Exhaust needed replacing soon after purchase.
Gear box packed in after 54,000 miles at a cost of 250 pound to re-con an old one.
Keep finding pieces of trim and plastic all round the car.
Temperature gauge has never worked even though most of the bits and pieces connected to it have been changed.
The car looks nice and handles well, but at the end of the day it's still a Ford and has a poor build quality.
I thought it was just ours that needed a new gearbox!! We had ours replaced at 40 odd thousand miles. Did Ford contribute at all? Our local dealer did after I towed it there and just dumped it across the forecourt.
I've had the same problem, the gearbox died on mine at 75'000 miles, since buying it on 72'000 miles I've had to replace the lower suspension arms, anti roll bar bushes, cam belt, water pump, clutch, and the shock absorbers are starting to make squelching noises on bumps. This car has been a nightmare for me, i'm never driving a ford again.
I own 1998 escort gti and this has given me no major
faults, previouse fords I have owned have been good to. the cars I have owned have all been driven very hard and none have let me down...