[Closed] Tell me about Mondeos.

bit like a specialized bike......i had one for 7yrs, never let me down.
1800 diesal. best motorway car i have ever had.

^^ this.. Same with the focuses rust slowly eating it. Engine still runs true 2.0tdci

I miss mine, brilliant car, didn't skip a beat in 1200000 miles. Apparently there's going to be a 1.5 diesel with 140 bhp and less than 100g/km co2 in the next launch

I drive one at work, 61 plate, 2.2l I think, great car, I'd buy one. Also used works 62 plate one and it had a horrible power lag when you put your foot down & a sudden power surge at around 2500rpm which made it horrible to drive, not sure if its a fault on that one. Also.prefer the more traditional dash of the 61 plate.

didn't skip a beat in 1200000 miles.

They corner like they're on rails.

Forgot to mention, in a couple of years it might have to tow a caravan.

(my emoticons have disappeared so I can't put a funny face on)

1.2 million miles?!!! Impressive

I did read of a [url= http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/driver-clocks-up-a-million-miles-881776 ]1 million mile mondeo[/url], although it was a few months back so maybe its clocked another 200k since then 🙂

Mine is an older one, mk3 2.2. Ace. Currently being a pain in the arse, but it's already given me enough good service that I don't mind. Cargohold (you can't call it a boot) is brilliant. Oh and I've never towed with it but 320-odd lb/ft of torque, it could pull my house.

The big diesel engines are where it's at imo- there's hardly any downside to sizing up as high as you can, tax difference is small, fuel economy's comparable (sometimes better- so unstressed), insurers don't seem to care.

I had one a few years back as a hire car. Absolutely loved it. Really solid on the road, reasonable amount of power, nice to drive, big boot. Great car.

Just look on fords website to get your head around the various specs. My farther owns a titanium x estate in lunar sky with the sports pack and tinted glass. Looks really classy in my eyes, and far better looking than your average nazi waggon. Its a fantastic drive and genuinly handles like its on rails, you forget its an estate. Id have one in a hartbeat if I could afford it. The only minor bad point is the tyre wear. He's only getting 20,000 miles out of a set, where as the older models were good for 60,000 the way he drives. Hes checked the tracking and its all fine. It will be in part down to the 18" wheels, and the keen handeling.

I've only ever had the new shape as hire cars. They're not bad but gave me lower back ache after an hour of driving. Tried altering all the seat adjustments but no joy. Never had this issue in any other car.

From experience and comparison with A3s, A4s and a BMW 3-series - and Peugeots, Citroens, Rovers, Vauxhalls.
The only car I willing had a second one of.
Huge, drive well, except on slow tight corners (because they're huge). No need to pack, just lob stuff in it. Comfortable, refined (compared to an A3 or a 3-series), well built (as good as the 3-series, way better than an Audi)
Doesn't handle as well as a 3-series in the dry, thirstier than an A3 or 3-series (though the next generation will probably sort that).
Not flash, proper workman's tool - just quietly does the job rather well.
I've moved on from my second Mondeo - to an S-Max 'cause I wanted even more space.

I had a Titanium 2.0L diesel for four years as a company car before swapping it for an i40. When it came to renewal time, the only thing stopping me getting another was I fancied a change. Cracking motor, couldn't fault it.

The only minor bad point is the tyre wear.

I worked out at one point, it would've cost me 10p/mile in rubber.

I have a 1.8 Edge (bottom of the range model) on an 08 plate with 130k miles, mostly not done by me though. As others above have said it's a great car. Huge car, with lots and lots of space in the back seat (I've had 3 kiddy seats in the back) - the only downside to which is the width of the car, which can be a pain in car parks, though I don't really notice it on the road.

Given the option I'd have gone for the 2.0 rather than the 1.8 - according to the figures I looked at the bigger engine is actually more economical - mine is just a tad disappointing, using a little more fuel than my previous 406 2.0HDi, though it's far from the end of the world, and I'm managing consistent 50mpg tanks now (the trip computer is wildly optimistic). That's more than compensated for by the price I paid though 🙂 Plenty of power though - lots more than the 406, which I think a few of the horses had escaped from - and drives very nicely.

Very happy to have the Edge - still plenty of toys on that, including voice activated bluetooth handsfree, leccy front windows, cruise control, aircon etc. The only obvious things which might be nice I don't have are climate control and leccy rear windows, but I can live without them. Big advantage (to me) is 16" steel wheels and relatively high profile tyres which are rather cheaper to replace than those on blingy higher end models.

As for reliability, I've recently had to replace the DMF and clutch, but I don't think that's at all unusual for any similar car with that sort of drivetrain and mileage. So far as I can tell nothing at all major prior to that.

aracer - Member

the only downside to which is the width of the car, which can be a pain in car parks,

I remember parking at Tesco for the first time, looking at my tyres almost on the white lines on the left and going "I made an arse of that". Then went round the back and thought "Man, I need to practice this, I'm sticking out about 2 feet here". Then discovered I was bang on the white lines at the left too and the nose was about .00001mm from the fence. It's like parking in lilliput.

Northwind your car appears to have 2 left sides?

But I know what you mean, most cars have got bigger but the parking spaces have shrunk.

MrOvershoot - Member

Northwind your car appears to have 2 left sides?

That's the least of its problems 🙂

Not sure on the newer shape but mk 3 mondeos have a liking for snapping front suspension springs ( pita diy job but cheap at a garage to replace). Central looking door locks fail as the micro stitches die. Replaced easily but locks aren't cheap really. A few other common faults like reversing might switch but they cost pennies and are swapped in seconds.
I suspect ford won't have fixed those problems on the newer ones, but I may be wrong.

[quote=Northwind ]I remember parking at Tesco for the first time...

Though yours is a Mk3, which isn't that much wider than my old 406. I hadn't actually checked the dimensions before I bought mine 😳 and assumed it would be much the same as the 406 was the biggest in class when I got that - it turns out my Mk4 is much biggerer than that or a Mk3. Whilst it has advantages in terms of loadspace for day to day usage it would be preferable if it was a bit narrower, and something worth checking if you're buying.

Make sure its got the quick clear heated front windscreen. This is the best and most useful automotive innovation for the last 20 yrs! Great cars, handles superbly wipes the floor with a Passat in my opinion.

I had a Passat before the Mondeo. Couldn't fault the Passat at the time, but the Mondeo is better in every regard.

[quote=Inbred456 ]Make sure its got the quick clear heated front windscreen.

I think they all do. My bottom of the range one (fairly sure it's the cheapest possible diesel Mondeo estate, with no obvious extras apart from roof rails) certainly does.

Yeah, heated front screen is std fit across the range. If you've got your sensible hat on what you want is a 140bhp 2.0l Zetec, its the right balance. The laggy one mentioned above was probably a 163, the 2.2 also needs reving apparently and isn't as refined. I bought an Edge, which is great but I do wish I had the cruise control with speed limiter, its genuinely useful.

I've got a fairly basic Mk4. I think it's an Edge, but has Cruise control installed. It's the 2.0 diesel and I average 49.*mpg overall. Although this has dropped over the last few months but I've been doing a fair few trackdays and towing motorbikes along with trips to wales with 3 bikes on the towbar.

Can't fault the car though, I've had it for 40,000 now and it's not missed a beat, cost the usual generic service costs, nothing more.

Taken to France and gets you there in complete comfort... Nice 🙂

Great cars, but can suffer from massive electrical issues, we abandoned our fleet early at eork ad every car eas spending more time going back to garage then on the road. Mine devrloped an ace fault where randomly it would turn the engine off and loose the power steering, abs etc...whilst entering corners, roundabouts etc..bloody thing nearly had in a tree twice. Others eould randomly not start until you opened the bonnet and literally smaked the hell out of everything..we also had cars that got all sorts of dashboard isdues, failing switches, dials, sat navs.. the only ones thst didn't give us crsp where the base models without all the useless electronic shite soldered by chimps on pcp

Anyone comment on servicing? Service interval is I think annual /12k with every other being a major one. How much should you expect to pay for a service at a main dealer vs decent indy?

My smax (same car different body) is coming up 4 years, I've had it a year and has been pretty good so far. Great for space and drives well enough, few niggles (rear high level brake light - the cable routing is shonky apparently and the opening and closing of the tail gate causes it to break), and a failed front auto door lock so I have to use the key.

Planning to drive it to death, so main dealer service isn't likely to be a major benefit to me. Or win the lottery in which case a few hundred quid extra in residuals is immaterial anyway 😉

I haven '09 diesel estate and it is a brilliant car.

My brief when looking for a car was for it to be big enough to cart bikes around and as reliable as possible.

Lots of trawling led me to believe that the Mondeo fitted the bill the best.

I can get both of the kids track bikes in the back (with the front wheels removed) without folding down the back seats. Unlike a lot of other estates, it is so wide that the bikes go in width ways (forks to the left hand side and wheel to the right). I have actually got three track bikes (one an adult) two sets of rollers and all of the other guff in the back without folding the seats down and only removing the front wheels.

I can get three road bikes in there without dismantling them if I fold the double back seat down (still leaving one seat in the back).

My mate has a Passat estate and the boot is quite small in comparison.

I am 6ft and I reckon I could sleep in the back of the Mondeo quite comfortably.

Dealer minor service is £199. Local place charged me £140 for the same service.

I've not bothered with a larger service in the 40,000 I've owned it.

Dealer major is £280-300 (every 37500 miles) though I just paid £240 at my local main dealer.

using a little more fuel than my previous 406 2.0HDi

I think the 1.8 was a hangover from ford's previous generation diesels.

I'm not sure if the 406 block was the same, but pugs & fords have shared the same 2.0 & 2.2 diesel since about 2005. Got one in my focus, its a great mill, 50+mpg all day every day on my commute.

Or to sum up, I don't know much about the Mondeo specifically, but the 2.0 diesel is good.

I have a MK4 with the 1.8 tdci engine.Just the basic edge model but has everything i want,air con,cruise ,etc.A bit strange to drive at first because the engine has anti stall ( unless on a hill ).Better built than my old MK3 but suspension is a bit firmer.I tow a small 2 berth caravan with it and the firmer suspension makes it handle better when towing.
The car is pretty big so my wife doesn't like driving it.
There are 2 belts on the end of the engine that should be changed at 100k and the 1.8 has no dpf , which appealed to me.
The 1.8 is an old engine with a more modern injection system.
I had a towbar fitted but the engine now" hiccups" occasionally when towing.Ideally it should have a Ford towbar with the trailer module and the electrics reset.

[quote=daveh ]I bought an Edge, which is great but I do wish I had the cruise control with speed limiter, its genuinely useful.

You've got a standard cruise control? Where would the speed limiter be useful that you can't use that?

I like mine. It's a 2L petrol ('07), so not fast and pretty juicy, but will happily fly along the motorway at 90 for an hour (if I'm in a desparate hurry!).
Estate boot is the best I've seen as the wheel arches don't take up space. Pretty well built and the handling, for big car, is superb.
I need to get something with better mpg but can't bring myself to part with the big ol lump.

Oh yeah, electrics are mostly ok, but sometimes the cruise just refuses to work and the stereo is garbage (but they've probably improved that by now)

I am now on my second s-max, same engine and spec as mondeo, have also driven lots of mondeos for work.

The Zetec is the best compromise spec. Titanium is nice with the bells and whistles but a relatively big jump up in cost and a harsher ride with the low profile tyres (and quicker tyre wear)

Of the current engines 2.0 TDCi 140 is the best, very smooth, plenty of grunt and pretty economical.

The Mondeo is very difficult to find fault with. Its handling is superb, inside it is massive, very comfortable and decent value. It looks good and there are plenty around to choose from.

Quite like ours it's a '10 2.0 diesel 160

Very soothing and easy to drive, big but not cumbersome, quite economical in terms of fuel and maintenance

I have an 09 hatch in Zetec 2.0 diesel (140HP) flavour. Does exactly what I want it to and I think that the worst that's happened to it is that one of the springs in the driver's seat broke (fixed it with a brake cable which was easy enough).

It's a big car outside but unlike many other big cars, it's also big inside. It's the first car I've had that at 6'5" I don't have the seat all the way back and I have loads of head room.

