By DAVID PIKE

When Ford announced a new Escort towards the end of 1975 it was billed as `The European Formula' to highlight its continental heritage. Even the brochure produced to promote the new car was filled with pictures of the car speeding down the German autobahns passing Bavarian castles and snow-covered peaks. No sign of the traditional Australian setting of dusty country roads and kangaroos usually featured in these publications.

The new Escort was available in three specification levels - `L', `XL', and the luxurious Ghia. The XL was produced in two-door and four-door body types, with the Ghia available only as a four-door. The basic `L' was only available as a two-door model. This new model had a cleaner styling compared with its predecessor. Gone was the `Coke-bottle' bulge in the rear mudguards, the `dog-bone' grille and rectangular headlamps. Instead the Mark 2 had a low waisted profile and a sharply raked rear window which merged into the boot line.

Wraparound taillamps were fitted, with rubber faced bumper bars on XL and Ghia models. The headlamps on L and XL Mark 2s were round, while the Ghia looked very stylish with its square quartz halogen lights. To minimise the effects of the sun on rear seat passengers and interior trim, the rear window on all sedans was tinted, while Ghia models received tinted side glass and a tinted laminated windscreen as standard equipment.

While the 1.3-litre `Kent' engine remained unchanged and the troublesome 1600GT was not replaced, the rapid performance was still available to buyers of the Ghia. Fitted with twin-choke Weber carburettor, the 1.6-litre Ghia engine was lifted straight from the last of Ford's Cortina GTs. It developed 62kW and 137Nm of torque while returning fuel economy figures of better than 10L/100km. At 950kg, the Ghia was heavier than any previous Escort - and most of its 1.6-litre competitors - yet an auto model could reach 158 km/h and accelerate from rest to 100 km/h in 13 seconds.

Much of the new auto Escort's smoothness and willing performance was attributable to the new C-3 `Bordeaux' automatic transmission. Ford claimed the C-3 to be the product of three years' development and nearly five million kilometres of testing. Engineered to complement the smaller engines in Ford's range, the C-3 was lighter, smaller and more efficient than previous auto-boxes fitted to Ford products. The C-3 also incorporated a device which helped the transmission fluid to attain its operating temperature faster, thereby improving response and minimising component wear.

Although its overall dimensions varied only marginally from the Mark 1 model, the Escort Mark 2 had more leg room, larger door openings and a bigger boot. All models in the range came with significantly higher levels of standard equipment than before; even the basic `L' model had carpets and reclining bucket seats, front discs, 2-speed wipers with washers, radial ply tyres and armrests as standard.

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