Ever owned a Ford Escort? (second generation)

I

InternetSwag

Expert Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2012
Messages
3,955
Reaction score
329
Location
Cape Town
Thinking of buying one, I almost bought one 2 years ago, but instead opted for a car I knew was in good condition albeit more expensive.

I'm thinking of getting one, the 1975-1980's model. What do you guys think?

Are these cars all driven to within an inch of their lives? If so, can I fix them pretty cheaply?
They tend to sell for about 18-25k
Are they easily stolen?
Are they fun to drive? (RWD)
Should I stay away from the automatics?
Are they expensive on petrol?
1300 vs 1600 (does it really matter)
 
Spiderz comment is spot on. Brakpan (or the greater part of the East Rand) would be your best starting point. :p

I think the most obvious question is why would you want to spend actual money on something like this? :wtf:

I can't see how anyone would want to purchase a thing like this for the daily commute and/or general transport so I can only assume you want to purchase one from a "collectors" point of view?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pax
Are they seen as 'kommen' cars then? I actually like the way they look, I also like the way the mk 3 looks.

I don't want a 'riced up' version, I want one that looks nice, stock, standard and if need be I can redo the paint job, I wanted an old mini cooper, but my dad says they break easily.
 
Learnt to drive in one of these. They come from an era when cars needed regular repair, even when relatively new. If you are a true enthusiast then you will enjoy bonding with your car every weekend.

They are fun to drive. Even in the day they were known for indifferent handling, so lots of surprise drifting coming up. Get the more powerful 1600 so that when it drifts it will make it all the way to the apex before coming to a halt.
 
I saw a RS2000 on Sunday (1979ish) - very good condition actually!

It seemed a little more rare than the average, so I googled it - acceleration of 8.9 seconds wasn't too bad
 
garyc said:
Learnt to drive in one of these. They come from an era when cars needed regular repair, even when relatively new. If you are a true enthusiast then you will enjoy bonding with your car every weekend.

They are fun to drive. Even in the day they were known for indifferent handling, so lots of surprise drifting coming up. Get the more powerful 1600 so that when it drifts it will make it all the way to the apex before coming to a halt.
Click to expand...

They expensive to maintain or fix? I wouldn't be buying it for speed or anything like that, since I'm currently driving a 1.0l lol. It's more for the fact that I find them very nice looking and older cars appeal to me more than newer ones.
The mk3 looks nice as well, wouldn't mind owning either of the two.

Dolby said:
I saw a RS2000 on Sunday (1979ish) - very good condition actually!

It seemed a little more rare than the average, so I googled it - acceleration of 8.9 seconds wasn't too bad
Click to expand...

Those are really rare, but yeah a 2.0l is going to chow petrol. Most I see on the road are 1300/1600 sport
 
InternetSwag said:
Thinking of buying one, I almost bought one 2 years ago, but instead opted for a car I knew was in good condition albeit more expensive.

I'm thinking of getting one, the 1975-1980's model. What do you guys think?

Are these cars all driven to within an inch of their lives? If so, can I fix them pretty cheaply?
They tend to sell for about 18-25k
Are they easily stolen? Yes but you can install modern anti-theft devices that any modern plastic has.Are they fun to drive? (RWD) There short wheel base chassis makes driving alot of fun
Should I stay away from the automatics? Manual gearbox is a must, you can throw out the 4speed and fit a 5speed from Sierra or Sapphire! I have done this to mine and its much better Are they expensive on petrol?They are very light on fuel, I use to drive mine everyday in city and long road and get between 12-14km/litre, the double throat carburettor only uses the second throat when you put your foot down
1300 vs 1600 (does it really matter)Yes the 1600 has got a lot more power then the 1300, and a lot more tuning potential
Click to expand...

See my answers

I have a 1980 Ford Escort 1600 Sport that i'm busy restoring. I have drivin mine daily for little over 5 year! these are awesome cars and a real driving pleasure. They are very easy to maintain yourself!
Shout if you want to know anything more
 
Last edited:
I knew somebody who reckoned that the chemical symbol for crap was XR3. I have no experience with these cars personally, just wanted to share my lame joke.
 
jacodebeer said:
I have a 1980 Ford Escort 1600 Sport that i'm busy restoring.
Click to expand...

Mate had that 2 door version after school. It belonged to a old granny and was in storage for most of it's life, think he got it with 10 000km on the clock and needed to put new tyres on it as the old ones were 'flat' on one side and a bit perished. Was a cool car though, especially for a bunch of laaities out of school.
 
Had a blue one in 1987/8. Other than running out of petrol all the time it made it to the Transkei once.
 
ponder said:
Mate had that 2 door version after school. It belonged to a old granny and was in storage for most of it's life, think he got it with 10 000km on the clock and needed to put new tyres on it as the old ones were 'flat' on one side and a bit perished. Was a cool car though, especially for a bunch of laaities out of school.
Click to expand...

I bet they were flat on the bottom side.

Actually they are classics and the 1600 sport was a cool car in its day. The XR series is where ford went downhill and still are struggling to get back, especially the Sierras.

I wouldn't mind a 1600 sport.
 
Damn bro, you really want to go old school. We used to have a 1983 Ford Escort XR3. Looked quite nice back in the day, but now :sick: Also not real sporty. But hey, if it tickles your fancy then go for it. You are buying the car for you after all. Not for us.
 
On my commute to work I often pass a blue escort with the best bumper sticker ever!
Old Escorts never die, they just get hotter!
Click to expand...

Will try and get a pic next time I pass him.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X