Ford of Europe could do no wrong in the 1960s
and 70s. And the Escort quite possibly turned out to be their crowning achievement. While
many think of the Mini as a car that got Britain moving, the Mini only sold 5M cars worldwide
over its entire life. The Escort sold almost 5 times that amount in a shorter period of
time. So, just popular was it in the grand scheme of things? Well, let’s look at the
top 10 selling Ford vehicles of all time. At number 10 with 5M sold is the LTD, a staple
saloon for Americans in the 1970s. At 9 is the American family saloon of the 80s and
90s, the Taurus with 8M sold. At number 8 is the Exploder, sorry the Explorer, at 8.2M
and counting, arguably the new large family car for the 21st century. Number 7 isn’t
even a car, the Ford Transit, the van that transports the world’s stuff with almost
9M sold, and if you want to see a video on it, click on link above! Just ahead on sales
and a completely different vehicle is Ford’s 1960’s American muscle car that’s gone
through so many different versions, the Mustang with 9.3M sold. But now we see just how influential
European and world cars have been. At number 5 the Ford Focus at 13.6M. At number 4, yes,
only number 4, is the car some may have thought would have topped the charts – the Model
T Ford at 16½M cars, and for the time that was a phenomenal figure. But just recently
passing it in sales is a car about the same size but thoroughly modern, the Fiesta with
16.6M as of the end of 2019. Number 2 is the subject of this video, the Escort with 24M
cars sold, and it shows that even though the Focus has been around for 22 years it still
has some way to go until it passes its predecessor. But at number 1 and way out in the lead is
the vehicle that gets America moving, the Ford F-series truck at 41M.
But we’re not here to talk about trucks, this is the phenomenal Ford Escort Story! (music) The Ford Anglia had been a big success for
Ford. Initially released just 2 months into the Second World War, it had been a basic,
but popular car that had sold over 1½M cars by the 1960s. With more and more people buying
their first car and getting on the road, it was more important than ever that Ford’s
entry level car should be a success. Reducing costs were key to selling a car more
competitively, and Ford was keen to stop designing essentially the same car for the different
European markets. The first joint development between Ford of Germany and Ford of Britain
was the Transit in 1965. It was decided the Anglia update would be the second European
vehicle, although it would be developed exclusively by Ford of Britain.
The new car was initially intended to be a Ford Anglia update but as Ford started seeing
this more and more as a pan-European model they renamed it to the “Escort” – a
name that they felt would work better. Like so many names Ford used, this one was recycled
from the Escort 100E, an estate version of the Anglia in the late 1950s.
The new car would get upgrades that were becoming standard on larger cars at the time. All gears
would get synchromesh, and if you have ever driven a car without synchromesh you’ll
know how helpful that is! It would get rack and pinion steering for the first time that
gave more confidence behind the wheel and reduced the turning circle to boot. Ford would
add its Aeroflow system from the Cortina to keep the interior fresh for long drives.
The Anglia had taken styling cues from 1950s American cars, and the new car would do the
same from newer 1960s models. It would get its trademark dog bone grille, and a Coke
bottle rear profile that was becoming fashionable. A similar shape would be used by the Cortina
and the Capri just a couple of years later on. During the design, Ford were careful to keep the retail price in line with that of the
outgoing Ford Anglia, to ensure it could retain all of those happy customers. And they were
largely successful, with only a small price increase over the old car.
The basic first generation Escort wasn’t fast – it got to 60 in 22 seconds, but fast
wasn’t what customers were looking for. They wanted a car that would start in the
morning and get them to where they wanted to go for a reasonable price, and the Escort
delivered in spades. And it was a full seven seconds faster to 60 than the outgoing basic
Anglia thanks to the new Crossflow variant of the 1.1L Kent engine.
