The Ford Escort EXP Story
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- Опубліковано 26 вер 2024
- The Ford EXP is a sports compact coupe that was produced and sold by Ford Motor Company in North America from the 1982 to 1988 model years. Sharing the dashboard, wheelbase, suspension, and powertrain with the Ford Escort, the EXP was longer, lower, and more aerodynamic than its five-seat counterpart.
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#fordexp #fordescortexp
Ford thought that young people wanted a reliable, sporty, stylish, efficient reliable car, so offered the EXP as an alternative to all that
Brutal. Hahahahahahaa.
Escorts aren't unreliable.
@@timothykeith1367 It's principally a joke about the EXP's odd looks
@@hydorah The Ford EXP was my mother's first new car when she was an early 20-something college student. She has all sorts of stories to tell about it (mostly good). Given that her uncle was a prominent FoMoCo engineer, she was eligible for the "family discount" of the time. That meant that her savings was right about 80% of a standard employee discount of a new FoMoCo product, and she was able to use her cherry red, base EXP 2-door coupe for many years. Would I want one? Nah, too busy with my Studebaker but the good memories are there for us.
The EXP looks dorky today, but so does ever other American car designed from 1975 to about 1985. Hell, automotive styling worldwide was nothing to shout about during this period. 1981 Chrysler K-Car? 1982 Datsun Maxima? 1980 Chevy Citation? 1984 Ferrari Testarossa? 1977 Porsche 928? Blech! I call this period "The Automotive Dark Ages". I had a couple Escorts of this vintage, and neither was unreliable.
I bought an EXP new in 1986. It had the optional HO engine. I gave it away when it had 260,000 miles on it, 12 years later. Oil changes every 10,000 miles. 2 brake jobs. 2 ignition control modules. I really loved that car.
I had an '87 Lynx XR3 with the same motor. Not a bad little performer when I had it in the mid-1990s, but those TFI modules sure were a pain in the ass. They would fail with NO warning at all, and were expensive to buy from Ford...especially for a college kid. I went through three, and always sourced replacements from wrecking yards.
I love the feeling of rediscovering a completely forgotten car from my teenage years. Saw a Chevrolet citation recently
I remember seeing a Chevette, once.
Was the citation sitting in a junk yard?
Now that's interesting to hear! Someone where I live has a completely original Olds version of the Citation. It was apparently a grandparent's car and has less than 50k miles on it. You can see yourself in the paint and it purrs like a kitten.
Search youtube. People are putting supercharged 3800s in old citations n x-11s
I had the 1982 Mercury LN7 version and very much enjoyed driving it!
It may have been underpowered, but it was still fun to drive and gave me good fuel economy.
I later replaced it with a 1989 Ford Probe LX, which was even more fun to drive.
I was looking for something to watch while having dinner and after 10 minutes of refreshing and searches this vid solved the problem.. thank you
Exact same here.
It is very seldom I'm introduced to a car I do not recognise.
I even lived in the USA in 1982!
But I certainly have no recollection of the EXP prior to this video. So, thank you, Mr. The Big Car!
Edit: and now that I've seen it from every angle... I didn't miss anything at all! :)
I had one... It was my first brand new car. It was great. I loved it. I would like to have it back. NOT everyone that wanted a sporty little car wanted to got 0-60 in .5 seconds !! I just wanted something fun to drive and a little cool to look at !
I live less than 5 miles from that St. Thomas assembly plant. Sadly it is no more.
That was a shame that it was mothballed when the Panther platform stopped production in 2011.
Growing up I spent most summers in Pt Bruce on Lake Erie very near St Thomas Ont. With our own children in the 80's and 90's we spent alot of time in St Thomas exploring the Rail Museum and local history.
It seems the city has suffered too much and its just wrong, wonderful people , rich history and lots to see. When Ford pulled out it made us sick.
Oddly enough, Ford axed probably its most reliable vehicles when the St. Thomas line was shut down.
My sister and I shared a one year old EXP (first model year) while we were in college. I moved to Europe soon thereafter, so the car became my sister's. She and her friends adored it. She got several speeding tickets in it and apparently drove from Virginia to Florida for spring break every year. _My_ next car was a 2CV.
