Ford Orion
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Ford Orion | |
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Successor | Ford Escort Saloon (1993-1998) |
The Ford Orion is a
from 1983 until 1993. A total of 3,534,239 units were sold during the car's ten-year production life.The Ford Orion was based on the
History
Orion Mark I (1983–1986)
In the early-1980s, Ford's model line-up and image was changing, reflecting shifting patterns in the new car market across Western Europe at this time, as front-wheel drive gradually became more popular than
The Orion was developed under the codename "Apollo."[3] Launched in September 1983, the Orion was designed to fill the market demand for a traditional four-door saloon which had been absent from the Escort range since the end of MK2 production in 1980 and also in larger cars by the demise of the hugely popular Cortina in 1982. The Orion looked similar to a contemporary Escort at the front apart from the different grille design, but the rear of the Orion had a long flat boot (making the car a three-box saloon design) rather than a hatchback or estate body like the Escort. Although the Orion's length was similar to that of the contemporary Ford Sierra (then only available as a hatchback or an estate) it had more rear legroom and a larger boot. This concept was similar to the Volkswagen Jetta, the saloon version of the Golf hatchback which had been on sale since 1979.
Ford initially offered the Orion in only GL and
The Orion Ghia 1.6i standard features included:
The Orion 1.6i shared an engine with the Escort XR3i and offered similar performance and handling without the insurance unfriendly tag that the XR badge started to command in the late-1980s due to its popularity with car thieves - and it was also less frequently targeted by thieves than the Escort XR3i or RS Turbo. The 1.6i was topped by a luxury limited edition called the 1600E in the autumn of 1988, the 1600E name harking back to the Mark II Ford Cortina 1600E from twenty years earlier, as both were considered to be well-equipped saloon cars with decent performance for the working man. The Orion 1600E was available in black, white and metallic grey and had RS alloys, wood cappings on the dashboard and doors, and grey leather seats. Only 1,600 were made, of which 1,000 had leather trim.
With the facelift in 1986, Ford brought the styling and engineering of the Orion closer to the Escort's and lower-specification models crept into the range along with equipment levels being brought together between the two cars, and helped Orion sales increase further. The Orion also gained the new 1.4 "lean burn" petrol engine which was added to the Escort at this time.
The success of the Orion across Europe, particularly in the UK (where it was amongst the top 10 best-selling cars every year from 1984 to 1990), was followed by several other manufacturers launching saloon versions of their popular hatchbacks. By 1986,
The Orion was a strong seller in the UK, peaking as the seventh-best-selling car in 1987 and 1988 with over 70,000 sales each time.
Orion Mark II (1986–1990)
March 1986 saw the Orion getting the same facelift as the Escort. Internally within Ford it is regarded as an updated model (Apollo-86) rather than a new generation, although it is popularly known as the Mark II. The Mark II brought the option of anti-lock-brakes (
Orion Mark III (1990–1993)
The third and final version of the Orion was launched in September 1990, but received the same criticism from the motoring media that the fifth generation Escort endured at the time for its lack of design flair as well as the disappointing refinement of some of its engines — particularly the 1.3 and 1.4-litre CVH petrol units.
This incarnation of the Orion was considerably less popular than the pre-1990 versions, just missing out on a place in the top 10 best-selling cars in Britain in 1991 and 1992.
Trim levels were:
- L (1992–1993), 1.8 diesel
- LX (1990–1993), 1.3, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 16v petrol, 1.8 diesel
- GLX (1990–1991), 1.3, 1.4, 1.6 petrol (dropped after 1991)
- Ghia (1990–1993), 1.3, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 16v petrol, 1.8 diesel
- Ghia Si (1992–1993), 1.8 16v petrol
On 19 September 1993, 10 years after its launch, Ford retired the Orion nameplate, and the Escort nameplate was used on all bodystyles.[4][6] This was a move that Vauxhall had previously taken with the Belmont name back in September 1991. Sales of the Escort badged saloon were not as strong as those achieved by the Orion, as saloons of this size continued to fall in popularity throughout the 1990s. The slow-selling Escort saloon was eventually discontinued in October 1998, along with the convertible model after the launch of the Focus saloon, although the 5-door hatchback and estate versions lasted until July 2000 and the van lasted until 2002.
References
- ^ "Facilities | Ford Motor Company Newsroom". Media.ford.com. Archived from the original on September 2, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
- ^ "Facilities | Ford Motor Company Newsroom". Media.ford.com. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
- ^ a b Fisher, Brian (March 10, 1983). "Lotus, R-R & Co". Le Moniteur de l'Automobile (in French). 34 (764). Brussels, Belgium: Editions Auto-Magazine: 28.
- ^ a b c "Used Car Survey: Ford Escort" (PDF). The AA. March 2000. Retrieved April 12, 2015.
- ^ "Ford Escort/Orion (16v)" (PDF). The AA. August 1992. Retrieved April 12, 2015.
- ^ "On This Day In Automotive History Motoring". 365 Days Of Motoring.