Having worked in and around the motor trade most of my professional life, I have been lucky to drive many makes and models of motor cars. Some underwhelm, some disappoint and some make you loathe them, in extreme cases some cars can manage all three, and in my opinion one model captures all three of the previous factors β The Escort XR3i.
The Escort MkIII was launched onto the motoring scene in , seemingly ticking all the boxes and offering what Ford had always done β keen pricing, a dealer on every street corner, huge model range and being cheap to run. The medium family hatchback had the rules re-written thanks to the new Escort with its all new CVH engine, all round independent suspension and practical 3- or 5-door body shell.
Lacking the charm and pedigree of Escorts from the previous generations, the new Escort soon became another sales hit which other makers would simply follow in the popularity charts.
At the time of the Escort launch, the hot hatch market comprised of just one serious car β the Volkswagen Golf GTi. Ford saw a gap in the market for a sporting hatchback to battle with the legendary yet expensive Golf. The XR3 was born offering a 1.
Volkswagen then upped the ante by offering a 1. Whereby the Golf GTi had a rock solid image for quality, nimble road manners and being a premium brand which also proved classless, the Escort XR3i became popular with boy racers, yuppies and members of the modern money club thus quickly gaining an image of vulgarity, drunken Essex girls and drag racing along Southend sea front. They rusted away like there was no tomorrow, and in my mechanic days, even a simple task such as replacing the battery could result in a whole new battery tray having to be welded into the engine bay.
