Mad About Cars

The Ford Sierra was one of Ford most popular and radical European cars during the 1980s. After a difficult start, over 2,7million Sierras were made between 1982 and 1993, when it was replaced by the Mondeo.

The Sierra was launched following positive reviews of the Ford Probe III concept car, featuring a futuristic bold, streamlined design. The Sierra was closely modelled on the Probe, and had the daunting task of replacing the Cortina, which had been produced for nearly 20 years and was a firm favourite of the British public.

Reaction to the Sierra was poor, most found the radical new design very difficult to accept. Other design flaws included a tendency for the car to drift in crosswinds, and the car’s ‘blob’ like appearance led to exaggerated claims in the press that the car could hide major crash damage. However, as other manufacturers copied Ford’s aerodynamic design, the Sierra began to look more ‘normal’ and sales began to rise. So futuristic was Ford’s 1982 design that the car remained relatively unchanged until its end in 1993, bar a mid-life facelift in 1987 that also saw saloon and estate models of the car launched.

Some of the most desirable Sierras to be produced were the high-performance Cosworth models. Sierra Cosworths were successful both on the race and rally circuits, with the 3-door Sierra Cosworth instantly recognisable by its large ‘whale tail’ spoiler. A saloon version, the Sapphire Cosworth, later followed. Whilst many examples were abused, pristine examples of these cars are very desirable and fetch high prices when sold.

Whilst the Sierra did not look dated by the early-90s, in 1993 Ford opted to replace it by a radically different, all-new car, the Mondeo. With the Sierra being an everyday family car, most models were not cherished in later life, with more and more cars on the scrapheap. However, the Sierra is becoming a rare sight on the roads, with prices likely to pick up, even for mundane versions of the car, in years to come.

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