Faults:

Passenger electric window failed, didn't bother fixing.

Coolant loss and thermostat. Replaced both fairly easily and at low cost.

Reverse light switch failed, new switch, very cheap.

Tie rods, most suspension parts replaced over the time I had the car. Same for exhaust and brakes.

CD player was terrible, and scratched CD's.

Looked after it as much as I could, engine and gearbox were solid, serviced on time and cam-belt change done.

Cosmetic rust but nothing major.

General Comments:

My favorite Mondeo. MK 2 (not the newer MK 3 year 2000 model) this was the last of the older shape on a Y reg. I absolutely loved the look of the car in dark metallic blue with alloy wheels I put on to sharpen things up a bit.

Ford take note as to what made the 1990's Mondeo special - a blast to watch on touring car circuits, and a reliable simple family car.

LX model is low/mid range and you did not get much, but the interior was very comfortable, I put major mileage on this car and always got out after long journeys feeling great. Ergonomically still one of the best cars I ever had. Steering wheel and controls felt perfect. Buttons were logically laid out. Spacious.

To drive the car handled very sharp. Gear-change felt satisfying. Couldn't ask for better in a family car. The 2.0 is the best all round engine to go for, 35 - 40 miles per gallon with decent performance. Insurance and most repairs and servicing were cheap.

Scrapped back in 2015 due to being too old and too high mileage to justify spending lots of money on it at an MOT time, so I decided to let it go. Still miss this car, but definitely got my monies worth out of it. Have moved onto the newer models, very nice but there was something special about the earlier cars.

Faults:

Oil sump leak (likely damaged by the previous owner scraping low pavements). Repaired at service for little extra cost.

Timing belt replaced and a few suspension parts.

Sticky door locks.

Nothing major.

General Comments:

An excellent all round car that I picked up very cheaply when it was 9 years old. Always wanted one of the mk2 Mondeos and this was the last of that shape before changing to the more modern version, which I've heard is a good car but not as reliable as this was. The 5 years I had it, it cost me nothing but servicing and fuel. The timing belt is good for a decade and 100,000 miles, and the coolant is filled for life. With most of that major work done, I put 60,000 trouble free miles on it, with having only to lift the bonnet to put windscreen wash in. I know people with new/nearly new cars that have much more trouble. Need you say anymore?

The handling and looks of the car were way ahead of its time and that's what appealed to me about it, but I was always told these cars were trouble and not to touch them, but when I eventually got round to getting one, I got quite positive comments from friends about how nice a car it was for an older car, and how modern and fresh it felt to drive and look at. Not to mentioned how it stood up to my everyday use. The Zetec model has silver alloy wheels similar to the 90s Escort Cosworth, and this really makes this car stand out, with bright blue metallic paint. Almost exactly like its British Touring Car livery at the time! The 2 litre engine isn't the fastest, but it gets you were you want to go with comfort and good progress while doing 37 MPG, which for a 2 litre petrol engine developed in the 90s is about as good as it gets.

I was a fool to sell it; only had to due to circumstances at the time. I've had countless similar cars past and present, including a Mazda 6, Skoda Octavia, Vauxhall Vectra, etc. All good cars, but none compare to the Mondeo's reliability and ease of ownership. Well, maybe except the Octavia, which matched this cars reliability, I didn't think any other car would. No wonder these cars and similar ones are still used as taxis.