Even though it was named as a sixth generation, the 1995 Escort was largely based on its predecessor, and it took an expert eye to distinguish the two models.
Ford needed to get rid of its vehicles’ boxy old-style look, but its designers looked like they didn’t burn the midnight oil to make a new shape for the Escort. The European market was recovering fast from the economic recession, and the compact-segment was growing.

For the 1995 Escort, Ford introduced a new front fascia with smaller headlights rounded on the inbound side. The oval grille was kept from its predecessor, but the bumper featured a rounded, slim opening to cool the engine. Depending on the trim-level and the options, the 1995 Escort featured headlights washers, but the base model featured black plastic bumpers. From the sides, the squared-shape of the door handles was changed in favor of rounded ones.

Inside, a newly designed dashboard took the place of the older, squared one. Its instrument cluster was extended over the center stack and the central vents. The radio-cassette was included in the standard version, but the power windows and mirrors didn’t. At least, it featured a driver’s airbag and power-steering. In the back, the folding and tilting bench was standard as well.

Under the hood, Ford kept the 1.4-liter engine for the base model, but its entire lineup was with fuel injection. Three diesel engines were introduced to cover the demand for commuter cars.

The fifth generation of the Escort was a car built as an affordable, compact vehicle.
One of the most common version was the five-door.

In 1992, Ford introduced a facelift for its compact-segment representative, the Escort. The refresh affected the entire range, including the coupe, the sedan, the station wagon, the convertible, and the five-door hatchback.

The Escort featured a mixed design, between the boxy-looking vehicles of the ’80s and the flowing lines of the ’90s. For the facelifted range, the grille featured black, slim, horizontal slats. The headlights and the turn-signals were in separate blocks and covered with clear glass. For the rest of the car, the lines remained similar, but an enhancement was made for the door handles, which were in body color, unlike the non-facelift version where they were black.

Inside, the dashboard was redesigned. It featured a smoothed dashboard with the center stack and the upper area modified. As for the instrument cluster, a new set of dials was installed, but offering the same information as on the non-facelifted version. For selected versions, an airbag was fitted as standard. The five-door version offered enough room for five passengers, especially if none of them was over the average, European, height.

Under the hood, Ford offered a choice of six engines, including two diesel versions. The base version was a frugal 1.3-liter unit that offered only 60 hp, while the top-performer version was the 1.8-liter engine with 108 hp. All versions were paired to a 5-speed manual gearbox.

Thanks to its already well-established name, the Escort was a tough contender on the European market at the beginning of the ’90s.
The five-door version of the Escort was the most common version of Ford’s hatchback. It featured enough features and engine range to compete with the market leader of those times, the Volkswagen Golf. It offered good comfort and enough room to be used as a family vehicle, especially for those with teenagers around.

The Escort featured a mixed design, between the boxy-looking vehicles of the ’80s and the flowing lines of the ’90s. While the headlights and the grille with sharp, horizontal slats were still a thing of the past, the rest of the car looked into the future with curved body panels and some horizontal lines across the car from headlights to taillights. A sloped tailgate was ended into a very short deck, inspiring a two and a half body design.

The interior featured bucket seats at the front and a folding bench in the rear. Ford installed the tachometer on the dashboard as an option for specific models and standard for higher trim levels and more powerful engines. Like its siblings, the Escort 5-doors was fitted with a few fuel-efficient engines, built mainly as a commuter car. If the front passengers wouldn’t exceed the average height from those times, there was decent room in the back.

Ford installed a wide range of engines, starting with a fuel-efficient, 60 hp turbodiesel unit. At the other end of the scale, the engineers introduced a 1.8-liter, fuel-injected four-mill that produced 105 hp. All versions were paired to a 5-speed gearbox.