anybody know about escorts?

[kunar]

im looking at buying a 91 escort gt. its got a 1.8l dohc, and seems like a really nice car. its built on a mazda bg chassis, so its basically the same thing as my g/f's 99 zx2. its a 5 speed, its super light (~2500 lbs) and makes decent power for that small of an engine (~130hp) and has 4 wheel discs. on top of that the interior is in great shape. anyways, the owner of this one rear ended somebody a few months ago. it needs a hood, bumper, radiator, headlight, a/c condenser, grille, blah blah blah. my main concern though, is how much damage is too much? the core support will have to be moved, i can tell its bent. theres a little buckle in the fender too. other than that i dont think its bad, what should i look for though??

if you look, theres a small crease on the fender, right next to the mirror. i know that a fender wont fit without work, and im sure making a hood fit and latch right will be a pain too.

 

[koda6966]

I've got an junker 93 wagon out next to my house. But that's as much as I know about them.
And a keg next to a car is usually a good sign not to buy it. Haha.

 

[kunar]

I've got an junker 93 wagon out next to my house. But that's as much as I know about them.
And a keg next to a car is usually a good sign not to buy it. Haha.

heh, i noticed that too. the top has been cut out of it. id bet he uses it for cooking over a camp fire, just like we use the one thats sitting out behind our garage.

 

[almostclueless]

Didn't one get former governor spitzer in trouble?

 

[koda6966]

heh, i noticed that too. the top has been cut out of it. id bet he uses it for cooking over a camp fire, just like we use the one thats sitting out behind our garage.

Never thought about using them that way. I'm gonna have to go find an old keg out in the shed and try it out.

 

[kunar]

Didn't one get former governor spitzer in trouble?

hehehe... one of the escort sites ive visited claims 'more escorts than spitzer'

Never thought about using them that way. I'm gonna have to go find an old keg out in the shed and try it out.

yup, throw in a bunch of potatoes, carrots, cabbage, ham or sausage. leave it on the fire for a few hours... good eatin.

back on topic guys!!!

 

[metalmacguyver]

Well, you cant loose if you get it for less than scrap value. That would be about 300 for the weight and maybe another 100 for the cats.

 

[rboyer]

My girlfriend used to drive a 92 4dr Saturn which she wrecked one day and it was in worse shape than your escort. A few trips to the local junkyard and I found a fender, door, and bumper that were a perfect match and only costed me a little over $70. I pulled the core support back out and hammered it up until it looked the way it did before she wrecked it and when I was done the thing looked just like it did when I got it for her. Now my parents are driving the thing and it has over 200k on the odometer. The moral of this story is that you can fix the thing pretty cheap if you have good access to cheap junkyard parts and if you're willing to wait you may find parts that match your color.

 

[Copytech]

I've got a headlight for it in my garage.

 

[wallynmu]

Well worth the fix. I drive one myself. Very reliable and gets 30 mpg around town and 38 highway. It is a manual tranny. I have 2 more for parts so I am sure I will be driving this for somw time.

 

[kunar]

Well, you cant loose if you get it for less than scrap value. That would be about 300 for the weight and maybe another 100 for the cats.

its not gonna get scrapped. i wont be able to get it quite that cheap, and the owner wont sell it if he thinks m gonna scrap it. i fully intend to repoir it and use it for my DD. 30+ mpg sounds a lot better than 17-18!

My girlfriend used to drive a 92 4dr Saturn which she wrecked one day and it was in worse shape than your escort. A few trips to the local junkyard and I found a fender, door, and bumper that were a perfect match and only costed me a little over $70. I pulled the core support back out and hammered it up until it looked the way it did before she wrecked it and when I was done the thing looked just like it did when I got it for her. Now my parents are driving the thing and it has over 200k on the odometer. The moral of this story is that you can fix the thing pretty cheap if you have good access to cheap junkyard parts and if you're willing to wait you may find parts that match your color.

Well worth the fix. I drive one myself. Very reliable and gets 30 mpg around town and 38 highway. It is a manual tranny. I have 2 more for parts so I am sure I will be driving this for somw time.

thats good to hear, it sounds like i shouldnt have any regrets if i buy it. im pretty sure i know the extent of the damage, and it doesnt look like it will be too bad.

I've got a headlight for it in my garage.

for sale?

 

[Copytech]

yeah it is for sale(no reasonable offer refused)

 

[4x4RangerGuy]

I drove my ex-gf's 91 Escort LX into the ground, 250k at the end. She gave it to me because the timing belt snapped, and her bf said the motor was junk (shows how much he knows, the 1.9 is non-interference). Anyway, a new timing belt and water pump later and I was back on the road. That car got me through while I was amidst my transmission swap on my Ranger.

They are great, cheap cars. Your 1.8 is an interference motor, so check to make sure the tbelt's been done. The rest of those parts can be had for next to nothing, Escort's are very affordable and reliable cars.

The only typical problems they encounter are the tie rod ends wearing out prematurely (bad design by Ford) and the rear springs cracking (again another bad design).

 

[metalmacguyver]

I am just saying that if you can get it for that cheap, theres no way to loose if the stuff hits the fan and you have to ditch it fast for some reason. Any who, sounds like a worthwile investment.

 

[np205]

My sister had one, good little car till it got totaled over in Seattle. I'd get it if I were you, I have a 98 ZX2 myself for a commuter.