which of the latest shape Ford Escorts came with a rear spoiler fitted as standard. I've been looking over the last few days and it seem like all the 16v ones did.
....and any general Escort advice? I sort of fancy getting a 1.6 or 1.8 model, but are there models I should avoid or seek out?
Any advice much appeciated.
All the best, Angus Manwaring. (for e-mail remove ANTISPEM)
I need your memories for the Amiga Games Database: A collection of Amiga Game reviews by Amiga players
They are crap, don't buy one. If you must, check the following.
Valves not sticking (on Zetec engines), this is caused by use of the incorrect oil and is expensive to fix.
Front suspension bushes not split or worn. If you can't get underneath to have a look, bounce the front corners of the car, if there is creaking, they are shot. Also look for unusual tyre wear, steering wandering and imprecise, steering not properly centralised, pulling when breaking or accelerating hard. These are all signs of the bushes being shot. It is a weak point of the car and they will fail again and again. It's around 100 quid a time for genuine Ford bits, plus labour. Pattenr parts are even worse than Ford ones.
Check the fuse box for corrosion. Water can leak through the bulkhead and ruin the fusebox. This is a common problem.
Rust forms first on the inside edges of the wheel arches, under the front lip of the bonnet and on the underside of the sills.
As someone who has just got rid of one, all I can say is "Don't do it". Even the Zetec engines have poor performance and poor fuel efficiency. Also many have had the nuts revved off them by Kevs.
Firstly don't top-post. Secondly, it is permitted to put all your comments in just one reply to my post.
AS for the discussion. The one I had was previously owned by a then girlfriends mother. She'd had it from new. It was not cut or shut or stolen.
For what it's worth, they are OK cars. But they are 15 year old technology now - Ford technology at that. All of them are getting long in the tooth and in my experience, Fords are good for about 5 years and then start to need expensive repairs on a regular basis. I didn't include the other problems I had with it which could concievably happen on any other car (ECU blowing up, wheel bearings failing, engine sensors failing), just the common Escort problems that any owner has or will experience.
The guy asked for advice, and I gave my advice. I am speaking from personal experience. I appear to have touched a nerve here, sorry about that but I don't see what your problem is. I wouldn't have another Escort if it was given to me for free. If you need a car to use and abuse for a year, it's probably a good choice if you get one that already has 12 months MOT and good tyres. It has a considerable load-carrying capacity and the best fold-down rear seats I have seen. But that's about it.
What are you talking about?! The 90bhp 1.6 E engine is wheezey, thirsty, and unwilling when compared to the 100bhp 1.6 SE engine, and how you can sit there and try to tell us the mk7 Escort handlles better than any Focus I dont know.
Okay, is this people just using cheap oil, or a viscosity (?) thing?
Many thanks for the advice, Rob. I'm basically pig-ignorant on the mechanical front, so like it or not, this is the sort of info I need to hear.
The thing is I was able to get myself a new Escort back in 87, and it lasted me 10 years, and dammit, they are close to my heart. :)
Plus my first was a '68 Mk 1 1100. :)
I've been driving a '91 Cavalier for the last few years, and its treated me pretty well, but its getting close to new vehicle time.... from what I've heard Vectras are not short of a few problems, so I'm a bit lost as to what I can buy for around 2k that I'm going to like at all. Astras seem to be quite expensive.
Understood, I'll have to see what comes along I guess.
All the best, Angus Manwaring. (for e-mail remove ANTISPEM)
I need your memories for the Amiga Games Database: A collection of Amiga Game reviews by Amiga players
The 1.6 and 1.8 twin cam 16v engines are known as Zetec,
Viscosity. The vehicle handbook actually specifies some oils that cause the problems! Later models had modified valve arrangements that help avoid the problem.
