27th Feb 2008, 09:43

I love my Escort so much. It's very reliable, and imports? Seriously they are the real waste of money. Repairs are beyond expensive.

Any non-American cars in the US are going to have extremely expensive repairs.

5th Mar 2008, 20:11

I own a ford ZX2 03 model and I have had it since 2005, bought it with just 8000 miles now 72000 miles. that's 64000 in 2 years. no major problems and I have added a lot of after market performance parts and have had zero problems other than regular maintenance. I also drive very aggressivly and have no problems with the manual transmission.

12th Mar 2008, 11:19

My father and I have been co-owning a Ford Escort ZX2 1998 5 speed manual transmission for the past 2 years... there was 160000 km on the car when we bought it... and within the 1st day of ownership my father cracked the speed clock cable... was going down the highway and cracked the gear back from 5th to second (meaning to go to 4th), and ground the teeth off the gear... now we have no second gear and no speed clock...

2 weeks later the flex pipe cracked off (let go at the header); that was an expensive month... so... now I've been driving for 2 years with no 2nd gear and no speed clock..

Would someone please contact me if they have any knowledge of finding a new gear box. My email is mad_money_mike@hotmail.com .. any help would be greatly appreciated.

12th Mar 2008, 13:14

I bought a 1998 Escort ZX2 new in 1997. It had 166 miles on it. I just sold it in July 2007, and it had over 130,000 miles on it. I had a few problems with it over the years, but nothing major. Before the warranty was up, I had the brakes replaced because they were squeaking and the power steering pump replaced because it was making noise. After the warranty was up, the alternator was rebuilt and the PVC valve went bad twice. All this happened gradually over the 10 years that I owned the car. It was regularly maintained and I never drove it hard. The transmission was a manual, and it never gave me any problems. I would still own that car today, but I had to trade it for a minivan because of my growing family. Would I buy another one again? As long as it wasn't drove hard and it was well taken care of--Absolutely! I loved that car!

30th Mar 2008, 21:35

I bought my ZX2 in 1999, it was a 1998 model and had 19,000 miles on it. From the start it leaked antifreeze, and I had to put a new radiator in. At about 60k I had to replace the fuel gage sensor. The car ran great until about 150k and the transmission was starting to slip. It would go dead at stop signs and red lights. It was so embarrassing. It made this loud screeching almost screaming sound. I never really had that checked out. The odometer stopped at 165k and didn't record miles for about eight or nine months. Also the speedometer at the same time. I feel like I got my moneys worth out of the car, I loved that car. Its been sitting in the yard now for about 2 years, we parked it because it was not dependable anymore. We hate to put any more money in it. But after sitting in the yard that long-we sold it and it drove off anyhow with a few glitches. The transmission still hasn't died.

13th May 2008, 19:12

I have a 1999 ZX-2, and I bought it used for $250.00 from a co-worker. It had 125000 on it.

The A/C doesn't work, but I don't care. This is a good car and I have a lot of fun driving it. (5 speed)

It has aftermarket header, turbo kit and exhaust system. My motor is pumping out 250 hp at 15 pounds of boost. And a new short shifter. All I know that my ZX-2 is a good car. I had lots of fun driving it. Imports break down a lot and cost so much to fix.

15th May 2008, 11:41

I'm considering a purchase of a 1998, ZX2 with 150,000 miles on it. It has been well maintained and owned by 2 people, a lady at work and her daughter who bought it new. She wants $1000 for it. Is this a good deal? It will be a second car for me to use back and forth to work (6 miles round trip). She said the air/heat fan is not working as well as it should and will have her repair guy fix it.

22nd May 2008, 11:40

To 11:41. No one here can tell you if the car you are looking at is good or not. Take it to a mechanic for full inspection. These reviews and comments help you point out what to look for in your purchase candidate.

12th Sep 2008, 13:09

I bought my 98 Ford Escort ZX2 at 120,000 miles. I'm now at 204,000 miles.

My only 3 problems have been the A/C quit, and that's because the thing was clogged, and I now have a bearing sound at the engine. I've switched out the pulley tensioner and the upper pulley. After reading here, I believe it's either the water pump bearings or the power steering pump.

The other problem is the fog lights stopped working, and after bulb replacements they still are not working. All fuses are great.

I had lighting hit close to the car, and it over charges my battery and fried my alternator, and caused my computer, which controlled my air bag and fuel gauge to stop working.

84,000 miles in just 2 years, tons of highway and I do speeds of 100mph on the highway at times.

I love this car and will buy another.

5th Oct 2008, 06:39

I bought my 1998 Ford Escort ZX2 brand new for $12,000. I love this car and still own and drive it today. It has 103,000 miles. The only problem I had with it is the AC stopped working about 3 years ago. I do not drive it on really hot days, over 80 degrees. Otherwise, but for general maintenance, nothing has gone wrong. I like this car and would recommend it to others looking for an inexpensive reliable vehicle.

24th Jan 2009, 12:42

I have a 98 ZX2 with a 5 speed, and it has 220,000 kms on it and it is a great little car, except for the fact that on the highway at 105 kph in 5th gear it is revving at 3000 rpm. I guess it keeps me from speeding LOL.

This is my second Escort; my first one was put to rest with 365,000 kms on it and it was still running strong, but the body was completely shot. I bought it with 137,000kms off the hoist at work with a cooked transmission, rebuilt the trans and did the regular high mileage repairs (tires and brakes) and had no problems.

These are great little cars.

13th May 2009, 20:45

I have a 1998 ZX2 and the A/C recently died - I'm getting it fixed soon. It has been a great car but I had a very unusual problem that took 6 shops (including the dealership) and probably about $1000.00 to fix. It ended up hooting (yup, I said hooting) embarrassingly loud so that people walking down the street would turn and look when the engine would heat up a little. There was a plugged valve or something that as soon as the engine would build up pressure it would blow the oil dipstick tube like a trumpet. The mechanic that figured it out fixed it in 2 seconds and didn't charge me. But it is a great car.