Myth Buster
Ford Sierra
THE XR4x4 WAS 1 FIVE-DOOR ONLY
The 1983-on Sierra XR4i featured restyled three-door bodywork that seemed to be based on the five-door variant. However, the later four-wheel-drive XR4x4 was only available as a five-door. Only a small number of three-doors were made for mainland Europe and there was even a 1987 estate model badged as a Ghia.
2 THE COSWORTHS WERE THE FASTEST
The RS/RS500 Cosworths managed a top speed of over 150mph and a 0-60mph sprint time of six seconds. However, the XR4x4-based Turbo Technics Minker 323 was even faster. With 323bhp from its twin Garret turbocharged V6, it could reach 60mph in just 4.8 seconds and stormed on to a maximum speed of around 170mph. Just 20-30 Minkers were built, probably because they were phenomenally expensive and were burdened by a slightly silly name.
3 THE RS500 HAD 500BHP
There’s a myth that RS500s are so-called because they produced 500bhp as standard. They could actually be tuned to develop rather more than that, but in reality, the ‘500’ moniker refers to the number that had to be built for Touring Car homologation purposes. The RS500s for public road consumption actually made a rather more modest 224bhp.
MAINSTREAM 4 THREE-DOORS DIED OUT IN 1987
Aside from the Cosworth, threedoor Sierras disappeared from the British market following the model’s 1987 facelift. However, they did continue to be available in continental Europe – they just weren’t sold in the UK.