The worst issue I know of with the 2nd and 3rd generation Escorts is a pretty common track record of dropping valve seats. My dad had a '94 Escort (I now own it) that dropped a valve seat at around 150K miles, the head was removed and replaced with a head with upgraded valve seats and there hasn't been anymore problems. It's an automatic and has over 180K miles on the original transmission and still shifts fine. I have 2 3rd generation Escorts a '97 wagon and an '02 SE and haven't had any issues with either of them. All Escorts seem to wear out tie rod ends faster than most cars, but I have lifetime warranty tie rod ends on the '88 that usually have to be replaced about every 100K miles. If you want to learn more about Escorts go to
Ford Escort Owners Association and you should be able to find out about anything you want to know. Another thing you need to check on older Escorts is the condition of the rear strut towers. I don't think this would be an issue here in KY, but in areas that have lots of salt put on the roads in the winter this is a common area for them to rust out making them unsafe.