As a used car dealer around 2002 I brought one at auction for $100 that nobody was interested in. Perfect condition with rebuilt motor. Sold for $700 customer loved it
Your comments are right on the money! I am a life long Volvo owner since 1967, and this was the most intriguing US model car to come on the market. I loved the style and cast iron block 4 cylinder turbo engine. I was surprised at the short run on the car and in 1991 went to England and drove the non turbo version and saw what a great performance version it was. At the time, there was no speed limit on the M Highways and my rental car crises at 100 mph, but the Brits were blowing by me in all types of performance cars including a larger body Ford V8. The Merkur was the only car that I was tempted to buy instead of Volvo. Today, I am restoring my 1985 Volvo Turbo, and have 2 5 cylinder models and love them all. The old professor
Excellent presentation! And I agree with your summation. Just three blocks from my house there are two neighbors on the same street who have XR4ti ‘s in their driveways. I often walk my dog that way just to admire the cars. I remember being in the Ford dealership as a kid in ‘85 begging my dad to choose one of these as our new car. He went with the Olds Cutlass instead. 🤨
Jose Sanchez ...LoL! I was taught to drive in the ‘69 Mercury Country Squire wagon and was sometimes allowed to drive the Olds. I would rather have zipped around in one of these, but perhaps you’re right in retrospect.
Reminds me of my Dad, he bought an 89 Cutlass Ciera Sedan He rebuked my attempts to persuade him to buy a performance car. Ironically, I had a neighbor who had an XR4TI then an 88? Mustang GT and sadly got killed in it, so maybe my Dad knew what he was doing...
Dodge Demon made a mockery out of BMW when it first came out , Chevy ,Ford and all others should follow with their let's say "mini" versions ..i mean put 250 hp on a light Coupe and call it Fiero , tell your Tesla friends to eat a dikk
I owned a black 1985 Merkur Xr4 with a 5-speed stick ....the car attracted so much attention and was a blast to drive. It was also very prone to breaking down. After replacing broken engine mounts FOUR times I traded it in for a 1989 Honda Civic Si.
After driving junk for a long time, this was a much needed breath of European fresh air. This car did set you back enough to buy a mustang gt so it wasn't as well received as it deserved to be. Just a bit ahead of its time. It was a testament to how far we were in America. A very good car.
I owned a 88 Scorpio for 9 years from 90 to 98. It was a very nice car until you have take it for service. Not many dealers wanted to work on them. Luckily had a local shop that would, but heard later after I traded it they we glad not to see it again. One time they had to replace some bolts in the rear axle and had a hard time sourcing the parts but found a VW part that worked. Trans went out around 115k only to have the rebuilt trans go boing coming home from work. I drove to the local Volvo dealer and traded it in for the new 98 S70. Oh I just recalled the steering rack had a “hard” spot that gave resistance when turning. I took the cheap way out and put in some militech lube and that would work for a long time.
Man I had two Scorpios around the same time frames as you did but I was 16 and in high school so getting service was a nightmare but they weren't terrible. Both transmissions bad to be rebuilt and failed again but other than that the cars were so sumptuous to drive and gobbled up highway miles effortlessly. I still want another. TBH the Scorpio was more fun and reliable than my current day Bmw 550 Xi by FAR
I still have my '87. Bought it used in '90. It's been sitting for a decade and have just now had it taken to a mechanic-friend to get it going again. Hopefully it all works out and no mice damage to the wiring. I love the car and hope to get some more years out of it. Some parts are getting pretty scarce though.
I always liked the look especially with the biplane spoiler. Very good handling on my brief ride as a passenger. The problem was price, a plain LX 5 liter 5 speed was just under $14k and was a performance no brainer if you could live with the handling.
Same basic engine with minor differences was in: 1983-84 Mustang Gt Turbo 1983-88 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe 1985-89 XR4ti 1983-86 Cougar XR7 1983-84 Capri RS Turbo There were also some 83-86 Thunderbird and Cougar sub models that got the 2.3T
I believe that having at least a turbo v6 option would have massively helped the odd ball car. I remember first seeing it, I couldn't believe it was a Ford at first. Then it kinda reminded me of what the Escort GT could have been. The unique styling certainly proved Ford could build really decent upscale pony cars.
That's really what this car seemed like, the logical next step for the Escort GT. Had they used the V8, or as you said, even a 6, it would have gone a long way to putting it into a different category.
