Ford Escort ZX2

rickgonz · January 2001

stevealt:
you may want to post your question to zx2racing.com. There's a guy over there who seems to know the zx2 auto trans quirks. One of the things he said is that if you don't change the AT fluid every 10,000 miles you will have problems.
I think floridian is on the right track: torque converter problem: not locking up.

photog:
I noticed the same thing, clutch pedal worn out.
It's probably not under warranty as its a "normal wear" item like tires.
At some point, I'll replace them with those aftermarket metal covers.
Nice pic of your car in the snow!
Will you be able to join the Richmond G2G?
I know you work weekends to pay for that dang insurance thing, but if you can make it, it would be nice to have more folks from No. VA.

floridian:
What area of FL are you in? You said there are several ZX2s still in dealer lots.
Reason for asking is a person on zx2.com totalled her car and was looking around for a replacement but could not find one in the Miami area.

floridian · January 2001

rickgonz: It's kinda funny the way some dealers stock their lots. I guess It's what sells in any particular area. Right now most dealers only have one or two in stock. Plus they don't seem too interested in the ZX but are PUSHING the Focus big time.

Mullinax Ford in Orlando (Apopka actually)has several in stock with leather and stick shift (sticks hard to find)WWW.mullinaxford.com really nice web site that you can scan their inventory. Big discounts. a ZX with power pkg & comfort pkg A/C & leather for $12500. www.autoway.com lists dozens of zx's at various dealers around the state. rebates end monday but probably be extended. I saw two this morning at the Ford dealer in New Smyrna Beach. Both had $3000 off plastered on the windshields. I did not have time to stop but if tru that's a good deal !!

I live in the Ocala area but travel the whole state plus georgia and Alabama too.

Floridian

photog0264 · January 2001

Good point gentlemen. I never thought about getting some of those metal peddle covers. Still I will ask at Ted Britt Ford just to see what they have to say.

I never realised just how big my web page was until I started reworking and trying to moving it. Part of the problem is all the links and photos. Anything from photos Aircraft to ZX2s to flowers and backgrounds. When Netscape screwed me up I had to do some reworking but not nearly as much as what this is taking.

I have also been assisting a freind with a Ford Focus sight that I think is ready to go public, but he is being shy about. I shot some photos for him, and helped him locate several cars to shoot at a couple dealerships. I even loaned him some templates. Unfortunatly as it's his sight I can't begin promoting it until he uploads the opening page.

Another little project I have begun working on is research on for a possible Hyundai Accent web sight. Despite my love for the ZX2 I do like that underpowered little car, and if ever my insurance settles down I would love to have one as an "odd jobs and errands run about". That event probably won't happen for at least a couple years though. My mother says she is finally going to learn how to drive (she is in her early 70s), and if she does, the Accent would be the perfect car for her. Quiet well, mannered, fairly roomy and easy to drive.

All being well I will be doing a Marathon web session this Tuesday or Wednesday on all my web pages. We shall see though, as I really do need to try and slow down and relax just a little. Overlate I have found myself behaving like the twit who is running around all over the place, but never getting anything done.

Rick,
Sorry mate much as I would love a day and night Va Beach it is to put mildly not in my future. I have too much going on right now. All being well I will be moving my home in Feb or early march to the Sterling area. However if you shoot some pictures I will set up a mini page and publish them on my pages. I could use the model I created for the ill fated readers gallery. Just be sure to include as much info as possible with every photo.

Thanks for the compliment about ZX2 in the snow photo. It is about the only upgrade I have had time for lately.

photog0264 · January 2001

Damn it, I discovered my first door ding today. IT is located just below the right rear window joint and it truly is a ding. I am not sure who did it however I rather suspect that twit who drives a Dodge pick up truck at my apt complex. The fellow often parks it at funny angles. All I can say is I would love to ding the rude person who did it. Damn this is really annoying!!!

ralex2 · January 2001

I can sympathize with you on the ding. I remember when mine was new and the paint was perfect. Man, it waxed up nice. Within the first year the front end began to show a lot of paint damage from small bits of sand and gravel flying off truck tires (mostly pickups that sit high and have no mud flaps - should be illegal) at highway seeds. A chip here, a chip there, and soon the whole front end as well as the windshield were severely pitted. Seems to me the windshields are a little soft. In the old days they were glass on the outside with plastic on the inside. I think now they are all plexiglass. They sure get pitted easily. I also have a dent on the top of the right rear fender where some [non-permissible content removed] wanted to see how stiff my springs were and pushed down on the fender with the heel of his hand. I think I can pop that one out. Anyway, my point is... if you are going to drive it on the road, it's going to get messed up. Of course it's still frustrating.

photog0264 · January 2001

One of the things Like most about the ZX2 over my late Acura integra is the higher front end. Not much higher, but it is still about an inch or so. In the Acura whenever I parked it I was always scraping the tow hooks on the curb. Eventually the front air dam cracked. In the ZX2 I have yet to scrap a curb.

My dad's Izuzu Trooper had only two or three dings on it up until I moved to my current apartment. Now it is covered in them. People just dont' seem to care about one anothers cars in this area.

The really frustrating part in the ding, is that I have been going out of my way to avoid parking too close to people. This car given all I have been through financialy just to keep the ZX2 my choice of cars. is truly my baby. As such I am trying to keep it showroom mint for as long as possible. Not much I can do about the ding though beyond swear, until I get the money to have it removed. Still everytime I approach the car I can see it shining like a star. I suppose that it's all in my head, given the newness of it. Why can't people be a little more considerate? On the positive side I am showing up one of neighbors; there is a Black 99 ZX2 in my parking lot thats an absolute disgrace. The car hasn't been washed in ages, and the interior is full of cigarette butts and coke cans. You would never believe it's still fairly new.

On an unrelated note I am having second thoughts about the Angelfire move for my webpages. Contrary to the advertising it doesn't seem to support MS Frontpage as well as I would like. I will keep tinkering around with it. However I just spent 7 hours trying to get the damned thing load correctly and failed everytime.

boltmom4 · January 2001

My son wants to buy rims for his car. The ones advt are 15*7 reversed wire rims. Lugs are 4*4.25/4.50 They come with p195/50/15's with less than 3000 miles. They were taken off of a mustang. would they work on his zx2. He is not mechanical only on the stereo system. I told him I would ask fo r him. Thanks

floridian · January 2001

boltmom4: Wrong bolt pattern, wrong offset (rear drive wheels on the Mustang)a disaster in the making ---forget it !!

Floridian's son

ralex2 · January 2001

Hi Boltmom,

Those wheels are the wrong size. 15 x 7 is fine, but you need a 100mm bolt pattern. I think the wheels he saw are adjustable to fit more than one size (but still wrong for the Z) and that is an undesireable feature. In addition, the offset of the rim has to be within a certain range, and there is a world of difference between front wheel drive and rear wheel drive rims. I would really caution your son against buying used rims. Shop for a good deal on rims made specifically for his car 15 x 7, 4 bolt, 100mm pattern. Of course he can go to a 16 inch rim if he's buying tires as well.

boltmom4 · January 2001

I knew you guys would know, thanks for the information. He was looking on E-bay and I was not encouraging him anyway.

rickgonz · January 2001

Boltmom:

good source of info:

http://www.zx2.org/zx2wheeltire.htm

It gives you the combinations of wheel size and tire size possible with the differences from stock 15x5.5 that comes standard on 2000 ZX2s.

freddy_k · January 2001

You could bolt a Miata rim right onto a ZX2 no problem, and it's rear wheel drive.

photog0264 · January 2001

I was talking to a customer of mine today, and he says he heard somewhere that Ford may have a new Econo 2+2 Sports Coupe for 2002.

