The 1985.5 Escort EXP had a 2 barrel carb, the 1985 Escort steering wheel, and a sleek new front-end design, including an air dam and flush-mounted headlamps.
Gone were the distinctive "frog-eye" headlights, replaced by flush-mounted headlamps with wraparound marker lenses (which were also introduced in the other Escort models) and parking lamps mounted below in the bumper region alongside a wide center slot.