I used to work at a Ford dealership back in the day when these cars came out,they were a lot of fun .We took them out after midnight and let them rip on the streets of Brampton -ONTARIO. They were faster than the Mustang GT
I had a friend who had an early model. I thought it was an odd choice, not his personality. He offered that I should drive it on an errand one day. The thing was a beast! Great fun to drive. He passed away a few years ago. Thanks for covering this unique auto and reminding me of my good friend. Great post.
I test drove one of the 85's when I graduated Engineering College and almost bought it as my first new car but then I saw the '86 Mustang GT and feel in love. The Mekur drove very good and was an impressive car...ahead of its time.
I leased an '88 back in the day. About three weeks before the warranty expired, the turbo died, so it was replaced for free. The thought of the turbo going belly up out of warranty spooked me, so I returned it at the end of the lease. The service department told me that had the turbo failed out of lease it would have cost over $2000 to replace. And yes, I always did the "cool down" procedure before shutting off the engine. I really enjoyed the car. It handled great and was quick, though the turbo had some lag. The interior was very nice, though the exterior was unusual. I got a great deal on the lease, which is why I leased it (2 year lease). I could have bought it at the end of the lease for $6K, and thought long and hard about it, but returned it in the end. Edit: Also, regarding the 0-60 times, I seem to recall that the numbers published by the car mags back then were closer to 8 seconds for the 5 speed (which mine was) and not 7.0 seconds. Still, that was considered quick back then, even though a 3.6L, 2013 Chevy Impala I have now is faster.
Frank K Those Impalas are nothing to mess with. I rented one and loved it. It's crazy that pretty much every new car is faster than 20 year old sports cars.
I had an '86 turbo. Loved it's performance (for the time) and the hand crank sunroof. Dashboard cracked horribly, but I got 104,000 miles out of her before I sold it. It got another 60k from that owner. Thanks for the flasback!
I had an '86 in the '90s. Beautiful and well built car. Awesome handling, great turbo power, and speed. Ford/Merkur should really reintroduce a refreshed modern version of this car to the auto market.
I was first introduced to this machine in high school when one of my classmates' parents bought him a brand new one, and you'd thought he had a Maserati the way he went about bragging about his Merkur to anyone who would listen, and when he wrecked it--he just said, "I'll get my parents to buy me another Merkur". His folks were pretty wealthy
My Dad gave me an '86 as my first car. Imagine a young boy in a hot hatch like this in a Canadian winter?! I can fondly recall the valuable physics lessons I learned in that car. I went on to be a huge rally fan, being further inspired by the Mcreas in Scottland rallying this chassis. I have moved on to subarus, but I wish to own one of these again in the future. Keep an eye out on estate auctions. Lol thanks for the edit.
I had a 1986 model. That car was fast. I was beating every sport 4 & 6 cyl cars around. But what i liked the best, was the super tough rust resistant body. That sheet metal was super strong like no other car in the market.
my father had a ford sierra 2.0i "francorchamps" edition with the dohc engine and it was incredible brutal. the handling, the acceleration, it was the fastest car i drove for a while. it was regularly humiliating much more expensive cars on the highway effortlessly. with a relative light body it had an insanely good engine in it. most sierras were quite slow, so no one expected this performance out of it. it resembled a low status boring family car, but it was really a sport car in disguise. he kept it for almost 20 years and put hundreds of thousands of kilometers into it.
I bought a brand new, black, 5 speed manual Merkur XR4Ti in 1986...it was a head turner, some of my car enthusiast friends called it "a poor man's Porsche 944" at the time. As the video states, the style was head turning and very European, handling was great, and it was also a really nice expressway cruiser, plus fairly easy on gas compared to a V8. These cars did have their foibles though. The turbo boost "power band" was about 3,100 rpm to 4,100 rpm - the engine felt strongest in that range, and yes - it sure could have used the addition of the intercooler and 30 additional horsepower that the Ford Mustang SVO had! The large greenhouse area could really heat up on a sunny summer day - the A/C took care of it, but that didn't help the engine power either. The car had an electric engine / radiator cooling fan - that would continue to run after you shut the car off on a hot day - was supposed to be only for a couple of minutes, but the switch on it would sometimes stick, and you'd come out of a restaurant or a store to a totally dead battery! Nothing like push starting your expensive, stylish new car! The Pirelli P6 tires helped the performance handling, but were absolutely worthless in the snow, or in semi-slippery / icy conditions. There were also other little problems - I worked for the advertising agency that handled Lincoln-Mercury, so I had several friends that had 1985 XR4Ti's - and they'd experienced the same issues already - told me what to expect, at roughly what mileage, and what the fix (under warranty) was! I'd tell the dealer how to fix the issue / which service bulleting to refer to, etc. - these cars were new to them too! I finally got it all sorted-out at about 25,000 miles, and decided it was time to trade it in, before more problems cropped-up. I bought a new, black, 1988 Ford Mustang GT with the 5.0 V8 and a 5 speed, and I was a lot happier! All said - I think Edsel Ford II was right - that XR4Ti would have been a lot more enjoyable with a 5.0 liter Ford V8 from the Mustang GT under its hood, along with those little warranty issues resolved!!