He admitted he wasn't too sure of his facts, and says he read it somewhere online but couldn't recall where. I do know there is a lot of educated speculation that there maybe a Focus coupe NON-Hatchback maybe arriving to replace the ZX2. I wonder if this is what he was refering to?

ralex2 · January 2001

I'm showing my age. I'm accustomed to rwd cars being negative or near zero offset. Apparently there have been a lot of rwd cars built in recent years with offsets as postive as fwd cars. You can teach an old dog new tricks, but you can't count on him remembering them. Tks for the info.

photog0264 · February 2001

I guess it must be the weather...

ralex2 · February 2001

Maybe it's time for me to post something extremely ignorant just to get a dialog going. At the moment though, I can't come up with anything outrageous. I was going to put my tax refund into parts for the I this year, but bought a notebook computer instead. That means no chip, no struts for awhile. To me, putting after market parts on the I is like putting a silver saddle on a mule. It's still just a mule. I'm thinking more in terms of leasing an MR-2 or Miata. Something about the Miata seems very feminine though. MR-2 is a better choice. On the other hand, the I is not straining my budget and it gets me from here to there. Guess I will keep her awhile. That reminds me - time for tires. Does anyone have a recommendation on a 205 I 50 -15 that is a good compromise between performance and tread life? I wouldn't want to spend a fortune on tires for 130 up car. I have never heard anything good or bad about Cooper tires. Do they make any decent tires? Good year is definitely out. Local dealer is terrible.

freddy_k · February 2001

ralex - It would be to bad if 'feminine' would keep you from getting a great car. Is that because other people will think it? I don't really care, and in fact I've decided to go with red too, unless they come out with any new and exciting colors for the next model. (but red with a tan top is calling my name). The MR2 isn't available in canada anyway, but even without it's chunky looks the complete lack of storage space would render it useless for me.

Well, My tire fell into a rather large pot hole on my way up snowboarding last weekend, bent the inner lip pretty badly, but the tire managed to hold the air in till I got back home. At first I thought I might have bent an axle (gulp) because the car was wobbling and chirping when I turned. Ended up costing my 90 bucks to fix, a relief since it was almost unfixable. I don't know how much ford charges for rims, but I'm sure it's much more then they're worth.

waverunrgp800 · February 2001

my wife is looking for an additional boost for her 99 zx2.it is fully loaded in mint condition and she loves the car.any ideas for proven extra performance?prefer to stay with ford after-market but it appears thers not much out there.already have a k&n filter but looking for more.thks

ralex2 · February 2001

In my last post, I amust have gotten faked out by the spelling checker. All my Z's were changed to I's and there were several other errors not of my doing. In the future I will pass on the spell check.

Waverunrgp800; If you wife is looking for HP, go for the Superchip. Ford has little to offer, and most low bucks aftermarket stuff, like intake improvements make more noise than power. If her car is an automatic, the chip will alter the shift points in addition to tweaking the timing.

floridian · February 2001

waverrunrgp800: My son has a 1999 ZX2 that he has "tinkered" with to some extent. he is a real "gearhead" competing in SCCA events, autocrss, rallies etc.I have driven the car at each stage of modification. To tell the truth unless you really go radical such as a turbo, supercharger,or go inside the engine the increase you will get from so-called bolt-on stuff like a chip, K&N filter & induction and/or tuned exhaust will net you a barely noticable increase in power. What it WILL get you is a lot of noise, cost a lot of money (realitively speaking)and possibly cause drivability problems. He had a chip too but on the dyno it only resulted in about 3 hp @ the rear wheels, hardly worth the cost. If you wife's car is a automatic don't waste your time or money on any of this stuff except for a nice exhaust set up just for the sound of it. it'll make you feel like your going fast LOL

Floridian

ralex2 · February 2001

Floridian,

That extra 3 hp at the rear wheels is interesting. How much did he net at the front wheels? : )
I doubt if many people really expect much from "bolt on" devices. These days, intake and exhaust mods don't really do anything except as you say, make a little noise. I disagree with you on the chip. A good chip is going to alter your timing and mixture enough to take some of the rough edges off the driveability. Your buying the "feel", not dyno numbers. It's not important what the "peak" hp is, but rather how crisp the curve feels on the wat up to the peak. A chip primarilly reshapes the curve and secondly may raise it slightly. Just my opinion of course.

floridian · February 2001

ralex2: rear wheels indeed. LOL. I'm so used to that "term" (not a front driver fan either) as it just slipped out. One thing I will say about the chip my son had in his ZX2 (took it out tho)was that for some reason it seemed to idle better, smoother. As you know the Ztech 2.0 has a very lumpy idle as installed in the ZX2.They seem much smoother as installed in the ZX3. I was told that the 2.0 in the ZX3's are tuned totally different, even a different head too, that plus better isolation from improved motor mounts etc resulting in a quieter better NVH result.