It was the perfect companion to Ford’s other 1960s car that was taking the world by storm
– the Ford Cortina, and for years both cars would duke it out at the top of the UK charts
for the most popular car. It took time to gain traction on the continent where German
customers preferred their Opel’s, French their Renaults and Italians their Fiats.
Although the Escort had a similar suspension layout to the last Ford Anglia, Ford had tuned
it, so it handled so much better through the corners. Reviewers at the time called it a
night and day difference. So, when Ford decided to put a sporty engine in the car and go racing,
it started winning almost right away. Ford put cash behind motor racing so it could be
seen on Saturday afternoon telly beating the competition.
Trim levels in the late 60’s were, let’s say, “spartan” compared to what drivers
expect today. The “Deluxe” model – one up from the base model had the luxury of rubber
flooring. One up from that, the “Super” model got carpet and a cigar lighter! But
what you were buying for your £679 in 1968 was a well-mannered, easy to drive, reliable
car, and that counted for a lot. The car would be offered in 1.1L, 1.3L and
1.6L versions with both manual and automatic gearboxes, although none could be described
as quick, at its launch in 1968, except for the 1.3L twin cam that boasted a sub 10 second
0-60 time. And it was available as both a saloon and an estate, giving a degree of practicality
to Ford’s small entry-level car. Ford had been working with Lotus to make competition
versions of the Cortina, but from 1967 they switched to the Escort as their main motorsport
model. It had great handling but was lighter than the Cortina while still allowing a 1.6L
twin cam engine that Lotus originally fitted to the its Elan. But soon Ford switched over
to start a long and illustrious relationship with Cosworth with their souped-up 16V version
of the 1.6L Kent engine. The car would become known as the RS1600 and it would go on to
win many championships. One of its most famous victories came in the London to Mexico rally
in 1970. This gave rise to an Escort Mexico special edition to celebrate the victory.
In 1969 the saloon gained 4 doors to join the 2-door saloon and estate. France and Italy
got a tiny 940cc engine to help with tax restrictions, but this made for a very slow car. A year
later, in 1970, Ford started selling the Escort in Australia as the saloon and van but unfortunately
not the estate version. And the car started to be produced around the world as well. Initially
in the UK and Belgium, production then moved to Germany and started up in Ireland, Australia,
New Zealand, Israel and even Taiwan! Never one to miss a trick, Ford introduced
the Escort Sport in 1971. The RS1600, although the fastest car of the bunch, also cost a
bunch at £1,500 new British pounds. The Sport looked like an RS1600 or Mexico and used the
still fast 1300GT engine but with a cheaper interior it cost just £940. In 1973 a road
going version of the temperamental 2.0L rally Escort was launched as the RS2000, and although
it was slower to 60 than the RS1600 it was more well-mannered through the bends and the
suspension was kinder to your back on the way to work in the morning.
By 1974 Ford proudly announced it had produced 2M Escorts, the first Ford model to do so
outside the US. This was just the marketing Ford wanted to get customers excited for the
second generation of Escort that started rolling off production lines in December and went
on sale the following month. While the first generation was developed by
Ford of Britain, the second generation would be a joint European development as were pretty
much all Ford vehicles at this stage. But it would be given the decidedly British codename
of “Brenda”! As could be seen from the exterior, it was little more than a reskin
of the old car, with simpler straight lines similar to what they’d done with the Capri.
It did have a new underbody, but that had been introduced on the first generation model
six months earlier. And like other Ford’s of the era, the estate and van versions retained
the rear end from the previous generation car. The model naming would change, starting with the base “Popular” trim level, then “L”,
then “GL”. The top of the range would be the luxurious “Ghia”, just a year after
Ford started using the premium brand name on the Ford Granada. And the Escort Ghia was
something special, receiving air conditioning as standard!
