(Name and address withheld)

My apologies to all Ferrari lovers in advance, I do not in any way want to take anything away from your cars, they are fabulous machines and are the high standard for many comparisons. It is with this in mind that I mention them. If they were not so famous, powerful, and beautiful, would they be mentioned at all? So, please take any comparison as a compliment, not otherwise.

Did you notice that the RS200 has an Italian body? Styled by GHIA in Turin, Italy.

Dear Ebayer,

Sorry, you are mistaken. This is the REAL Group 'B' car and it does have a full cage, they concealed it behind the trim. Look closely and you can see the tubes running the length of the A pillars (trim wrapped around) the tube shape is unmistakable. Possibly my photos do not do it justice. All the races and victories by the RS200 in Group "B" were with the 1.8 liter engine and they had approximately 380 HP to about 400HP. Today the 1.8 can be modified to 500+HP.

There never was a 600-HP factory car. The only cars that had more were the IMSA GTO CAR and the PIKES PEAK CAR, and both were modified. RS200's had such power to spare it felt like they had 600hp on tap stock, and many still claim this. The 2.1 liter engine had 525+ HP out of the box, I have heard of it being modified to near 800 HP (unnecessary). Stone stock it could hit 175 MPH from zero in about 1/2 the time it took a Ferrari F40. Note 1/4 mile slip of 10.2 at Denver (uncorrected) while babying the clutch (reported in Car & Driver years ago). The Ferrari F40, I believe took 25 seconds to hit 175 MPH, the RS200 2.1 liter about 15 seconds or less. I have seen 300+ KM/H in an RS200 - 2.1 and have some idea of what I speak of. The cars (all RS200's) have a quick change transfer box that allows the changing of gear ratios in 7 steps (on back of the motor before the trans.), so that top speed can be set anywhere from 118 MPH to 230 MPH. The most popular choices fall in the middle range depending on engine choice and power level. Most opt for acceleration, very brutal with a 2.1 and very nice with the 1.8. Also note the 2.1 has a red line of 10,000 RPM. The 1.8 is kept under 8,500. Power is such that shifts over 7,000 are not necessary. This car (the subject of this auction) is geared for approx. 150 mph and little throttle would be required to maintain that pace. There is ample reserve. This car is set up to be king of the corners, any road, any highway, and top end can be changed inexpensively for those who want more. In the mountains and on tight roads, I would want no other car. It would take days to go into all the reasons this car is exceptional, for those in the know, I believe it is the bargain of the year.

The 350 hp cars, RS200 (like this one) has acceleration and cornering performance in excess of a Ferrari 355, I have been unable to compare it to the 360, a friend of mine, who has, says the acceleration is on par with the 360 but the cornering of the RS200 is superior! Keep in mind that this car is 2602 lbs wet. With Lb./HP numbers sub 8 (350 HP) or near 5 (525+ HP) it goes . . .

The Guiness Book of World Records has the RS200 as the Worlds Fastest Accelerating Production Car (for the last 10 years) with a 0 - 60 mph of 3.07s (average of two runs), one each way. Sub 3s 0 - 60 have been recorded. These numbers are for the 2.1 engine which WILL drop right into THIS car. ALL THE OTHER PARTS ARE THE SAME, EXCEPT THE CLUTCH which is a triple plate up from the stock double plate ceramic clutch (as in this car). MAKE NO MISTAKE, THEY ONLY MADE THE REAL THING. ALL 200 OF THE RS200's ARE REAL GROUP ‘B’ CARS with ALL the right bits. The "Road car" was a Pretty, nicely dressed, Racing Car. SAME CHASSIS, SAME SUSPENSION, SAME BODY, SAME ENGINE, ETC. Only the level of engine tune was different.

Although this is a Race car, it was designed to be daily driven on the Road. All RS200's have the same aluminum honeycomb chassis tub, dry sump etc. and 6000 miles recommended between oil changes. These cars have capability that almost 20 years later can only barely be touched and then only if you spend a lot more money for a car that may not hold its value. TODAY, THERE ARE LESS THAN 140 RS200'S EVERYWHERE, all cars counted.

Some are now in museums such as; the famous - Schlumpf Automotive Museum in Mulhouse, France, the Shikoku Historic Car Museum, Shikoku, Japan, the Paolo Gratto Ford Museum, Farra d’Isonzo, Italy, the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, Hampshire, England, and the Heritage Motor Center, Graydon, England - home of "The Largest Collection of Historic British Cars in the World" and, Ford retained Chassis #200, the last RS200 built for their collection, just to mention a few.

