Faults:

The Central locking is a little dodgy.

The sunroof is jammed shut.

The steering is a little offset to the right.

General Comments:

I LOVE this car. This is my first car, previous to which I use to drive my parents Mondeo.

Obviously this car is no Mondeo to drive, but even still I have very little to complain about.

The faults mentioned above were on the car when I purchased it, however these problems have not impeded me driving it. It has covered 4000 miles since I bought it and all of those miles have been provided very reliably, even in the cold days of previous winter.

It is comfortable to sit behind the wheel of, and the seats, despite their age, are relatively supportive.

Although a little noisy due to lack of soundproofing, it is actually a very decent motorway mile eater, being very stable at 70mph, even when windy. It has cruised me from Birmingham (where I bought it) to Glasgow and also from Glasgow to Oxford and back with out any complaint.

The engine is very capable of holding the pace, if a little sluggish at times at reaching the pace. It is also geared well for motorway cruising, doing only 3000rpm at 75mph in 5th gear. This high gearing however can be a little much for the little 1.4L engine in normal traffic.

Although insurance is high for me being a young driver, I can say most smaller cars, for example the Peugeot 106 1.1L, would have cost me exactly the same - and an Orion is a good bit bigger all round than the tiny 106. It is a little heavy on petrol, giving me only about 100miles to 13litres of petrol (approx £10) - a typical Ford really for fuel consumption. Other running costs are pretty much minimal.

Would I own another Orion in the future if they haven't all rusted away? Just try and stop me!

Faults:

Fuel pump faulty, caused a lot time and work trying to find the fault.

Clutch slipping, really hard to replace.

Water leaks are hard to trace.

18 rusted areas had to be welded.

Emissions ran off scale at one time.

Tracking control arm rubbers worn, had to replace whole arm.

Tyre wear seems to happen on outside of the tyre although suspension and tracking is fine.

Fog lamp switch faulty.

Intermittent electrical faults which are impossible to trace.

Rear slave cylinder leaked and was replaced.

Lights constantly out of alignment.

General Comments:

When it runs, it runs fine and is reliable.

Faults are probably about average or its age.

Large car with small engine at a cheap price.

The cabin is very gloomy and the seats are uncomfortable and plain.

Not much room in rear for people with long legs.

Boot a nice size.

Parts are cheap, but if garages are used the jobs will be costly.

Faults:

CV Joints - sent car spinning at 60mph on a wet day (missed all obstacles in my path thank god - seems the Ford God was smiling)

Transmission - Unable to handle city rush hour driving at any length - replaced 3 times in 15,000miles.

Damp in boot (saloon) water runs off lid, into boot, festers and creates mold.

Cooling system. Thermostat, Fan Switch, hoses, all seem to be substandard - and have all failed regularly.

General Comments:

Absolutely gorgeous in black and chrome, and very tweakable!

Very sluggish pull away in auto model - with juddering if driving at low speeds constantly (i.e. Newcastle, 8am - 9am)

Lurrrrvly sounding engine when over-revved, known to have scared a few pedestrians in my time (wink)

Accelerator pedal can get sticky - quite dangerous, and expensive on fuel.

Very uncomfortable seats, too soft, back pain compulsory.

Wonderfully smooth at high speeds, though heavy on corners, definitely a car for someone who wants to travel around the country a lot.