The “Sport”, “RS Mexico” and “RS2000” spec models would remain as Ford continued
its rallying dominance, continually tweaking the engine and chassis to keep it ahead of
the competition. It won the RAC Rally every year from 1975 to 1979, along with the 1979
World Rally Championship using a special 1.8L engine. And those rallying Escorts would bring
the squarer front end treatment to the forecourt, and this foreshadowed the boxy style the next
generation would bring. The estate still wasn’t available in Australia,
so the panel van was available in higher interior trim levels to try to make up for it. The
1.1L engine was dropped, and eventually the 1.3L as well to comply with emissions regulations,
being replaced with the 2.0L Pinto engine. But the Escort wasn’t popular in Australia
with home grown cars being more appealing to Ozzy sentiments, and cheap Japanese small
cars being more appealing to Ozzy wallets. Production in Israel was joined by partial
assembly in South Africa, and like Australia the small 1.1L engine was left on the side-lines.
But unlike Australia it was popular, with the One Six Double O Sport being the most
popular car in South Africa in 1980. Production in Australia, New Zealand and South
Africa ended in 1980, being replaced by the Mazda 323-based Ford Laser. And hold that
thought, because we’ll come back to it later. The Escort continued trading paint at the
top of the UK charts with its larger sister, the Cortina. To keep it selling, Ford kept
making small updates, like a black front grille, updated steering wheel and the usual trick
of including more options as standard, like a carpet interior for the Popular and a heated
rear windscreen for the L model. Special Linnet, Goldcrest and Harrier special editions were
introduced in 1979 so the cars kept moving off the dealer’s forecourt.
It’s at this point the Escort story diverges for a bit. Well it shouldn’t, but as you’ll
see it does. Ford and every other car manufacturer wanted fuel efficient cars ever since the
price of petrol went through the roof in 1973. They’d introduced the Ford Fiesta in both
Europe and North America in the late 1970’s. But with Detroit’s answer to the Escort,
the Ford Pinto being such a disaster, Ford decided the next generation Escort would be
a true world car that would further reduce development costs. And when I say world car,
I’m obviously missing out the large swathes of the world who decided to go the Ford Laser
based on the Mazda 323. Again, hold that thought we’re going to get back to it.
With small cars moving to the more efficient front wheel drive layout, the third generation
would follow suit, saving valuable weight and space. And it would be the first front
wheel drive Ford in North America. The car was a completely new design, with a hatchback
for the first time, so it could take on the might of Volkswagen’s Golf and Japanese
small car imports that were eating into Ford’s sales on both sides of the Atlantic. But although
each had a 94.2” wheelbase, an notched Aeroback shape, a 1.6L CVH engine and the name Escort
(despite the fact that Ford of Europe wanted to call it the “Erika”, but let’s not
go into that!), these cars had almost nothing to do with each other. It’s like saying
Birmingham, England and Birmingham, Alabama are the same. Yes, they’re both called Birmingham,
and yes, they’re both cities with people who probably drove around in Escorts, but
there’s a lot of other differences. Although, and as a proud Brummy I’m allowed to make
this joke, you can’t understand what the heck they’re saying in either place.
So first out of the gate was Ford of Europe in 1980 with the third generation Escort.
It was boxier, as was the fashion of the time, but despite that boxiness the drag factor
had dropped from 0.45 to 0.39, thanks in part to that Aeroback bustle. And with new engines
the car was both faster and more fuel efficient. It all added up to a winning combination that
won European Car of the Year in 1981, beating stiff competition from the Fiat Panda and
Austin Metro. Its popularity catapulted the Escort to the top of the UK sales charts where,
spoiler alert, it was to remain the number 1 selling car until the Escort hit the rocks
in 1990. The usual line up of engines from 1.1L to
1.6L were available. Unlike the previous generation, an automatic wasn’t available until Ford
grabbed one from the US model in 1983. And the old-fashioned rear leaf spring suspension
was gone, to be replaced with a fully independent setup. Despite this, the suspension came in
for criticism by the motoring press for a harsh and unforgiving ride.