This is the real deal. At some point, basically now, there is little to nothing on the secondary market for sale. These cars have, for the most part, migrated to owners who will not sell them for a very long time. Have a look at the number of unique viewers of this car. The interest is there. This morning I called England to check on any RS200's sold over there and found details of lesser cars (high mileage) that sold for more than I am asking. If you want a great RS200, this is it, if you want the 2.1 car, buy this one, drop in the 2.1 motor and save a bundle! Good luck and thank you for your enquiry.

2004/05/27    The Original RS200 Owners / Workshop Manual is included with the car, all 276 pages of it.  This manual also doubles as the shop or mechanics manual.  It has complete wiring diagrams, engine maintenance, overhaul, assembly, and disassembly of all major components. Etc Etc Etc...  This is the one necessary resource that will help you to keep your RS200 in top shape and running for many years to come.  It will prove invaluable to your mechanic.  It has detailed steps on how to do almost anything that can be done to build and maintain your RS200.

NOTE:  I have a set of used Red Sparco Racing seats with adjustable seat tracks from a friends RS200 (his is currently in a museum with the recaro seats).  These seats are shown in the Ford RS200 sales brochure.  These will be included with the car at no extra cost, on a bid of $100,000 or more.

Many thanks for all the calls and E-Mails, so many good questions!  Best wishes to all.

There are several RS200's in the USA and I know of several RS200's registered and licensed for road use in Japan plus other asian countries.  This car can be converted to Right Hand Drive, the main items required are a RHD steering rack and wiring harness.  I have a contact at Ford who can help you should you wish to do so.

2004/05/28  This car is as delivered, it has not been modified or changed in any way.

With Mr. Robert (Bob) Howe’s permission, I am adding the following information about him and copies of his e-mails to me:

For those do not know of Bob Howe, the following will help:  Bob is/was a Planning Manager at Ford, He first joined the RS200 program in April of 1984, when approval was given (by senior management) to construct the first prototype RS200. Bob’s RS200 duties covered many areas including Engineering, Marketing, Sales and Finance. Over the course of the RS200 program, Bob drove four different RS200 ‘company cars’. He did all the customer demo rides. Bob also attended the ‘one make’ club days (Ford days, RS days, and RS200 days) as well as Group ‘B’ days. He has logged some 20,000 miles on the track in RS200's and some 180,000 miles of daily driving road use in RS200's. Bob remained with the RS200 program until the last car was handed over in February of 1990. Bob’s offices were located at Fords private track and Motor sports facility.

This week I contacted Mr. Howe to ask if he would be so kind as to look over this E-Bay listing, and help make sure the details are correct. The following is my letter to Bob and his reply;

Dear Bob,

Would you be so kind as to mercilessly critique my car on e-bay. Please be frank and tell me like it is. I do not want to be caught out saying anything wrong. Your help and suggestions would be most helpful. I can change the add and photos. Have I left anything out???

Many thanks again,

Murray

Hi Murray,

Pics look terrific but I can't find my way to any spec. details. If you can Email what you have written I will come back to you first thing tomorrow (U.K. time). Right now I'm off to bed after a very busy day!

Good luck.

Bob H

Hi Murray,

One of my selling points was that for road use any good service mechanic, armed with the W/S manual, could do all the usual routine service jobs plus most of the rare breakage/ replacement work. We suggested to Ford dealers that they should allow 4 hours for routine service at 6000 mile intervals. At '80's prices the normal cost for a routine service was about $600 (U.S.). By usage over 10,000 miles I established that the engine would handle lead free 94 Octane fuel without valve damage. These were road miles, demo's and occasional track days with specialist owner clubs. I drove it hard but virtually never sustained max RPM for more than a few seconds. The most comfortable sports car I ever drove and I did some 200,000 miles at the wheel of "my" cars and just about all the cars built before handing over to buyers.

Good luck and regards,

Bob H.

Talk to Bob, he thinks this car is one hell of a bargain at this price.

Consider that, if one percent of the people who view this RS200 are buyers, this demand alone is equal to every remaining RS200 in the world. There just are not enough RS200's to go around.

This is your ONLY chance to own a BRAND NEW 1986 Ford RS200 Homologated Group ‘B’ car. This car has never had a registered owner. YOU can be the one.

In response to E-Mails I have recently received, it needs to be clarified and said that this car has never been in an accident. That it does have the original chassis, original engine, and original gearbox as well as original differentials. All other bits and pieces are original, except the shift knobs and battery. The seller represents that ALL SERIAL NUMBERS MATCH Ford’s serial number list for this car when it was built.