... Obviously, it was a second car as I could not risk having a Ford as my one and only vehicle.
The car felt good, solid and comfortable so I bought the Orion (60,000 on the clock) for £750.
The problems I inherited with the car were a non-functioning electric window switch (cured with ... Read review
This review already contains more than 120 words. As a Ciao member you could earn up to £5 with this review.
Compare Car Insurance Quotes at Quotezone - Our quote technology compares quotes from leading car insurance companies and brokers in real time, so you only have to Fill in One Form to Compare lots of reputable Insurers!
A review by tel1 on Ford Orion 1.6 March 2nd, 2005
Author's Car rating:
Safety
Satisfactory
Comfort
Good
Road Handling
Satisfactory
Security
Poor
Looks
Good
Advantages:
Comfortable, Spacious, Cheap spares
Disadvantages:
Dodgy high - speed handling, Poor starting, Corrosion in vital areas
Recommend to potential buyers:
no
Full car review
I bought a ten-year old Orion Ghia 1.6 in 1996, after many years of hatchback ownership. Obviously, it was a second car as I could not risk having a Ford as my one and only vehicle.
The car felt good, solid and comfortable so I bought the Orion (60,000 on the clock) for £750.
The problems I inherited with the car were a non-functioning electric window switch (cured with a dose of WD40) and some ancient and rock-hard front tyres, which scared the life out of me the first time I stood on the brakes.The front wheels locked solid sending the car screeching down the road in a cloud of smoke. It was either get some new tyres or look around for a decent life insurance policy - the tyres won the day.
The car turned out to be reliable, except in the area of early morning and, occasionally, hot starting. I did develop various start-up rituals that helped a bit although I can't remember now what these were. Anyway, these usually vary from Ford to Ford and each car must be individually set up.
I did about 70,000 miles in the car and barely touched the engine, which used a little bit of oil (around about a litre per 1,500 miles). The only engine job I did was to remove and clean out one of the hydraulic tappets which had sometimes rattled .
The gearbox was a good unit for Ford but needed to be replaced at 90,000 miles and I did the clutch at the same time (these were relatively cheap to replace).
I've already mentioned the brakes and these were extremely powerful and really needed ABS to tame them.
Generally, the handling was reasonable enough but over-enthusiastic driving could get the Orion's suspension tied up in knots. I've heard plenty of reports of accidents where the suspension has wound up on fast bumpy roads and then let go like a recoiling rubber band, in fact, I was a passenger in an Orion when the driver completely lost control in this way, nearly putting us into a blooming great oak tree. I survived (just) to warn people not to indulge in Orion racing. If they really must, then, when the thing inevitably goes into jelly mode, just leave everything as it is and, in particular, do not touch the brakes. The car will always sort itself out although a little extra throttle can help.
The Orion suspension, however, is good at soaking up bumps for passenger comfort. Furthermore, the seats are wide and deep, giving a level of comfort normally reserved for limos. The luxurious front headrests can also be angled forward and down to support your neck on long journeys but, obviously, at the risk of breaking your neck in a smash. As I recall the footwell was fairly capacious as was the boot. The Orion has a spacious passenger compartment and rear seat passengers should find themselves with adequate legroom.
Overall, reliability is good on these cars, except for the above-mentioned starting problem. Owners should be aware, nonetheless, that older examples (and they're all old now) can suffer corrosion of the front cross member, which carries the steering gear. This is very difficult to spot and many an Orion has passed its MOT only for the driver to find the steering wheel spinning round and round in his / her hands without the road-wheels actually turning due to the cross member and steering having dropped off! Major problem!!
Spares are cheap for the Orion and they're easy to work on so running costs are inevitably low. Fuel consumption is reasonable and 40 plus mpg should be possible on a motorway. A twin-choke Weber was always the recommended carburrettor for this car.
Now comes the hard bit - should I recommend this car. I'd like to say 'yes' but knowing how old they are now and the high probability of the steering gear departing the chassis, then I must say an emphatic 'no' and, consequently, recommend that all remaining vehicles be scrapped - for safety's sake!
...always wanted to own a Ford Orion ( I know I was young and wisdom comes with age). When I passed my driving test I knew what would be my first car, with £3000 to spend off I went, and came back with a D reg Ford Orion 1.6i turbo, I loved it . Over the next year or so I added a body kit, alloy wheels and various other extras, this car was the dogs bollocks and I would cruise around town getting looks from everybody. Now I am a lot older I look back ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this car review on average helpful
Advantages: Wonderfully comfortable, many features Disadvantages: Unreliable
The Ford Orion was once a car wanted by everyone, now it is little more than a distant memory - scraped along with the sierra.
Looking like an Escort with a boot, the Orion was always a nice looking car, that was slightly bigger and spacious.
The comfortable seats, silent engine, great control, the feeling of power, and tinted, electric windows made it a lovely drive. It was one of the first cars to have Power steering and ABS, which appealed to ... ...The back seats had an arm rest in the middle, a nice gesture and the leg room was excellent.
The only problem with this car, was that even when it was brand new, it was unreliable. It didn't start in cold mornings, or in the rain. After 5 years (the warranty ran out after 4), I had spent about £400 on repairs. The exhaust fell off 4 or 5 times, and I had the engine replaced after 7 years.
The customer service was OK, if a bit abrupt and occasionally ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this car review on average somewhat helpful
My boyfriend has now got an Orion and it is the most comfortable car for long journeys.
He bought ours over a year ago now and it is still going. He bought the Diesel version being as we live in the country now.
When we had a petrol car, travelling down south used to use a whole tank of petrol, whereas now that we have got a diesel we both find that when we go down south we oinly use about a quarter of a tank.
We only fill the car up with fuel ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this car review on average somewhat helpful
...I have shared this car with my mother now for around 13 months, replacing her old fordorion1.6i ghia (R.I.P!). Our car is an 05 model, which we picked up for 3.5k with just over 16000 miles which was a very good price. First looks I was very pleased as I didn't see the car until my father brought it home. Very good paintwork and stylish "lexus" lights.First time ride in it, I was in the back seat, I was very pleased with the legroom being around 6'0. Also I was impressed by the comfort of the seats and the quality of the sound system.
Interior: Very comfy, stylish seats, nothing too tacky at all, dials light up nice at night. Sound system is excellent for a standard car, also the control's on the steering wheel to change volume,track etc is a very good feature which I have put to good use.
Engine: Being a 1.1, I was never...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Product: 32” LCD television
Make: Orion
Features: HD Ready
Price: Varied
==Introducing of Orion==
I’ve had the Orion 32” LCD Television for quite some years now, and I must admit, it is some monster of a T.V. I love sitting in my comfy... more
26.09.2008
