Buying Guide Ford Granada MkIII
It’s more than 30 years since the final Granada arrived, and Ford’s most luxurious product of the time is now an affordable family-friendly classic
‘It’s largely forgotten, so prices are temptingly keen’
When Ford built its final Scorpio (the revamped version of the Granada), it represented the end of an era. The Blue Oval had offered a full range of cars from small to extra-large for decades, but buyers wanted smaller cars that were cheaper to run as the 20th century drew to a close. By the time Scorpio production came to an end, the Mondeo had replaced the Sierra and was expected to fill the void left by its bigger brother, too.
The Granada MkIII hatchback arrived in May 1985 and was the first car in the world with electronic anti-lock brakes as standard across the range. At first the car came with Ford’s Pinto engine in carburetted 1.8- or 2.0-litre (90bhp or 100bhp) forms, or there was a 110bhp 2.0 injected variant. Alongside these was Ford’s 2.8-litre Cologne V6 with K-Jetronic fuel injection, while the 2.5-litre Peugeot-sourced normallyaspirated diesel was carried over from the previous Granada.
Within a few months the 2.8i engine could be ordered with four-wheel-drive, but this engine would be obsolete by spring 1987, superseded by a 2.9i unit introduced alongside a 2.4-litre V6. A turbocharger was bolted onto the diesel engine from November 1988, then the 2.0- and 2.4-litre engines were replaced by an all-new injected 2.0-litre four-cylinder unit six months later. Within a year the hatch was joined by a four-door saloon then, in spring 1991, came the ultimate Granada – the Cosworth-engined 195bhp 24v 2.9i Scorpio. Offered in hatch and saloon K-jetronic forms, it had an automatic ‘ box and a limited-slip diff as standard. By January 1992 an estate had been launched with 2.0- or 2.9-litre engines, all Granadas from this point featuring a redesigned nose, dashboard and smoked rear light lenses.
A heavily revised car reached showrooms in 1994, dubbed Scorpio instead of Granada. Offered as a saloon or estate only, the centre section was carried over but the panels forward of the A-pillars and everything behind the C-pillars was new, and there was also a redesigned dashboard.
The Scorpio remained in production until 1998, but two decades on, Ford’s last true luxobarge is pretty much forgotten by many people, even more so than the Granada that sired it. And that means prices are temptingly keen. Here’s what to look out for…
TOYS GALORE
All Granadas came with either cloth or leather trim. Both tend to last well and if you find a lowmileage car that’s been stored sympathetically, the upholstery should be as good as new. If you need to replace any damaged trim, don’t bank on tracking anything down easily; it’ll be down to pot luck. Top-spec Granadas came with a huge amount of toys, which means lots of buttons, switches, relays and motors. You’ll be doing well to find any new replacement parts but as with the trim, if you’re lucky, you’ll find someone with some suitable used bits. Not all Granadas are loaded, though; cheaper editions were surprisingly austere. The bug-eyed Scorpio features a wiring loom with a coating that disintegrates, leading to short- circuits galore. Be very wary of any car on its original loom.
GOOD GROT RESISTANCE
Having wheelarch liners means that the Granada doesn’t rust as badly as you might think, but check the rear wheelarches, sills and jacking points; most Granadas have had rear wheelarch repairs by now. Inspect the lower front wings, the metal below the rear lights and the door tops. No complete panels are available, but Capri specialist, Tickover, offers a few repair panels for areas such as the sills and rear wheelarches.
GIVE THE ABS A WORKOUT
All of these cars were fitted with electronic anti-lock brakes. As a result you need to check that the yellow light on the dash illuminates when the ignition is switched on, and extinguishes after a few seconds. Warped brake discs aren’t unusual, so feel for juddering when slowing, especially at speed. It was common for the discs to be skimmed when these cars were new, but that just makes the metal thinner and even more prone to distorting. That’s why fitting new replacement discs is a much better idea, and at £40-70 for a front pair and £30-40 for the rears, the job won’t exactly break the bank.
SMOOTHLY DOES IT
It’s likely that the suspension bushes will be tired, but replacements are still available. Polyurethane parts are easier to source than the original rubber items and they’ll prove more durable, not to mention slightly improving the handling; the original parts were quite soft and tended not to last too long. Even better, poly bushes don’t have much of an adverse effect on the ride. A set for the front anti-roll bar costs £29; a pair for the inner track control arm are £50 (those for the outer track control arm are the same price) while a set of bushes for the outer trailing arm are available for £40.
ENGINES CHECKLIST
Infrequent oil changes inflict premature wear on the 2.0-litre Pinto engine’s camshaft. The later twin-cam is much stronger, but early ones suffered from cylinder head oil leaks. The 2.8-litre Cologne V6’s fibre timing gear can break up, but steel replacements are available for around £200. A compression test will reveal a blown cylinder head gasket or warped cylinder head; expect 120psi per cylinder on a healthy engine. The 2.9-litre V6 is tough but the twin air meters can play up, leading to erratic idling and running; later cars got a sensing management system and hydraulic tappets.
MANUAL OR AUTO?
All Granadas had a five-speed manual gearbox as standard, but a four-speed automatic was available with all engines apart from the 1.8 petrol and 2.5 diesel. It’s not very slick, and can be very clunky unless it’s set up perfectly. Manual V6s are very rare; four-cylinder cars seem to be split fairly evenly between manual and auto. Ford’s Type 9 gearbox was fitted to all Granadas until the arrival of the MTX75 transmission in June 1989. The most likely problem with the earlier gearbox is worn lay gear bearings, given away by silence from the transmission in fourth gear.
FOUR TO THE FLOOR
Four-wheel-drive Granadas are unusual; relatively few were sold new because they were so expensive. The transmission isn’t especially efficient and because it was offered only with the 2.9i V6 engine, expect hefty fuel bills. Driveline vibrations are often caused by wheels and tyres that are either mismatched, low quality or poorly balanced.