Major service every 3 years IIRC, £140 at local garage. Minor service is £89. Sailed through the 2 MOTs it's had.

I've been considering a Galaxy or S-Max for more space when off on holiday but really it's easily big enough for just about anything else (and even then we did manage the trip to France absolutely fine last year - 2 adults, two young kids). Just thinking I might be able to fit bikes, etc in more easily than racks.

I've got a 08 plate 2 litre tdci (140hp)and have owned it for the last 3 years and covered 60k in it (now on 112k) apart from my aircon just starting to play up I've not had one problem, still on original clutch/dpf/exhuast etc, the cambelt is almost due though (every 120k) so that may cost...

There are few things you need to look out for though, steering racks can be a costly problem, something to do with the seals breaking down, although most of these seem to happen early on in the cars life and will have been fixed under warranty.

Also the aircon condensor gets holes in it quite easily and lets all the fluid out, dealers will shaft you for this but a replacement cost's around £90 and is fairly straight forward to change, tell tale sign is if the air con has a hissing noise to it when it's low on fluid, this has just happened to mine.

Make sure you avoid the 18" rims on the higher spec cars, as tyre wear is a major issue with them, my old 2.5t (petrol) estate had them and would eat tyres in less than 10k miles and they aint cheap.
I still only get around 20k from the little 16" rims on my current car, they look sh1t but save me money.....

I've got a MKIII and I'm pretty happy with it. Only grumble would be that, having had a Passat previously, the seats are less comfortable for long (many hours) journeys than the VW was.

Also had a propensity for tyres and front springs needing replaced more frequently than you might expect.

far better looking than your average nazi waggon

If your car buying is influenced by UKIPiness, you should know that the Mondeo's built in Belgium - might be better with a Nissan or Honda if you want to "buy British"

[quote=travo ]I've got a 08 plate 2 litre tdci (140hp)... the cambelt is almost due though (every 120k) so that may cost...

Isn't the 2 litre a chain?

Isn't the 2 litre a chain?

My old 54 plate 2.0 (130ps) is a chain but I've just been looking at an 11 plate 2.0 (163ps) and asked about this. The 163 is definately a belt with a 120k replacement interval. This is the only think I could find to dislike.

Hmm, maybe they've changed it again, I guess there was an update - I was fairly sure at the age I was looking (08/09) the 2 litre was a chain and only the 1.8 had a belt - though there is a lot of misinformation about this and the required change intervals (to which I'm probably adding 😳 )

Isn't the 2 litre a chain?

Was... but isn't now. Wiki says the mondy mk4 went to the pug/ford block on 2.0 & 2.2s in 2007.

I had mine done at 60k, don't recall it being too expensive.

I did 90,000 miles in 2 years in a '11 163BHP estate. Fantastic car, albeit a bit of a sod to park sometimes. I've had a couple of the previous models, too. I'm not sure if the 163BHP engine is worth the extra though.
Handling wise, it's 95% as good as a 3 series in the dry, IMHO. Praise indeed. Streets ahead of Audis and VWs.

I can honestly say having owned a Mk3 and Mk4 Mondeo I've never given a seconds thought to how it handles. LOL. It's a Mondeo, I bought it for eating up journeys not as a go kart.

You've got a standard cruise control? Where would the speed limiter be useful that you can't use that?

Exactly those times when you can't use cruise control. If its busy cruise can be a pain, flicking it on/off all the time. At those times I find setting the speed limiter better, set it to X mph so you know you'll not exceed that, get on with the business of looking at the traffic and accelerating/slowing to suit. If you do need to exceed X mph for any reason then all you need do is floor it, it'll go through the limiter temporarily but will re-engage the limiter again as soon as you drop below X mph. Also, should you find yourself on a stretch at X mph, but still you can foresee that cruise would be on/off all the time, the limiter allows you to flex your ankle/depress the pedal different amounts with no change in speed. I find this improves comfort over long journeys.

I honestly can't work out what you mean fella... it's a lot of detail, but may as well be a different language as to what you're asking.

I understand what he means but I can't see that I'd ever use it since I find 'standard' cruise control spot on. I haven't ever heard of a cruise control with speed limit either, mind, though unless he's delusional it presumably does exist.