Not driven any of those. The Escort is a kind of anonymous car. You find it everywhere, around here every other house has an Escort outside or on the drive. I sometimes think that my street should be renamed: Escort drive. Some are estates full up with decorators paint materials and overturned paint cans, some are battered but people don't care. I suppose that since they sold in vast numbers, we will still see them for quite a while.
From about 1990, the LX models (and those special edition ones derived from the LX, or from a lower model with some LX goodies bundled) had spoilers, but one could delete these as an option. From memory, they weren't present on later Ghia or Ghia-X models, either, and were (of course) added to the Si models.
Putting aside the Escort aspect of it, which I'll deal with later, there were many engines offered with the later Escorts (from 1990 onwards), ranging from the 1.3 (which from 1996 is basically the same donk as fitted in our Ka, and before then an older sister), the CVH 1.4, the CVH 1.6, the Zetec (and Zetec-E) 1.6 and 1.8, the "atmo" 1.8 diesel, a "low blow" non-intercooled 1.8 turbodiesel and the intercooled 1.8 turbodiesel. There's also the RS2000, which uses a 150 PS 2.0 litre Zetec petrol engine, oh and the Cosworth versions (which I'll skip over).
The 1.3 is a tough rattly donk, which has very little redeeming features other than it's arguably better to drive around the city than the CVH 1.4 and it's noticably more economical, too. The carb-fed, non-cat version is quite a bit more economical than those fuel injected versions.
I really don't like CVH engines, and personally I'd avoid the CVH 1.4 and
1.6s - including the 1.6S, which was only available for about a year back in
1990 / 1991. This used a fuel injected version of the 1.6 with more power and better performance, but it's still a CVH! :)
The 1.6 Zetec engine uses sixteen valves, but it's not a high performance engine. Headline performance is the same as the CVH 1.6, but it's arguably a better engine. I suppose the 1.6 is the jack of all trades in the Escort range, because unfortunately it masters none. It's not especially, quick, economical, nor is it a revvy engine either. But to be fair it's significantly better than the 1.4 for no fuel consumption disadvantage.
The earlier 1.6 Zetecs can have a sticking valve problem, the later versions have the Zetec-E engine, which is a modified Zetec.
The 1.8 Zetec was available with three power outputs - 105 PS, 115 PS and
130 PS. The 105 PS was sold as an LX, a Ghia, and the sportier XR3i, Si and GTi models. As others have said, there's next to no disadvantage in having the 1.8 over the 1.6 in terms of fuel consumption, but they go noticably better. If you can find a 1.8 LX this is arguably the one to have. The GTi is not a GTi other than by name...
I'll brush over the RS2000 and Cosworth versions.
As for the diesels, hmm, well if you do a high mileage perhaps... however if you can find the intercooled 1.8 turbodiesel (from about 1996 it was badged a TDI, for "turbodiesel intercooled") this is preferable to the 1.6 petrol in my opinion - but then I'm probably biased.
Other points - the later the year, the better. Early 1990s Escorts were not all that good to drive - sloppy steering, wayward handling, and dog awful CVH engines. Revisions happened in 1992 (introduction of the Zetec engine), and again in 1996, and I believe Jaguar technicians built the final batches. ;)
Good ones can last well, but watch for rust as others have commented. Fords tend to be abused, with missing services, and this is what typically kills them - basically the owners think that they're cheap to buy, cheap to run, and this means they don't need servicing - look for signs of Muppet ownership!
As an alternative, and within the same company, you might want to consider the Mondeo. A Mondeo of the same age is a superior car in almost every respect. You may also find a decent Fiesta from 1995 onwards - these are great fun to hoon around, but offer the same inexpensive dealer network. In my opinion, the engine to go for is the 1.25 Zetec-SE. Although the 1.4 (which wasn't available for long) is a nice enough piece of kit, they're hard to get hold of whereas the 1.25 is plentiful. It's a great little engine (with a few weaknesses - check out my article on the Fiesta on the website).
I hope my comments are useful, and there's just time for a blatent website plug, but hold on...
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