I bet she got her bell ring a lot in that little exp.
I love these short stories, keep doing them please
Glad you like them!
Thx for this. I grew up on Los Angeles in the '70/80s. I rarely saw any EXPs - tho I didn't think much of them; at the time. I was driving an MGB & a Cit DS21 Break
I owned am 82 exp, blew the engine. So put a 87 escort engine in it. Had pioneer pyramids on the rack in the back.. I could get sideways in any curve and drove the hack out of it. That car was the most fun little car I ever had. ❤️
One of my HS buddies had a bright green LN7 we called ‘Kermit’. Was cool to cruise in for 2 guys. With 3 guys, someone had to sort of lie down sideways on the back deck!
I had a Kermit too. It was slow and understeered horribly but I had a lot of fun it it.
My first car (which, sadly, lasted me only a couple weeks) was an '85 EXP. As a 17 year old high school student, I loved it. It felt sporty (5- speed manual, which was a first for me) and had a very "cockpit-like" feel to it with the center dash console slightly angled toward the driver. One of my biggest regrets in life was running it into the back of a telephone bucket truck. It wasn't technically totaled, but also wasn't worth fixing.
It could have been a hot seller with more horsepower. It looked good on the outside but was just too much like like riving Grandma's Escort. The lack of performance didn't translate into better fuel economy, so it was the worst of both worlds. I actually surprised it lasted as long and sold as well as it did.
EVERYTHING was slow in the early 1980s.
I'm surprised you didn't call this series Big Car, Small Stories. Amazing work as always!
I owned 2 EXPs in my 20s and 30s, one from 1983 (bright green) and one from 1988 (Oxford white with black, and red stripe). The 1983 green one was sitting in the back of a Ford used car lot with flat tires, a year after it was built. That’s how little interest people had in the car, and I got it fairly cheap. (Traded in my 1976 Granada, which I still regret.) The poor 1983 overheated and cracked a head in the late 80s and I ended up trading her in for the 1988 white one. That one had been Ford employee owned and came to me in beautiful condition even as a used car. She served me well for 11 years and literally died on the lot the day I traded her in and picked up my new 2001 Ford Escape (coincidentally, still with me and running ok). I cried leaving my beautiful 1988 EXP at the lot.
In an ideal world, all my cars would still be with me, running or not, retired inside a large garage. But I still have their sales and maintenance books, and honor their memories. I now have a Ford Fiesta as well. I’ve always been a Ford gal, I guess. I even still miss my mom’s yellow Pinto!
love to find a mint one, good luck though, My Dad had a well used 82 as well as a friend of mine, both ate the head gaskets early but not too hard a fix. fun little cars. nice video as always.
I was working in a small town in East Texas in September 82. My transmission in my toyota truck went out, a 2nd time in 16 months. I was at the dealership waiting on them to tell me how much when I watched one of three of these come off the truck. Nice sound. 5spd. Took it for a drive - ran it thru the gears a few times. Mad about the transmission and the $$$ it was going to cost, again, I bought the EXP. Next day drove it the 300 miles back home to Dallas, had a thousand on it within a week. Nice car, quiet. Sunroof. Cold AC.
I really want to say it was a 4spd, but it must have been a 5spd in that day and time. I do know mine was a early production and had a wide-ratio transmission. I read about the engine and it was tested at 7000rpm. So I would take it to 7k all the time. Raced a friend in his 68 327 camaro ~ Side by side until I had to goto 3rd ~ about 80. Found that ticket the other day too. 82 in a 45. For a year I drove 48 miles to class, and 48 miles home. Great mileage. Drive all over in the snow, no problem. Good little car. EXP = EX-Pinto, or (in bad taste) Ford EX-Ploder. or Experimental Unit. ? Traded it in with 185,000 on it.
It's through watching all of the Big Car videos that I realise how many gambles and blunders car manufacturers make in an effort to second guess what the public might want next in each country.
I had an EXP Turbo and an LN7. Loved both of them!
I like the version with the weird headlights better. Gives some character to an otherwise dull looking car.
