Faults:

My battery played up a little bit so I replaced it.

Fuel consumption is a little on the heavy side. Mind you all XR3i's are.

General Comments:

I have put a nice set of 16 inch Cosworth wheels on it with 205/45 tyres which increased the handling, but slowed the car down a bit.

The interior is very clean half leather.

No rust as it has been looked after and cared for.

It has full electrics and everything is working fine, even the hood after being used a lot.

I like it and am going to hang on to it for a few more years.

Faults:

The engine started to burn oil instead of petrol and had to be replaced (£900).

Bad starter in cold and/or damp.

General Comments:

Very cheap to run.

Comfortable.

Looked good.

However, things kept going wrong.

It was not that quick.

I suffered from 2 attempted thefts and 1 actual theft.

Faults:

None.

General Comments:

I have had the car from new and it has been the best car for the dollar yet and it keeps on running. We drive it kind of hard like a small race car...

We have had no problems, just tiny ones like the speakers blowing out, the seal in trunk leaking and the seat belts went at 200 thousand miles - what do you expect.

We have all original drive train, frontend parts, exhaust, etc. I wish Ford would take this car and do research, it is the best investment I ever made...

Faults:

Had to replace a fuel injector and I recently threw the timing belt. The timing belt was my fault - it was the original and it made it over 86,000 miles. The injector was also original, so I have really not had any problems with the car that were not either routine or my fault.

General Comments:

I hate the automatic seat belts. Not only do these belts have all the annoyances of other automatic seat belts, but they have a hair trigger. They lock up and will pin you against the seat seemingly if you hit even the tiniest of bumps or if you turn, accelerate or decelerate quickly (anything faster than granny driving being "quickly" in this case). This has caused me considerable frustration... it is difficult to turn and check your blind spot if the seat belt has you crazily glued to the seat (this happens to me a lot on exit ramps). Imagine if airbags had such a hair trigger!

I have had the same experience as another reviewer with the hydroplaning problems. Nothing serious really, and the front-wheel drive helps to minimize it even if you do hydroplane. As long as you drive to the conditions you should be fine. But if you are one of those that thinks rain, etc. shouldn't slow you down then this is not the car for you. Actually, people like that shouldn't be allowed to drive at all.

It is surprisingly roomy and it's even pretty comfortable unless you are going on long trips. The seats are kind of hard and nineteen hours of driving in one stretch will really make you want cushy expensive seats.

Overall, I am extraordinarily happy with my Escort GT. I have not maintained it as well as I perhaps should have and it keeps going. It is very economical, has superb power, it's small and has an almost zero turning radius. Makes driving in Houston almost bearable.