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1997 Ford Escort Lx Sedan 4-door 2.0l "rusty But Trusty" on 2040-cars

US $600.00
Year:1997 Mileage:281000 Color: Red /
 Tan
Location:

Casnovia, Michigan, United States

Casnovia, Michigan, United States
Advertising:
Transmission:Manual
Body Type:Sedan
Vehicle Title:Clear
Engine:2.0L 1989CC 121Cu. In. l4 GAS SOHC Naturally Aspirated
Fuel Type:GAS
For Sale By:Private Seller
VIN: 1FALP13P3VW247935 Year: 1997
Model: Escort
Trim: LX Sedan 4-Door
Options: Cassette Player
Drive Type: FWD
Safety Features: Driver Airbag, Passenger Airbag
Mileage: 281,000
Power Options: Cruise Control
Exterior Color: Red
Interior Color: Tan
Number of Cylinders: 4
Warranty: Vehicle does NOT have an existing warranty
Condition: Used: A vehicle is considered used if it has been registered and issued a title. Used vehicles have had at least one previous owner. The condition of the exterior, interior and engine can vary depending on the vehicle's history. See the seller's listing for full details and description of any imperfections. ... 

You probably know a senior citizen, someone in their mid-80s or older. You know the one I mean. . .not the guy that is in a wheelchair in the nursing home, but the one who is out playing golf, working in the garden, mowing the lawn. My father-in-law is like that. He's 95 and recently plowed his garden with his Massey-Ferguson, getting it ready for planting. Elderly, with a lot of miles, but still capable.

This 1997 Ford Escort is the automobile version of my father-in-law. Yea, it doesn't look great (not that my father-in-law doesn't look pretty good for 95) and it's got a lot of miles, but it still starts every morning, even in sub-zero temperatures and takes me to work and back.

I've owned this car since April of 2003 and I have to say, of the 25+ vehicles I've owned over the past 40 years, this has been my favorite. It has just been so dependable and economical. 

Yes, it's got 281,000 miles on it. I really wanted to keep it until I hit 300,000 but I don't drive as far to work every day as I used to, and it will just take me too long. That being said, I would not hesitate to jump in this car and drive it to Florida and back with complete confidence (I have no idea why I'd want to drive to Florida and back, but you get the picture).

I came into some extra money recently and bought another car. What did I get? Another Escort! A 2002 with only 75,000 miles, the same number of miles this one had on it when I got it in 2003. This will make the fourth Escort we've had in our family.

So, here is the synopsis:

The Good
• It has cruise control that works great. It didn't have it when I got it, I put Ford OEM cruise on it after I bought it as I was doing a lot of highway driving at the time.
• It gets 32-35 mpg with mixed (mostly highway) driving. I actually have documentation for this (including the per gallon price paid) for the past ten years; I keep a notebook in the car.
• It doesn't use or leak oil. I go 3K-5K between oil changes and it is normally still very close to the full mark when it's changed.
• Tires are great, all new this past October, less than 10K miles.
• Five speed manual shifts smoothly and clutch is good.
• Good brakes
• Upholstery is in pretty good shape for the age. No stains and only two very small "threadbare" spots on the driver's seat.
• Radio with cassette player and four speakers sounds great
• Good spare with jack
• Fresh lube/oil/filter a couple weeks ago.

The Bad
• The air conditioning doesn't work. This was actually one of the deciding factors in my getting a different car.
• The radio on/off control doesn't work. I've just gotten into the habit of flipping the volume all the way down if I want it "off"
• Rocker panels? We don't need no steenkin' rocker panels.
• Head liner is coming down a little bit in the back by the rear window
• The biggie: it could use struts all the way around. There is some clunking from the right rear. That being said, you really can't tell from the ride, it still rides and handles quite well. There is no strange tire wear evidenced. If I was going to keep it, at this point in time I wouldn't even do anything with the struts. On the other hand, it's grown old with me, so a new driver might notice more.
• A couple small cracks in the dashboard.
• A couple very small dents, barely noticeable. Both of these were there when I got the car.
• The passenger front door won't unlock from the outside with the key, you have to open it from inside.
• Hand brake doesn't work. I know exactly what's wrong with it, I've fixed it before. No parts required to fix, just a dismantle and lube at the rear wheel linkage on each side. It's an Escort thing.