I had an 82 as a graduation present.....4 speed....burnt orange with the black bottom. Like the one at the end. As a teen, I liked it.....but I think I would have liked anything actually! I totaled it it after a few months,,,,,,cause I was a teen and tried to corner too fast of course...lol. Video bring s me back.
Soon as I heard CVH had flash backs to snapped timing belts, rattling tappets, blue smoke, oil caps that blow off, and a reluctance to rev 🤮😱.
Always liked this EXPeriment.
I loved this car ,it had everything a highschool kid wanted.
Nice job as always Mr Big!I miss my 2 EXP's.
Wow, I don't even remember seeing these. We had a 1982 Lincoln in the family and I remember some of the other Ford products from that time, but not the EXP. Thank you for another great video!
I had an 89 escort for a first car. I loved it and I dreamt of owning an Exp. These were quite rare. I don’t remember seeing one on the road.
My buddy bought a broke down one bitd and I had it running pretty quick and I fell in love with the damn thing
Can't remember the last time I've seen one of these, thank you and love this channel and approach👍👍
This was my first car . I brought in my college years . I had the black bra on the front and a benzi radio kit I brought from r& s Strauss .
God I love channels like this. Pure car knowledge no jokes or half assign. Just a relaxing accent. Nostalgic media and car knowledge.!!! Yay...
🙄 Ok yay was a lil gay...I'm sorry
I had one. I also had a custom bumper sticker made that said I'D RATHER CASTRATE MYSELF WITH A BROKEN BEER BOTTLE THAN BUY ANOTHER FORD.
I had a 1982 LN 7 in high school. I traded it in for a 1986 EXP when I was a senior.
Thank you for keeping us entertained - I find these "backstory" videos to be invaluable and informative, especially because I'm a glutton for car history!
If I could post a request: a video detailing the work of Claus Luthe - one of the most influential but under-appreciated car designers of the modern era.
Oh, and something about the 1950s-1960s rear-engine craze, the layout's origins, and its near-demise...
Thanks - an interesting idea!
I had an 86. It was a great little car. I used to drive from Ft. Campbell, KY to Tampa, FL, 750 miles at least once a month. My best time in that little car, was 9 hours and 45 minutes.
you're best automotive youtuber presenter very nice job i wish health for you
Thanks - it's a fun job!
My very first brand new car, the Ford Probe, what a great car. When you stand a Probe next to a Porsche 944 with the headlights on at night, you can't tell them apart.
Erratum: William "Bill" Davis was Premier of Ontario.
Please, don't ever say "coup" just because the yanks don't know proper English. We all know that the proper word is coupé. Thank you.
I say the word the same way the people who bought it say it. So it’s an American car, so they say coup. As the videos are watched around the world, I’m trying to get it right for as many people as possible. English people say “Paris” with an “s” even though that’s not how the locals say it.
Australia must have a weird mix of pronouncing things, we use boot, bonnet like the Brits but we also use coup like the yanks to describe 2 door cars.
@@BigCar2 As an American and subscriber, I appreciate your localization efforts. We Yanks may not know proper English, but we can certainly tell the difference between the cultured (you) and the condescending (Alberto). Keep up the great work!
@@BigCar2
I'm a Brit, so locally use Coupé, but you're quite right to use "Coup" in the video as you're describing an American machine described using Americanised terminology.
The same can be said for how our Cousins over the pond pronounce Van Gough; "Van Go". It's the little differences which make us interesting!
Alberto VO5 needs to descend from that incredibly high horse he is straddling!
Genuinely appreciate you cranking out such great content, especially while a lot of your audience will be desperate for entertainment during lockdown.
can't make up my mind if the original EXP looks like a committee designed second generation Mustang replacement or a Sunday morning cut-and-shut job. the later version with all those stock Escort components looks so much cleaner
I remember thinking the early EXP was good looking.
If ever there was a car that was crying out to have a V6, it was the 1980s Ford EXP. With a moderate amount of power, that little two-seater Escort could've been a fun car. In my eyes, it looked fast but suffered from a complete lack of performance. Almost as if it was designed by a committee of engineers who had no idea for whom they were designing the car. Great video!!
EXP/Escort platform came into it's own by 84, vin code 4( H.O.) It had the GT suspension then the EFI came in 85, thru end of production.
