The 1.4 Ford Escort is quite a car in many ways. Featuring 5 doors, a large boot and a sun roof, this spacious car certainly has all the features. It pretty much has everything you find in a standard car, except power steering which can make moving when stationary a hard task.
Being quite an old car means the Ford Escort is an ideal first car because the insurance is only around £60-£70 a month for someone aged 20-22. I was fully insured for my first year, as this is when most people have a few minor scrapes and bumps as they're new to the road. Then I moved onto third party fire and theft for my second year, as I had gained good experience and confidence from driving solidly for a year. The insurance came down to around £50 a month for my second year of driving.
The windows are manual along with the doors, which require a key to open the front ones. The rear doors can only be opened from the
inside of the car. It can be quite awkward reaching over from the front seats just to open the rear doors. Being an old car it lacks the standard electric doors and windows, but never the less this can be overcome. Even if you have a bump or scrape in the car, parts can easily be purchased. Parts are cheap and widely available from many local garages.
When it comes to petrol the Ford Escort loves the stuff. £10 will usually do about 80 miles, but I have managed to get about 90 miles out of it by driving smoothly and not accelerating too quickly. One thing I have found is that the fuel gage says you're out of petrol when you still have enough left to do about 10 more miles. Friends and family usually say, 'have you got enough petrol?' and you have to reassure them that you have as the gage is below the white line and is often incorrect.
Each of the 5 seats has a seat belt and plenty of leg room. Within the front passenger seat there is a glove box, which is ideal for storing your insurance papers and any CD's you may want to play. When I first got the car it came with a cassette player and radio, however I had this replaced with a CD player.
The car also doesn't feature an alarm, however you can have one installed if necessary. As with many cars it has a sunroof that you can open manually, ideal for in the summer. One thing I noticed about the car is that the windows can mist up a lot, it is essential that you have clear windows before you set off.
Getting the car into tight spaces is very difficult and requires some patience. If you need to park your car in-between 2 cars, it’s a challenge to say the least. The best way is to do a reverse park but even then the steering is very heavy and requires alot of effort.
It is also quite troublesome when parking at supermarket car parks. The best way is to move the car forward whilst turning the steering wheel. The steering isn't as tough when the car is moving so it can be edged into a tight gap.
The steering is very heavy when stationary and trying to turn, but when you’re driving at any speed above 10mph the steering is alright. As time went on the car's body work was prone to rusting, especially around the top of the wheels.
Having driven the car for the last 2 years, the rust started to get worse and it failed it's MOT. I looked in my local paper and found a company that scraps cars, takes them away for free and offers you £70 minimum in cash. I took them up on this offer and for the time being I am on the bus!
Overall
The Ford Escort was not a bad car for just running around in, doing shopping, visiting friends and family. The car never broke down and was very reliable. Parking can be difficult, without power steering, however when driving along the steering is fairly easy.
The car handles well, especially around corners. However it can struggle when going up a steep hill, but other than that it drives well. The seats are fabric, fairly comfortable, however the ride can be quite bumpy if there are pot holes in the road or going over speed bumps etc. The car looks satisfactory, but the main thing is it that it gets you from A to B. Good car that's fairly cheap to run.
Pictures of Ford Escort 1.4 Hatchback
Ford Escort 1.4 Hatchback
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Advantages: Looks good Disadvantages: slow,poor on petrol,breaks a lot
Joe_the_Chef 04.05.2001 (04.05.2001)
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Review of Ford Escort 1.4 Hatchback
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