Don’t fancy a Turbo S? How about this instead…

Nobody should need very much reminding of why a car from an MST sounds absolutely awesome. It’s a brand new car, remember, not even a reimagined classic, so there’s no concern about sacrificing a survivor. There’s all the joy of modern performance and classic charm with none of the associated drama of donor cars. You choose what you want – MST currently lists 14 models, which is impressive given they all look like old Escorts – add whatever options, pay your money and patiently wait for a huge amount of fun to arrive. 

It’s the choices you have to make as an MST customer that must be the most difficult part of buying one, with the wait very close behind. Because all of them, from Mk1 Sports to Mk2 Evo X, sound brilliant in their own way, but where to start on deciding the important bits? For the ‘standard’ Mk1 and Mk2s, there are levels of Duratec engine to think about, different gearbox options, axles, diffs, suspension… you name it, you can change it. And when it’s all going to be pretty great, where do you draw the line?

One solution is to do as the customer for this Mk2 did, and just choose all the most expensive parts possible. No, seriously – it’s hard to imagine more money ever being spent on one. 350hp Millington 2.7? Tick. WRC-spec, three-way adjustable Reiger dampers? Course. Six-speed sequential, ultra-light flywheel and plated LSD? Got it. AP Racing brakes, a six-link rear axle and a hydraulic handbrake? Be rude not to. MST itself calls this one the ‘Ultimate spec Millington road car’, and they would know. Even on its homepage, among rally cars and The Welsh Dragon, this stands out as something very special indeed. 

Yet for whatever reason, this 2022 build has seen hardly any use whatsoever. It sits on 65 miles, to all intents and purposes brand new. The engine bay looks glorious, the interior untouched, the blue and gold colour combo as good here as any other road-going rally car. Whoever agonised over the original decisions would surely have been thrilled with the end result. Also, the plaque inside suggests this might be the first MST Mk2 built. 

It’s unlikely that anything quite so extreme has been commissioned at MST since this car was created in 2022. It must have cost an absolute fortune, too; just the front Reiger struts alone are £5,000, without the adjustable top mounts. A used 2.8 Diamond is currently for sale at Millington for £25k plus VAT. A sequential gearbox has never come cheap. An enormous amount of time and money clearly went into building this. 

While buying an MST already made with the best bits does mean jumping any queue, it doesn’t mean a discount. Or at least not one that makes it anything less than jolly expensive: £174,995 is the asking price for this one. Probably less than it cost to build, but still. It’s almost new supercar money that most people will see as an old Escort. But if you know, you know, and an Mk2 will be way more exciting than the latest and greatest Instagram weapon. And with even the new Sports a £90k prospect, nothing from MST comes cheap. But they do look like absolutely wonderful ways to spend the money. All this one wants for is some driving – and an MOT…