Ford tempo

**The Ford Tempo** and its twin, **the Mercury Topaz**, are compact cars that were produced by the Ford Motor Company for model years 1984 to 1994. They were downsized successors to the boxy Ford Fairmont and Mercury Zephyr twins. The Tempo and Topaz were part of a rejuvenation plan by Ford to offer more environmentally friendly, fuel efficient, and more modern styled models to compete with the European and Japanese imports. While the car sold well, its innovation and aerodynamic design paved the way for the even more groundbreaking Ford Taurus. The Tempo and Topaz were replaced for 1995 by the "world car" platform sold in North America as the Ford Contour and Mercury Mystique.

Although built on a different platform, the aerodynamic Ford Sierra was somewhat of a European counterpart to the Tempo. It replaced the boxy, rear-wheel-drive Ford Cortina while the Tempo did the same for the Fairmont in North America. The Sierra too was succeeded by Ford's world car platform in the form of the Ford Mondeo.

## First generation (1984–1987)

The first generation Tempo and Topaz were released on May 26, 1983 as 1984 models, and equaled the length of a Chevrolet Citation at the time, to which it was a response.[*citation needed*] The Ford Fairmont, which was last produced in 1983, was more directly replaced by the Ford LTD, which was introduced for the 1983 model year.

Despite the Fairmont (at 105.5-inch wheelbase and 193.8-inch length) being sized relatively larger than General Motors' front-wheel drive Chevrolet Celebrity mid-size car (at 104.8-inch wheelbase and 188.3-inch length) and having a similar length to the Fairmont's predecessor, the Maverick (at 109.9-inch wheelbase and 193.9-inch length), the Tempo had been intended as the sedan and coupe versions of the Ford Escort, and both vehicles were in similar classes, similar to how Volkswagen's sedan and coupe answer to the Golf hatchbacks would be the Jetta.

The Tempo was Ford's first compact car downsizing, just four years after GM downsized its compact cars in 1979 for the 1980 model years; two and a half years after Chrysler's compact K-cars were introduced. The front windshield and rear window were both set at 60° angles, with the trunk of the car being placed higher than the side windows to allow for greater fuel efficiency and air flow. The four-door Tempo used rear quarter windows in the C-pillars while the four-door Topaz received a more formal C-pillar arrangement without rear quarter windows. The front of the car featured a set of two sealed-beam halogen headlamps recessed in chrome "buckets" and the grille in between the headlights featured four horizontally thin rails each swept back to allow for greater air flow into the engine compartment and over the hood. The Tempo shared much of its design language with the European Ford Sierra, launched a year earlier.

The first generation Tempo came standard with a new 2.3 L HSC inline four-cylinder gasoline engine with a one-barrel carburetor, with an optional Mazda-built four-cylinder diesel engine. Mated to either of these engines were the choice of a standard four-speed IB4 or optional five-speed MTX-III manual transmission (which was the standard, and only option for the diesel engine variant), or the optional three-speed FLC automatic with a floor-mounted shift lever. In late 1985, the five-speed manual became standard and the four-speed was discontinued. In addition, a slight modification was made to the five-speed transmission, moving the "reverse" position on the gear shift knob from right beside first gear to the opposite bottom corner. This was done to decrease the possibility of mistakenly shifting into reverse rather than first gear during takeoff. The instrument panel featured a new, easier to read gauge layout, with all switches and controls placed within easy reach of the driver. In early 1985, the Tempo became the first production American automobile to feature a driver's side airbag as a supplemental restraint system. In 1984, Ford entered a contract with the General Services Administration and the Department of Transportation to supply 5,000 airbag-equipped Tempos. Half also received a special windshield designed to minimize lacerations to passengers, and all were early recipients of the high-mounted brake lights that became required by law in 1986.

In October 1985, the Tempo and the Topaz saw numerous moderate design changes for 1986 which coincided with the release of the then-new and revolutionary 1986 Taurus. While generally considered the same car, the front and rear end styling was where the changes were most evident. The standard rectangular sealed-beam halogen headlamps were replaced with new, plastic composite designs which only required replacing the bulb itself. These new headlights were flush-mounted to match the redesigned front corner lights and a freshly restyled grille, which also closely matched that of the Taurus (the Topaz received a pseudo-lightbar grille styled after the Sable). For the rear end, the trunk and taillights were slightly restyled, giving the car a sharper look. Replacing the carburetor on the 2.3 L four-cylinder engine was a new Central Fuel Injection (CFI) system (the carbureted version was still available in Canada until 1987). New was an optional "LX" luxury trim, replacing the GLX. Other changes and improvements included the addition of automatically retracting front seat belt shoulder straps, and the addition of a new all-wheel-drive model. The Tempo AWD included special badging, interior badges. Other available features included power lumbar support, four-way power driver's seat and a cassette player.

