RE: Ford Sierra 1.6 Laser | Spotted
Discussion
My second brand new car was a red 1.6 L with dog tooth tweed upholstery and options were a radio cassette and some sort of paint protection treatment. Ran faultlessly.
I remember a lot of my mates thought i was flashy back then when no teenagers ever bought brand new cars.
traded it for a white Ford sierra Sapphire LX with velour upholstery and red stripe around the plastic rub strip. At the time a lot of people mistook it for a Cosworth, pre internet there were only rumours about them. The ladies didn't know i was fibbing when i picked them up in my "Cosworth". I used to keep it on the boil on the way to the pub by only using the first 3 gears to the rev limiter!. Cosworth-lite.
I remember a lot of my mates thought i was flashy back then when no teenagers ever bought brand new cars.
traded it for a white Ford sierra Sapphire LX with velour upholstery and red stripe around the plastic rub strip. At the time a lot of people mistook it for a Cosworth, pre internet there were only rumours about them. The ladies didn't know i was fibbing when i picked them up in my "Cosworth". I used to keep it on the boil on the way to the pub by only using the first 3 gears to the rev limiter!. Cosworth-lite.
3795mpower said:
Happy memories of my Dad’s repmobiles,
He had a string of these through the mid 80’s to early 90’s
As a young boy I would always have my head buried in a car
Brochure and we would always have fun correcting the salesmen
On their car specs !
I can tell you that a U.K spec Laser had a sunroof, rear wiper
And 5 speed box, so this truly is poverty spec at its peak !
I used to love looking through Ford brochures back then. I was quite shocked to see this one without a sunroof and a 5 speed box as well. I always thought that the Laser models did have a bit more kit over the bare bones spec cars. He had a string of these through the mid 80’s to early 90’s
As a young boy I would always have my head buried in a car
Brochure and we would always have fun correcting the salesmen
On their car specs !
I can tell you that a U.K spec Laser had a sunroof, rear wiper
And 5 speed box, so this truly is poverty spec at its peak !
My ex FIL used to have a Sierra brand new every 3 years(1.8LX/2.0LX), and he'd always let me drive home back from the dealer in them. I have very fond memories of those cars(I loved seeing/driving a brand new car back then).
My Dad also had a 1987 1.8LX that he nearly killed us all in trying to overtake a car...because he underestimated how gutless it was(to be fair he was used to a 1979 5.0 V8 Mustang at the time though). So he swiftly swapped that for a 2.9 XR4x4.
My Mum also had a Sierra 1.6L at one stage. I miss having a Ford in my life for sure.
Augustus Windsock said:
Er I may be wrong of course but weren’t they made in Germany (Cologne?) as well for Europe?
I had a mate at work who only used to buy ones made in one of the locations (can’t remember which tbh) as they seemed to be built better and resisted the onset of ferrous oxide better (he was an engineer before becoming a cop so o bow to his greater knowledge…)
I had a 1984 Sierra 1.6GL as my first car and I too was told it was a shell from Germany that resisted rust far better. Given its hard life as a company car, for which we'd known it since new it was in good condition.I had a mate at work who only used to buy ones made in one of the locations (can’t remember which tbh) as they seemed to be built better and resisted the onset of ferrous oxide better (he was an engineer before becoming a cop so o bow to his greater knowledge…)
Be interested to know if anyone can confirm this.
davidc1 said:
I saw an A reg estate in white recently on the A21 bypass. A 2.3 ghia.with the double headlights and the pepperpots alloys.
Looked so tiny.
Cant be many of those left!
Bl**dy hell, that must be about one of one! I've only ever seen a couple at shows over the years let alone on the roads.Looked so tiny.
Cant be many of those left!
I think that's one reason the thread on here about the basic one gets so much love!
Limpet said:
I had a Y reg 1.6L as a second car after the MOT man condemned my Mini.
Gutless, but bakelite 165 section tyres and RWD taught me a heck of a lot about car control on wet roundabouts. Sideways at 20 mph. Happy days!
Superb, me too! My first car was a 1600, I can vividly remember it braking away for the first time on a local roundabout, 17 year old me was a bit shocked!Gutless, but bakelite 165 section tyres and RWD taught me a heck of a lot about car control on wet roundabouts. Sideways at 20 mph. Happy days!
Quavers said:
I had an XR4i - not the biplane one but the late 80's reincarnation with the twin cam.
It was nice to drive but the engine was very harsh - the pinto was much nicer.
I wasn't all that fond of the I4 engine in 8v form in the Sierra, but I did think that Ford did a nice job with it in 16v form in the 1992 Escort RS2000 I had though. It was nice to drive but the engine was very harsh - the pinto was much nicer.
magic Monkey Dust said:
My second brand new car was a red 1.6 L with dog tooth tweed upholstery and options were a radio cassette and some sort of paint protection treatment. Ran faultlessly.
