It took 15 minutes for my bones to stop shaking with joy. My ears were still ringing half an hour later. The first car from Boreham Motorworks (part of the DRVN Group) does not muck about.
In a somewhat surprise launch, the track-only Ford Escort Alan Mann 68 Edition is a faithful recreation of the original Alan Mann gold-and-red Escort that won the British Saloon Car Championship in 1968 and 1969. That first car was full of cutting-edge technology that propelled it to victory in style, and now there will be 24 bang-on recreations built to FIA standards, equipped with an FIA passport to go racing all over the world.
It’s a race car from the ‘60s, but new.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
If you’re not au fait with the DRVN Automotive Group, it burst onto the scene in 2024 with much to talk about, including a restomodded Ferrari 355 and a deal with Ford for its Boreham Motorworks subdivision to create hand-built, properly sanctioned ‘continumods’ of its greatest hits. DRVN/Boreham will be doing a road-going MkI Escort and an RS200. This Alan Mann car, though, wasn’t even hinted at until now.
Boreham will release its cars in various ‘series,’ each meaning something a little different. The ‘Collector Series’ cars are made for the road; respectful updates to the originals with modern engineering. ‘Race Series’ cars are made for the track, chasing apexes and general circuit-based heroics. ‘Ultra Series’ cars are the cream of the crop—limited-run, blueprint-accurate heroes for collectors to run on road or track, depending on the exact specification.
The Alan Mann 68 Edition is an Ultra Series car. Not only that, but it comes with its own race series (and race licence training if required), Alan Mann Race Team support, and other goodies attached. As such, before you ask, there is no set price. You do get a fair bit for however many notes you lay down, though; This car is as close as you’ll get to the famous XOO 349F without actually owning it.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
The switchgear was recommissioned and made especially for the new 24, while the motor is built by hand, and the GT40-esque suspension is just as it was back in the day. In an Escort. There is, says Henry Mann (Alan’s son and the person in charge of Alan Mann Racing), a KONI damper on the new car, but that’s simply because the original manufacturer (Armstrong) no longer exists. The 1.8-liter motor sends 205 horsepower to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission. DRVN makes a point that its cars will all be as analog as they come, and this, deep dish steering wheel and all, is so far removed from the digital age it writes in chalk. More’s the better.
Inside, there’s a chunky roll cage (the original car didn’t have that, but these are made for racing and safety comes first) is a deliciously laid out pedal box that’ll have even the clumsiest of feet heel and toeing like a pro within an hour behind the wheel. There’s also a fire extinguisher in the passenger footwell, proper bucket seats with harnesses to keep you pinned in, period correct dials, a master switch panel and that’s… kinda it.
A grocery getter this is not. Nor is this one to take a group of friends out in. For one, there are only two seats, and it’s not road-legal anyway. And since there’s naff all sound deadening, a commute in it might be ‘a bit much.’
There’s a joy to the tactility of old cars. The doors open on a push button, and pleasingly click as you make your way in. Folding myself over the roll cage required a modicum of bendiness, which I do not have. I do have a large lexicon of swear words, though, and think I used almost all of them.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Once you’re in, the view is wonderfully simple. There are no screens, no ADAS cameras to make sure you’re awake, and no option to connect to Bluetooth. The idea of any extraneous weight or useless gadget would be an affront to the car. It weighs 1,753 pounds, and every single pound is properly accounted for. If something isn’t vital, it ain’t in there.
Wrapping my hands around the decadently dished steering wheel, I felt a small shiver of delight. This isn’t a chintzy repro to cash in on past glories. It’s so closely related to the real deal, so intricately done, that you can’t help but grin.
With a nervous prod of the start button, the motor fizzed into life. I dipped the clutch, slotted first, and immediately stalled it. The clutch was designed for a race car, and my foot was in lazy road car mode. Still, another prod and away we went with a bucketload of glorious revs to make sure there were no more shameful stalls.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Weeeee!
Slowly winding it around M-Sport’s test track, I realized that it’s been a shamefully long time since I’d driven anything so bare bones. Every pedal was on a hair trigger—there’s no dead space. And as a consequence, even a millimeter’s worth of input has an effect. A tiny dab on the brakes slows you down and shifts weight, the gas pedal sputters, and the clutch requires finesse to master.
Its long four-speed stick doesn’t respond well to rushing. Clutch down, sweep from ratio to ratio with speed but not urgency. Go too fast and the car will let you know it’s unhappy, nail it and you feel heroically smug.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
The steering is unassisted and it feels fantastic. On the tight track, your line is important—make the car do too much and you’ll feel the wheel get heavier as you make the car bend to your will. Find the right route, and it’s light and playful.
Riding harder than the OG, it’s set up to be a tourer—sideways heroics are discouraged here. The harder you push it, the more it talks to you. You feel so much through the wheel that you know exactly where you’re headed at any given moment. The rear of the car chirrups gleefully if you’ve gone in a bit hot, but it will guide you through no matter what.
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Photo by: Boreham Motorworks
Driving the Alan Mann 68 Edition is a stark reminder of how insulated today’s cars are. You’re kept in a bubble, far away from any of that nasty physics stuff, safe and sound. This… isn’t that. This car grips, goes, and looks after you, but it does so while barking noise as components whine, bang, and crack in a way that feels like abuse. But it’s actually what keeps the car at its happiest.
The first Boreham Motorworks car is a high benchmark for the firm. It’s not a hastily put-together pastiche with an Alan Mann badge on the back to claim unfounded nostalgic glory, but a perfect recreation of a car that bloodied the noses of giants. A short stint on the track will have you grinning ear to ear, more time will make you feel like a ‘proper’ driver. It takes a while to get down from the high, and you’ll be chasing it for a while still to come.
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