Also, should you find yourself on a stretch at X mph, but still you can foresee that cruise would be on/off all the time, the limiter allows you to flex your ankle/depress the pedal different amounts with no change in speed. I find this improves comfort over long journeys.

My sister in law has a 1.4 Astra with this feature, above 70mph pedal position makes no difference to speed. You can flex your ankle all you like! Not sure if that counts as proper "speed limited cruise control"

[i] I haven't ever heard of a cruise control with speed limit either.[/i]

I think I had a rental with this 'feature' - either a Peugeot or a Skoda. Found it to be completely pointless.

surely if you're in cruise control your foot is felxing/moving/positioned somewhere completely differently anyway, therefore negating the problem ?

Each to their own I guess but I found it more useful than cruise on our busy motorways. Perhaps [url= http://www.ford.co.uk/FordFleet/NewsAndReviews/FordForBusiness/2010/June/SpeedLimiter ]this[/url] is a better explanation.

What sort of discount do you generally get on a new one? On the Ford website they list a mid-level estate at around £27k. Would you expect a discount of thousands on this price?

Also, is depreciation steep on a Mondeo?

Do you use cruise when the motorway is busy and the speed is varying, say 50 to 90 mph?

Also, is depreciation steep on a Mondeo?

I paid £8000 for a 2010 back early 2013. So assuming that was lower spec of say £22,000 then it would seem depreciation is massive yes !

[i]On the Ford website they list a mid-level estate at around £27k[/i]

Blinkin flip, that's a lot of money.

Deejayen - the Whatcar website has all the info you need.

vito van has a speed limiter and cruise and i find i use the speed limiter a lot, especially in road works and around town. its just one more think not to worry about so you can concentrate on where you are going and not constantly check your speedo.

Blinkin flip, that's a lot of money.

Also, is depreciation steep on a Mondeo?

Huge used choice means you can take your pick. If you want to spend a bit less there'll be another one nearby same spec/colour with a few more miles on it. I looked at 8 or 9 in the Stafford/Cannock area so it's not like you have to travel miles

On the Ford website they list a mid-level estate at around £27k

[url= http://www.arnoldclark.com/used-cars/ford/mondeo/2.0-tdci-140-zetec-business-edition-5dr-powershift/2013-(13)/ref/arnfx-u-651529/ ]2013 (13) Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCi 140 Zetec Business Edition [/url]

13 plate, 11k miles and £15,488. Would you really consider buying new?

The first mk4 I bought was the 2.5t titanium x estate, with all the toys, nav, radar cruise blah blah blah and cost me £14000, it was 10 months old with 2k on the clock and dealer owned, list price was £30k for the same spec new, so yeah they depreciate pretty rapidly, although the ST220 estate I had before that cost me £5500 and I sold it for £5800 after 18 months of ownership, so that was nice.

[quote=porter_jamie ]vito van has a speed limiter and cruise and i find i use the speed limiter a lot, especially in road works and around town.

In those situations I just use normal cruise (I'm assuming you mean motorway 50 limit roadworks with average speed cams - cruise is brilliant for them).

Though I can understand daveh's point, and yes it might be useful but not something I miss all that much - if it's too busy to use cruise I just use the old fashioned technique as I did for the previous 25 years I was driving.

Oh and you'd have to be absolutely mad to buy a new one. Mine lost 75%+ of it's original value in 4 years (though that was with a lot of miles).

The first mk4 I bought was the 2.5t titanium x estate, with all the toys, nav, radar cruise blah blah blah and cost me £14000

I bought very similar, twas a great car and much nicer to drive than the TDCI's. When I bought mine, the 2.2 TDCI w/10K on the clock was about 19K, and the 2.5T was 13K. Lovely car. I didn't find tyre wear bad on 18's, didn't think the ride was harsh either. Great cars, I found the seats very comfortable. I had a few electrical issues, which were sorted by rebooting the car (kept a ring spanner in the glove box to disconnect the battery). Only sold it as I got a caravan 😥

I had a 2.0 Diesel Auto and a friend currently has the newer 2.0 diesel powershift auto.

