Ford Scorpio: Encyclopedia II - Ford Scorpio - 1985

Ford Scorpio - 1985

Engineering-wise, the 1985 Scorpio was heavily based on the Sierra, sitting on a stretched version of its floorpan, and using a similar styling philosophy set by both it and the third generation Escort. Under the hood were well-proven power units, starting with the venerable Pinto unit in 1.8 L and 2.0 L capacities, and the Cologne V6 in 2.4 L, 2.8 L and later 2.9 L editions. The Scorpio was intended as a far more luxurious car than the Granada, so features such as leather upholstery, electrically adjustable seats, heated windscreen and all wheel drive made their first appearance on a European Ford. The car was very comfortable (slightly let down by seats without good back support) and had excellent rear legroom but surprisingly little lateral headroom. The biggest advance of the Scorpio was that it was the first mass-market European car to have anti-lock brakes (ABS) standard across the whole range.

Unlike the Granada, it was initially only available as a hatchback, and not as a sedan or station wagon. This proved to be a mistake for Ford, which later introduced a sedan version in 1990 and the wagon appeared two years later. There were few engineering changes over the years, notably the introduction of the DOHC engines in 1989, and the Scorpio Cosworth with a 2.9 L 24-valve Cosworth V6 the following year.

It was elected Car of the Year in 1986.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "1985", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki