What amazes me is that after all the horror stories about the huge bills that are likely to occur when owning an older German/non-Japanese premimum car, people on an obvious small budget still want to buy the blighters! Badge snobbery still reigns supreme!

One major problem (of many which can occur wuite esily in such cars, as is well documented in the Good & Bad sections of the car-by-car reviews here) will result in the car being an effective write-off due to the huge cost of major replacement parts, such as engines or gearboxes.

I always assumed that people on a budget mean that they buy a cheaper car which they can afford to run for a good few years, not just write off when it goes wrong for the first time - they may as well (as you've said) go for a newer, far more reliable, less 'fashionable' car which will last longer and cost less to run.

I have had my Mondeo for 6 years now from new and i still love it.I no intention of getting rid of it.Highly underated cars with masses of space.Very refined,cheap to service and if you go for a higher model,then lots of toys that are genuinely useful.Just make sure you go for the 2.0 diesel,not the 1.8 which is underpowered and more noisy.

Thought it was only me, to be perfectly honest a German car of this type, marque age engine combination, is the very last car i'd want to own.

Some good advice above.