Here’s a car you don’t see every day, they seemed to just quietly go away all of a sudden. A fun fact is that the Ford Tempo was on the market before the red-hot Taurus was which may surprise a few people. The seller has this two-door 1986 Ford Tempo LX listed here on eBay in Ozone Park New York and they’re asking $2,600 or you can make an offer.
As with the ’88 Ford Festiva from a day or two ago, these cars seemed to be everywhere at one time but then all of a sudden they were gone. You can see the foggy headlights here which should be an easy fix, but that mismatched right-front fender won’t be quite as easy to remedy. Not that too many people would restore a 1986 Ford Tempo unless they had this exact model and wanted to relive this era.
One year later, in 1987, Ford would introduce AWD for the Tempo and Mercury Topaz, its sister car. That would be my choice just for the unusual factor. Ford made the first-generation Tempo from 1983 for the 1984 model year up until the 1987 model year. They started out with sealed-beam rectangular headlights as a lot of vehicles had but in 1986, Ford changed them out for the aerodynamic lights as seen here with a replaceable bulb. The first thing I would do is to take care of those foggy headlights.
Another white car with a red interior! This isn’t a Seville with acres of faded red 1980s velour here, but I bet this interior would clean up nicely. Have any of you dyed fabric seats? I’ve seen several videos on that but I have never tried it, I was just wondering if any of you folks had some real-world experience with it. It’s hard to tell the condition of the underside with no photos there and the trunk photo doesn’t show anything under the carpet. Being a New York car from Long Island to Queens, I always wonder about rust.
The engine is Ford’s 2.3L inline-four with 82 horsepower. Ford offered a diesel engine and also a version with a 5-speed manual. This car has a three-speed automatic. The seller says that it runs great and the transmission shifts fine and the description is a little hard to read but go through it and let us know your thoughts on this Tempo. Would you drive this $2,600 car? I would.
Had one,,there’s no simple way to put it, one of many the ex wife ruined,,that’s right,you heard me,,RUINED,,but not entirely her fault. Not a bad car, really, got it cheap( I know, what’s cheap, $300 bucks maybe,) with a bad trans leak. Had the leak fixed, but always suspected a slow head gasket leak, it’s ultimate demise. The ex probably had her foot to the floor, boiled all the coolant out, and POOF. End of THAT story, was no big deal, really, however, it was clear, she needed more than a car like a Ford truck, but hey, memories is memories, no?
The US was still dabbling in this new craze called “front wheel drive”, something the Asians had already perfected. These were adequate for people who refused to buy foreign cars, but poor mechanically, and why few exist today. As these older folks die, bound to find these in garages, but Ford just didn’t have “it” with small cars, and why their main focus today is trucks. I bet THAT’S going to change in a hurry,,,
I have to respectfully disagree with part of what you said. Tempo came out mid 83 as an 84 model. 83 Corolla was still red, datsun switched from the red 210 to the fwd Sentra about the same time. Fords escort had been out a few years by then with fwd, and gm already had the x cars, a cars, and j cars on the market so in my opinion they weren’t behind the japanese cars at all. Only honda, which were always fwd was ahead. However honda stuck with carburetors until the late 80s, way after the domestics had switched to efi. Thus to say domestics were way behind doesnt paint a fully accurate picture.
Aargh spell check. 83 Corolla was rwd not red. Also the 2.3 hsc, high swirl combustion engine may have been a bit low tech but generally very reliable. Much simpler to work on than ann80s honda with an entire snake pit of vacuum hoses for their emission control system.
Like you said Scotty, the “haven’t seen one of these in ages” factor is quite high here. Maybe not quite the conversation piece as say a clean Pinto or Maverick, but it would garner smiles at Cars & Coffee. Really inexpensive. One with a manual transmission would be a bit more fun, there can’t be very many of them out there.
Better than walking ? 🚶♂️ 🚶♀️
Wasn’t the engine in these essentially 2/3 of the old Falcon inline six? High-tech!
There’s a reason you don’t see these anymore! Had one of these in sedan form in college. Bought it used with about 12,000 miles on it. Day after driving it off the lot the fuel pump died. It had a push button HVAC system and after hitting a large bump, the buttons fell out of the dash. I traded it in with about 30,000 miles on it for a new base Civic EF that I put 150,000 miles on in the next 3 years and never had a lick of problems with. That Tempo burned Fix Or Repair Daily into my mind so much that I won’t even consider a Ford when car shopping today.
It doesn’t make sense to hold a never-ending grudge against a car company because of a bad experience with one car. If I did that because of the one bad car I had in the late ’80s and early ’90s, I would hate GM to this day. ALL car companies have their fair share of successes and failures. Tempos and Topazes were generally pretty good cars, and yes, some of them were dogs. On the other hand, the X-body group of cars GM produced starting with the 1980 model year almost bankrupted the company in recalls and warranty claims.
No, the one bad car I owned was not an X-body car, but a G-body. Specifically a 1985 Monte Carlo: Beautiful car, but it must have been one of the proverbial Monday-built cars. On the other hand, my ’92 Mercury Topaz was a far superior car (read about it below). And one of the best cars I ever owned was a ’77 Ford LTD II that I got for $500.
I don’t hate GM for the one bad car I owned. In fact, I have my eye on a 1980 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme that’s for sale. GM just doesn’t produce anything that appeals to me TODAY. But that goes for most car companies. IMO, new cars generally suck!
I also had a ’92 Topaz, 2-door, 5-speed manual, factory sunroof — a company car that my employer allowed me to spec and order exactly as I wanted (unfortunately, I left the job to start my own business a year or two later and my employer wouldn’t sell me the car) … I loved that car at least as much as the first new car I bought — an ’84 Topaz, 2-door, 4-speed manual, factory sunroof (I see a pattern here), a black exterior with factory-PAINTED red pin stripes, and a nice red-everywhere interior. I’ve had both great and terrible experiences across the spectrum of GM, Ford, Chrysler, Audi, Toyota. I also believe it wouldn’t be fair/reasonable to have a blanket favorable or unfavorable opinion based on any of those good or bad experiences.
The 2.3L in my 77 Pinto had 89 BHP, yet this “automobile” has an 83 BHP 2.3L? Did it lose power because of its transverse (instead of longitudinal) orientation?
Mike, the 2.3 in the pinto was an overhead cam engine, the ones in the Tempo/Topaz were pushrod engines. I had an 87 Topaz, and even though I’ve heard a lot of horror stories about these, mine was one of the most dependable vehicles I’ve ever owned. 91k when I bought it, drove it to the junk yard on 3 cylinders with 260k on the clock, all for an initial investment of $275!!!
Thanks for the info. It’s strange Ford did not use the OHC version in the Tempo. It seems like a technological retreat.
These always reminded me of T-Birds of the era…. Just kidding, it was a little old ladies car
My girlfriend’s mother had one of these, total pile of crap right off the assembly line. I remember comparing it to my mother’s Dodge Shadow and thinking the Shadow was way nicer and more refined.
A friend had the diesel version. Book said change the timing belt by 100k miles, he didn’t at 103k it broke, an interference motor. After he moved to southern Florida he found it to be great for rolling coal in front of limo’s and the many pimpmobiles. It had no power but great fuel mileage and an engine oil leak kept the right side of the car undercoated.
I got married in 1990 and my wife came with an ’89 Tempo she purchased brand new. Knowing what I knew about cars, it was only kept a few years and traded before it self destructed. It actually drove pretty nice.
My daily driver is a 1993 2DR Tempo.Bought in 1995.Gas mileage is poor in town but ok on highway.Only recurring problem has been the crank pulley failing.Replaced two already.Bad design.
My first NEW-from-the-factory car was a 2-door ’84 Mercury Topaz with 4-speed manual transmission. It has a factory sunroof, nice black exterior finish with factory-PAINTED red pinstripes, and a nice red-everywhere Mercury interior. I really enjoyed that car a lot.
It ended up being passed around among family members for at least 15 years and lots of miles. The only major issue we had with it was the electronic ignition module, which was the (a) bane of the first-generation Tempo/Topaz.
I always thought the 2-door Topaz was the best looking iteration throughout all years of the Tempo and Topaz. The combination of grill, trim, 2-door-specific taillights, and other slightly upscale Mercury details made the 2-door Topaz appealing to me while the 4-door and both version of Tempo really struck me as a completely different cars (even though they really weren’t).
If I discovered an extremely well-preserved low-miles Topaz, today, that matched the specs of mine, I’d swoon and be all over it.
My wife drove an 1989 Mercury Topaz. We bought her new with the same colors as the featured car. She put plenty of miles on her with my two children as she homeschooled them and drove to events for other like kids. The ONLY real expense we had was exhaust system replacements; three times! Bulletproof motor, rode well and just a nice car! The four was my only dislike as she was underpowered as we live in the hill towns. She finally rusted out at the front passenger floor. My wife let her sit near our driveway until she said “let her go.” That was thirteen years later. Her only car.
I guess you guys would like this one then that is currently for sale.
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/d/san-pablo-1989-ford-tempo-speed-manual/7456561851.html
I had one new as a company car and it had the worst automatic transmission I have ever had in any car. It was always gear hunting and clunked going up or down with gear changes. No thanks!
Scotty,
I was one of those people who refused to buy foreign. Whether you buy a car made here, or pay welfare to the car worker who got laid off, you end up paying in either case. At least keep the guys off the government tit, and retain a little dignity.
