1998 Ford Escort Consumer Reviews Page 4

Good car for young drivers

Written by: cpa0217 on 09/25/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe

Review

Bought for teenage driver. She has been driving it for 5 years. Other than some "wear & tear" items & maintenance, this has been a very trouble-free car.

Favorite Features

Looks cool - important to young drivers! VERY reliable - important to parents!

Suggested Improvements

More leg room in back would be nice.

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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alive to tell

Written by: alive on 09/03/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 4 Dr SE Wagon

Review

This car is what you'd expect, a 4/5 person economical car mover with a little more space because it's a wagon. My Escort was totaled last week, T-boned at a traffic light. Honda CR-V ran the red light, impacted my car on the front right corned just in front of the tire. Both air bags deployed, all seat belts held, everyone survived, air bags bruised our faces pretty well. This car saved all 3 of us. Due to the car being 9 years old the car was totaled, not because of extensive damage but because the air bags cost $1K each plus labor. Yes I'd buy another Escort if I needed good cheap transportation, 36 MPG highway.

Favorite Features

We live in Arizona and the AC will freeze you out...that's a good thing when its 115 degrees out.

Suggested Improvements

Recall item: Motor mounts cause vehicle to vibrate on country roads. Low power makes it slow to pull out into traffic.

12 out 12 people found this review helpful

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awesome little car

Written by: jldude on 08/31/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe

Review

Bought this car 7 months ago, haven't had a problem since, never had to replace anything, sure there are worn out mounts and all, but it's typical. Does 0-60 in 7.8! Cannot say enough good things about the fuel economy. I get 42 mpg on flat highway at 65, and 36 aggressive city mpg. Biggest complaint, the vibration and noise. Tires and/or suspension seem to amplify road noise, engine runs at 2900 rpm at 65 which can get annoying. And wheel hop when accelerating at traction limits is ridiculous. But it has a large comfortable back seat and a very inexpensive car to own. Great little car, wish Ford still made it with a Mazda suspension, Zetec engine, 6 speed and standard power EVERYTHING! Oh and yellow!

Favorite Features

FUEL ECONOMY, acceleration, handling, reliability.

Suggested Improvements

Much higher overdrive, liquid filled mounts, 17" wheels, Mazda interior quality, 4 wheel disc brakes, standard power everything, factory high power sound, no speed limiter lol! And of course, to still be in production.

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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Best first car ever...

Written by: Jldude on 07/29/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe

Review

I bought this car 6 months ago, and have put on 10000 miles since. Have never had to replace anything yet. I use synthetic racing oil and the engine is just as good as any import. My biggest praise of the car is its mpg. I get a hair over 40 on the highway. I've never gotten below 35 mpg. Also the engine is very fun at higher speed with the 5 speed. The biggest complaint that I have with the car is the noise. The tire noise is actually much louder than the engine noise on the highway. It is a very rough engine when it's idling at a drive through. If Ford still built these with a higher overdrive and a better interior, it would dominate.

Favorite Features

Engine power, fuel economy, light weight.

Suggested Improvements

Standard keyless entry, power everything, much higher overdrive, better engine mounts, awesome factory sound system, and of course, I wish Ford still made them.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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great little car that keeps on running!

Written by: markiejohng on 06/14/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 4 Dr LX Sedan

Review

I purchased my 1998 Ford Escort LX back in Sept. of 2005 and this car has been nothing but a great little ride. It is very reliable, has peppy performance with the 5-speed, drives very well, the interior is very functional, and the body is in excellent shape. It provides me with great all-around transportation. It had 121,000 miles when I purchased it and the motor continues to run strong like new. It gets excellent gas mileage. All around, it has been a great car to own. The only things I have had to replace was a thermostat and a new battery. Other than that, it just keeps running and running.

Favorite Features

Peppy engine, interior layout, roomy trunk, easy accessibility, fun 5-speed manual transmission, and cute look.

Suggested Improvements

Suspension feels "loose" and not solid like some imports with similar mileage, brakes squeak too much, and back seat is a little cramped for passengers.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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"98 Ford Escort Wagon

Written by: Shey on 02/20/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 4 Dr SE Wagon

Review

A/C not working but has been a very reliable car.

Favorite Features

I like the mileage. I can fit most anything in the car or on the roof for hauling. I like small cars as I can park anywhere.

Suggested Improvements

Better defrost air flow.

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Basic Transportation, Noisy on the Road

Written by: Ken H on 01/11/2006

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Hot Coupe

Review

We bought this car for our daughter's use while at school on the east coast. It spent three years in Philadelphia, crossed the country three times ending up on the west coast. The car has 101K miles on it currently. We've had two major engine repairs. One involving an internal governing device in the engine and the other was a head gasket that had to be replaced at 80K miles. One thing that does stand out with this car is the high road noise especially at freeway speeds. Only other item that is an irritant is the seat belts are attached well behind the front seats and are very difficult to reach with the doors closed.

Favorite Features

Gas mileage.

Suggested Improvements

Not sure how you'd fix the engine problems. The front seat belts could maybe be placed on a track like some are so you don't have to reach way behind yourself to grab the belt. Heavy undercoating would hopefully help with the road noise problem.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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She's good

Written by: Lovemycar on 11/05/2005

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 4 Dr SE Sedan

Review

My first car, has held up very well. Bought her with 39,000 on it, so far am at 52,000 in a little over a year. Very few maintenance problems, and any problems were minor, like windshield wipers. Excellent for all of the driving that I do between school, work and home (over 60 miles daily M-F) and I only fill up about once a week. She's always been there for me.

Favorite Features

Miles per gallon - while the tank is small, the car goes over 300 miles before the light comes on. Trunk space very good. I love my clicker - door lock/unlock, alarm, trunk pop.

Suggested Improvements

Gas tank is small - Quikfill won't stamp my card because I can rarely put in 10 gal. Doesn't handle well in rain, or snow (without studded tires). Accelerates rather slowly, which also makes it sometimes difficult to pass a slower moving vehicle ahead of me.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Phenomenal

Written by: Rick on 09/06/2005

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe

Review

I bought my pre-owned Escort coupe as a temporary replacement for my older car, until I could decide what I wanted. Well, I fell in love with the car right away and I've had it for five years. It has a great ride for a small car. I was especially pleased with how it runs with ease on the highway. Now, after five years, it has 90K miles and I cannot recall a single repair. I've only changed the oil on schedule, kept up with the rest of the maintenance schedule and replaced the tires. I've been very pleasantly surprised with this car. Now, with the price of gas, I really am glad that I have it. It is still one of the most efficient cars out there.

Favorite Features

Gas mileage and reliability.

Suggested Improvements

2 out 3 people found this review helpful

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Serious problems ZX2

Written by: caden on 08/11/2005

Vehicle

1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe

Review

I have had my 98 ZX2 near 3 years now. Since buying it with 70k on it, after 100,000 seems it started having problems, waterpump, tension pulley has broken off twice, thermostat. Other routine maintence. Pretty expensive to have the timing belt replaced. But the biggest problem is the auto transmission. Have to have it rebuilt and still doesn't shift correctly. Some unknown problem has drained all of my power, i have to have it too the floor to barely get going most of the time. Great sound system though, small and compact, keyless entry only on the driver door is weird though.

Favorite Features

sound system, used to be power but not anymore, GOOD gas mileage.

Suggested Improvements

I have heard of too many transmission complaints.

0 out 1 people found this review helpful

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