Are Ford Mondeo a decent car ?

[123!FORD]

I am thinking of buying a 2016 trend, however my concerns are that the Mondeo is a European car and as a result would be very expensive to fix when things do eventually go wrong.

Is this true ? Is the Mondeo a good car ?

[asteele-xr6]

For me the Mondeo is all about a perfect blend of comfort, style, performance AND running costs. Forget the purchase price, it's the annual running costs that matter, so I mean fuel, tyres and servicing.

My previous drive was a Peugeot 508 diesel, and I saved a fortune on fuel - but I spent waaaay more than I saved on fuel costs on stupid tyres that were hideously expensive to buy due to their unusual profile size - which the car destroyed in 15K regardless of how often it was re-aligned. each tyre $500!! Peugeot dealer servicing was about double that Ford charge too... and Peugeot brakes $800 for fronts (every 50K) and $650 for rears at 75K.

It's a complicated equation, and you are right to wonder about parts - but I am very happy with the Ford service guarantee which swung me to buy mine in 2016...

[123!FORD]

Yes it is a perfect car. But are the parts expensive ?

[asteele-xr6]

Thankfully, I haven't had to buy any yet!

I guess you should pick a few cars that are on your "short list", and then ring around to get the various service costs, plus tyres, brakes and you can then make a comparison... then you can know for sure.

...or just buy the one that has both the cabin and acceleration that you like the most and go for it!

[123!FORD]

Originally Posted by asteele-xr6

Thankfully, I haven't had to buy any yet!

I guess you should pick a few cars that are on your "short list", and then ring around to get the various service costs, plus tyres, brakes and you can then make a comparison... then you can know for sure.

...or just buy the one that has both the cabin and acceleration that you like the most and go for it!

As sweet as the mondeo is maybe a near new i30 or corolla would suit me better. I miss the days of cheap awesome cars like the AU falcon :(

Maybe I'll lease one a few years down the track. Sounds like you just don't want to straight up say they are expensive to maintain but don't want to lie either

Thanks for the response, I think I get it :p

[cooperplace]

Originally Posted by 123!FORD

As sweet as the mondeo is maybe a near new i30 or corolla would suit me better. I miss the days of cheap awesome cars like the AU falcon :(
p

ah, yes, AUIII falcon wagon, the perfect car. I had one. Reliable. Annoying things went wrong with it, but cheap and easy to fix, v comfortable. How does the mondeo wagon compare?

[aussiblue]

Check out the Dog & Lemon Guide https://dogandlemon.com/ on this any any alternatives you are considering; the best $10 you could spend before buying any car. Harshly critical but very objective. At worse you'll buy with your eyes open to any shortcomings and not kick yourself after the event. Have a look at the free Land Rover Freelander sample review. The old (up to 2010) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating but I don't know how they rate the current model.

[123!FORD]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

Check out the Dog & Lemon Guide https://dogandlemon.com/ on this any any alternatives you are considering; the best $10 you could spend before buying any car. Harshly critical but very objective. At worse you'll buy with your eyes open to any shortcomings and not kick yourself after the event. Have a look at the free Land Rover Freelander sample review. The old (up to 2010) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating but I don't know how they rate the current model.

Thanks mate. Used the site.

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

Check out the Dog & Lemon Guide https://dogandlemon.com/ on this any any alternatives you are considering; the best $10 you could spend before buying any car. Harshly critical but very objective. At worse you'll buy with your eyes open to any shortcomings and not kick yourself after the event. Have a look at the free Land Rover Freelander sample review. The old (up to 2010) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating but I don't know how they rate the current model.

I had a look at that Land rover review, after that I put the site down as being run by one of John Cadogan's relations

[NZ XR6]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

Check out the Dog & Lemon Guide https://dogandlemon.com/ on this any any alternatives you are considering; the best $10 you could spend before buying any car. Harshly critical but very objective. At worse you'll buy with your eyes open to any shortcomings and not kick yourself after the event. Have a look at the free Land Rover Freelander sample review. The old (up to 2010) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating but I don't know how they rate the current model.

There are many things I would call the and guide, but objective is not one of them.

Due to circumstances and against my better judgement, I still have my 1 owner, 8 year old MB diesel wagon. It has been cheap to run and service, and has developed one minor fault in that time.

I really should sell it and buy something newer, but it's not worth much now and still drives well. It has plenty of room for my work stuff and averages about 6 l/100 km on trips.

Yes, a sample of 1 but that's been my experience.