Bottom line: This is still a great running and dependable vehicle. Other than the suspension there is really nothing significantly wrong with this vehicle. It would make a great first car for a kid as long as they treated it with the respect and gentleness that its geriatric nature deserves. A full tank (twelve gallons) of gas in this is good for 350+ miles. And it's still fun to drive, it's still fairly quick (or at least as quick as its 110hp every was), nimble, and easy to park.


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Auto blog

Ford blimp crashes inside Portland Trail Blazers arena

Fri, Dec 5 2014

Portland basketball fans got a free, very safe recreation of the Hindenburg disaster when a Ford airship crashed into the stands during a game between the Trail Blazers and Indiana Pacers. Reportedly no one was hurt, but arena staff trying to push the inflatable vehicle through a hole it was too big for, made for some fantastic video and photos. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Check out two clips of the incident, below. The first gives an idea of just how hard it was to fit the blimp through the exit of the arena, and the second is a time-lapse look from someone right next to the action. All these clips need is Yakety Sax as background music for some true Internet gold. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: Twitter, 3lilpigs81, Turner Team, Inc via YouTube [1], [2], Deadspin Auto News Humor Ford portland blimp dirigible

24 Hours of Le Mans live update part one

Sat, Jun 18 2016

We tasked surfing journalist Rory Parker to watch this year's live stream of the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans. What follows is an experiment to experience the world's greatest endurance race from the perspective of a motorsports novice with a profanity-laden stream-of-consciousness writing style. Parker lives in Hawaii and spends far more time spearfishing than behind the wheel of a car. Jump ahead to Part Two here, and Part Three here. Big Money and billionaire hobbyists and rockets on wheels. Jets belching French color smoke overhead. Balance of power fuckery. Plenty of water on the ground this morning. Absurdly expensive motorcars lined up in the pissing rain. Fast twitch lunatics behind the wheel. Chomping at the bit. Let's go let's go let's go! Race hasn't even started, Ford #67 maybe dealing with clutch issues. Karma? That beautiful bastard Brad Pitt's out on the track, waving the tricolor flag. It's a standing start in "Noah's Ark" weather and the 2016 24 hours of Le Mans is go! First lap takes place behind the safety car, finished in a record setting 8 minutes 27 seconds. Wrong kind of record maybe, but this is the first time I've set my mind to watching the whole damn race. Feel like I'm part of history. 3:00 AM on Kauai, a little too early for life. Sucking down coffee like a maniac. Don't fall back asleep. Got my hands on four hours of rest, how much more can I need? Better be enough for the next twenty four hours. Gonna get kinda punchy toward the end. Jason Statham on the scene. Four feet of solid muscle, non-existent hairline. Lovely wife peanut gallery sitting next to me calls him the "best race car drive in the world." Not sure if she's serious. Toss up, could go either way. Statham's a funny guy. Heir to the Bruce Willis comedy action crown. Really good in the movie where the fat comedy lady plays a spy. Ford's on the road. Problems with gearbox pressure, apparently. Nearing a half hour in and the safety car is still on the track. Hellish amounts of water on the ground, in the air. Visibility is garbage. Getting better. Twitter wags, "Not with a bang but a whimper." Just building suspense. Mother Nature felt like killing some people today, race officials need to dial back the drivers until it dries a tad. Normal inclination would've seen 'em flying, guaranteed early lap wrecks. Sad news for that bloodthirsty part of my lizard brain I try and keep suppressed. Good news for humanity. #12 in the pit for a bit.

Fewest vehicles ever found eligible for Most American survey

Mon, 30 Jun 2014

Once again, the most American car on the market is from an American brand. The Ford F-150 retained its number one spot in Cars.com's annual survey of the most American vehicles, trumping the Toyota Camry, which remains at number two.
Ford taking the top spot is small consolation, though, as the Detroit Three aren't too well represented here. General Motors scored a win at number seven, with the Chevrolet Corvette, while Chrysler squeaked in at number ten, with the Dodge Viper. Outside of those three vehicles, Toyota and Honda dominate the top ten.
What's most remarkable, though, is that there were so few cars available for this year's list.