Ford Scorpio

The Ford Scorpio was a large family car produced by the Ford Motor Company in Europe its factory in Cologne, Germany between 1985 and 1999. It replaced the Granada range, although the Granada name was retained in the UK until 1994, with some models also being called 'Granada Scorpio'.

Unlike the Granada, it was initially only available as a hatchback, and not as a sedan or station wagon. This proved to be a mistake for Ford, which later introduced both, and dropped the hatchback in 1994.

In 1994, the Scorpio was radically restyled, but proved unpopular with critics, who described its front end as 'bug-eyed' and plain ugly. Also, the segment of the market in which the Scorpio competed was in decline in Europe, and many buyers preferred Ford's smaller Mondeo.

The Scorpio was also briefly sold by Ford in the US, under the 'Merkur' brand name.

It was elected Car of the Year in 1986.