THE JUMP
Classic Ford|January 2020
It’s been 12 years in the making, but now Ashley Farazmand’s incredible Mk2 Harrier has raised the Escort show car game a level — or three.
Simon Woolley
THE JUMP

There’s a saying that does the rounds every few years which really gets our goat, and it’s this: Don’t sweat the small stuff — in other words, don’t worry about the details. Not only does it sound immensely irritating, it is a load of utter cobblers. You should absolutely fuss over the details in almost all walks of life, particularly so when it comes to the all-important task of taking on a classic Ford project — just ask Ashley Farazmand.

He finally finished the build of this outstanding Escort Harrier in the Summer of this year after an intensive three-year build, and Ashley would be more-than-pleased to hear you say that he’s produced a simple and clean car. Under the skin though, it’s far from that, with hundreds of unique touches and a spec that Ashley has been developing for some 12 years... We’re not the only ones to notice — the Mk2 has been cleaning up at the shows all summer, but now the season is over, it’s time to delve deep, deep into what makes this car a game-changer.

First steps

“Believe it or not, this was the first car I ever bought. That was when I was 18, and I’m 31 now,” laughs Ashley, who comes from a family with a long connection to classic Fords, especially the oval track variety. “I got it from a friend and drove around in it for about a year before deciding to do a couple of bits to it. I stripped it down to a shell to tackle some rust, then got a job that kept me busy and often away from home, and the Harrier sort of got forgotten about,” he ruefully admits.

This story is from the January 2020 edition of Classic Ford.

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This story is from the January 2020 edition of Classic Ford.

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