I have one, but not stock at all. It is a basket case but that is probably due to the endless mods of all the previous owners. Car of my childhood so I couldn't resist the money pit that it is.
Back in 80s, In Venezuela Ford sold more units of this car than the Mustangs, even though we didn't get the Turbo version. We basically got the Cologne V6 family and I believe the 3.0 Essex on the latest upcale sedans "Sapphire". Actually, Ford Venezuela dropped the Mustang completely in favor of these hot hatches. Mechanically, speaking it was a shock for most mechanics used to big american V8s and carburators, they knew nothing about this cars and ended up screwing them even more. It competed with the Renault Fuego and Chevy Monza Hatch, it was way ahead of its time. In the later years, a lot of people started to drop 5.0s on them and the Ford Explorer V6, I think it was a 4.0 Cologne very similar to the originals. Everybody back in the day wanted an XR4, According to wikipedia, in South Africa they had the XR8 which came out of the dealerships with a 5.0, only for racing homologation purposes. You forgot to mention the Cosworth version in Europe which today is a rare and expensive item of car history!!
@JSavic yeah, originally from there but moved out in 2007, I went back for week recently due to a family emergency and you can find stuff now but need to pay same or higher prices than in US! Hard times for most but nobody listened or believed when we forecast this situation years ago!!
We had one of these! Great in every way you mentioned, but Edsel Ford 2 was absolutely right! The 2.3 L turbo was a let down, because it ran hot - no inter-cooler as you mentioned. There was no less than 3 or 4 sensors that had to trip before the radiator fans would come on to cool down the motor. We had to rewire the fans to come on at all times when the motor was running. We ended up replacing the top end of the motor & during that repair, discovered play in the turbo! That was it. Time to sell & nobody wanted this car. With the 5.0 engine, we would have kept the car for 20 years as per our usual timeframe, and it would have been a collectors item. Like you said, it was great and ahead of its time in every possible way, except under the hood. Even the 6 cylinder normally aspirated Sierra engine from the European version would have been superior.....I'm 4 years late to find this video, but thanks! We love your channel & look forward to every show.
I owned two xr4ti's,a white 85 & red 88,loved them both,never a problem at all,VERY difficult to find a nice one in today's market,or I'd have another one !
@B. Chandler saddly as far as the club knows people have the cars but a very low percentage are actually on the road. Most of them just sit in people's garages. Right now we have three at our house but only 2 are on the road and then of the local group that has them I know of that has them only a couple are on the road and the ones who do take them out only register them to drive them for a few months in the summer.
My Dad came so close to buying one of these in 1985 but we got a Mark VII LSC instead. I bought a Mustang GT in 1986 which I still own to this day! She is 34 years old and looks better now than in 86’. We had two 5.0’s in the driveway. Good times!
TREVOR THE BALD MINGE I am American that lived there when they came out. I thought it was cool as fuk ! It had no emissions controls. Gasoline in South Africa was leaded 97 octane and gas remained leaded until 2005.
Imagine if Ford offer that 302 South African spec Sierra here in the US. The funny thing is that very few people back then knew about this car along with other South African Ford oddities like the Escort Bantam pickup and Sierra P100 pickup as many are finding out today because of the internet, if these were known I think the Merkur badge would still be around.
For me the XR4ti was my first brand new car. I Love the car. It was fast in its day and handled very well. I did have problems with it like having to replace the turbo at least three times. I was ok with that since Ford had a very good warranty and I used the heck out of it. I do think the Ford which was known to have "the better idea" dropped the ball on the Merkurs. . .at least in the USA. They should have put the intercooler on the turbo engine and upgraded to 4 wheel disc brakes. They also could have put their SHO engine in the car which was in the Taurus performance model. That would have made the XR4ti a screamer. Well. . .I am happy that I had the experience to own one. Too bad you don't see them anywhere today.
