From: dylan@cs.washington.edu (Dylan McNamee)
Subject: 1993 Probe -- two week initial impressions (long-ish)
Summary: 1993 Ford Probe mini review
Organization: Computer Science & Engineering, U. of Washington, Seattle
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 92 21:58:22 GMT


I bought a 93 Ford Probe, and have had it for three weeks now.  Even though
all of my driving so far has been in "break-in" mode (varying speeds, haven't
rev'd the engine to redline yet, etc) I think my experience so far is worth
writing up, in case any of you are thinking about buying a similar car soon.

First, the configuration:  The Probe is a 2 door, 4 seat hatchback.  The rear
seat is "truncated" much like most other 2 door coupes (more on this later).
The rear seats fold down individually, split (50/50).  The cargo area with 
both seats folded down is approx:  4' wide, 5' long, and 3' high.
Drivers side airbags are standard on all Probes.  Front disc, rear drum
brakes come standard, antilock brakes (4 wheel disc) are available.

There are two models of the 93 probe, the "normal" Probe, and the GT.  
The normal Probe has a 2.0L 124hp engine, a choice between steel 14" wheels
and 15" alloy wheels.  

The GT has a 2.2L 164hp engine, 16" alloy wheels, and a stiffer suspension.
The styling of the GT is slightly different, with "ground effects" and front
fog lights.

Now for the opinion:
I bought a non-GT Probe in black with grey interior, 15" alloy wheels,
ABS, pop-up sunroof, cruise control and convenience group (entry and 
engine compartment lighting, tilt-steering, rear window/mirror defrost.)
The summary of my opinion is that this is an excellent car, well built, well
engineered and gorgeously styled.  So far (knock on wood) it shows all signs
of mechanical perfection.  For its market segment (2 door hatchback) it should
do quite well.  For performance-oriented customers, the GT model should hold
its own against the other performance cars in the bracket (the Talon, the
Integra, etc) but this wasn't my interest.  What my wife and I were looking for
was a safe car, reasonably fun to drive, comfortable for long trips, with
good economy.  For this set of criterion, the Probe beat out the Integra
(price and economy) and the Saturn (long-trip comfort, fun to drive) which were
the other two cars we most closely looked at.  Our ultimate car was essentially
a better-looking, more economical Volvo.

Interior:  The Probe is the most driver-oriented American car I've ever 
been in.  From little details like the lens in front of the meters (curved
and angled downward to reduce glare) and the fact that the center console
controls are angled slightly toward to the driver, to the comfortable position
of the wipers, lights and stick, it's obvious that the Ford folks have been
driving some imported cars, and _learning_ from the experience.  

The interior looks really organic and sculpted.  In fact, my only complaint
about the interior of the car is that they _seem_ to have sacrificed a bit of
knee room in the passenger side for symmetry and looks.  I could be wrong,
since I haven't checked to see what's behind the swooping curves.  The 
rear seats are comfortable, if lacking a bit in legroom.  There was enough 
room, however, for me to drive comfortably, while my 5'11" brother sat
directly behind me (I'm 6'), comfortably, for 3 hours.

Trim and fit of the interior are excellent.  I could find no flaws or 
sloppy construction.  Japanese or German carmakers would be proud to build
such a car.  I was slightly disappointed in the manual windows -- the handles
are a bit flimsy, and don't match the "feel" of the rest of the interior.
I still prefer them to having electric windows, though.

Sound level is moderate -- higher than a luxury sedan, about the same as 
the Integra, but quite a bit less than the Saturn, which I found to be pretty
noisy.  The engine noise is quite low, especially compared to the Saturn.
Road noise varies with pavement quality.  It is never "drowning", but can
get louder than engine and wind noise.

The stock cassette (the best way to avoid getting broken into) is quite good --
four speakers, two amplifiers, and decent sound.  According to the shop manual,
the CD player comes with a subwoofer, so there's room for adding one...

Performance/Ride:  I'm not a performance buff at all, and besides, I didn't
get the GT, so I'll leave the performance analysis to the scad of net-folks 
that ordered GT's.  The engine in the non-GT is powerful enough to comfortably
accelerate from 50 to 70 in those nasty freeway situations, which is all I 
need.  The stick (I got the manual) has a short throw, as does the clutch.
Both are quite nice to use, and are a huge improvement over some other
American standard transmissions (notably the Fiero's -- yuk!)  The suspension
strikes a good balance between comfort (noise, vibration, etc.) and the 
ability to feel the road.  I think the GT's suspension would probably be
too stiff for my taste on long trips.  I ordered the 15" alloy wheels, which
are probably responsible for part of the stiffness.  I imagine the 14" wheels
would be even smoother.  Redline is at 5,500, but since I'm still breaking 
the engine in, I've only revved it to 4,500.  

Styling:  I like it.  It seems to be a cross between a Reatta and an Integra
in looks, with a Jag XJ-S rear-end.  I think its style will outlast most of
the bubblemobiles I see around;  the 93 Hondas look particularly prone to
"whoa -- that was designed in 1993"-itis.  Amazingly, even though the 92
and earlier probes _look_ bigger (and uglier), the 93 is 2" longer
and has more room inside.  

"Ease of Service":  the 2.0L engine has enough room to stick an arm or two
in and around various parts.  (I understand this is _not_ true of the 2.2L
engine...)  Nevertheless, in typical modern car fashion, the oil filter is
a bit of a bear to get at.  Once you know where it is, a deft reach around
the manifold can get a reasonable grab at it.  Unfortunately, it was on too
tight from the factory, so removing the first one was a 45 minute affair.
I'm not anticipating any further problems.  Spark plugs, and other major
serviceables are easy to access.  I anticipate no problems doing my own
routine maintenance.

Disclaimer:  Obviously, I've been won over by this car, so my opinions may
be slanted.  On the other hand, I did shop around, and seriously considered
other cars (the Integra and Saturn, specifically) and am really happy I chose
the Probe.  I'm also not a big car buff or expert, so I don't doubt I've 
messed up a few details.

If there's any interest, I'll post a followup after I've put on a few
thousand miles.

dylan mcnamee
dylan@cs.washington.edu