cossierims curse

Don't laugh or giggle, the Cossie Curse is not a myth.

Gather round, my children. Let me tell you a story [stokes fire, lights up pipe]...

T'was the 14th of April, 1995 when Phil McCavity set off for work. It was a dull, wet morning as he pulled up outside Ben Dover's house - a friend and fellow workmate.

Both men worked at the local Ford plant, building Escort Cosworths for the hungry British public. Unfortunately, the famous Cossie was at the end of its production life and both Ben Dover and Phil McCavity knew this. They both knew that soon they would be made redundant, and that their days as Ford mechanics were numbered.

On the way to the plant, Ben came up with an interesting idea. "I know, why don't we fit Cossie wheels to a Fiesta, and make a Fiesta Cosworth?" he exclaimed excitedly.

Phil agreed, and that night they both started work on a scale model, to show the suits at Ford and to hopefully save their jobs. After all, a Fiesta Cosworth would surely be as popular as the legendary Escort before it!

Both men worked hard for three weeks to complete the model. On Thursday the 12th of May, they were ready to show it to Ford. On Thursday evening, the two men, who had been made redundant the day before made a pact - they would stick together no matter what, and remain friends forever.

The model was being stored at Phil McCavity's house. Over night, he began thinking. "I'd have more chance of getting a new job at Ford if they thought I'd made the Fiesta all by myself...wouldn't I?"

As a storm raged outside, he expanded on his idea, and decided to go to Ford alone the next morning.

Phil got up at 6am and hurried out of the house with the Fiesta Cosworth model under his arm. He did not go to pick up Ben Dover, but went straight to Ford, where he presented the model.

Ford bosses were very impressed with this new model, which was subtle but beared the same beautiful deep-dish Cossie wheels as its sister car, the Escort.

After some negotiating, Phil was offered a new contract at Ford, as a production engineer, to start the next day. He could barely wait, and forgot all about his best friend, with whom he had made a pact with the previous night...

As he returned home, he found Ben standing at his door, drenched in rain. Dover knew exactly what Phil had done.

"Look, I had to do it - I need a new job!," exclaimed Phil
"You barsteward, It was MY idea, we made a pact!" shouted Ben
"I don't care, I'm rich now, so bugger off - get off my land"
"Oh you will be sorry, very sorry..." screamed Ben Dover
"What you going to do?"
"From this very day, Friday 13th of May, I put the Cossie Curse on you! Not only on you, but on anyone who drives a Fiesta with Cossie wheels! A plague on you and your family and any other filthy little git who tries to drive a Fiesta Cosworth!!!"

With that, Ben ran off into the misty night screaming.

He was later found hanged by his socks in his garage.

Phil thought no more of this, and within two months, Ford presented him with a working prototype of the Fiesta Cosworth. Driving home, Phil tried to apply the brakes when entering a corner, but found the pedal was useless. Panicking slightly, he tried the handbrake but it came loose in his hands. He hit the corner at 60mph, rolling the car and tragically killing himself.

Police found that someone or somethinghad cut his handbrake and brake cables - but no one had access to the car prior to Phil...

Ford immediately discontinued work on the Fiesta Cosworth. They did not need bad publicity - they could not explain the brake fault, so how could they make sure it happened again?

The Fiesta Mk4 began production soon afterwards...

And to this day, if anyone tries to put Cossie wheels on a Fiesta, the Cossie Curse returns to get them! Be warned, Ben Dover was a spiteful man and the Curse will not rest