The K&N type induction had little effect by itself. After the tuned header and free-flow exhaust and underdrive pulleys were put on it made the biggest difference in the output. About 8hp as I recall. That ZX2 has since been returned to mostly stock condition and he's now working on a ZX3 for the coming SCCA season. All it takes is MONEY !!

Floridian

photog0264 · February 2001

Possible a stupid one but, exactly what does it mean to "supercharge" a car? I have heard various definitions of it through the years. The most common seems to refer to a series of additions that make up the word "Supercharged". Additions such as improved airflow, fuel injector mods, etc. Is there some magic "Supercharging Kit" that installs something like a nitrious oxide injector in the engine; or Perhaps some other engine destroying addon that I have never heard of?

Point of interest if anyone cares. My favourite colour combo for the Miata is Burgundy Red with warm tan coloured top. Funnily enough I have seen two ZX2s (or possible the same ones twice) with a non standard paint job, that was in this colour or one very similar to it. For the record I am not talking about the Toreado Red ZX2 either. With one of these two zx2s he had a bright white stripe down the middle of the car. While the other one had larger looking wheels and no stripe. For either the ZX2, or the Miata it is a really classy looking shade of red.

Ralex,
I could be VERY mistaken in this. But for some strange reason I seem to think that Dunlop is or was related to Cooper Tires. I have heard that Coopers are stronger in the UK than over here. Again though it is entirely possible I don't what the hell I am talking about.

IF someone teases you about the Miata being a girl's car. Consider this I used to know a member of the SAS who drove one, while he was stationed over here. For some strange reason no one ever called him "a girl". I just can't understand why, can you? Though I didn't know him very well. Of the few times I did have cause to talk to him, he seemed like a rather decent, and freindly fellow. Certainly not what I was expecting given who, and what he obviously was.

ralex2 · February 2001

A Supercharger is a belt driven turbine, or helix compressor that increases the volume of air that can be crammed into your engine. More air = more fuel = more power. Functionally, the supercharger is the same as a turbocharger. The difference in the two is that the turbocharger is driven by a turbine in the exhaust and the supercharger is driven by a belt. Obviously there is a little lag with turbochargers that superchargers do not experience. Generally, when pressure on the intake side is increased with a compressor, it's necessary to "beef up" the pistons, rods, and crank. Otherwise engine life is reduce in direct proportion to the boost applied.

I,m thinking Cooper and Goodrich are under common ownership, but it's just a rumor.

ra

waverunrgp800 · February 2001

this for the info for added per of my zx-2.just looking for a few extra hp's.will most likely go with the free-flow exhaust.hey,good small-peppy
performer versus dollars spent!

vadp · February 2001

http://www.svt.ford.com/focus.html

photog0264 · February 2001

As I struggle with learning FrontPage 2000 and go through my constant swearing fits of anger regarding that websight and domain that I purchased.

It is nice to hear a clear cut definative answer to something. Thank you Ralex I suppose in a way the earlier definitions had some truth to them. It obviously does increase the airflow, but it also requires considerable modifications to the rest of the engine. Though I have NO intention of having it done. I am curious would the ZX2 engine take such a modification? or would just burn the engine out in short order? I guess it would have to have one of those ugly looking bulges added to the hood to fit the compressor in the engine bay; or possible even a scoop on the hood.

Still a clear answer, when my world seems full of grey ones...

ralex2 · February 2001

It will be interesting to see how the SVT is priced. Could be a pretty good ride. I personally think the blue stinks, the red stinks, the black is impossible to keep clean, the silver is probably ok. White would be nice, or even zinc yellow. Not sure why they think it needs a six speed gear box. The engine isn't likely to be peaky. Probably just a sales gimmick.

rickgonz · February 2001

Still too ugly.

