1999 Ford Escort review from North America

Within the first 6 months of ownership, the motor mount broke. I only noticed that the car was vibrating like crazy while it ran, and I couldn't see out of the read view mirror because it kept vibrating so much. I was told by the dealership that there was a silent recall on my car and they replaced the motor mount for free.

After about 50,000 miles I've noticed that the car runs rough/idles noisily when it gets close to the time I need to have the fuel filter serviced.

At 60,000 miles my transmission began to have problems shifting. The Ford dealership tried to convince me to replace the transmission, which I could not afford. I told them to drop the pan, change the fluid, and put it back and I would have it towed to my Dad's house to look at. They dropped the pan, changed the fluid, put it all back together, and the transmission problems fixed themselves. I have not gone back to that particular ford since, although other fords have given me great service.

I brought the car in once because the hood was rattling, A LOT. Ford charged me $200 and tightened a screw on the hood, without looking any further. That didn't resolve the issue! But I am a woman and I think they think they can sucker me. I brought my car to another Ford dealership (that's 3 now!) and they replaced the serpentine belt, timing belt, and water pump. It made the car run smoother.

At 80,000 miles or so the speedometer started to jump around like it was possessed and then it stopped functioning. I did some research online that pointed to the VSS (vehicle speed sensor). I had a heck of a time convincing the Ford dealership that I just wanted the VSS replaced and didn't want any other expensive diagnostics or replacements (I'm sure they would just take my money for anything!). Anyways, replacing the VSS made the speedometer work again and the car shifts smoother too!

At around 90,000 miles I noticed that the car smells like chicken when the heater is on. My suspicion was that something died in there somewhere but I haven't been able to track it down yet.

At 100,000 miles I started having issues with the fuses blowing. I've taken over my own maintenance at this point, out of frustration. I replaced the blown ones (they're located in the lower left hand corner of the driver's seat, below the dash board) and that helped with some things. I still don't know why the horn has stopped working. I also had an instance where the car wouldn't start, which was fixed by switching out the old battery for a new one.

It's cheap. I can't compare it to any other cars since I've never owned another one. Overall the car gives me OK performance, not great, and it is very stressful when something doesn't work. But I am picky.

I would recommend learning to take care of your own car! I didn't think I could because I'm not very strong but there are all sorts of tools that you can buy to turn things you can't turn yourself, just ask the guys at your auto parts store.