There was even rare turbos out there too & the bottom ends were stout. I had a base Escort L, with the H.O.2bbl.,. Later bolted up GT suspension & Fomoco spring kit. Had a nice canyon carver..
I had forgotten these even existed, even though I'd driven a friend's EXP several times.
Reminded me of a 1974 Mustang II.
Thanks, nice upload about a car I knew nothing about even as a huge Ford (UK) fan.
Me too!
My first car was a black used '87 EXP sport coupe with the 1.9 HO engine & sunroof. It ate tie rods, exhsust systems, wheel bearings fuel filters and struts for lunch every other year or so. It was also prone to rust...on the hood, the inside door frames, the floorpans, doors and rear strut towers. It looked cool like a mini Mustang GT was good in the snow and got decent gas mileage though. I still miss it once in awhile. The rusting collapsing rear strut towers causing the rear wheels to tilt inwards were it's demise in 2001. Bought a used '93 Probe GT to replace it which felt & drove like a futuristic rocketship by comparison
Excellent video editing again Sir!
My mom had an 87 EXP Sport Coupe. Essentially an Escort GT with no rear seat for more $. It was reasonably fun and good looking.
I had an '87 EXP 15 years ago. It was in pretty rough shape but I still liked it. It was the only one in the town I live in.
Always good to see a new upload in my inbox. Another great video.
Ford EXP could've been a good car in Europe with better engines replacing Capri.
Yes, could of been the 80's Capri if it was in Europe, I wish the Capri was still around
Yes, I would have loved to have seen the EXP in Britain.
The Ford Cougar of the 1980s?
The car was crap. The Escort xr3 sold in Europe was much better.
You would replace the Capri with this pile of crap!?
Great video...I never knew the whole story of the EXP...that was my first car...bought in 1986. I had saved up $3000 and a lady was asking $3300...but when she saw my bundle of money, even down to $1 bills, and knew it was my first car I saved up for working at Dairy Queen, she let me have it for the $3000. It was a fun car...1982,,,yellow...I put some chrome wheels on with red center caps and it looked pretty cool. Other than, as people say, the headlights were always rather an ugly style. But eventually the head cracked on it, which was a common thing for the EXP, so that was that. I had it about 5 years, I think.
Love it. My uncle ‘forced’ me to learn to drive his stickshift EXP when I didn’t even know how to drive period. I was really nervous and I really didn’t want to be a part of his EXPeriment. His “cost”- I ran over the brand new tree he had just planted in the front yard! Lol.
I've taught both my kids to drive stick (manual). I think it's still a useful skill to have (for example hiring cars outside the US).
Big Car years later I had a gorgeous loaded 1985 Toyota Supra, complete with 5-speed manual transmission. I loved that car!! Was so fun to drive. That reminds me...Could you please do an episode on the evolution of the Supra?
I had an '87 EXP when I was in college from 1998-2000. Bought it for $250 drove it until the rear shock towers rusted out and sold it for junk for $50. Fun car.
I had an EXP in the mid-1980s. Mine had the cast wheels with the oval cut-outs, copies of a a Porsche wheel. No tire manufacturer except Michelin made tires that would fit it, not even in 1986.
My first car was a Ford probe, 91, 3.0 v6 smoked a few evos and Camaros once I tricked it out a good bit. The car had potential and was stunning. Plus with most of it manufactured by Mazda it was a pretty reliable car ❤️
My 82 was weird. It was so clunky. The hatch weighed a bloody ton and my shock towers rotted away. The sunroof also weighed a ton and when strapped flatly to the rear floor, then made that cargo space utterly useless. Don’t miss that one.
THE FIRST GEN WAS A GOOD LOOKING CAR.
6:56 I can't go for that.
I remember a car mag back in the day describing this as looking like a frightened frog. It does look a bit odd....
At the 1982 C.A.R.T. Indycar races at Laguna Seca CA they had 5 prototype honorary Pace Cars that circled the track in front of the official Pace Car. One of the prototypes was a monster 5.0ltr RWD Mercury LN-7 that was just awesome!!
If only they had made some.........
Wow, I knew nothing about this car before. Thank you!