Mostly cosmetic "improvements" over the regular ZX3. The specs do not mention any lowering springs or performance struts or suspension bushings.

Height is still 56.3". Of course I can always lower the seat and lean it back some more (and put on a baseball cap backwards) so for a short guy like me, end up with eyes just peeking over the steering wheel. Maybe it will add to the sporty feel.

I wonder how many HP the leather trimmed seats and the leather wrapped steering wheel add.
$18,000 for 170HP?
I'd like to see performance figures.

ralex2 · February 2001

I think Floridian's son had a turbocharger on his ZX-2. Superchargers would be less common but I suppose they are out there. The problem is that hanging a compressor on an engine that isn't initially built for it, shortens engine life considerably. Engines that are "factory" turbocharged generally have better pistons, rods, and even a better chank. Compression ratios at 0 boost are generally lowered a little. I tried auto crossing a turbocharged car once. Big mistake. Turbo lag was a pain in the butt. Until you get them wound up you are paying a performance penalty. Superchargers are a different story. Still, those are rich boys toys - race track stuff. On a daily driver, if the boost is low enough to not effect engine life, then you aren't getting enough power out of it to justify the expense in the first place. Ballpark prices are probably $2000 - $3000 to do it right. HP might go from 130 to 160 give or take. Engine life would drop from 200,000 to 100,000 or less depending on your foot. Once it's on there, you won't be able to keep your foot out of it. Today's engines just aren't overbuilt like the old motors. Computers design engine parts to specific strength requirements with a pre-determined cushion to minimize costs. How much of a cushion there is depends on whose engine you have. My theory is that if you want a 160 hp, buy a car that makes 160 hp out of the box, if for no other reason, warranty and ease of maintenance. If you are a skilled wrench with lots of bucks and a nice garage, then go for it. Put Nitrous and a blower on you Elantra and scare the hell out of everybody.

freddy_k · February 2001

On a note with Ralex, I agree that the best way to make extra power is to buy the car with it already. There are some well priced pocket rockets out there.

00 The Civic SI(R) is already 160 hp and an excellent car to boot. Definetly worth considering, and not much more then a fully loaded Z.

The Sentra S/ER looks like a hell of a car. 180 hp, similar torque from a 2.5 l I4. tuned suspension. Looks like a lot of bang for the buck. I think it will also quickly make you forget the 2 extra doors. Also expected to come out only a small amount more then a loaded Z would have cost.

Of course I'm happy with what the Z offers and feel it is good bang for the buck, and see no reason to dump in piles of money to try and tweak out miniscule amounts of power.

ralex2 · February 2001

It's been pretty quiet in here for awhile, so I slipped over to the ZX3 forum and read a hundred posts. After seeing the link to the SVT ZX3 I thought there might be a Focus in my future. I even called my dealer to see if he could get SVT vehicles. Well, scratch that plan.

I can't say that the ZX3 group is disappointed with their cars in general, but the overall tone of the forum seems negative. It seems the ZX3 doesn't get the fuel mileage you would expect, and it has a lot of new car bugs. Some dealers are providing reasonable support and some aren't. There have been suspension problems, a/c problems, a lot of noise problems, guage problems, and electrical problems. Of course it is still a nice car and there are a lot of happy owners, but in general, it looks like the new coupe is a shakey buy. There is speculation that the SVT ZX3 will be priced at about 18K. It's too early to be certain. I don't think it will be worth it and I'm probably going to hang on to my ZX2. I cleaned her up last night and she looked good. Mileage is good, no noises, no suspension problems, no a/c problems, no problems period (but the seats suck). Yup, the old green Z is lookin' pretty good to me these days.

ralex2 · February 2001

If anyone is interested, the ZX2 weighs about 2,480 lbs. 62% or 1,535 lbs on the front axle and 38% or 945 lbs on the rear. Margin of error about 20#. My apologies for the lame pun.

cdoseck · February 2001

I am planning to buy a ZX2, but would really like to know what kind of ground clearance it has. I haven't been able to find this stat anywhere, and the people at Ford are telling me that they don't know! If any one could tell me, I'd appreciate it.

ddogg · February 2001

Does anyone know if the 4-bolt pattern on the focus is 100mm, like the zx2?? Alot of nice wheels are becoming available from Ford for this car. Sure wish Ford would have kept its bolt patterns generic among its compact & sport coupe divisions.

