1997 Ford Mondeo Zetec S 2.0 16v

Summary:

Delivered more than its low price suggested

Faults:

Nothing that bothered me enough to fix.

General Comments:

Purchased as a stop-gap off eBay for £225, so expected very little from it.

Surprisingly quick car and very sure-footed.

Huge load space, even with all seats in use.

Seats are comfortable, but not supportive enough if driving "enthusiastically"...

Very good fuel economy for a fairly big car.

The bumpers are made out of really brittle plastic and crack easily (newer ones are much better).

Parts are really cheap and mostly easy to fit.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th December, 2012

28th Oct 2022, 19:47

1990s Mondeo was a great used runabout car, I had 3 of them, all super reliable even after 100,000 miles.

1997 Ford Mondeo GLX 1.8

Summary:

Rock solid reliable car got me back to the Rock of Gibraltar!

Faults:

Nothing yet, but existing faults are:

Indicators do not cancel.

Back bumper broken.

That's about it!

General Comments:

I bought this car as I was in the UK and stuck due to the volcanic ash cloud - Easyjet offered to put me on a flight 7 days later. I was at the Premier Inn. I am sure you'll understand my desire to escape.

So a quick go on autotrader.co.uk, found the car - a bright red 1997 GLX 1.8 - £450 later (ad for £495) and I was cruising down the motorway to Dover. 48 hours later I was pulling up in my driveway in the south of Spain (about as far south as you can go) - 1,600 miles from whence it came. The car has already done 163,000 miles. You would expect with a small engine it would be rattling smoking mess. Far from it. Smooth at idle, smooth at speed. No ticking, no smoke, no knocking - sounded like a 50,000 mile car to be honest. Body a bit rough, few scratches and dints, but generally presentable. Back bumper broken - obviously!

What a completely rock solid reliable car. I chose it since I had a few Mondeo's about 5 years ago and they were cast iron reliable. This was no different. Very impressed. Reasonable performance, good brakes, reasonable handling - given I drive a Porsche 911 X50 and a BMW M5, as well as a 740i as my daily driver, this is praise indeed.

I would recommend one of these cars to someone who needs a cheap, reliable, low cost run around or work machine. Very good car indeed.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 29th April, 2010

29th Apr 2010, 10:24

Older Mondeos are probably better value than post 2001 simply because the government are taxing them off the road. The road tax in Britain is just stupid.

In reply to 29th Apr 2010, 10:24

2nd Sep 2011, 05:05

Now 175,000 miles and still going. I have used this car to go from Gibraltar to Madrid, to Granada, and to Malaga airport and back around 25 times. 12,000 miles since I bought it. This car has paid for itself twice over. What a gem.

When I use it for airport run, I just floor it all the way there - an hours drive on toll roads. No complaints. Fading out now as my missus has been learning to drive in it, and has hit a few extreme speed bumps pretty hard, detaching the undertray and damaging the exhaust, which is now blowing. Tyres are probably now below the legal limit, especially the fronts, so it will go to the big scrap yard in the sky very soon, which is a shame as the engine is still perfect, but I cannot justify 2-3 new tyres and a new exhaust on something this cheap.

I will be replacing it later this month with another one, so my partner can continue her driving lessons, and it will double as an airport runner as well. I reckon I will probably pay even less than I did for this one, as I can see 1999-2000 models on ebay going for well under £400 (which is what I paid for this car).

In reply to 2nd Sep 2011, 05:05

4th Feb 2014, 15:28

I eventually sold the car for £100, which given I paid £400 for it and did thousands of trouble free miles, is amazing value. Unfortunately I recently heard it has died and gone to heaven - when I had it, somewhere it had a water leak, not in the engine but in one of the coolant hoses. I told the guy I sold it to, to keep checking it, but obviously he didn't and the head gasket went. What a shame, this car could easily have got to 200,000+.

I am now considering buying another as a cheap run around - had a mk3 as a hack for a bit - piece of tin crap - if you want cheap motoring with no problems, buy a mk2 Mondeo.