With the recent record low temperatures in parts of Australia and New Zealand, it seems only fitting to dig out pictures of an arctic white Merkur covered in snow on a cold winter day.
Even from a block away, this XR4Ti stuck out like a pearl in a bucket of rubies. It is quite roadworthy, although the only action it appears to be getting is from some animal walking on the bonnet. Perhaps the owner of this Merkur knows how rare it is becoming. Why do I say that?
It appears he has been driving his Ford Bronco instead.
Related reading: Curbside Classic: 1986 Merkur XR4Ti – What’s In a Name? CC Outtake: 1988-89 Merkur XR4Ti
Can’t help but think of Jim Rome when I see these!
So, I guess what we have here is the sub 32 PDQ 86-89 XR4Ti HQ jpg? With an 4WD 5.0 AOD XLT on the side. Sorry, whenever I see this monumentally stupid name for a car, I feel a rant coming on. At least I am trying to keep it a fun rant. Don’t get me started on “Merkur”.
Oh wait – forgot the R-12. 🙂
Typing XR4Ti is quite different than, say, Regal. One is smooth and delightful, the other is quite harsh and irksome.
Rough on the eyeballs, too.
Reminds me of the Texas Instruments TI99-4A home computer…
Now that’s a compelling pair of 80’s Ford products. The Bronco for bad weather or hauling, the Merkur for fair-weather corner-carving. While Ford’s branding efforts for Merkur didn’t exactly take the world by storm, I’m surprised these didn’t sell a little better, being a light RWD car with a turbo engine and nice interior trappings. Though I’ve heard they were too expensive as well.
I think they were only too expensive until the L-M dealers started putting cash on the hood to clear them off their lots. My Dad bought one for my Mom to drive, and as I recall he got a pretty good deal on it.
The car was a blast to drive, despite being equipped with an automatic (and, therefore, having less horsepower than the manual version). Sharp handling, snappy throttle response, and I can say from my own pimplyfaced, teenaged experience that it cruised sweetly at 115 mph.
That preposterous wing they put on the first year’s model started squeaking and rattling from just about the first day. But other than that very few complaints.
Unfortunately our car was disqualified from ever being a Curbside Classic when it was t-boned by a red light runner when the car was only a few years old.
A once familiar sight on UK roads(and wrapped round UK trees and lamp posts) as a Ford Sierra XR4.
Ooh, I just shot a real XR4i today! Will share soon…
Can’t wait – be still my beating heart! There’s one for sale locally, I’d love it but finances don’t allow.
Yeah! Some number of these Merkur Sierras came back to Europe as private imports. Sometimes on dedicated North-American car club shows could be seen. More of them appeared in the ’90’s. Nowdays only one or at least two per show. Or none of them. These became rarities. If you take holiday trip through south-eastern part of the continent and on the Balkan peninsula, well-worn Ford Sierras are still part of daily view.
As a buddy of mine sourced one in mint condition not so long ago as a daily driver.
Ironic that a car named after an American mountain range had to be rebadged when imported. I suppose Oldsmobile had a case; imagine the confusion it might’ve caused, esp. with law enforcement.
I think its “jelly mold” styling ages well, like the 1st-gen Taurus.
I assumed it was named after the Sierra Nevada in Spain, rather than the American one. Or more likely someone just said “this word sounds cool!”.
I think Ford also lost a lawsuit against the Dutton kit car company in the UK, who already had a model called Sierra. Maybe they should have just come up with a more imaginative name. Cortina Mk6?
Yes, those are better possibilities, thanks. I wonder why they dumped “Cortina?”
Cars like this, is why.
Identical to our neighbour’s one when I was a kid!
Cortina Mk6 probably wouldn’t have worked as there was a Mk6 (below left) in Turkey, and then a Mk7 (below right).
Fiesta, Sierra, Granada. All Spanish.
GMC had the trademark, they’d been making Sierra pickups since the ’70s.
Suzuki owned the name in some markets, used on the Jimny 4wd.