I remember a lot of my mates thought i was flashy back then when no teenagers ever bought brand new cars.
traded it for a white Ford sierra Sapphire LX with velour upholstery and red stripe around the plastic rub strip. At the time a lot of people mistook it for a Cosworth, pre internet there were only rumours about them. The ladies didn't know i was fibbing when i picked them up in my "Cosworth". I used to keep it on the boil on the way to the pub by only using the first 3 gears to the rev limiter!. Cosworth-lite.
that is excellent. top notch bluffing.I remember a lot of my mates thought i was flashy back then when no teenagers ever bought brand new cars.
traded it for a white Ford sierra Sapphire LX with velour upholstery and red stripe around the plastic rub strip. At the time a lot of people mistook it for a Cosworth, pre internet there were only rumours about them. The ladies didn't know i was fibbing when i picked them up in my "Cosworth". I used to keep it on the boil on the way to the pub by only using the first 3 gears to the rev limiter!. Cosworth-lite.
My Dad bought a brand new 1.6 Laser in May 1984 - A44HGY. We were told it was the first Laser on the road as they weren't due to be launched until June but our previous car had been written off and it was in stock so Dees of Sidcup let us have it a few weeks early.
It had the 1.6 EMAX engine (which I believe this one is), so it was pretty gutless and the camshaft had to be changed really early it's life. Nice wheel trims though - several sets were stolen so the locals agreed. He changed it a few years later for a Sierra Sapphire 2.0 GLSi which was a bit more like it.
It had the 1.6 EMAX engine (which I believe this one is), so it was pretty gutless and the camshaft had to be changed really early it's life. Nice wheel trims though - several sets were stolen so the locals agreed. He changed it a few years later for a Sierra Sapphire 2.0 GLSi which was a bit more like it.
With its contemporaries, you could get by with a 1.6, Cavalier, Montego etc but with the Sierra the 1.6 felt very wheezy being RWD, less powerful and a bit heavier, Always thought the Sierra needed a 2.0 to be worth having, the 1.8 wastn a very nice engine from what I remember but it was a bit peppier than the 1.6.
The did a 1.3 for when a heady 74 bhp was too spicy for you and you felt that you could only manage 59 bhp, can only imagine what slug of a thing that would have been, in period, never mind now.
Always quite liked driving Sierras though, as long as you didnt over drive or expect too much they were decent enough, 2.8i felt quite rapid but my favorite was one called a 2.0 IS which really impressed me at the time.
Looking back, I was about 11 when the Sierra came out and it was a bit of a shock, I used to get a lift in my mates dads brand new Cortina Crusader which to me at the time was the pinnacle of luxury, he then was bestowed a company Sierra which he initially hated but soon got used to as to be fair, in a lot of ways it was a streamlined Cortina, the little graphic of the car on the dash showing which doors were open seemed impossibly futuristic back in 1984.
In fact, for a time everyone seemed to have a Sierra, all my mates dads, most taxis, in fact my mate had a 2.0 GLSI (in a fetching pinky gold), remember parking after a club outside a kebab place in Stockport and some girls just tried to get in assuming it was a taxi
I worked for a year or two as a valeter/driver/gopher for a car trader, so got to drive loads of them, the one that illicits the biggest memory, aside from the obvious Moonstone Blue RS500 is the early grey bumpered, small light model as they came out at launch.
The did a 1.3 for when a heady 74 bhp was too spicy for you and you felt that you could only manage 59 bhp, can only imagine what slug of a thing that would have been, in period, never mind now.
Always quite liked driving Sierras though, as long as you didnt over drive or expect too much they were decent enough, 2.8i felt quite rapid but my favorite was one called a 2.0 IS which really impressed me at the time.
Looking back, I was about 11 when the Sierra came out and it was a bit of a shock, I used to get a lift in my mates dads brand new Cortina Crusader which to me at the time was the pinnacle of luxury, he then was bestowed a company Sierra which he initially hated but soon got used to as to be fair, in a lot of ways it was a streamlined Cortina, the little graphic of the car on the dash showing which doors were open seemed impossibly futuristic back in 1984.
In fact, for a time everyone seemed to have a Sierra, all my mates dads, most taxis, in fact my mate had a 2.0 GLSI (in a fetching pinky gold), remember parking after a club outside a kebab place in Stockport and some girls just tried to get in assuming it was a taxi
I worked for a year or two as a valeter/driver/gopher for a car trader, so got to drive loads of them, the one that illicits the biggest memory, aside from the obvious Moonstone Blue RS500 is the early grey bumpered, small light model as they came out at launch.
Fortunately I had just ordered my new FWD Cavalier when the Sierra was launched. Some colleagues ordered them without test driving and a number regretted it as the Cavalier was the more agile, fun car. I later changed jobs and had 3 Sierra's in succession (two 1.6s and a 1.8). They were dull but totally reliable and reasonably comfortable. Then back to some normality with a Cavalier SRi 130 which was decent car for the money in 1989.
All mine had steel wheels with trims. I think alloys were an option on the Ghia. Amazing to think that alloys were a sports car accessory or a rare option as recently as 1990'ish. Now for some reason a Grandma in an auto Hyundai base model feels she needs them. I painted my wheel trims white and Yoofs up and down my city in the 90's used to nod sagely as i rolled past.
How expectations have changed since the Sierra.
How expectations have changed since the Sierra.
Six Potter said:
The Sierra has some retro appeal for me, though there's nothing particularly desireable about the 1.6L Laser engine and trim. This looks like a good RWD base car to modify, it needs wheels and suspension at least, an engine swap would be a fun project...
Didn't Ford of South Africa do a V8? Now that would be a Q car. Might invest in some decent rubber though...Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff