1994 Ford Aspire 4-door review from North America

Replaced transmission at 65000 miles.

Replaced ignition lock cylinder.

Switch for hazard lights broken.

Colored plastic for signal indicator lights has faded to near white.

This is an underpowered, economy car, with weak acceleration.

Fuel economy on highway in mild weather at 60 MPH can be over 40 miles per gallon, but above 60 MPH, around town, or in cold weather it drops rapidly.

The air conditioning also severely affects performance and fuel economy.

While buying the car was initially cheap, fixing the car has not been, as parts are generally quite expensive. This is a particular problem, as many little things have broken or gone wrong.

For example, the switch to turn on the hazard lights was a small plastic button on the steering column. The button broke, but it cannot be purchased without buying all the other controls on the steering column--the levers for turn indicator, windshield wipers and headlights, and the control box itself--for $400, when the car itself is not worth more than $1000.

These high prices have also been felt in replacing the ignition lock cylinder, the transmission (always expensive, but more so on this car) and a couple internal switches for the back-up lights.

The suggested tire size is also too small to be widely stocked, so the tires can be more expensive (we opted for a larger size instead).

None of the seats are comfortable, but the back seats are especially hard, and give little space for adult passengers.

While the car was inexpensive to buy, we probably would have been better off paying a little more for a more substantial car.