In 1996 European car magazine featured this Sierra, I thought it was going to be a new Ford model line, I was surprised to know that this actually was from the mid 80s. It was 10 years ahead of it's time and still today looks like a modern car. Is even better looking than the 1980s mustang.
In 1988, I was at the Indy Car / Trans Am road races at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin (Road America). Of course, the Trans Am cars of that era had little in common with the road going versions, but, never the less, Scott Pruett, driving a V8 Merkur, beat the best the world had to offer, including Hurley Haywood and Hans Stuck in AWD factory Audi's, and all the other factories too, with drivers like Lynn St. James, Wally Dallenbach Jr., Willy T. Ribbs, Dorsey Schroeder, ect. I remember Pruett's Merkur well. Flared fenders, dark blue. Great memories.
I owned a used '85 for a couple of years. Not a bad car, and pretty good engine. It's hard to believe the turbo only put out 175 HP, same HP as the 2.5 l non-turbo in the Ford Fusion that I drive today.
I recall seeing a few of these around back in the day and I realized that Ford was involved with it, but I never knew what to make of them, or their appeal.
I remember seeing these in dealership along with the Scorpio. They were sexy cars at the time but too expensive for me just out of college. I ended up with an '87 Mecury Lynx XR3 manual which I loved and had no issues with until I wrecked it.
I had an 85 Xr4. Nice car to drive. Good ride and handling Roomy and practical with the hatchback. The turbo never put out the power it should have. Could never figure out what the issue was but it always ran well. No major issues with reliability.
Had the mark 1 2.8 with muther Garret etc and newer EFI 2.9 with new engine in 2002 at 100k written off. So easy to drive, could be in 3rd at less than 10mph, drop the clutch and be straight up to a 4 wheel slide at 85 across fields. Last Fords ever owned, newer dont do it for me. Bog standard reknowned as a stump puller.
I was a Mercury service manager at the time of this vehicle. You need to research the number of recalls this vehicle produced, it was a nightmare. Sales were so bad that Ford had their sales,service,and parts representatives use them as they could not sell them.
I bought a white XR4Ti new in 1989 and I believe it was discounted plus a rebate... added nice rims and Perelli tires.... it was an excellent car...fully loaded, leather, solid, turbo, fast, quality finish inside, handled excellent, really was about equal or better then the BMW at the time.
I have one mean 1988 XR4Ti with no rust , rebuilt engine with racing parts,forge aluminium rods, free floating pistons, balanced, blue print and a 3 degree valve job (work in progress)... its capable of handling 400 hp + but running stock, cam, exhaust manifold and turbo, intake, injectors and air metering sensor, VW Bus rear axle joints(bolt on) rebuilt transmission with a shift kit, custom rad (aluminium) and independent trans cooler, can't forget new coil springs and shocks, bushings, brakes and Potenza tires etc... This car as never seen winters nor rain when possible and its a blast to drive, most of its weak points have been corrected. I love that car, and the third owner, my Dad bought it from the original owner. Too bad i can't post some pictures...
In the UK the Sierra was very popular , this included the XR4 four wheel drive 2.9i V6 and different variants on the 2.0 Sierra cosworth . Both fantastic cars , cosworth went like stink but the XR4 handling and torque made it nicer to drive.
Thank you for this video, I had a 1985 Ford Sierra XR6i v6 version it was my dad's actually and he passed to me in 1993 when I graduated from high school and had for about 10 years and gave it to my youngest brother which had it for 7 more years we really loved that car we were in south america at the time now I'm in USA and looking for one as a collection
I had a 1987 XR4Ti....It was a great automobile. It could get you into and out of trouble in a heartbeat! A boatload of fun to drive and the handling was great! Raced a guy (I suppose?!) from Columbus to Cincinnati one night and he was in a 260Z....Anytime I wanted him it was there! He finally gave up...There's something about downshifting into 3rd at 75 mph that is really fun!
Also, the XR4Ti had substantial body roll. But there was a California company, Rapido Group, that sold heavier anti-roll bars, which I installed and those made a tremendous difference. They also had an intercooler kit, which dramatically improved power and performance. I also had that. Made my XR4Ti and excellent track car at Road Atlanta. I used to school the 944 Porches quite handily, LOL.
