I thought they didn't make Ford Escorts anymore but I saw a '52' reg Escxort van today.
How come?
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Surplus stock maybe? Who knows?
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They probably do still make the van somewhere; there isn't a Focus van yet - or is there?
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According to the Ford website [1] they do.
www.ford.co.uk
[1] Worst website I've ever had the displeasure of paying a visit.
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[1] Worst website I've ever had the displeasure of paying a visit.
You should try the British Airways one!
Ford's site works rather well in comparison, at least it works.
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You'd be surpised what they still make, Dave. Citroen are still selling the C15D Champ van - and I thought they stopped making that about the time John Major lost his underpants!
;-)
Ian Cook
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Hello all, new to this site!
I believe the record for the van exceeding the car production is held by the the Vauxhall/Bedford Viva/HA - something in the order of 20 years! You could still buy one up to the start of prefix registrations.
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only 20 years?
www.um.co.za/nissan/models/1400/gallery.html
these things have been around here for as long as I remember - a school mate of mine had one - circa 1980 - and they were long in the tooth then!
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And on the same site:
www.um.co.za/vw/models/citigolf/gallery.html
I may not be able to tell a Kia from a Daewoo, but I know a Mk1 Golf when I see one.
Richard Hall
bangernomics.tripod.com
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They are still making the mk1 Golf in S.Africa, pity they dont make make a GTI version though (or maybe they do !!!)
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They do actually. I saw a fairly recent (X or Y reg) one in a dealer's in South London. I think he wanted about £7k for it, but how do you value a car like that over here?
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Dave H
You are right Ford have actually stopped production on the Escort van, but obviously some are still filtering through the system.
I have seen some of the new replacements for the Escort on the streets, keep your eyes peeled for some strange looking BT vans. They are Transit Combi or Connect (can't remember which) about the same wheelbase as an Escort but look more like an MPV shape an have an additional side door. I'm reliably informed they will be replacing the Escort. Unless, of course, someone knows different......
Cockle
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Connect, it's based on the new Fiesta.
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Maybe the "52" Escort Van was built some years ago and stored in afield or old airfield somewhere. This used to be a common occurrence for Rover, under BMW, but Ford and Vauxhall also do it.
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Escorts (vans only) have been made until quite recently in Halewood Liverpool (now a 'Jaguar' plant). The Escort van has now been replaced by the transit connect which is built in Turkey. (looks like a fusion from the front)
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And of course how many "White Van Man" drivers of this new Ford mini Transit, will be caught out by the weight legislation that applies to it?
In theory the maximum legal speed, on most roads with a 70 mph limit for cars/car derived vans, would be just 60 mph to this newcomer, not foot to the floor and see what we can get it up to mate!!
Mark.
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Digging deep into the dark recesses of my mind, I seem to recall a friend who's a sales manager for a main dealer telling me that there's a list of all cars registered each month published somewhere. Number by type sort of thing.
He was saying you still get weird things turning up that have sat in a field for the past four years etc and have long since fell from the "new cars" to "used cars" status in What Car?
Maybe someone in the trade can confirm (HJ?)
Lee.
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The last Escort (car) was built in July 2000 at Halewood, but the van continued in production in a purpose built low-volume plant at the back of Halewood (at the same time as the Jaguar X-type in the main plant) until September 2001. (from Halewood employee)
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The UK manufacturers have always tended to make too many vehicles.
Ford conisider a car sold (and profit made) at the point it leaves the factory - hence the stockpiling.
I have a 2000 Fiesta Zetec-S which had a retail price of £12,100 at the time I bought it new (I didn't pay that much!) with metallic and a/c. They stopped making it over a year ago but there must still be some sitting in compounds somewhere. Drive the Deal have brand new ones for about £8,800 with the same spec.
The car is a bit dated but good value at that price. Shame that the residuals of my Fiesta are seriously battered now. How do they account for the 'losses' made on these old cars?
Another example - the Rover Metro arrived around early 1990 on a G plate. There are plenty of H reg Austin Metros and even a fair few J plates about (even now).
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I saw an old style 52 reg Fiesta the other day. I really thought that they were finally finsihed, but evidently not.
Not that I'm complaining mind, it helps my car hang on to a shred of residual value for just a little while longer, although I reckon if I sold it at the moment I would only lose a few hundred quid on what I paid. :)
Blue
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When my parents bought their Focus, there was a red, old style Fiesta Flight (?) for sale in the dealer with a fairly big discount. As my mum was trading in a Fiesta, I had to steer her discreetly past it as she was of the opinion that no car needs a bigger engine than the Endura E. Thankfully, they love the Focus and have now changed their mind.
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