2000zx2guy · March 2001

Where did everyone go? Although I seldom post messages, I do enjoy checking in to see what the discussion is. I believe that this group is the largest at edmunds, or at least I was lead to believe this when we began Part II. Are we fading out as the miles go up? Is there no more argument about the best way to determine miles per gallon? Are we destined to buy off the shelf economy tires? Will Photog keep his latest out of the body shop? I can't stand the suspense!
Chris

mcalvert1 · March 2001

Yep, kinda quiet ever since the change in the look of the board. I still don't like it as much. But anyway, spring's just around the corner! Warm weather means windows down, roofs open, and vacations! So how has everyone's experience been with long trips in the Z? From what little experience I've had, after an hour or two, my butt is numb. I'm trying to decide if it's worth it to rent a car for a 14 hour car drive. Later.

MjC

freddy_k · March 2001

As the car fades away, the message board must follow...

rickgonz · March 2001

It's not fading away yet.
Job 1 2002 model ZX2 at the Hermosillo, Mexico plant is July 16, 2001.
See the complete ford/mercury/lincoln/jaguar, etc. list on blueovalnews.com

freddy_k · March 2001

Hmmm... in the states I guess, it's history up here in Canada.

photog0264 · March 2001

Just when you thought I had faded away here I am again... Stupid jokes aside the reason for my silence was two fold. First I moved to a new apartment just north of Dulles Airport, in Northern Virginia, and second and most serious, my computer just about failed. As a result my faithfull 166mhz is nothing but a refurburshment project for a rainy day and I now have a new Pc to play with. My new machine is a much nicer 1 GIG with a 40 gig hard drive. All being well in the coming weeks I will be uping the ram to 512meg, adding a new AGP Video Card and a couple other little tweeps, and twerps to the new toy.

Now to bring the subject back to the ZX2. During the move, some swine (I have a stronger adjective in mind but this is a family forum) put an 8 inch bare metal scratch on my car, and added the second door ding. Damn am I annoyed at this. It clearly was caused by someone being stupid and without regard. I am thinking about asking at the dealership to see if they can recommend someone for minor body repairs next week. As on tuesday I am going for the second oil change.

Did I read that Rick? There maybe 2002 ZX2? I truly hope so, as I have come to love my ZX2 almost as much as did my late Accura Integra. Probably because of all the pain I have been through with this car.

ralex2 · March 2001

Photog, glad you're back. It's been pretty quiet. Congrats on the new puter - I just did the same thing, but only went to an 800 instead of the gig. Good video card makes up the difference. I had maxed out my old Super Socket 7 and had to spring for a new case & mobo this time around, but that's too far off topic. This is about cars, except that I wanted to make sure everybody noticed your association of "love" and "pain." Maybe you should see somebody about that. Lay back, relax....now tell me how you felt about your mother when your were a child and ... . . .

photog0264 · March 2001

Let me see now, back in the 1960s my parents decided they wanted to give there only son a brother. We can skip over all the messy parts and then one day about 9 months later while out grocery shopping; my mother decided rather abruptly she had better get to the infirmary in Leeds, England rather quickly. Then she ....

Okay guys I will stop now before I get too graphic. Suffice to say I maybe a touch wierd, a triffle nuerotic, and known for some rather wild tangents in my conversations. However I do love my mother, and any time I invest so much pain and money into something that should have only cost me half. Well it sort of brings out the love hate side of my associations.

