a fantastic achievement in British motorsports and remember what Colin accomplished in the sport.”

Mikkola won the 1981 and ‘82 RAC Rallies, that swept through Scotland, and also claimed victory, with Phil Short, on the 1982 Scottish International Rally in an Audi A2 quattro. He missed out on the “world” crown to fellow Audi driver Stig Blomqvist that year – the Swede also claiming the British Open Championship title in 1983.

Various derivatives of the Audi quattro were also victorious in Scotland in the hands of Blomqvist (1983), Malcolm Wilson (1985) and David Llewellin (1987).

The original Audi quattro rallycar debuted in 1980 while the Audi Sport quattro S1 E2 that Mikkola drives at the Colin McRae Anniversary event was rallied in 1985. Between 1981-85, quattros won 23 WRC events and netted two WRC Manufacturers’ titles (1982/84).

Yamaha - Yard Built XV950 Pure Sports.

An Eighties icon roars back to life with Yamaha's Sport Heritage twin- cylinder

The Yard Built project was created to transform Yamaha Sport Heritage motorcycles into specials that fire up the imagination and passion of riders who primarily want a unique looking custom bike. A new chapter has begun in this story and this time LowRide has accepted Yamaha's challenge. LowRide is Italy's leading magazine devoted to cruisers and choppers and has always promoted the customisation culture and highprofile internationals bike shows. The editorial staff at LowRide have an incredible personal passion for hand-built creations and this led to the idea of transforming the new Sport Heritage Yamaha XV950 into a street racer with an artisan flavour by altering the riding position and styling to really bring out the sports spirit. The world's top customisers identified with the Yard Built Special philosophy and have already successfully experimented with bobbers, street trackers, cafe racers and choppers. LowRide wanted to create something really amazing so it turned to Yamaha's heritage and decided to dust off the Eighties style with a replica of the legendary Yamaha FZ750, the highly influential sports road bike.

A real key aspect of the project was to achieve exciting results with only a handful of reversible and easy-to-do alterations, without radically changing the product philosophy, reliability and functionality of the standard model. Its generous twin engine produces good torque, while the balanced handling means it's the best buddy to have on any road trip, even when the going gets tricky. Dynamic yet easy to ride, the new Yamaha XV950 proved from the get-go that it had incredible potential in the custom market, which the Pure Sports now takes to the next new level.

According to the editor at LowRide, Giuseppe Roncen, the style choice is a tribute to pragmatism spiced up with a pinch of 1980s nostalgia, "We had so much fun riding the new Yamaha XV950 on the sun-drenched, winding roads up and down the hills of California during its international press launch. Once we got it on the tricky streets of Milan we appreciated how easily it handled and we literally made sparks fly climbing the Apennine Mountains thanks to the roll-on acceleration of its twin engine. We tried to unleash its sports soul but without compromising the easy ride-ability, comfort and enviable balance. Without indulging in an exercise of style just for style's sake, our team set about restyling with absolutely no compromises on dynamics and functionality."

A total custom freak for anything on two or four wheels, Danilo Seclì, XV950 Pure Sports project leader, explained the philosophy, "We really love the radical off-road interpretations by others, however we aimed to do more than just make an awesome impression. Our "creature" is meticulously designed in minute detail and built to be exhibited at the leading custom shows. But we also wanted our special to allow the rider to travel with a passenger to on-the-road meets and rallies. Our approach was to suggest ideas that could really be replicated without too much effort and we hope that the Yard Built XV950 Pure Sports can inspire people in the custom bike scene to try new alternatives." 

Yamaha's incredible history provided an endless source of ideas "Amongst Yamaha's most emblematic models we identified the legendary FZ750 as a worthy representation of an entire era. Everyone can picture their ideal street racer; this is ours. It was created for having fun and making an impression without compromising on the all-round safety and industrial quality of a modern Yamaha... It's unique, sporty but not extreme. Anyone can ride this bike and appreciate it. Thanks to the way the standard Yamaha XV950 is built, we reckon that you don't need to have expensive special parts and irreversible alterations to realise the dream."

