Faults:

The passenger side brake light has a wiring defect of some sort. It likes to work about half the time.

Discovered that the CV joints were cracked at about 106,000 miles.

The air pump went at about 113,000. Since the repair would have cost $800+, I've decided to go without the AC (and this is Arizona... in the summer.)

The water pump needed to be replaced at 113,000.

Timing belt had to be replaced with the water pump.

General Comments:

This is a great car for a college student. Yes, of course you will be ridiculed by your peers ("you can't drive that golf cart on the road!", "I see half your car, where's the rest?") but she is a sturdy little ride. Really.

She can cruise the freeways with the best of them; however, it takes a little longer than most to get up to speed.

Awesome mileage!

Great for parallel parking! No effort required - just pull in!

Faults:

Needed two new tail pipes (over space of 3-4 years). This cost about $100-$150 each time.

Needed new fuel pump and gas tank at 195,000 miles.

General Comments:

This is an absolutely fantastic car. I bought mine used for $2,000 and have had it now for nearly five years. Very minimal repairs.

It is great in snow, surprisingly.

Slow going up hills.

The tape player stopped working a couple of years ago.

The hatchback door no longer stay open on it's own. I've heard from other people with Aspires who've had the same problem.

When I first got it there were a lot of problems with the headlights being dim, as well as it chugging and puffing a lot when it rained, but those problems were solved with no real expense.

The car is very reliable and really a joy. I am at almost 200,000 miles and it's still going strong!

Comfortable and cute, too.

When this one goes, I'll get another.

Faults:

The radio stopped working.

Had to replace the front axles.

The seats are worn out, but it adds character.

General Comments:

My Ford Aspire is a very reliable car, that requires very little maintenance. It`s easy on fuel, and is exceptionally easy to park in these tight mall parking spaces.

I, however, do find that the automatic transmission, makes a clunk when it shifts from 1st to 2nd gear.

Faults:

I bought the car with a semi-bad engine. There was an oil leak/burn and I needed to add about 2 quarts every 400 miles. I added some DuraLube oil treatment and it seemed to stop the burn for the most part.

I had a ticking in the driver's side CV joint when turning and the grinding in the gears when the car was coasting. These two problems only occurred just before I had to part with the car.

Other than that, the car may have needed a minor clutch adjustment and a tie rod, but that's all.

General Comments:

This car was excellent. It was quick around town, pretty good on gas, and not too low-profile (nice ground clearance). It handles great in snow, and has a lot of space for the outside size (except I got complaints of head-room issues from back seat passengers).

I loved this car a lot. The metal was high quality, as I had numerous dents and spots were raw metal was showing, but NO rust at ALL!

This car was owned by two people before me who abused it and put a lot of miles on it. It held up really well, and I definately got my money's worth.

The only complaint for this car is the highway performance, since there's pretty much no torque in 5th gear. Going up and down hills on the highway means pulling into the slow lane with the big-rigs to avoid getting honked at from some guy in a Honda behind you.

Don't get hit in one of these. Some guy hit me in the side doing 25 in a Subaru and caused $600 in damage. I had to scrap it : (I wish I had another one!