Ford worked on an RS1700 turbo version for rallying, to continue their domination, but
couldn’t get the car competitive. With the 4WD Audi Quattro sweeping titles, Ford started
from scratch, making the mid-engined RS200 in 1984. It was powered by a 1.8L Cosworth
engine that developed 250hp in the road-going version, and up to 450hp while racing.
This left Ford without an RS version for their road-going car. With the Golf GTI becoming
a popular hot hatch, Ford initially answered it with the 95hp XR3 with a 0-60 time just
over 9 seconds. It was uprated to the fuel injected XR3i in 1982 and with that it got
a small boost in performance. In the hot hatch 1980s, the XR3i, and the smaller Fiesta XR2
were some of the most desirable cars to get. Ford did make an RS version in limited numbers,
the RS1600i in 1982, and added a turbo in 1984, but it came in for criticism, and with
its launch lost in between publicity for the new Granada and RS200, it was the XR3i that
got most interest. This is also when my association with the
Escort started, with my mum’s 1984 Quartz Gold 1.3L Escort, which actually looked silver.
It got spectacularly written off in a high speed crash involving all three lanes of the
M6 near Stoke in 1987. Thankfully me, my mum and my sister were unharmed, and a couple
of years later I happened to see this supposedly totalled car back on the road as I was driving
around town! According to the DVLA it was still being driven in 1996.
1983 brought a slew of changes. As well as the automatic gearbox, an economical diesel
engine arrived, giving excellent fuel economy. But that phenomenal fuel economy meant anaemic
acceleration. And a saloon version would arrive as the Ford Orion. With the booted Ford Cortina
being replaced by the hatchback Ford Sierra, this would give customers who loved saloons
something to buy. Production would start up in Argentina and Brazil, with some Brazilian
versions running on alcohol to comply with local laws. They also launched a budget Escort
Hobby with a tiny 1.0L 50hp engine. Ford had been customising the Escort platform
since its release in 1968, turning it into a small van. By 1983 the Escort was so common
on the roads that Ford was selling high end open top Cabriolet versions to wannabe Yuppies,
perfect for those cold, winter ski trips. It’s amazing how Ford could sell essentially
the same car to so many different types of people.
The third generation of Escort had sold phenomenally well, especially in the UK where 1½M of them
were on the roads. So, the fourth generation in 1986 was just a tweak on that winning formula.
Like the second generation, it was little more than a reskin of the third generation
car, although as Ford kept improving the car year on year, it was of course an improved
car from the 1980 version. The internal Ford codename was “Erika-86”, playing on the
“Erika” codename they’d given the third generation car. The styling took cues from
the recently released Granada and included ABS for the first time along with an updated
dashboard and air conditioning for South American models. The Orion got a similar makeover.
In general, the car was tweaked all round to keep it competitive. And competition was
hotting up, with Vauxhall recently introducing the Astra, Volkswagen updating the Golf, and
Peugeot producing the 309 with a similar Escort rear bustle.
By now the Escort was being produced in vast quantities around Europe and South America.
And the hot hatch and yuppie cabriolet version collided with the XR3i cabriolet. But with
the top shorn off, the body didn’t have the rigidity to handle tight twisting roads.
And on the other end of the spectrum it got a larger, improved 1.8L diesel engine. Everything
was coming up roses for the Escort by the late 80’s as they prepared for the fifth
generation. But it was all going to go very, very wrong…
But before we get there, how did the North American Escort fair? It debuted just a month
after the European model in 1980, along with a Mercury Lynx version. It was a car for the
sophisticated woman about town, or for the sophisticated man about town who’s just
driven into the wilderness. Like the European version it was both a hatchback and a station
wagon. As was befitting American Ford’s at the time it used a lot of chrome and occasionally
wood, along with a migraine-inducing interior. The 1.6L engine it shared with the European
model would be the smallest engine, but Ford would add a 1.9L engine, and there would be
the choice of a manual or an automatic. It’d be joined by a 2.0L Mazda diesel in 1984.