I did 35'000 mile a year in mine and it was excellent, saw up to about 55 mpg on the motorway and about 40 - 45 around town.

Supremely good at cruising on the motorway and a boot big enough to swallow most stuff. I made the decision of having a Golf as my next company car but wish I'd gone for a newer Mondeo business with all the toys.

anyone driven the 1.6 or 2.0 ecoboost petrol variants?

anyone driven the 1.6 or 2.0 ecoboost petrol variants?

Yes, test drove the 1.6. It went well for a 1.6 but in a heavy car like the Mondeo you wouldn't call it quick, perfectly adequate perhaps 😀 ! I went for the 2.0 diesel as the two felt quite similar however on the mixed test route the diesel returned mid 40s mpg, the petrol low 30s.

I've driven my mates SMax with the 2.0ltr ecoboot with Powershift gearbox. It was lush - i'd forgotten how much nicer a decent petrol engine is over a diesel - quiet, smooth, nice progressive power delivery though the whole rev range and not everything by 3krpm and the only thing generated above 3krpm being more noise. The only problem with it in an SMax is fuel economy. He's getting mid 20's/low 30's at best. Also tax is twice as much. My SMax has the 2.2 ltd diesel engine and i'm getting 40mpg for normal day to day driving and around 50mpg on a long uninterrupted run. I guess you'd get more than that in a lighter and more aerodynamic Mondeo.

The 2.2ltr diesel is a lovely engine too for an oil burner, especially at motorway speeds. I just wish mine had come with the Powershift gearbox - it would have been a nice combo.

[i]I can honestly say having owned a Mk3 and Mk4 Mondeo I've never given a seconds thought to how it handles[/i]

Bit late in the day, i know, but I call BULLSHIT! on this! How can you drive a car, any car, and not notice how it handles? Unless you're just driving in a straight line...

Or unless you drive like Mrs Brady. Or like me. 😀

Bit late in the day, i know, but I call BULLSHIT! on this! How can you drive a car, any car, and not notice how it handles? Unless you're just driving in a straight line...

Because its a car, I just drive to work and round to shopping etc. I have never cornered hard in it, pushed it, slid it etc. So I have no concept how it handles.

To be fair I know plenty of people of both sexes who haven't got a clue what 'Handling' actually means. A car is just a car to them and the concept of understeer, oversteer and balance is alien to them.

A car is just a car to me, but I can tell there's a big difference in handling going from driving my old Saab 9-3 to the Mondeo. Massive difference.

My SMax has the 2.2 ltd diesel engine and i'm getting 40mpg for normal day to day driving and around 50mpg on a long uninterrupted run

Really? My 2.2 Smax won't get above 48mpg driving at 56 and following trucks. I have never seen 50 on the OBC, which is pretty optimistic. The economy on mine has improved since changing tyres, but I can't see any way it would get to 50mpg. Is yours 175 or 200bhp? Normal driving I get high 30's (not thrashing it). I wonder if there is something which needs tweaking on mine.

Iodious - i'm rounding up a wee bit - for normal commuting and day to day driving I average about 38mpg on the computer, but I don't drive particularly economically all the time so reckon I could squeeze out another couple of mpg if I had the patience.

On long runs to and from somewhere, with some short journey's at the destinations i've seen high 40's on the computer (47 mpg I think), so again on the basis i'm cruising at 70mph and the short runs might be pulling my average down a bit i'm claiming 50mpg could be possible.

Its a MK1 Smax 2.2TDCi 170bhp manual.

I do do sometimes drive quite fast around the bends, so I guess I do notice the handling - which is pretty decent for a big heavy lump, but it is still a big heavy lump not a sports car. Most of the time though I would have no idea at all and wouldn't care about the handling and I imagine plenty of people always drive like that - after all it isn't a sports car. Nice that it does handle well, but far from the most important thing.

Cheers Wobbliscott...I might see what happens when I change my rear tyres back to something good. Changing the fronts has improved things by 7-10%, so maybe there is some more improvement to be made.

I like how mine handles. It's no sports car, but there's something really nicely poised about it- different sort of ride. Balletic, is a word I've used, if you can imagine a ballet dancer that weighs a ton.