2010 Ford Mondeo Sport 1.8 TDCi
Summary:
A fine car, with the right engine
Faults:
Clutch + dual mass flywheel. Very expensive.
Injector issues, rough running/idle.
Excessive fuel consumption.
Climate control has a mind of its own.
Boot/hatch seal leaked.
Plus the usual general wear and tear, the car was reasonable to replace consumable parts and servicing costs were OK, but the above problems were annoying and costly to repair.
General Comments:
My Mondeo is a fine car to drive, plenty comfortable and fast enough for me. Sport model is mid range, similar to a Zetec model, plenty of electrics and a nice interior.
The car handles pretty sharp, and when that engine is running right, acceleration is OK. Good looking as well, and this is actually the older 2010 model just before the face-lift. Prefer the look of this one anyway.
What ruined a fine car is the diesel engine. Unreliable, and expensive to repair. I have heard this is common across all modern diesels, but this is a particularly bad engine in my opinion. The 1.8 TDCi is also getting 39 - 42 mpg at very best, not 48 - 50 mpg or more as claimed on some reviews on here and elsewhere. I service it on time and drive carefully, but it still isn't great on fuel. Even after those injectors were repaired, mpg did not improve.
I've heard the later 2.0 TDCi is an improvement in performance and economy, though I would still have doubts about reliability. Not sure if I would buy this car again which is a shame as it is otherwise excellent. Petrol engines might be better reliability wise, but they barely get 35 - 38 mpg, which is rubbish nowadays with the cost of fuel.
It hasn't been a total disaster, just not as cost effective as I thought it would be. Not worth much at this age and mileage, and will be selling it soon, and my next car will be an economy smaller hatchback car and have a small simple, reliable petrol engine no doubt!
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 12th March, 2023
15th Mar 2023, 19:58
What diesel did you use? I've heard the cheap (if can say its cheap!) supermarket diesel might cause injectors to fail early. No need for premium, but I have heard a brand name (BP, Shell, whatever) of standard diesel is a good choice.
17th Jun 2024, 16:11
Engines aside, the Mondeo from this time period is overrated. They are expensive to buy used, I don't know why because they have a lot of electronic issues. I know a taxi driver who used one and had lots of problems, even with the "better" 2.0 TDCi.
Vauxhall Insignia isn't much better. The best car in this class is easily a Toyota Avensis. Better than them all, reliability wise.
15th Mar 2023, 05:07
I had a 2007 Focus with the 2.0L TDCi engine that I owned for 15 years and did 300,000km in. Injectors were never touched during the whole time I owned it and it consistently returned 60+ mpg the whole time. Sold it for a decent price and only because the (original) clutch was starting to rattle and I knew it would be an expensive repair.