Neil probably had it confused with “Ciera”. Ach! Zis langvich! Zo confoosing at times!
I did mention Oldsmobile above: there would’ve been Homonym Trouble & then Lawyer Trouble.
I think Sierra for GMC, at least at that time, was a trim level, not a model name. However, I’m not sure if this makes a difference.
Here is a fine example for sale in the Indy area:
http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/cto/4570250298.html
Can’t remember if it was here, another site or maybe a conversation over drinks but the “question of the day” was something like “if you could change the available engine in a car (to something reasonable) what would that car and engine be?”.
For me car would be the Merkur XR4Ti and engine would be the Cologne V6 in place of the rough, oil guzzling 2.3L Turbo. Now that would have been the perfect car — handsome looks, tidy size and an engine so bulletproof Ford used it in their Ranger pickup truck. It would have been like a German Regal T-Type.
The XR4Ti looks terrific in white, nice find.
We had a 2.8 V6 XR4 in the UK very fast cars.Anyone got an XR8 the daddy of Sierras a South African homologation special with a 302?I think Scott found one in New Zealand last year.
Good memory Gem! Yes, there’s a white (as I think they all were) Sierra XR8 here in NZ – I can’t find the pics of it unfortunately. I do have the XR9 brochure though.
*XR8 brochure, not XR9…
Yeah the Cologne was bulletproof, but it didn’t take too well to being desmogged. The Merkur Scorpio used a 2.9 liter version of the Cologne, which was rated at 145 hp, compared with 175 hp for the Turbo in the Manual trans XR-4Ti. The 2.3 was really agricultural sounding when it was wound out, so my perfect engine for that car would be the 1987 EFI 5 liter (225 hp and gobs of torque) with the T5. The XR-4 felt awesome at high speeds, and just needed a smooth engine.
Sprung a 4×4 Sierra in traffic recently V6 sedan version, ideal for snow except it dont snow down here on the flat near the coast.
Why not ‘Scorpio’ for this and ‘Sierra’ for the 4 door? Ive always hated ‘droid’ names for cars, personally. I like the idea of a rwd turbochared coupe like this. The styling is more in line with the turbo engine than the contemporary T-bird or Mustang. Only thing I don’t like about the styling on these is the dorky 6 window side profile. They couldn’t have gone with a single pane quarter window?
It would have been too easily confused with the contemporary Mustang, methinks.
They did go for a single pane on the Cosworth, but it didn’t open (lack of structural strength possible). Here’s a Cossie that’s for sale near me – I’ve seen it in the metal and it’s awesome. Possibly not worth the NZ$70K price though! http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/ford/auction-753718916.htm
And ^that is why they didn’t and shouldn’t have gone with the single pane window. The pane of glass is too big and, too my eye, it looks out of proportion. Looks much better with the split.
(I have no issue with the rest of the Cosworth though..very cool cars)
That looks very Saab-like, actually.
Actually, now I think about it, it was only the XR4i that got the 6-window side profile. As well as the Cosworth, the 3-door was actually available in Europe’s LHD markets in a wide variety of specification levels, all of which came with the single pane quarter window. Of the RHD markets, NZ got the same 6-window XR4i and the 4-window Cosworth range as the UK, but the UK also got a 1600L 3-door 4-window. Cloners have long since snapped up the 1600Ls for Cossie-clones. The XR4i was often used as a Cossie-clone base too, but necessitates cutting the middle pillar out to fit the single pane window. There’s a 1600L, fitted with XR4i interior and Cossie exterior trim for sale locally: http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/ford/auction-757913501.htm And below is a 1992 Sierra 3-door 4-window:
Jason, it’s been a truly awful week for me, so popping here to CC and seeing a Sierra just made my day! 🙂
Glad I could help!
The basket weave wheels and the bi-plane spoiler suggest that it’s a 1987. If you look closely, the front bumper has two red things sitting on it. I would guess that those aren’t animal tracks, but dimples from more red things which may be persimmons.
+1