[aussiblue]

Asking owners opinion on any car especially on a enthusiasts site like this is also unwise. Research shows that we all (me included) generally have cognitive dissonance with respect to our car purchases and usually won't recognise or admit to any shortcomings; nobody likes to think they made a bad purchase decision or their new car is not as good as they thought. This is actually a good thing as it helps people avoid depression. I don't know how the Dog & Lemon Guide rate the Mondeo but you'll get an objective rating from their reviews.

[aussiblue]

Thanks mate. Used the site.

So what did they rate it as? Any surprises?

[123!FORD]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

So what did they rate it as? Any surprises?

3 stars, kind of car you sell after 60,000 kms.

[aussiblue]

Well it's improved the 2000 model got 1 star. BTW my " The old (up to 2010) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating" should have read "The old (up to 2000) Mondeo got an "Avoid Like the Plague" rating". The 2010 also got a "It's OK" 3 star rating. Looked at the wrong page of my 2010 hard copy Dog & Lemon Guide.

[aussiblue]

had a look at that Land rover review, after that I put the site down as being run by one of John Cadogan's relations

Bear in mind that is probably there most negative reviews and well deserved see https://www.drive.com.au/used-car-re...20110713-1hejn and https://classics.honestjohn.co.uk/re...er/freelander/ and https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/car-revi...r-2-2013-2015/ and other reviews on the web. Freelanders were crap. My brother-in-law traded his early model to get a new Lava Niva and felt he had traded up in terms of reliability.

[aussiblue]

Hey the MB got a three star "It's OK" rating and lets face from a reliability standpoint, like most cars, it's no match for most Toyotas or Hondas. Also seems consistent with owner's own views https://www.productreview.com.au/lis...o-mb-2009-2010

[NZ XR6]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

Hey the MB got a three star "It's OK" rating and lets face from a reliability standpoint, like most cars, it's no match for most Toyotas or Hondas. Also seems consistent with owner's own views https://www.productreview.com.au/lis...o-mb-2009-2010

My son has been selling new Toyota's since last year. He's sold about 120 now and not a single warranty fault.

Keeps telling me to buy a RAV4 hybrid!

[bundybear75]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

Hey the MB got a three star "It's OK" rating and lets face from a reliability standpoint, like most cars, it's no match for most Toyotas or Hondas. Also seems consistent with owner's own views https://www.productreview.com.au/lis...o-mb-2009-2010

I think the "reliable Toyota" reputation is quickly on the slide.

DPF problems across their diesel range for starters. My Cruiser had almost $18000 worth of warranty work at 30K km (for a known issue). Also dusting issues in the air boxes are well known.

We use to have Hilux's as work cars, but they were plagued with problems. The Rangers they replaced them with were almost trouble free.

I think Kia and Hyundai probably have a better reputation now. Pity they are so damn expensive to service.... Mind you my wifes previous 2 cars were a Hyundai Terracan followed by a Kia Cerato - both had issues....

Makes the couple of smallish issues I've had with my Mondeo seem pretty inconsequential

[aussiblue]

This would suggest Kia and Hyundai while they have improved, still have a way to go: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimgorz.../#6f863f8552c7

and is consistent with what I have heard from various sources for Australian marketed cars. I am surprised that Honda has fallen out of the top 3 and Subaru are so highly rated.

[bundybear75]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

This would suggest Kia and Hyundai while they have improved, still have a way to go: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimgorz.../#6f863f8552c7

and is consistent with what I have heard from various sources for Australian marketed cars. I am surprised that Honda has fallen out of the top 3 and Subaru are so highly rated.

I wonder if being an American list, the fact that not a lot of diesels are imported into the US affect the ratings?

[aussiblue]

Diesel actually are not that popular in the US especially as compared to Europe. Only around 3% in 2015 https://www.bts.gov/archive/publicat...ct_2015/entire

Also

The fact that diesel cars and pickups are almost non-existent in the United States

:https://rentar.com/no-diesel-cars-u-...opular-abroad/

[AlanD]

Same as NZ XR6, bought a 2008 Build Mondeo diesel sedan in Zetec trim and kept it for 8 years. In that time the only "unusual" expense , outside of tyres (3 sets) and batteries (2), was rear brake rotors and pads. A drivers seat belt stalk was replaced under warranty. Fuel economy was sub 6l/100km.

Sold it privately to a chap who tried other (newer) Japanese and Korean built cars and came hurrying back to secure the Mondeo within 24 hours.

However our use of the car was 75/25 country/city driving and I tend to be moderate in my use of accelerator and brakes.

US comparison sites may rate the Mondeo, but be sure they are not rating the US built version (Called a Fusion, I think). I doubt the European built cars were imported into the USA.

To answer the question, I think they are a very under rated car and I'm still driving a newer version - I also am happy to shift makers if I don't feel I'm getting value for money.

Ford Oz as a company I'm not so keen about however.

Cheers