I had an 87 back in the day. Bought it new. Literally stole it via fleet purchase through work. Quickly found out about Rapido Group. Added SVO engine kit. 230hp Suspension kit and struts Borla exhaust Sierra grille, badges, and spoiler. Rear disc brake kit. Being a bachelor back then was good! My friends thought I was nuts. I let them drive the car. End of discussion. 😂 Enjoyed the heck out of the XR4!😊
Great topic. I remember the first time I saw one here in the US, the car seemed like it was from another planet. There is an owners group that meets up once a year.
Had an 88 and loved it. It was used but well taken care of by the time i bought it. I had the crappy 2.3 rebuilt along with a t5 transmission ready to drop in. I was waiting to break the rebuilt 2.3 in but sadly it blew the head gasket twice and i ran out of patience.
They put V8s in the South African XR8, but obviously the cream of the crop of this shape was the RS500 Cosworth. This is a great documentary, I never even knew they sold the Sierra (the UK name) in America!!!
I remember this odd duck... I kind of found the double spoiler interesting, but seriously there were lots of other cars in the price range that looked cooler and performed as well or better... The folks that bought it were mostly into novelty, which wore off quickly and so did anyone's interest in the car. As to the turbo, most people back then weren't on board with turbos. For the most part they were thought of as unreliable and expensive to fix and that they shortened the life span of the car. With so many good go great cars, it wasn't the car's fault they didn't make it. It was because there was just something better, more appealing for the time or just plain cheaper competing with it. In order for a car to succeed and survive, it needs to find a niche and to beat out the competition in it's niche. The XR4Ti never found it's niche... It didn't have BMW's status appeal, nor did it have the Mustang's muscle nor did it have Saab's yuppy appeal, what ever that was... For the most part, people gave it a confused look in the show room and passed it by.... And seriously... if you went to a Lincoln dealer looking for a new car, you certainly weren't comparing this car to the town car you went there to buy. Cars of the era like the Buick Regatta fell pretty much between the same cracks.
@@johnburch6927 I don't remember how much these things cost, but I recall they were way overpriced. They appealed to wanna be somebodies, who wanted to show off with something different. The kind of people who also bought Saabs.
@wzrubicon 1 I'm old enough to have wrenched on them at the dealer. They did not deliver on performance or reliability. What they did do, however, is introduce a lot of technology in the domestic products. They just sucked to work on, and we worked on them a lot. Your point is valid though, just like GM and Chrysler sister brands, Ford had a lot of performance oriented Mercuries that often get over looked.
I owned 3 of these cars - 85, 86, and 88. The 88 seemed so cool becuase the body cladding was painted. lol I remember that VHS tape you have too, I still have most of my dealership brochures and probably a manual as well. Great memories.
Cool little cars. We had few problems with them at the Lincoln Mercury dealer. The 'Guibo' or 'Gobbo' joints in the driveshaft failed at high mileage and no parts were available. Most owners had the driveshaft replaced with a conventional shaft with U joints. These cars would SCREAM as would the 4 door Scorpio with the V6.
I had an 88 9000 Turbo with a few mods, it ran great and was pretty quick. I would've thought they would've been more of a competitor to these since 900's seemed like a smaller car, so technically they should've been a lil faster. My Saab engine ran forever but the car/electronics fell apart all around it. It was sad. Also the 9000 Turbo was a bit overpriced imo. Mine I got used but it had the original window sticker with it and I can't remember exactly but I'm pretty sure it was 28k'ish+ in 88. What was a Merkur 16k. Crazy difference.
@@beff5058 They're pretty easy. I still have a Ford intercooler conversion kit for one in my shop. At least I'm pretty sure it is for a Merkur. They sold them at dealerships for customers that were jealous of the intercooled ones :)
My aunt had an 87 Merkur XR4 and I remember when I got the chance to drive it being very surprised at its pick up. I talked to my father after that and he said Turbos were savings account time bombs under the hood. That statement stayed with me and I think in retrospect it was a rare piece of bad advice my father gave me.
This sure brings back memories. I worked for a Lincoln - Mercury dealership just out of highschool in 86. We used to prep and deliver Scorpios to Ford executives 3 at a time. They were solid vehicles that compared to the sportier Lincoln Mark Vll which had the Mustang 5.0. Of course we raced the Scorpios on the highway on their way to delivery.
