True, in the “bitsa” sense it was sort of a throwback to the Group B homologation specials. Less extreme, but certainly wacky enough to guarantee it would never see a road as a new car in the U.S.

Probably, but this is the Internet, so uncontrollable anger is the correct response to all views that don’t adhere to your point of view. As such, AGGGGHGH! THE COSSIE AINT A GORRAM CROSSOVER!

Bring. Back. Group. A. 

Yes, it was. The easiest way to tell that this isn’t an Escort (and is in fact Sierra based) is that it has a longitudinally mounted engine.

Wasn’t the Escort Cosworth a shortened Sierra with an Escort body grafted onto it?

Well, yes, to be more specific, he set up the “F1" team for Hunt. And yes, I’d love to hear more about him, I can only imagine there are copious Jalopnik worthy stories.

1970 London to Mexico rally.

That ad had a lot of desire for the Streetka.

I’ve always had a strange admiration for the Ford Streetka, the weird, convertible, Pininfarina-built version of the Ford Ka compact car. I think the tiny Ford Ka is itself a cute little machine, but I’d never have guessed a roadster version would look this good. The car is based on a the Ghia-designed Ford Saetta…

Since posting this I have realised that I was actually nine or ten. At that age these things matter. I cannot really remember if it was all that different from an unmodified Shadow, I did not really have a lot to benchmark it against!!

The Renault Dauphine carries its spare tire in the same location but its behind a drop down door below the front bumper - where the number plate is on this example.

Two points to be careful of here. First, remember to leave room for the exhausts. and second make sure that your Rolls Royce is not a Bentley.

I suppose you think this was a very bad idea, too.

I can authoritatively state that type2s did not have them by 1972. I'll bet that when VW went to the pancake engine they stopped having portal axles

The reduction gears were used with swing axle suspension buses and were not used when they went with independent axles starting in 1968 with the bay window buses.

“They are, as Bentley claims, the most valuable Bentleys in the world.”...

Pre-war British car Aficionado here. It wont be street legal and unable to participate in many historic rallies. I would much prefer a “bitsa” Bentley to this. Cool garage art though..

Thank you. I never knew that. As strange as it sounds, the VW bus was actually pretty good off-road. OK, it was nothing like a real 4WD off-road vehicle, but it did fine on the back roads in Colorado and Wyoming.

So, Ad Luna more than Astra?