The "History of the Orion" is still under construction, but here is a taster. For a more detailed history and specs, please try again soon.
 

The Orion was introduced in September 1983 by ford to bridge the gap between the Escort and the Sierra. This was an important car for Ford because in 1980 it had converted millions of loyal Escort fans from a saloon to a hatchback. This problem was compounded by the much-loved Cortina saloon becoming the Sierra hatchback in 1982 and the Granada saloon being replaced in 1985 by a hatchback also. A completely saloon range had almost over night become a hatchback line up.

Ford knew that a hatchback appealed to the majority of buyers, but understood a significant group of motorists preferred to drive a classic saloon. There was also a niche in the market at the time for compact, well equipped 'mini executive' saloons like the Renault 9, Triumph Acclaim, VW Jetta and the BMW 3 series.

Fords answer- THE ORION

Fords idea was to create a car based on the class-leading Escort, lengthening it by almost 9 inches and changing 34% of the body panels, giving the Orion a unique personality.

By boosting its styling and equipment levels well above the Escorts and almost into the Sierras league, the Orion would provide world class car, set to rival and concur anything Ford pitched at it. Ford proved this by marketing the Orion directly against the Vauxhall Cavalier salon (the Sierras main competitor!). In fact all Fords comparisons were much justified, and the press agreed.

The Orion 1.3L against the Cavalier 1.3L proved the Orion to be quicker, have similar specification and still be £300 cheaper. When the Orion 1.6Gl went head to head with the Cavalier 1.6GL it proved much the same, quicker, near identical specification, but was a full £900 cheaper. But the most surprising face-off was still to come. The Orion 1.6i Ghia against the Cavalier 1.8SRI. The Orion hit 60 mph 0.5 seconds quicker than the Cavalier and offered superior fuel economy at the same time. But it didn't stop there, the specification was much higher in the Orion too, and all this for £300 less then the Cavalier - "Queue here" said Ford, and why not, the Orion was one of the freshest looking cars on the road at the time.

The press compared the car to the VW Jetta, Honda Accord, and Volvo 360, and 'What Car' in 1985 compared the Orion 1.6i Ghia against the BMW 316i and Rover 216i Vitesse. The Orion came top in all of the categories the magazine set to become 'What Car' overall winner.

But throughout the years as Ford re-aligned the specification and styling of the Orion closer and closer to the Escorts, the car slowly lost its individuality and substance, and in October 1993, almost exactly 10 years after its launch, the inevitable happened, Ford denounced the Orion mark in favour of the Escort 4 door name.

The mystique of the MK1 Orion's placement above the Escort and only slightly below the Sierra's had fizzled away, and the Sierra Sapphire and Granada saloon had placed the final nails in the Orion's coffin. Ford did try to keep some of the Orion's magic as the Escort 4 door did not appear in basic and L trim levels, but only in LX, Ghia and Ghias Si trim to start. Most of the brochure pictures too depicted the Escort Ghia and Ghia Si in a 4 door guise, maybe Ford still belived that top flight models were preferred as salons, and maybe the Orion still lived on - well slightly.