1985 Ford Granada Ghia X Estate
Discussion
rallycross said:
The Granada 2.8i Ghia X was the first car I was in that had cruise control and aircon (mid 80's)
I remember my dad having the cruise set to just under 100 on a trip down the M6 from Edinburgh to London at night.
I was £500 short for a 2.8 Ghia X , had a 2.3 GL but PX was too low and I hadn't got the £500 I remember my dad having the cruise set to just under 100 on a trip down the M6 from Edinburgh to London at night.
Gutted , saved up a bit more and bought a 2.8 Ghia jelly mound Granada
The supplying garage serviced it for me which was nice of them , well it would have been if they knew how to do it
A few days later I hoofed it to overtake a car, took my foot off and it kept going , got a bit hairy for a few seconds as my brain processed what was going on but I managed to get it stopped
They'd taken a jubilee clip off to change the air filter and put it back on with the worm drive on the top so on kick down the throttle lever went past the drive and stayed there
Not only do the lights regularly give you false warnings (my wife' s 2001 Saab 9-3 is almost as bad for this - its info panel constantly telling fibs about stuff that isn't broken, so you ignore broken stuff that really is broken), but the Granny's warning lights are in a dumb place, distracting you from the road. Still, looks cool to have airliner stylee lighty uppy stuff on the ceiling.
This one also does the thing where when you switch the headlights on the temp gauge shoots up. Switch them off, and it goes back to normal.
This one also does the thing where when you switch the headlights on the temp gauge shoots up. Switch them off, and it goes back to normal.
I worked in Fleet sales for a Ford dealer in the early 80`s.
We sold one of these, 2.8i Ghia X flavour, to Lord Sieff then Chairman of Marks & Sparks.
We had to paint it to match his outgoing Granada Sapphire, remember them, Two tone Blue over Silver? Had to put every extra on it, mats, flaps, fire extinguisher, first aid kit, dog guard, badge bar etc.
I also remember his office contacting us to see if we could supply a gun rack!!!!
Also Im not sure if it was just hear say, but we were led to believe Ford lost money on Ghia X Estates.
We sold one of these, 2.8i Ghia X flavour, to Lord Sieff then Chairman of Marks & Sparks.
We had to paint it to match his outgoing Granada Sapphire, remember them, Two tone Blue over Silver? Had to put every extra on it, mats, flaps, fire extinguisher, first aid kit, dog guard, badge bar etc.
I also remember his office contacting us to see if we could supply a gun rack!!!!
Also Im not sure if it was just hear say, but we were led to believe Ford lost money on Ghia X Estates.
Breadvan72 said:
Not only do the lights regularly give you false warnings (my wife' s 2001 Saab 9-3 is almost as bad for this - its info panel constantly telling fibs about stuff that isn't broken, so you ignore broken stuff that really is broken), but the Granny's warning lights are in a dumb place, distracting you from the road. Still, looks cool to have airliner stylee lighty uppy stuff on the ceiling.
This one also does the thing where when you switch the headlights on the temp gauge shoots up. Switch them off, and it goes back to normal.
Duff earth somewhere, or perhaps the voltage stabiliser widget for the dashboard has ceased to stabilise.This one also does the thing where when you switch the headlights on the temp gauge shoots up. Switch them off, and it goes back to normal.
Better, I think, than other autoboxes of that era that I have sampled. The box does not seem to act as a massive power drain or make the car mega thirsty. There is a slightly rubbish kickdown, but you don't need that, as you just open the throttle and blat off. This all applies once you are up to speed. The car won't win any traffic light tearaways.
sinbaddio said:
Love it! I think they used a Granada estate in the Sweeney 2?
Yes the late and much missed actor Brian Hall (a regular face in '70s plod & villainy stuff) drove a gold Mk2 estate in Sweeney 2, complete with roll neck sweater, dour expression and driving gloves.Top purchasing BV, lovely job!
Edited by P5BNij on Friday 31st March 16:23
Breadvan72 said:
Cheers Roy. I have not yet succumbed to a P6. Should I? Room in the back for the shooters?
Good wrappage plan, ClaphamGT3. Park it up on bricks to piss them off even more once all the money to buy petrol runs out and we are back to trading magic beans.
I bought a 1978 Strato Silver Granada 2.8 Ghia in 1981 to replace a P6 Rover 3500S - I wouldn't recommend a P6, especially not an S with the manual box as PAS was an option!Good wrappage plan, ClaphamGT3. Park it up on bricks to piss them off even more once all the money to buy petrol runs out and we are back to trading magic beans.
Plus the Granny handled so much better, and had much more room in the back (or the boot) for whatever tools of the trade you require!
What I should have done was buy a manual injected Granny seeing as I was in my early 20s back then, but I was working for an insurance company at the time and my Ghia came along cheap as it was a stolen/recovered one! Kept it 18 months and sold it for a profit - happy days
Still have very happy memories of the my Granny - it just felt like a quality product! Whereas all I remember of the P6 is it was quick until you got to a corner, and it rusted for fun!
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