1997 Mondeo - What are they like?

[li21]

Hi all,

I've been looking at the Mk3 Golf, Peugeot 306 and Mazda Astina 323 hatch from around the same era and price..

Just wondering how the Mondeo compares to these cars?
How are they in terms of real work fuel consumption and drivability?

What about servicing? How easy is it to get access to the oil sump / oil filters for self servicing?

Any thoughts would be great
thanks

[li21]

Anyone...?

[Fordman]

It's not a bad car driveability wise, but they are highly disliked in Australia for some reason.

[ian b]

I drove a TDi in the UK and found them to be comfortable if a bit pedestrian.

It was a company car so not sure on the ease of service. They seem to have a bad rep over here, not sure why other than it's not a Falcon!

[gregg_13]

they are a to work on, if anything goes wrong they cost an arm and a leg, both best mate and wife had one in the past and both went as soon as something went wrong, were dearer then a BMW to have repaired

[RSgerry]

i have a 1999 and it has been serviced every 10,000 kms and has now done 190,000. it still drives brilliantly with onyl a couple of minor niggles...the air con only blows out the screen and Ford want $1000 to fix it (yeah right) and the pain on teh bonnet has faded. i needed to get a safe car to cart the baby about in two years ago and have had great service from this one. but they can be dear to fix and are pigs to work o yourself. if you find a good one, you should have no problems.

largely unloved in Oz as they were hugely overpriced without the options of similar sized cars, Ford didnt market them very well at all and they were more expensive that some entry level Falcons.

[Engine Guy]

Mondeos are a pain in the a$$ when they go wrong...remember doing clutches in them uuuugh

Get yourself a Mk 3 golf - much better car and easy to work on!

[li21]

Thanks Guys...

Seems like the consensus is they are a bit expensive and hard to maintain yourself.

Golf on the other hand has a loads of space in the engine bay and is relatively simple to DIY service

[ian b]

Originally Posted by RSgerry

Ford didnt market them very well at all

Seems Ford haven't learnt the lesson with the current model

[Ryanmk1]

should try working on the mondeo V6 sheeeezzzzz. Arnt I an idiot for buying 2

[Simon_Koala]

On top of all the above which I agree with, having owned a 97 model for approx two years now, the car is basically starting to fall to bits.

The roof lining has come apart from the roof and is sagging badly.
All the plastics are starting to get brittle and/or break and/or fall out of place and will not fit back into place no matter how one tries to get them to clip/fit back into place. The motor which adjusts the drivers seat height has failed and Ford have stopped making the replacement part.

The good things I like is that it is fuel efficient, it does have a nice solid feel on the road for a car of its size (which is due to the weight of the car I suspect), the brakes feel responsive and you don't need to jump on them to make the car stop quickly, and the major components of the car (engine, gearbox, suspension, air con) are all still running well.

Its done 225k, and should anything major go wrong with it I'll be getting it towed to a wreckers yard rather than getting it repaired due to the age of the thing and the fact that its now not worth repairing any further.

They are cheap to buy nowadays, even one in good condition, but that's for a reason. They are just too old now, and they are not a car thats designed to last past approx 10 years without seemingly constant niggling maintenance and repair issues. Which I think is a shame, because they are otherwise a good solid little car for either suburban running around, or for highway cruising where the motor just loves purring at just under 3000rpm @ 110kms an hour.