Like the European version, it was an instant success. If you believe Ford’s marketing
it was the number 1 selling car between 1982 and 1988, but that’s likely stretching the
facts a little. But from the data I’ve found it was indeed one of the top selling passenger
cars during the 1980s. While Europe got the sporty XR3, North America
got the GT model. But with a 0-60 time of 11.2 seconds, it wasn’t going to set the
world on fire. But the GT Turbo, introduced in 1984, did manage to get that down to 9
seconds. The Escort also gained a second model from the same platform, the EXP or Mercury
LN7, a 2-door lukewarm sports coupe. In 1985 the North American Escort got a facelift,
and another in 1988, and the 1.6L engine was dropped. But sales were starting to decline
as customers moved to larger family sedans. Ford needed a new model and looked to its
partner Mazda. The first fruits of this relationship was the 1987 Mercury Tracer, replacing the
Escort-based Mercury Lynx. Both the Escort and Tracer were replaced in 1991 by a car
based on the Mazda B platform, just like the Mazda-derived Ford Laser that had been sold
in the 80’s in other parts of the world. And Ford Laser’s in those regions would
be essentially the same car as the North American Ford Escort and Mercury Tracer. So, you could
call the 1990s Ford Escort / Laser a world car, if you don’t include Europe!
The new version was styled to look like a small Ford Taurus that was popular at the
time. It got a restyle in 1997, and Ford took another crack at making a sporty 2-door coupe
with the 2.0L 130hp Escort ZX2 model with a much improved 0-60 time of 7.4s. But none
of these updates brought back the sales success of the 1980s as customers moved towards SUVs,
trucks and minivans and the North American Escort bowed out in 2003.
But let’s get back to the European Ford Escort. When we left it, Ford was riding high
in the late 1980s with seemingly every man and his dog buying one. With this Ford did
a major update for the fifth generation in 1990. The suspension was simplified from being
fully independent to using torsion bars. The existing engines were carried over from the
old car, as the new Zetec engines wouldn’t be ready for another couple of years. The
car would get more options as standard than ever before, even on the base models.
But all those changes and extras made for a heavier car. Around 100kg heavier. Imagine
two identical Escorts in a drag race. Now throw 100 bags of sugar into the back of one
of them. Which one’s going to win? This was a major disadvantage to the car, and it
showed not just in straight line performance, but in handling with the inferior torsion
bar suspension. Motor critics gave it scathing reviews, and they weren’t fans of the bland
styling update either. The Escort’s run as the most popular car came to an abrupt
halt the year the fifth generation was released. The new number one was the Fiesta, and Ford
would take notice, working hard behind the scenes to make it right.
OK, I’ve bought in a special guest - Mrs. Big Car - to settle an argument that’s been
going on for over 20 years. When we met, I had a rather amazing 1989 red 4th generation
Escort. Mrs. Big Car on the other hand, had a rather awful 1991 black 5th generation Escort.
We’re both going to give you a short pitch on why our car was the best, and you get to
decide who’s right! My 1989 4th generation was the culmination
of the 1980 front wheel drive model that sold by the bucketload because it was so good.
It had the 1.3L HCS engine from the Fiesta – the latest version of the long running
Kent engine. It never gave me a day of trouble. While we were going out, I had the chance
to drive both cars back to back, and boy did the fifth generation wallow on twisty A roads,
and it felt so much slower. Plus, black?!? Really? Have you ever tried to keep a black
car clean?!? I put it to you that a 1989 Escort beats the pants off any Escort from 1991!
OK, over to you Mrs. Big Car. Well, I completely disagree, because I drove my cute adorable
black, with the nice little bottom, 1991 Escort and it was the best car that I have ever owned.
