Caught in the classifieds: 2018 Ford Mondeo Titanium
In this week’s “Caught In The Classifieds” we spotted a 2018 Ford Mondeo with Titanium trim. It’s done under 21k miles, only had one owner from new, a full service history, franchise approved and in excellent condition. It’s on sale at just under £16k and here’s why we think it’s an absolute bargain.
There’s a reason the Ford Fiesta is one of the most popular cars on the planet. It’s cheap, practical, fun to drive, and virtually bulletproof. But what happens if you want a larger family car, but the Focus is still not big enough? Well, you go for a Mondeo, the obvious choice. If the Fiesta reigns supreme in the small hatchback segment, then the Mondeo is the large family car king.
When Ford decided to launch an all-new generation back in 2012, they knew they’d have to go all out. The previous Mondeo was, in one way or another, in production from 2006 and it was getting rather stale. The fourth-gen Mondeo had some pretty big shoes to fill given how successful its predecessor was, but it also marked a new era for Ford. It was their flagship car, paving the way for all future models.
Exterior
Most people’s jaws hit the floor when they first saw the fourth-gen Mondeo back at the official launch in 2012. It was such a radical departure from typical Ford styling we’d grown accustomed to that it was hard to believe this was it. This was the actual car the consumer could buy for an affordable price and drive every day.
Visually, it’s a stunning bit of design. It looks modern and sharp even today, some six years later after it made its initial debut. From the outside, it’s probably one of the most amazing-looking cars in its segment.
The front fascia is dominated by that shark-mouth grille and those slim headlights. The hood is relatively long and sleek for a Mondeo, giving the car a much more premium look and feel than before. It feels upmarket, almost like it’s a direct competitor to the likes of BMW’s 5-Series and Audi’s A6, which it isn’t.
The rear is slightly more sedated, but it’s still miles better than Mondeos of old. If you look at most modern Fords, you’ll realize a lot of them have similar taillights to the fourth-gen Mondeo. This was Ford’s first attempt at creating something modern and different, and taking the gamble paid off big time.
Ideally, you want the Titanium trim since it gives the car a distinct flair that base models can’t match. If you go for the Titanium trim, which this example has, you get chrome grille inserts, chrome shards around the foglights, and bespoke wheels. Instead of the usual five or eight-spoke wheels you find on the Zetec, the Titanium comes with 10 or 15-spoke alloy wheels. They completely transform the way the car looks.
Interior
The cabin isn’t as daring as the exterior, you might even say it’s unsurprisingly conservative, but it’s still a nice place to spend time in. Ford makes amazing cabins with superb quality, even if that means they’re a bit dull as a result. There’s simple joy in things that work though, and the Mondeo’s cabin is extremely functional.
The materials are good, everything’s been screwed together exceptionally well, and the layout of the controls is logical. Ergonomically, this is the same as most other Mondeos which came before it. Everything is exactly where you’d expect to find it, and everything works as it should. It’s a stress-free cabin you’d comfortably spend hours in and get out just as relaxed and rested as you were when you first got in it.
The Titanium trim gets rain-sensing wipers and automatic headlights as standard, both of which make driving at night and in the rain a whole lot easier. The Titanium X trim even gets bi-xenon auto-dipping headlights and park-assist.
There’s an abundance of cabin space too, probably more than you’re ever going to need. The rear seats can seat three full-sized adults with ease, with the boot space being big enough to accommodate their entire luggage. The Mazda 6 comes close, but the Mondeo is just a little roomier inside.
If you need even more space you can always go for the estate car, but the sedan version with the Titanium trim looks ace in any colour. Ford’s SYNC3 infotainment system is intuitive and easy to use, even if it’s not exactly the latest and greatest in terms of what the market has to offer today.
Engine and Performance
Because this is Ford, you can find the Mondeo with a wide variety of both petrol and diesel engines, but the most popular is definitely the 2.0-litre Duratorq turbocharged inline-four diesel. It comes in three different variants: 150, 180, and 210 horsepower.
In the wake of recent diesel scandals these last couple of years though, people have been slowly moving away from diesels and into petrols, hybrids, and even full electric cars. This particular example is the Mondeo hybrid, equipped with a 2.0-litre Atkinson cycle Duratec engine and a small electric motor, to provide a combined output of 187 horsepower.
Manuals are available, but a lot of examples, if not the majority, are automatics. The hybrid Mondeo is good for 116 mph and it’ll sprint to 60 mph in 9.2 seconds. The electric batteries have a capacity of only 1.4 kWh, but you have to remember that the Mondeo is a hybrid and not a full-fledged EV. The electric motor is there to aid the engine, not drive hundreds of miles on battery power alone.
The hybrid Mondeo drives just like a normal Mondeo, except it’s somehow even smoother and quieter since there’s no noisy diesel clanking away and the electric motor assists with the shifts by making them smoother.
The chassis is great too. It’s not exciting or engaging, but it’s predictable and progressive. I guess the best way to describe it would be to say it drives exactly how you’d want a car to drive, but it’s drama-free and devoid of emotion, so I wouldn’t call it a driver’s car.
Model: Ford Mondeo
Year 2018
Trim: Titanium
Mileage: 21k
Target price: £14,500 - £16,500
Rating: 8 out of 10
Why you should consider one
Unless you have thousands more to spend on one of the German offerings, the Mondeo is easily the best family car currently on sale. More to the point, it might be the best value for money out of any car on the market. It’s large and practical, yet cheap and reliable. It’s good to drive and refined, yet safe and dependable. You get the idea. If you want a good car, get yourself a Mondeo. This one has just over 20,000 miles and it hardly uses any fuel. For this and more examples of used Ford Mondeo cars for sale make sure you head to DesperateSeller.co.uk.
