2000 Ford Escort ZX2 from North America - Comments

U love me little ZX2 however at 84,000 miles all #%$%^&* (* has broken loose on the valve train. The mechanic says a head rebuild will cost 1,500 dollars. The car still runs great, no blown valve seats or worn guides. The oil has been changed regularly since I have owned it (the past 23,000 miles) This is not making sense to me. Are there any adjustments incorporated into the valve train to tighten the lash on this engine?

I own a 2000 zx2 s/r and man it's a great little car yes there is some down side to it like the poor ground to the engine that gives it a ruff idle, but hell a few short pieces of 4gauge wire fixed that as for low power on the highway I havn't seen that mind you I do have the s/r I've been taking done up Honda preludes civics so on and so forth off the line and keeping neck in neck with them through all the gears and I havnt done any after-market mods to the car yet.

I purchased my used 98 Escort ZX2 in 99 with 54,000. I still own it today with 200,000. The only problem I've had with this car is the air conditioning no longer works. The remote locks for the passenger side never worked. I've had to replace the entire exhaust system because there was a hole in the catilic converter (flex mesh) and since the Escort ZX2's exhaust system comes in one piece, we had to replace the entire exhaust system. My emergency brake hasn't worked in years. I often have to replace brake pads and rotors, but that's probably due to the fact that the back brakes are not adjusted accordingly due to the emergency brake. I also started experiencing transmission issues...were the transmission would seem to slip. I got the transmission oil changed at 180,000 and that seem to have fixed the problem. I also find the car is hard on gas. I've changed the spark plugs and air filter, but that doesn't make much of a difference. I've done regular oil changes every 5000 since I've had the car. All in all, the car runs smooth and I can't complain. Regular maintenance is really all I've put into the car and it still runs very nicely. It should last a few more years.

For those wondering if there is something about valve lash adjustments of these cars: the 4 cylinder Contours basically have the same engines and the Hayes manual states that the later engines may need valve lash adjustment with shims if there is excessive valve chatter, even though they have hydraulic vave adjusters.

Thanks for the insightful comments on motor mounts and electric grounding.

I just purchased a 2000 ford zx2. I'm trying to get it through Maryland state inspection, which has been a major pain. Maryland probably has the pickiest and most difficult inspection in the U.S!!! Anyways, I have moisture build up behind the lens of my front headlights, that I need to get out somehow. someone told me to take out the light bulb and use a hairdryer. I will try that, but just in case, I also cannot figure out how to remove the lens alone! it seems like someone used a sealant, and it looks like the whole light component would need to be taken out, which seems ridiculous to me! could anyone tell me how you take off the lens?

Yes, someone glued the lens on the reflector, someone at the factory. You have to take out the whole headlight and dry the inside through the light bulb insertion hole.

I just lost my 2000 Z. Two weeks ago today my son feel asleep

and we crashed into the mountain that I 91 in Vt. NH. runs through. I have no idea if it is salvageable or not we will take a look tomorrow. I am very sad to see it go. I crashed my 2001 Prius into a tree in a bad storm in February 2006. So now I need to know which way to go.

I have a 98 Ford Escort ZX2 base model, and it's a wonderful car. It's all stock and I've beat all but one car I've raced; it lost against a 67 Chevelle that had a 454 in it with a 2 speed power glide. My car is a 5 speed. I took the Chevelle off the line, but he flew by me in a heart beat.

All I've done is routine maintenance. My mom bought it new, and I did all the work to it.

I beat on the car every where I go, and just at 234000 miles I have to replace the tranny clutch and shifter linkage. Other than that, it does go through brakes quite often, but it's the best car I've owned. Also, I drive 100 miles one way to work 6 days a week, and spend 55 dollars on gas a week at $3 dollars a gallon.

I recommend this car to everyone I know. It's a great car. The first guy with all the problems; I don't know what to tell you. I beat the crap out of my car, and it runs great and drives great.

Good luck.

I have owned my 2002 zx2 for about a year and a half now, purchased it with 62,xxx miles on it. the only things I have had mess up on me so far, is the flywheel cracked and caused a lot of ticking a rattling, got it fixed under my 100,000 miles warranty with only a $50 deductable!! then about 10k miles after that my start went out, and then again about a month or two after that. not I fear my flywheel may be messing up against, because it's starting to chatter at 1200-1600 RPM. but all in all, this is a great car, with decent accel for a 2.0l with 130 hp, and it handle like is is on rail with my Bridgestone potenza g009's on it. I have dusted a few stock si civics, and only thing I have done to it is a cheap ass Ebay CAI system. would recommend this car to anyone looking for a good Daily driver.

Thanks for all these comments cause I've been looking at 2000 escort zx2 and I really like it I think im going to buy it.

I just bought a 2000 ZX2 for my son 2 weeks ago. When I test drove it, I couldn't believe how well it handled and the acceleration that little engine produced. He loves it and his friends are all envious. They say, "I didn't know Ford had a sports car other than the Mustang". I hope it gets him through college.

I've changed plugs and wires on my 2000 ZX2, and it still has a bad miss in it. It runs really good most of the time, but occasionally it'll start missing real bad, and has no power. It acts like it wants to stall out, especially going up hill. I do regular maintenance on it, but just started this recently and I'm not sure what it could be. Has anyone had the same problem, and if so, what had to be done to fix it?