1985 Tempo Sport GL was my third new car, first front wheel driver; five speed, different gearing, aluminum seven(?) spoke wheels, and maybe a little more hp made it an enjoyable car.
https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=yTtPcDJZ&id=2B783DB59FC2D40A0BBD7DAC5BEB391177D2B2DA&thid=OIP.yTtPcDJZdH8tDfPHxERTXQHaED&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2fwww.uniquecarsandparts.com%2fimages%2fcar_spotters_guide%2f1985%2f1985_Ford_Tempo_Sport_GL_2-door.jpg&cdnurl=https%3a%2f%2fth.bing.com%2fth%2fid%2fR.c93b4f703259747f2d0df3c7c444535d%3frik%3d2rLSdxE561usfQ%26pid%3dImgRaw%26r%3d0&exph=148&expw=270&q=1985+ford+tempo+sport+gl&simid=608032696347815697&FORM=IRPRST&ck=4BA8FEB3490712D4EF2FF09C1514BFEC&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0&ajaxserp=0
AMC guy, you’re right about the Falcon lineage. IIRC, it had a split/bifurcated intake manifold that allowed good torque at most RPM. Also, my first four cylinder, so as long as you kept stroking that box, I found the two I eventually owned to be good cars.
What’s up with this site the last few days? These aren’t classics they’re Craigslist commuter cars. Beaters with heaters.
That’s why you still see thousands and thousands of these on the road today, right? I haven’t seen 3 of them in the last 7 years! These have their rightful place in automotive history, kudos to Scotty for the post!!
Thanks, Bob!
As is almost always the case, grant, a reader sent in this tip and didn’t leave their name so at least they thought it would be an interesting vehicle to see here. We don’t all like the same things and not all vehicles here are found in barns just as on another site, not all vehicles have to be hauled with a trailer. It hasn’t changed that much here over the last six years since I’ve been at Barn Finds, we have always shown a mix of actual dusty barn finds and unusual-to-see-today vehicles.
AMC: I think this piston is used in the ThriftPower (“Falcon”) motor – the 4.1 or 250 cc so as to not deck the block (1 reason – it’s stroked anyway, Y loose some?) and still geta good quench (squish) distance. Not sure if it’s this rod ora 4.9/300.
I had one of these briefly several years ago. It was four door in white with blue interior. The Tempo GL. My wife hated it. I told her GL standard for good looking. I hated it too. The end.
The “GL” stands for “good luck”.
This one is super luxury loaded compared to the ’84 L I had in the mid 90’s. That’s what you get in a $1000 10 year old car.
It had a stick, so it was at least entertaining to drive. And a carb so it could be adjusted when needed. Not a bad cheap commuter.
Consumer Reports called the Tempo/Topaz, “…the quintessential rental-fleet vehicle; an unexciting utilitarian sedan that does everything adequately and nothing very well.”
In 1998 I bought a ’92 Topaz GS sedan. I liked the Topaz sedan better than the Tempo sedan because I found the formal rear roofline and steeply sloped rear window to be more attractive (except for taillights and grilles, Tempo and Topaz coupes were identical on the outside).
Mine was white with the same polycast turbine wheels and whitewall tires as the car featured here, with a chrome luggage rack on the trunk lid, which made it look even nicer. It had a blue velour interior, and was equipped with power locks (no power windows), tilt steering wheel, cruise control, A/C and cassette deck. Best of all, it had a 5-speed transmission. The gas mileage was adequate. I got about 500 miles out of a tank in the summer. I drove it to NC from Ottawa 3 times, and my first gas stop was always in Fredericksburg, VA. It worked out to about 31mpg.
The automatics were terrible. It was Ford’s Selectshift 3-speed, and at 60mph, it would be running at 3000 rpm, as opposed to 2000 rpm for the 5-speed, which would make for a huge difference in mpg.
Mine was a very reliable car, and fun to drive. But when my wife, who made a fair bit more money than I did, suggested in 2002 that I get the new VW Jetta TDI that I wanted, how could I say no?
I drove the Jetta for 19 years and 385,000 miles, and made 16 trips to NC with it, and got 47mpg, but that’s another story.
I still have pictures of my Topaz, and fond memories of it!
I had a couple of these Fercury products (I don’t recall if mine were the Ford or Mercury, or maybe one of each?), and they were decent for the time. Both silver sedans, one with a stick & red interior, the other automatic with Grey interior.
Speed limit back then in Wisconsin was 55 mph, so the automatic was adequate. The stick shift one was almost fun to drive (again, consider the times lol).
For the price, this could be an interesting driver.
Ah…two memories with one car. First. I spent my teenage years spending most of my afternoons in Ozone Park at the Big A (Aqueduct racetrack) and second driving an 89 Tempo coupe in 1997 as a replacement for my 96 Corvette. (Which was confiscated by the Tampa police for the crime of bookmaking) I wonder if somehow the two memories are related?
Well. the Tempo only had 27000 miles and got me back and forth to work with no problems. I was impressed by its drivability for such an inexpensive car.
Not my cup of tea…but in this crazy market, you can’t even find a decent ride for $2600…so this actually looks like a bargain.
Auction update: this one didn’t sell for $2,600 so naturally, it’s been relisted at $3,300. Only in 2022…