Up for auction: Colin McRae’s Ford Focus RS WRC 01

The name of rallying legend Colin McRae is commonly associated with the blue Subarus, 555 sponsorship, and gold wheels. Logically, the Scotsman won his only title in such a car in 1995. However, after six years with the Japanese marque, Colin switched to Ford and began the arduous task of making the all-new Ford Focus World Rally Car a success. With that, he immediately teamed up with another iconic livery: Martini.

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Title chances in the gutter

The first season with the Focus was a drama. The car was fast, but hopelessly unreliable. McRae has only finished three times in fourteen rallies, including two wins and a fourth place finish. In 2000 the car was already much better, but the big opportunity came with the second evolution: the Focus RS WRC 01.

McRae scored three wins that year and entered the final rally just one point ahead of Richard Burns of Subaru and Tommi Mäkinen of Mitsubishi: the Wales Rally GB. But his “home rally” ended in tears: in his typically savage style, Colin took too many risks to stay ahead of his rivals. After a sharp fall, the championship was in the gutter.

Y4 FMC

The same car that brought him so close to the title and ultimately lost it can now be yours. Auction house Silverstone auctions included the Focus with Y4 FMC registration in the offer.

This chassis was built in 2001 especially for the Greek Acropolis Rally, which Colin quickly won. In New Zealand the McRae was still successful and the car with a solid second place. The next highlight unfortunately was the spectacular crash in Wales.

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Beautiful restoration

The Ford was so damaged after its crash that driving was no longer an option for Colin, but miraculously the car didn’t end up in a soggy British junkyard. Twenty years later, we no longer see the hard knocks that the chassis had to endure. According to Silverstone, the car has been thoroughly checked from head to toe by a “great rally specialist”. The images speak for themselves.

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Cook in the middle

Under the hood of the super-Focus, we find a derivative of the famous two-liter Zetec block. With the help of a large turbo, the four-cylinder engine develops 300 hp and 550 Nm of torque. Shifting is done via a six-speed sequential Xtrac. For better weight distribution and to allow for transmission shafts of equal length, the box is located longitudinally, in the middle of the car. The weight is the obligatory 1230 kilos.

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Second hand

McRae’s Focus is part of Silverstone Auctions’ season opener. The car will be joined at auction by two other rally beasts: a faithful replica of the Audi Sport quattro E2 and an unreleased MG Metro 6R4.

Silverstone hasn’t announced pricing yet, but we’re confident the historically important Ford won’t sell for a few guilders. Count at least half a million. Nostalgic rally fans with a smaller wallet had better get a used copy of Colin McRae Rally 3 purchase.

The Focus will arrive at auction on March 5, 2022.