Faults:

Loss of stability, stalling when accelerating, and difficulty starting from cold. This is usually due to dirt, perforated diaphragms, or a miscalibrated automatic choke.

Rust and corrosion everywhere. But the critical points where rust tends to attack and compromise the structure are the cab floor, the rear wheel wells, and the sliding door tracks.

The brakes died, I don't remember the exact mileage but shortly before 200,000.

Constant noises in the clutch when shifting gears due to cable problems.

Overheating wasn't frequent during the years I owned this van, but I do remember it once left me stranded because of it.

Wiring that's nearly four decades old often becomes brittle. The most common problems are loose connections in the fuse box, alternator failures, and taillights that lose ground due to oxidation at the connectors.

General Comments:

I bought this small van already used discreetly with more than 50,000 km on it and the previous owner also used it for work just like me, so it was never exactly well treated.

As for the driving experience, well, the chassis and seats are hard, and it doesn't have power steering, so at first you'll feel like you're driving a tractor. But with time you get used to it and it will seem like any normal car. It's a typical utility vehicle from the 80s: tough, well-made, but with little to no luxury or accessories beyond the bare essentials.

As I mentioned before, I had to replace the brakes, but when they worked, they worked quite well. I'd say I had very good brakes; at least they somewhat compensated for the poor steering.

The engine is a 1.8 naturally aspirated diesel. It was very fuel-efficient and, as you can imagine, practically indestructible—we're talking about an engine from the 80s. And all that despite the low-quality fuel available here in Greece (things only started to improve after I sold the car). Aside from an occasional overheating issue, the engine never gave me any other problems.

You could say it's one of those vehicles that, after owning it for so long and driving it so much, you grow fond of. Although I mainly used it as a work car, after so many years it seems to me to be one of the toughest and most reliable cars I've ever owned. Simple, basic, but it does its job very well. A true old Escort.

Faults:

Replaced tires when purchased at 80k.

Blew a head gasket within the first month of ownership. It then blew another head gasket the following summer.

Starter relay switch replaced at 85k.

Car's engine caught on fire at 90k; it burnt to a crisp.

Automatic seat belts worked when they wanted to.

General Comments:

I wanted to like this car, it was sort of cute and the seats were fairly comfortable for a small car.

Unfortunately, it was yet another terrible purchase. As stated above, the engine blew a head gasket twice, costing me US $1100 to fix the first time and $900 to fix the second time. The Escort would overheat very frequently, I worried every time I got into the car that I would be stranded somewhere.

Finally, after parking the car in my driveway, I turned around to see the whole front of the car engulfed in flames. The engine caught fire and burned to a crisp. Shrug, good riddance.

I have owned three Fords in my lifetime; all of which tended to overheat (why do Fords have this problem?!).

I will NEVER buy a Ford again, should have learned my lesson the first time.