Faults:

The tires have had to be changed frequently due to tyrod problems.

I have had problems with the radiator and freeze plug on two occasions.

Muffler repaired twice in two years.

General Comments:

It is a very reliable car for the money and I would buy another Ford.

Faults:

This car has given me VERY few problems!

2002 - Had to have the A/C worked on. Cost me about $200.

Everything else has been routine maintenance. Changed tires, changed the battery once etc.

General Comments:

This is the second Escort that I have owned. I got my first Escort in 1988 and it was a used one (1984) and it was so reliable that I bought my second one brand new. Now, I will say that I am not hard on my vehicle and after almost 10 years it still has only 60K miles on it. However, I have still been amazed at just how few problems I have had with my Escorts.

This is a great first car for young drivers. It is reliable and runs well. For the price, it is a great value!

Now, I will say that this car doesn't have a whole lot of "get up and go". The interior is also cramped and my 6'2" husband finds it uncomfortable. The car is pretty basic and doesn't have a lot of bells and whistles to it. However, for a young driver with not a lot of cash, but the need for a reliable car, I highly recommend it.

Faults:

The rear spoiler rattles, and is loose.

My transmission went out at 97,000 miles. And have had it re-built three times. The same thing wrong, all three times.

General Comments:

This car rides incredibly well at highway speeds.

The seats are comfortable enough for long road trips.

The 1.8 Liter motor has plenty of horsepower to get the vehicle around.

Faults:

When I first got it, it had a pinched wire in the engine because of a previous wreck. Was very hard to find the trouble, but once found it was fixed.

When I first got the car it needed a tensioner pulley which I still have not replaced!

A vacuum hose sprung a leak at 75 thousand miles.

I replaced the spark plug wires at 80 thousand.

Passenger side power seat belt works when it wants to.

Heating system settings are off.

General Comments:

I passed this little car daily until stopping after several months I paid cash for it. It's been the little car of my dreams. It's stable, dependable, cheap, very low maintenance, and for me very comfortable.

Faults:

The front crankshaft seal started to leak around 27,000 miles. Ford replaced the seal once, and it started to leak again after 36,000 miles.

The driver side inner tie rod end started to get play in it at 70,000 miles.

I found one radiator lower support grommet missing after the warranty period, but Ford still replaced it at no charge.

The throwout bearing went out at 148,000 miles, the clutch disk still had plenty of wear left in it.

I have had the timing belt tensioner bearing wear out more often than the Water Pump it is attached to. This caused a major problem around 186,000 miles.

With more age and mileage on the car, the driver seat is not as comfortable as it use to be.

The Right Rear passenger door window handle broke at 167,000 miles.(Windos needed lubricated)

General Comments:

I have found this as well as my previous Escort to be very reliable vehicles. Parts have been easy to come by and very inexpensive.

My son now operates this car and by no means is easy on this 5 speed, 1.9l.

He had 2 minor accidents with the front end, and so far there have been no major problems resulting from these fender benders.

I have found the car to drive very nicely and easily, to be fairly quick until just a few months ago when I have had a power loss, yet it still keeps ticking along. I probably will consider rebuilding or replacing the engine and front trans-axle/drive-train before to long.

The air conditioning has been flawless.

The interior has held up very well over the years.