From 1985 to 1987, there was also the Sport GL, which included unique interior and exterior styling cues, an HSO (High Specific Output) version of the 2.3 L HSC engine (slightly more power), alloy wheels, tachometer, and a quicker gear ratio for the 5-speed manual transaxle (3.73 final drive). It was badged simply as "GL", however the Sport GL was more easily recognizable because it lacked the GL's chrome front and rear bumpers. For 1987, the Topaz received a standard all-wheel drive system for the GS-AWD and LS-AWD trim levels. This all-wheel drive system (developed exclusively for the Tempo and Topaz) was available for model years 1987 to 1991.

Trim levels for the first generation Tempo are as follows

* GL (mid-level and by far the best-selling model[*citation needed*])

* LX (introduced for 1986 as the luxury model, replacing the GLX)

* GLX (1984 and 1985 model year only)

* AWD (1987 model year only, the only MY all-wheel drive was available for the coupe)

Trim levels for the first generation Topaz are as follows

* L (stripped down base model available for the 1984 model year)

* GS (Topaz equivalent of the Tempo GL, mid-range model)

* GS-AWD (Topaz GS with all-wheel drive as standard, 1987 model year only)

* LS (luxury/high end trim level)

* LS-AWD (Topaz LS with all-wheel drive as standard, 1987 model year only)

* XR5 (sport performance model available for 1987 model year only; all XR5s were coupes)

## Second generation (1988–1994)

The Tempo and Topaz sedans received a major redesign for 1988, whereas the coupes were instead facelifted, all arriving in November 1987. The changes gave the Tempo and Topaz an even more similar look to the Taurus and Sable, respectively. On the front end of the Tempo, a completely restyled grille featured three thin horizontal chrome bars with a Ford oval in the center, with two composite flush-mounted rectangular headlamps with restyled front turn signal housings on either side. On the Tempo GLS, this chrome grille was blacked out, and they received a blacked-out "D" pillar. For the rear, the taillights received a major rework and were now completely flush-mounted. A restyled rear quarter window was designed to match and blend evenly with the completely restyled rear door trim. The Topaz was differentiated from the Tempo by a more formal rear window, a waterfall grille, more upscale wheels, and solid red tail-lights.

The interior of both the sedan and coupe models saw a brand new instrument panel design, with a central gauge cluster (now with a standard engine temp gauge), and more ergonomic driver controls. Fan and windshield wiper controls were now mounted on rotary-style switches on either side of the instrument panel, and the HVAC controls received a new push-button control layout. Other changes included reworked interior door panels. A driver's side airbag continued as an option, a rarity then for an economy level car. On Tempo LX and AWD, the interior received chrome and wood trim on the dashboard and doors. Topaz models featured the tachometer-equipped gauge cluster and a front center armrest standard.

The 1991 model year (the last year of the 1988 restyled look) saw the discontinuation of the all-wheel drive Tempo and Topaz, as well as the now Canadian market exclusive entry-level Tempo L. For 1992, the Tempo and Topaz saw a minor restyle; the Tempo gained body-colored side trim (replacing the black and chrome trim) as well as full body-colored bumpers. The three bar chrome grille on the Tempo was also replaced with a new, body-colored monochromatic grille, while the Topaz's chrome grille was replaced with a new non-functional light-bar.

Also for 1992, the 3.0 L *Vulcan* V6 engine, borrowed from the Taurus and Sable, was introduced as an option for the GL and LX models, and was the standard engine on the GLS. The 1992 model year would be the last year of the GLS, as it was discontinued (along with its Topaz counterpart) in 1993. This left the Tempo with only two trim level options, GL and LX. 1992 also brought about a slightly redesigned gauge cluster, with tachometers now reading up to 7,000 RPM instead of the previous 6,000 RPM. Also, a fuel door indicator was added to the fuel gauge (an arrow pointing to the side of the car where the fuel door was located). 1992 was the only year for American models to have an available 120 MPH speedometer (GLS, XR5 and LTS models only); all other model years read to 85 MPH. 1994 was the last model year for the Ford Tempo (and Mercury Topaz), with production halting in the first quarter of 1994.[*citation needed*

Trim levels for the second generation Ford Tempo are as follows:

* L (entry level model, discontinued in 1991)

* GL (mid-level model)

* AWD (although advertised by Ford as a separate trim level, the AWD model was actually built on an LX body, as evidenced by the body code. Discontinued in 1991)

* LX (luxury model, only available as a four-door sedan)

* GLS (replaced Sport GL as the performance oriented model, discontinued in 1992)

Trim levels for the second generation Mercury Topaz are as follows:

* GS (Topaz equivalent of the Tempo GL, mid-range model, available between November 1987 and 1994)
* GS-AWD (Topaz GS with all-wheel Drive as standard, available between November 1987 and 1991)
* LS (luxury/high end trim level, discontinued after 1992)
* LS-AWD (Topaz LS with all-wheel drive as standard, available between November 1987 and 1991)
* XR5 (sport performance model available from November 1987 to 1992, only available as a coupe; came with the 3.0 L V6 engine as standard for 1992)
* LTS (four-door variation of the XR5, 'LTS' stood for Luxury Touring Sedan, available from November 1987 to 1992)

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