1986 Diesel Escort on BAT No Reserve

I think adding a Diesel engine to my mothers old 81 Escort is about the only thing that could have made it more unpleasent to drive! That said this is another true survivor of unloved mid 80's cars to pair with the K-Car currently also on BAT, No A/C, even slower than the gas engine version, but with a 5-speed manual transaxle, so I bet it would get 50+ mpg highway. But I wonder if the top speed would keep up with the 80mph average I see in the Detroit area free ways? The red interior plastic is only slightly faded. Leads me to believe it spent most of its life in a garage.

But it is offered at No Reserve, and at the time I posted it was only bid to $4000.00 with 4 days to go. I got a chuckle out of the added aftermarket cold air intake! LOL!

I never drove one with the Diesel but I see it has a 5000rpm red line on the Tach, would they actually rev that High?

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1986-ford-escort-2/

 

Oh gawd. Back when everyone was trying to do diesel engines like Euro cars to get high MPG, which they did, but they were SLOW and things like air conditioning were not readily available. Even if it could do 80MPH, how long would it take to get there?

Cars like this and Chevette make the K-car look downright like a luxury and performance icon.

 

Barely, but not for freakin' long!

 

Wow it is bid for more $$$'s than the K-Car at the moment. I don't know what one I would rather own, please don't make me decide!

 

0 to 60 in an afternoon.

 

Which afternoon?

 

I'm glad there's still clean examples like this around, but if this thing hits $10,000 I'm going to scream. I guess they added the cold air intake for HD trailer duty? Move over Cummins!

 

0 - 60 eventually?

It looks to be in really nice condition, like it arrived via time machine.

I wouldn't buy it, but it will make someone happy.

 

Last 6 hours and it is bid up to $6100.00 will it break $8K? I agree if it hits $10K I may have to sit around all day drinking.

 

Sold for $8,000 on 4/2/22.

 

Well at least cammerjeff didn’t have to go off on a bender. The Mrs is thankful. $8,000 is still kinda mind boggling.

 

It's mind boggling to me too, but at least it's a really nice example. I just assume the person who bought it either had one or rode in one back in the day and has fond memories associated with it. Sometimes it's not about the car itself, but the memories you make with the people and places you go in it. I'm assuming that was the case here. There's always a buyer for every car! Good luck getting parts for that diesel engine though.

 

That’s an excellent point. Probably half the cars I own, and most of my station wagons were cars of memory.

 

Yep. Memories and sentiments can be a very powerful thing, and sometimes rekindling those memories and sentiments are worth more than the money someone spends on a car. What may not make sense to us might certainly make a lot of sense to them. Not everyone made memories in a 1955 Chrysler Town & Country, 1969 Yenko Camaro, 1970 Hemi Charger or 1975 Ford Country Squire. Sometimes they were made in a diesel-powered 1981 Ford Escort 4dr. hatchback. Just like I have very fond memories of all the trips we went on in our family's 1984 Nissan Sentra 2dr. hatchback, or various Toyota Cressidas (one of them being a wagon). Especially in the case of the Sentra, there was nothing even remotely special or noteworthy about it, but it was all the memories I had in it that makes me want to own one someday. It was our family's only car for over 10 years and as boring and characterless as it is to 99.999% of people out there, I love it because of the memories I have of it...I just don't want to spend $8,000 if and whenever I find one. lol

 

I agree on all points, my love of wagons comes from endless hours being hauled around in them, and riding in my fathers 63 XK-E coupe, and then his 427 4-speed townsman wagon probably set my life long performance car slant. Funny riding unbelted in the backseat of my older brothers 69 3-speed manual 442 only brings back memories of hitting my head as he took pleasure in taking turns fast enough to throw from side to side. And I have never been tempted to buy a 442? Hummmm