A co-worker of mine Yesterday purchased a new Subaru. I think she paid close to $18K for it. The funny part is with my lowly little Escort on Steroids, I still have her beat by about 3 or 4 grand. I her told for the lords sake use my bad luck as an example of what NOT to do, with a new car. All these months later I still can't get the image of my front end vanishing in eye blink out of my mind. The near miss with my life I can live with, however all the bad luck that I had with my first Black ZX2 is a pill that I still can't swallow completly.

rickgonz · March 2001

actually I should agree with freddy k, as the T-bird and Aerostar(?) faded away, so probably will the ZX2. While the profit picture is good the car will be manufactured. The 2002 model will probably have no changes from what we can assume from Ford's silence.

The speculation on the various fora about Focus-based ZX2s for 2003 are still unconfirmed until we see a concept car.

I am happy that at 13.5K miles I am now regularly getting 29mpg (improved from 26mpg previously) with normal spirited driving.
That is: usually change gears at or about 3k RPM, and once in a while launch fast with upshift to 2nd at 4.5k and to 3rd at 5k rpms.
I never launch heel-toe, so do not do high rpm starts in 1st.

Air pressure is kept to about 35 all around on the stock tires.

rric100 · March 2001

Bought my '98 ZX2 Hot in August of '98,just turned 38,000 miles.Only problems I've had is a
faulty CD changer and the "clicking" front brakes,
both of which were repaired under warranty by Ford
with little or no hassle.Only mods I've made are
a K&N air filter and 15" Konig rims with 195/55-15
Kumho Ecsta 712 tires.Been using 5w30 Mobil1 synt-
etic since 10k,and replaced the manual tranny lube
with RedLine synthetic ATF,which made a noticeable
improvement in shifter feel and action.
While the driving position is somewhat cramped
for 6 footers,and the seats are awful,the car has
been very reliable and trouble free,and is an absolute blast to drive briskly around town!With new 2001 ZX2's advertised for $8995.00 here in
Portland,OR.,add $800.00 or so for dealer install-ed A/C,IMHO a person could do a lot worse for an
under 10K entry level vehicle!

ralex2 · March 2001

Mic100, my '99 has about 10K fewer miles and has been trouble free, but I agree with you on the seats. I was also perplexed by the feel of the shifter. I put a short throw shifter in and the resistance went way up, but is better now that it's older. Tell me more about the Redline ATF. Sounds like something I may need to do.

freddy_k · March 2001

I was closely following a '00 Celica today, driving around the empty streets around where I work, both of us with the pedal down. While he was surprised at the Z's pick-up in any of the lower gears, I was surprised and disappointed in how much more stable the Celica was then my Z. I know the Celica is a better performer and in a different price range, but it was stuck to the road like glue while I, taking the same corners, really felt my car on the brink, the tires sliding a little and ready to loose their grip completely. I realized that if he were to take his first turn at his fastest I probably would have ended up following - and continuing over the curb ;-) Now more then ever I think any money that people put into these cars should be for improving the handling, and not wasted on meager hp.

ralex2 · March 2001

Just out of curiosity Freddy, was that a GT or GTS? Both are very good, but I'm told the GTS isouworth the extra bucks. I agree with you on the handling mods. I like the way the Z stacks up against GM and Chrysler, but a lot of imports not only handle a bunch better, but they do it without all the fuss. As you probably know, when the Z is at the edge it can get a little weird. Skid pad numbers tell a lot, but there should be an "underwear" number that lets you know how uncomfortable the driver was getting that skid pad number.

freddy_k · March 2001

It was the GT-S model, and very nice. The suspension of the two are the same, and most people out their wouldn't use what the GT-S offers. The extra power is only near the redline, the six spd vs 5 spd tranny is personal opinion, and most of the options standard on the GT-S are at least available on the GT. The brakes on the GT-S are incredible though.

If I was going to buy a coupe as my next car, the Celica would be it. (unless something new came out before that time)

ddogg · March 2001

This group sure is becoming a graveyard. Hopefully the warm weather will inspire those who have made this group what it was better again.

Does anyone know the dimensions of the 15" ZX2 S/R rim(How wide, in inches)? What size tire is mounted on it?

Ford Escort ZX2

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles

Your Privacy