It was the first car that I ever owned, and my argument is quite simply my car had everything
his car had, only my car jazzed! Jazzed?!? Jazzed! And in addition… That’s for the
comment about black! That’s for the comment you had about my car! Are we going to have
a cotton ball fight? No, I’m just going to hit you with cotton balls! So that’s
your argument? No, yeah, because my car had everything that your car had, right? But in
addition, it had a much better contoured body, so it really drove with comfort, and security,
and really anything that a person of discerning taste, comme moi, would really appreciate!
OK, she’s gone now, but anyway the 4th generation obviously way better than the 5th generation,
and really? Cotton balls? Throwing these at me?!? What a baby!
By 1992 Ford had made amends, somewhat. The suspension and steering were improved, and
those new Zetec engines finally arrived making fuel injection standard on all petrol engines.
The 1992 base Escort had gained another 90 bags of sugar in weight, so the more powerful
engines were really needed to move that extra weight around. Ford’s hard work did the
trick, and the Escort returned to the top of the UK sales charts.
But the best Escort released in 1992 wasn’t even an Escort. The 4x4 Escort RS Cosworth
was a shortened Sierra clothed in Escort panels. Created out of Ford’s attempt at making
a rally car to win the World Rally Championships, the road car was fierce. Its 224hp 2.0L Cosworth
engine got to 60 in just 5.7 seconds. Although it failed to take the rally wins Ford wanted,
it was highly sought after then and now with many imported into the USA by third parties.
The Orion name was retired in 1993, with the booted Escort being simply known as the Escort
from now on. And the XR3i name was also retired in 1994 after a lacklustre showing with the
new model. In South America the Escort was now the Mazda-323
derived model from North America, but surprisingly the fifth generation European Escort was still
sold there. But if you don’t already know what it was called, you would never guess.
The car was sold under two names, the Volkswagen Pointer, and the Volkswagen Logus. Yes, that’s
right. Volkswagen. It was all part of a deal Ford did with VW in the 1980s to form AutoLatina
because of the bad financial situation in South America at the time. VW and Ford would
save money by sharing car and truck platforms there.
In Europe the Escort returned one last time as the mid-cycle sixth generation refresh
in 1995. The car got a facelift to make it more like the larger Mondeo with its oval
grille. After complaints of low quality dashboard plastics with the old car, the interior quality
was given a boost. The handling and ride were improved to keep up with the competition,
and in 1997 the car got the badge no one thought they’d ever see on an Escort – the Escort
GTi. But despite the refresh the car was starting
to look a little long in the tooth, and the UK public found they preferred the smaller
Fiesta. The Escort was never again able to top the UK sales charts. But Ford couldn’t
feel too badly as by now they had the top three selling cars in the UK.
Ford took another stab at a small family world car when the Ford Focus was launched in 1998,
and it would go on to be a worthy successor. It was a big step change in design and execution
from the last generation Escort and was well received. But that didn’t stop Ford from
selling the old Escort model alongside the Focus as a cheaper model, to get that little
bit more from the sunk production cost, and the Escort van remained in production until
2002. Surprisingly, the European Escort staged a resurgence in New Zealand, replacing the
Ford Laser in 1996 for a last couple of years before also being replaced by the Focus. It
also continued in production in Argentina until 2004.
With the dominance of the Focus, the Escort was written into history, or so we all thought.
If you recall way back at the start of this video, which has turned into the longest one
I think I’ve made yet(!), Ford had a penchant for reusing names, like it had from the Ford
Escort 100E in the 1950s. And so it came to pass again in 2014 when Ford used the Escort
name in China. It was based, funnily enough, on the second generation Ford Focus. So Ford
sold the 2nd generation Focus as the Escort alongside the 3rd generation Focus. Again
to get that little bit more from the sunk production cost.
The Escort has had an amazing history and has spent much of its life as the top selling
car in one part of the world or another. Ford continued to ride high with the Focus which
has only recently slid down the sales charts. But it would be the Escort that millions have
so many fond memories of. A big thank you to all my Patrons for supporting
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