Re: Granada

[quk@isham-research.demon.co.uk (Phil Payne)]

In message <489c3b36.24cdab8a@aol.com> MCTXR4@aol.com writes:

> In Europe The Granada nameplate was on a variety of cars that survived until
> approx. '97. Likewise it was sold here in the US from '87 to'89 as the Merkur
> Scorpio. Very classy car that was supposed to be an MB 300 fighter here. Also
> Ford sold the European Sierra here as the Merkur XR4Ti. It was meant to be a
> counter to the BMW 3 series. Unlike the garden variety Granadas and Sierras,
> the US only got the High specification version with US certified powerplants.

The XR4i (yes, it had a turbo) was also available here in a Cosworth
version.  It's a _VERY_ nice engine to work on, although its performance
characteristics are a bit crude.  I'm sure you could stand in the engine
bay, whereas you can't get a little finger into some I5 engine bays.

The 'top of range' Granadas, branded as 'Scorpios' over here, were very
nice cars indeed.  A nice balance of trim level and accessories, with
some quite pleasant little design touches.  I restate, however, that I
would almost kill for the heated front screen in an ur-quattro.

It was a very comfortable and easy car to drive.  My 2.0EFi had one of
the best slushboxes I've ever had - the change points were extremely
predictable and in just the right places.

After I'd had the ur-quattro for a couple of weeks, I had to repeat one
of my classic 'rat runs' to get to the M1 motorway.  The apexes were
all in different places - different braking points, full throttle
points, etc.

I got to the end of the trip and thought: "Phew - that was hard work.
Maybe buying this quattro thing wasn't a good idea."

Then I realised I'd done the usual 26 minute trip in 18.

--
 Phil Payne
 UK Audi quattro Owners Club
 Phone: 0385 302803   Fax: 0870 0883933