My dad brought me a lime green EXP in '85. I thought I was the shit!! Until I slammed it into a tree and found out that it has a unibody which was more expensive to fix. Got it fixed, only to have a roommate use it one night while I was sleeping. Next morning I looked out at my car and noticed that the hood was somehow crinkled up by my windshield, which was cracked. She said they had to go to the store & thought they would check my oil for me. Nice thought, except they didn't shut the hood all the way and it flew up into the windshield!! I drove around with it wired down for a while until I got tired of that and decided to drive w/o the hood!! For the life of me, I can't remember exactly what happened to the car. Probably got towed. 🐾
Why would you choose this over a Honda CRX?
because it came a few years before the CRX on the USA marke, the YEN vs american $ was not good, japanese cars were overpriced and the market for the 2 products were really not the same, they were not sold as sport cars but urban youth cars , like they did also when marketing the Pontiac Fiero
No one did
First to market and turbocharged.
These were often bought by parents for high school aged kids. They were cheap cars.
@@WanJae42 - As a high school student in this era I can confirm this. Dork / loser kids (me) got EXPs. Cool kids got CRXs.
Bought new a 1982 EXP - put 130K miles on it over the 10 years I owned it. Never gave me any trouble. And, yes, the stock Michelin tires were terrible. Replaced them with Goodyear Eagle ST.
Loving the new 'Short Story' format.
Thanks!
My mother brought one brand new she loved that car until I hit a pole in 1983 the night of the crosstown shootout between Xavier and UC What memories
I had a 82 Mercury LN7. It wasn’t fast but I loved it and put a lot of miles on it.
William Davis was Premier on Ontario at the time. Pierre Elliot Trudeau was Premier of Canada.
I used to work for a Ford dealer, and I was there Turbo Expert, let me tell you, if you knew how to drive a Turbo car, that thing was WAY faster the 9 seconds 0 to 60, I was doing it in like 4 to 5 seconds, the car was amazing
Thanks for the video. I always liked the exp but if I could find a ln7 with that crazy glass...wow.
I graduated in ‘81 and absolutely fell in love with this car at the time I had a galaxie 500 and a pinto. My kid brother bought one in 84 and couldn’t keep motors in it. (He thought it was made for speed). If I could find a nice one today I would snatch it up. Thanks for the great vid. Love all of them Big Car. Take care and be safe
Great work! I have seen almost all your videos now I think :)
Good man! Now go and do the dishes. 😉
I had not heard Ford Escort EXP as one living in Turkey.
But thank you very much. Because you made me enlightened on this subject.
Now I love Escort more.
I still regret selling my '87 EXP Sport coupe. It was a fun car that got very decent (better than most newer vehicles) gas mileage.
Also, the Super Gnat reminds me of Fords own RS200.
Great video! And always pleasant to see my convertible haha
The Wikipedia page should be in good standings, I update it frequently :)
Thank you for all your hard work! I'm glad I could bring the Wikipedia page to life a little in a video. I found it fascinating which is why I decided to make a video about it.
What a coincedence! My friend is going to buy an '86 this weekend
Another impeccable podcast 👍🚘
Fun fact: that 44 MPG is adjusted down to 26MPG by today’s EPA testing standards. Hardly impressive.
I had 2 of them and they would get 40 on the hwy.
Amazes me how the Detroit automakers always over estimate the sales of a new vehicle, and then are totally perplexed when their lackluster vehicle hit the rel sales mark; recently Dodge Dart, Chrysler 200, Chevy Cruze Impala, Mercury Capri two seater, Mercury Marauder, the SAAB, Pontiac, and Olds lineups, etc
Great video! Love your videos about cars I have never heard of.
Great analysis!
You can thank Wikipedia for that.
My first car was an 86 ford EXP. Orange and black
The fact that it was ugly as hell might have had something to do with the sales numbers. Yikes.
That was the elephant in the room all through the video.
I never understood American design in late 70's/early 80's. Seriously? It's a rare occasion that they made a good looking car.
@@nikolaikola8925 I can't think of anyone. They all looked like antiques, or had skewed proportions. Or both.
@@AlfaGiuliaQV and the overhangs... seriously? Like a meter and a half on both sides. Looks ridiculous.
@@nikolaikola8925 gentlemen, I give you.....the Pontiac Acadian.
I bought a 1982 EXP new. Biggest POS ever. In 26 months, it went through 7 rack and pinions, 16 AC compressors and 3 engines. I called it my "EXPensive EXPerimental that EXPired at an early age. Fortunately I bought the extended warranty ($450) that saved me $7000 in repair bills on a car that listed for $9313.
The headlights killed it.
I owned one from the late 80s through the early 90s. My truck had died and I needed something to drive and somehow ended up with a black EXP. It was my first manual and I took it out without any lessons, I probably didn't do the clutch any favors. I drove it cross country once and I remember having to rig up the fan to stay on all the time due to overheating. I ended up putting a large speaker box in the back since it was only a 2 seater and just a large flat area behind the seats. I liked 80s rap and having some loud booming speakers was a thing, I suppose it is still somewhere.
Other than that I don't even remember why I got rid of it, most likely I blew the head gasket, I had no clue how to care for a car back then and I just wanted to get where I was going. So, I didn't pay much attention to oil changes and tune-ups, well any maintenance other than putting gas in.
It was an ugly little car but it did its job for a while and then I moved on. I just did a search on auto tempest to see if I can find any for sale and surprisingly I couldn't find any.
Nice backstory. There is a virtually completely unknown fact about this little beast. It was actually designed by a 13 year old junior high student from Los Angeles in 1979 and sent in to Ford in hopes of receiving a $25 design contest prize. Ford wrote the young man back about a year before the release of the vehicle stating that they did not accept unsolicited drawings. The young man was actually proposing a bringing back the Ford Falcon with this design. But, Ford had other plans.
I like the EXP. But I like the CRX, MR2, and Fiero more. The Fiero is definitely my favorite. The MR2 is a close 2nd since it's also mid engine rear wheel drive. The CRX is 3rd only because it's front wheel drive. So that leaves the EXP in last place. But I'd still like to have one
I had one. I drove it cross country and back.
God, I absolutely love hearing you talk about Ford 😂
Thanks Tank Boy, and BTW Bird Man, sorry Pigeon Man is comedy gold! Loved it! I'll have to be careful the next time I'm in Snohomish.
It's nice to see an American for a change. The Mustang and the Fiero are beautiful.
I had an EXP got great mileage. 40 mpg but that was it. Didn’t last long though.
I remember seeing the Ford EXP car around, back in the day. Always thought they looked like they were built of Legos. It isn't pretty, but very few cars from that era were.
Excellent work ! I've always had a soft spot for the LN7. I know they could have done better. We briefly had a new 1986 Escort 2dr hatchback 5sp. 2 years later a third child meant it had to go.
I was a bit unique billed as an High Output this HO version at 85 hp was actually fun to drive. For the sales test drive the only demo was a pathetic "pony" version with 1300cc auto. It was beyond horrible.....it should never have been used as a sales tool. Virtually dangerously lacking in any power to move with traffic. What were they thinking!
When we wanted a 2nd car a got an old 83 Escort and rebuilt the engine. To my surprise the internals were excellent ! Crank driven oil pump....nicely forged con rods...a baffled oil pan....crossflow head. This block was capable of so much more than Ford let it have.
It sadly was wrecked.....next was an 83 Lynx 2dr auto. But strangely it had the same HO engine as the 86 we had. Larger 2barrel weber downdraft carb, and exhaust headers. No badging or info at all.
Ford did a poor job of letting people know about these things.
I should ad my sister in law had a later Escort GT cant recall exact year.....maybe 88 or 90. Full flares air damn and stripes better rated struts all around and wide tires. It was much quicker a real fun little car.
a '78 datsun 510 Hatchback ate these things alive in every category. Four seats, better styling and 110hp with a 5 speed
You're still comparing a used car with a (then) new car. Moot point.
I owed one of these. tu tone blue, you took your life in your hands passing on a hill with the A/C on......you prayed to get over it!..lol
I always called the AC the turbo boost switch, when you turn it off you pick up 10 % power.
I remember the Ford ESP. At the time, I didn't find it very attractive, but it was better looking than the standard Escort at the time.