Radically changing the look of a standard motorcycle is easy; altering the appearance while improving its dynamics without cutting or welding anything, keeping costs down and respecting the original project though is more difficult to do. This special looks radically different from the basic model yet the chassis, mechanics, and electrics are all still perfectly standard.

Using an half fairing, tail unit and cowling inspired by the Yamaha FZ750, the LowRide team has produced a Yamaha XV950 model complete with ABS system. The style of the renamed "Pure Sports" special - as used to be written on the fairing of the iconic FZ750 - has been masterfully defined by the Italian designer Oberdan Bezzi and combines aesthetics with genuine custom build potential. All the work is bolt-on, reversible and replicable, so you can create easy to assemble bodywork in metal or composite materials, which makes it easier for dealers, customisers or bike enthusiasts to build their own interpretations. The project's technical coordinator is Andrea Radaelli from Radikal Chopper, a Milanese customizer and winner of the Scrambler & Racer category in the contests at EICMA Custom 2013 and Motor Bike Expo 2014.

 

Based on his suggestions the bodywork was handcrafted by Simone Lecca from Metal Bike, who creates unique pieces hand fashioned out of sheet aluminium in his workshop just outside Turin. No moulds or dimensional drawings: this is the work of a craftsman based solely on sketches andrenderings and built directly onto the motorcycle. Steel tubular bars to reinforce the half fairing and the tail unit are attached to the frame's preexisting mounting points. The paintwork by Kaos Design is outstanding thanks to a special scratch effect that accentuates the handcrafted work inthe silvery and metallic colour. Black and pastel red graphics reproduce the Yamaha FZ750 design from 1985, harmonising the artisan parts with the standard fuel tank. The indicators and mirrors supplied by Rizoma together with the solid handlebars are priceless yet standardised.

The rider's seating position is sportier but not too extreme and can be easily adjusted thanks to double joint bars; the footrests are stock. The leather saddle is made by Laboratorio della Pelle e del Cuoio using traditional techniques and is higher by about 120mm. The setup perfected by the Yamaha designers remains unchanged. The tyres, rims, ABS braking system, forks, frame, mechanics and all the electrics are totally standard issue. The only concession to sound is the 2-into-1 exhaust pipe which is custom designed by HP Corse; the trapezium section tip is morecompact and lighter than the original.

YARD BUILT, INSPIRED BY YAMAHA

There are riders in garages all over the world who dream of building their own motorcycle with their own completely individual stamp. Yamaha is helping them fulfil their ambitions by asking some talented bike makers to create Yard Built specials, motorcycles that provide inspirational ideas for
customers who want to customise a Yamaha model.

Yamaha unveiled three breathtaking Yard Built models at EICMA 2013 that were built by selected representatives from the custom bike scene, based on new models from its Sport Heritage range. From Deus Ex Machina came the revamped but timeless Yard Built XJR1300 'Eau Rouge' with a classic endurance twist. The Danes at Wrenchmonkees immediately got to work on reinterpreting the new Sport Heritage Yamaha SR400 by creating their Yard Built SR400 GibbonSlap, and the SR400 B.S.R. was built by an original Japanese based bike builder.

The story continues

SPECIFICATIONS: YARD BUILT XV950 Pure Sports

• Base model: Yamaha XV950 ABS
• Concept and development: LowRide Magazine - Italy
• Rendering and styling: Oberdan Bezzi Design
• Coordination and assembly: Radikal Chopper
• Sheet aluminium half fairing, cowling and tail cowl by Metal Bike
  attached with steel tubular bars to the frame's pre-existing mounting points
• Paintwork by Kaos Design, silver with a scratched metal effect
• Dual seat in bond grain leather by Laboratorio Della Pelle e del Cuoio
• Stainless steel 2-into-1 exhaust pipe by HP Corse
• Double joint clip-on-handlebars by Motocicli Veloci
• Rizoma LED indicators
• Rizoma billet mirrors