Ford Orion Ghia (Ford Orion)

Member Name: Dave Robinson

Product:	Ford Orion
Date:	09/07/00 (312 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Ghia very well specified for an 80s car, reliable, cheap to buy and run

Disadvantages: Uses 4-star petrol (well out 1987 model does, don't know about later models)

My family car is a D-reg 1987 Ford Orion Ghia. The Orion is just an Escort saloon, and in 1995 they discontinued the Orion and just called it the Escort Saloon. Ours is the old-shape (Mk. 1) version, which ran until 1990, and in Jan. 1991 it was replaced by the new shape (Mk. 2) at the same time as the new shape (Mk. 4) Escort. We bought it 2 years ago, and it's been the best car we've ever had. We usually buy cars between 7-12 years old, and this was 11 years old when we bought it. The Ghia is the highest-spec model you can buy, and is still used today on brand new Fords such as the Focus and Mondeo. So even though out car is 13 years old, it has front electric windows, central locking, electric wing mirrors, sunroof, rear headrests and a radio cassette. That's a pretty good spec for a 13-year old car in my opinion! It's maroon in colour, which isn't the most exciting, but it's nicer than some other 1980s colours such as brown! It's very smooth to drive, and the engine is very quiet, you can't even hear it! It's very reliable, and hardly any repairs have been done to it even though it's dome around 90,000 miles. It always starts first time. The only slight annoyance is that it runs on 4-star LRP (formerly leaded) petrol. the transition from leaded to lead replacement petrol has been very smooth, it has casued no problems to the car at all. Overall, if you want a great value, reliable, well-specced family car, the Orion is ideal, especially the top of the range Ghia model.

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