Factory build sheet

1981 Ford Escape SE

Build 1FMCU9G9-G · 2L 4cyl · Four-wheel drive · Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV)

VIN positions 1 through 8 read 1FMCU9G9 and position 10 reads G. Those nine characters define this build. Position 9 and positions 11 through 17 differ on every car.

Every Escape whose VIN starts 1FMCU9G9 and carries G in position 10 left the plant with the same engine, transmission, drivetrain and equipment listed below. We know of 9,052 of them.

  • Decoded Jul 7, 2026
  • 9,052 known VINs
  • 107 listed for sale now

Factory specification

As filed by Ford with NHTSA for this build. Fields the filing does not record are left out entirely — a missing row means no recorded value, not a missing feature.

Engine

Displacement
2 L
Cylinders
4
Configuration
In-Line
Engine manufacturer
Ford
Horsepower
240 hp
Fuel type
Gasoline

Drivetrain

Drive type
Four-wheel drive
Brake system
Hydraulic

Body & chassis

Body class
Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV)/Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV)
NHTSA body type
MULTIPURPOSE PASSENGER VEHICLE (MPV)
Doors
4
Manufacturer
FORD MOTOR COMPANY

Weight rating

GVWR class
Class 1C
GVWR
4,001–5,000 lb

Gross vehicle weight rating is the loaded ceiling set by the manufacturer, not the car's own weight.

What this build asks today

Asking prices of live dealer listings decoded to this exact configuration — narrower than the trim-level figure, because every car counted here shares the same engine, transmission and drivetrain.

$9,995 median asking price · 145 listings · as of Aug 30, 2026

Low 2% of listings $4,000 Top 2% of listings $14,349

The same build, other model years

Ford used the VIN pattern 1FMCU9G9 for 6 model years. Nothing but the year changes between these pages, so the price gap between them is depreciation on an identical car.

$9,995 1981 $7,475 2013 $7,995 2014 $9,000 2015 $9,397 2018 $12,645 2019

How this VIN pattern is read

A 17-character VIN carries two kinds of information: what was built, and which one it is. This page is the first kind — the nine highlighted positions.

Positions Characters What they encode
1–3 1FM FORD MOTOR COMPANY · World manufacturer identifier
4–8 CU9G9 Model, body style, engine and restraint system
9 × Check digit — computed per vehicle, not part of the build
10 G Model year — 1981
11 × Assembly plant
12–17 ×××××× Production sequence number, unique to each vehicle

9,052 vehicles carry this build

Every VIN we have decoded to 1FMCU9G9-G shares the specification above.

  • 9,052 Known VINs
  • 107 Listed for sale now
  • 145 Priced listings
  • $9,995 Median asking

Cars are filed by a fixed rule based on the VIN, so a car never moves between groups.

Browse all 9,052 VINs of this build →

Neighboring configurations

Other factory configurations of the Escape, each with its own build sheet. The set is fixed by the VIN patterns themselves, so it does not shuffle as prices or inventory move.

Keep going

Where this data comes from

Specification fields are decoded from the manufacturer's filings in the NHTSA vPIC database, keyed on VIN positions 1–8 and 10. We publish the filed values as they stand and leave out anything the filing does not record.

Prices are asking prices from 145 live dealer listings decoded to this build , last updated August 30, 2026 . They are what sellers ask, not what buyers paid.

Vehicle counts come from the 9,052 VINs of this build we have seen in dealer inventory. They are a sample of the road population, not a production figure.