General Comments:
Having owned a 1.8 Turbo Diesel Mondeo prior to this one, albeit my last one was a MK2 on an R plate, I picked this M reg one up from auction for a bargain £120, as I needed another cheap runabout. Turns out the car is a 1 owner car from new (2 owners on log book, was his company car until 1999 and then he bought it and was his own personal car up until 2007)
Inside, it feels a bit more antiquated than my last MK2 did, however the stereo system is a lot better quality. It drives excellent, the engine itself sounds a lot more solid than that of my previous Mondeo (which in all honesty had been neglected, this one has been well serviced, came with a pile of receipts, not bad for the price!)
All it needed when I bought it was a new set of wheel trims (£10) and the wing mirrors touching up where the paint has peeled (£15 for primer, paint & lacquer soon solved it)
It drives as well as my old one although the engine is a bit lacklustre very antiquated diesel engine that isn't going to win any performance trials, but at the end of the day I was looking for a cheap stopgap and this is perfect.
Being the 2nd Mondeo I have owned I knew what to expect with regards to build quality and I still maintain that the Mondeo is a lot better built than the equivalent Vectra. I am hoping to sell this on in the summer and buy a later, 2.0 Zetec engined Mondeo however, because despite me thinking they handle great etc, I have said from the day of buying my last one, that it would be so much a better car if it had a petrol engine!
26th Jun 2007, 02:14
I thoroughly agree with all your comments.
I've had one of the very last mk2 1.8TD's (X plate) for two years. Hammered it 20,000 miles a year since I bought it, and it's now on 130,000 miles and still as reliable as clockwork. Sails the MOT every year, and has never let me down. I've had to change a throttle cable (£20), a CV joint (£30) and a water pump (£30), but other than that it's been service parts and consumables only. I do stick to the service schedule though, and it gets a sumpful of fresh synthetic oil and genuine Ford filters every 10k without fail. Parts cost peanuts and the car is easy to work on. I also get between 45 mpg and 50 mpg on my commute. It's a cheap car to run.
Yes it's slow as a snail and horribly unrefined, but it's quite satisfying when friends and neighbours have spent ten times what this cost on their cars, and have had far more problems. I know the diesel engine makes it a bit nose heavy, but it's still far more satisfying drive than any Vectra or Passat. Lovely steering, nicely servoed brakes, slick gearbox. As you say, it's better as a petrol, but doing the mileage I do, diesel is a no-brainer. I'm also lucky on my commute if I can exceed 50 mph for more than about 30 seconds, so performance isn't really a concern. Economy is, and the car will crack 50 mpg if treated gently, and 45 is easily achievable.
Brilliant cars these. Would recommend one to anybody.