The early turbo 2.3 setup was pretty much a joke, but when I worked on one of these I saw how one could run. It was pretty impressive when that turbo kicked in and it didn't have to get to 3000 rpm to start boost. I couldn't go for the looks but it was in fact a pretty good car and made the mustangs look like a joke in every way.
I owned a black 1985 with 5-speed stick. It was the most attention-getting vehicle I had owned. The build quality was astounding.....it was solid and quiet, with amazing paint quality, although the interior was a letdown. I traded it on a 1986 Mazda 626 GT coupe.
My buddy's sister had one back in the day. She loved it, but she said no one knew what brand a Merkur was, let alone could pronounce it correctly. Personally, I was trying to decide in 1988 if I should buy the XR4Ti or a T-Bird Turbo Coupe. Being 6'4", I had virtually no headroom in the Merkur with the sunroof so chose the Bird. The Mustang SVO was my favorite from that period, but never pulled the trigger on one.
I bought an 86 XR4ti when it came out. Great car but Ford/Lincoln Mercury has never been able sell this kind of car. They never sold well. I’d love to find one but they are extremely rare today.
I had a 2 page fold out add for one of these out of Car and Driver hanging on my bedroom wall in 1988. Always thought they looked cool. The only time I ever got close to on was as a thoroughly trashed trade in at the dealership where I worked in the mid 90’s. A car that was never marked properly and I’m sure despised by Ford/Mercury dealership service departments at the time
Aside from the happy nostalgia..... I worked as a mechanic before, during and after these were on the road. The were universally hated, on several levels, by everyone in the business.
The XR4Ti's "much better fate" would've been to be released in Australia; the Sierra progenitor had such a successful racing profile in Oz but was never released here; why??? BTW thanks to the uploader:-)
Your videos are always excellent and informative. This one was no exception. Now that you've covered the SVO Mustang and Merkur xr4ti, I'd love to see you round out the Ford 2.3 turbos with a video covering the 83-88 production run of the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe!
In the U.K. this car was called the Ford Sierra and the Cosworth tuned models were insanely fast even by today’s standards. Only 200bhp but the power too weight ratio was insane. Unfortunately due too high car theft during the 80s and 90s meaning buying the car was the easy part, it was the insurance that insanely expensive. Thus ended the era of Fords “ hot hatches” that dominated the 80s and 90s, mainly with young boy racers trying too impress the girls. We also had the XR4i version like in America, but the Cosworth engine version was the pick of the bunch, if you could afford one that is..
They were also fantastically unreliable. In the late 80's I worked in a grocery store part time after school, and one of the store managers had a brand new one. It went back to the dealer almost every week, even getting towed out of the parking lot of the grocery store a couple of times. He traded it back in within a year.
Yeah I loved that car grew up in one I love the little pumps from the front seats 💺 and the back seats recline it was so cool the sound system was good
the best and last manifestation of this idea at Ford pre 2000s to me was the MN12 Thunderbird SC ... IRS , high tech smaller displacement motor... it was an instant classic but a relic even when it was new; it needed to go so the Mustang can move upmarket in the 2000s and onward...
In South Africa, the Sierra was available with a 3.0 V6 called the XR6 and a 5.0 V8 (in limited numbers as an homologation special) called the XR8. The XR8 is very rare and very expensive if you can find one.
I've never owned anything more than a 4 cylinder engine, all the way back to mid 80s. If I could have afforded this car after graduation, I would have bought it. It was too rich for my blood!
Have owned an XR4Ti for over 22yrs now. Not the same one of course but always had to have one in my line up in some form. Ford would do well to bring it back and smoke the competition. Can still out perform modern cars with very little effort and mods.
Should have called it a Ford Sierra and brought over the Euro engine. I remember non-car people scratching their heads about "Merkur". What the heck is a Merkur?!? A new disease?
They probably couldn’t do that, as the GMC full size pickup truck is the Sierra, and as mentioned, Oldsmobile had the Cutlass Ciera at the time as well.
I believe they didn't bring the European engines over here in the US because the European engines probably didn't comply with the US emissions laws at the time. But ironically with the US grey market laws depending on the state you live in, you could now import any Ford Sierra with whatever engine you want including the Cosworth model because the 25 year grey market limit is up for the Ford Sierra.
@B. Chandler I am building mine to make about 350hp. You may want to consider a Cometic MLS (multi layer steel) head gasket for your build. I have had no failures with the Fel Pro, but they were all on stock motors with no up grades.