Well, after months of argument with Ford and their local main dealer, and the involvement of my solicitor, my 2006 Mondeo TDCI estate was finally repaired under warranty in early January. A new fuel pump and several other components finally had it running properly. The dealer apologised for the "misunderstandings" (in other words, they failed miserably to screw me for ££££'s of work).
Having lost all confidence in the car, and in Ford, and following some excellent advice from this forum, I am now the proud owner of a '55 registered Subaru Legacy Tourer 2.0R. I collected the car three weeks ago from a Subaru main dealer and left them the Mondeo as a trade-in.
This is my first time driving a Subaru and I am very pleased with the car and the 4wd really does enable the car to bite down onto the road. It has a feeling of strength and solidity that was missing from the Mondeo and appears to be altogether better assembled. I don't miss the Mondeo wind noise from around the driver's door post and the various creaks and rattles that the Mondeo had developed.
The Subaru is going to cost me more in fuel and insurance but I now do a lot fewer miles than I used to due to a change of working location, so that is not a big issue.
Many thanks to all those who recommended a Legacy, its a good choice and one I would never have considered before reading this forum.
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Our pleasure
E111 (Outback driver)
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Dr. Duffy.......
Not Ian Duffy, the haematologist, by any chance?
Kenneth Ross
Edited by drivewell on 14/02/2008 at 12:27
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Another convert! Welcome to the fold. Your respect for Subaru will grow with time.
Edited by nick on 14/02/2008 at 12:32
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Dr Duffy. I am interested in a Legacy. How you find the performance of the Subaru 2.0R?
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I find the performance of the Legacy just fine. I have come from a Mondeo 2.0 TDCI and only had the Legacy for three weeks, 1000 miles. They are very different to drive. The Mondeo you drive between about 1800 and 3800rpm and there is plenty of low-down torque. The throttle response is not very crisp in town, but much better on the open road.
The Subaru you drive over 1500 - (potentially) 7500rpm, although I've only taken it to 6000rpm. There is an extra burst of power from about 3500rpm. Its an engine that does rev well, and it makes a very nice "howl" at higher revs. It has very crisp throttle reponse and pciks up well from low speeds.
Pull in third gear is very good and it gives good acceleration from 15mph all the way to 60mph in third.
Overall I would say that the Mondeo is better if you are going to cruise for hours on a motorway. The Legacy is much better on winding roads because it grips better and feels more balanced and stable on fast bends. The steering, clutch and gearchange all feel better too. The brakes are similar. The Mondeo feels very front heavy and if you have to brake in a bend it can feel somewhat unstable whereas the Legacy stays balanced.
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My brother in law is a mechnic for Ford and even he told me to avoid Ford Diesels at and cost. They seem to be very troublesome but I was taken with a Focus 2.0 TDCI with the same motor as yours. Luckily I bought a Skoda Fabia VRS. I have always liked Subarus though (funnily enough my B.I.L has an Impreza WRX).
I have always liked the Legacy though as it represents great value for money and, as you say, the flat four has bags of character. Used to live in West Wales and loads around there. The farmers all ran them and swore by them. I wouldn't mind one myself. I will be very interested to see how the new 2.0 flat four diesel drives. It got a pretty average review on this site but others have sad it is a lovely engine. Normally I would not touch a new engine (i.e a recently developed one) but I think it will be o.k with Subaru. I doubt the Diesel will have that lovely off beat wail though but I am put off by the high fuel consumption and tax of the petrol. What sort of MPG are you getting?
Edited by Mattbod on 15/02/2008 at 18:27
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Mattbod
My Legacy 2.0R has so far achieved 30mpg over one tank of petrol. My Mondeo TDCI used to average approximately 40mpg covering similar routes. If the Legacy proves reliable then it will be well worth the additional fuel cost. The Mondeo was just too unreliable and unpredictable.
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Hi, Dr_Duffy
Welcome to the club.
I am on my third Subaru now. I moved from Volvo because I found it nearly impossible to get out of the avenue on days when there was packed snow. We live in the Peak District. There aren?t any peaks, but neither is there anything flat.
My first was a Legacy 2.0 Y reg. manual. That car proved itself very nicely in the first snowfall. The only ones who could get around were 4x4s and Subarus, which is a 4x4 really. My neighbour, who is a mechanic and a Discovery fan, remarked that it would do everything that the Discovery would do but without the fuss. It would be a total difference off-road or in deeper snow though. The ground clearance is not enough. I part-ex?d the car because it was a bundle of faults.
My next was a Legacy 2.0 ?04 reg. automatic. That was trouble free and ran like velvet, but it had no life in it.
To get a better ground clearance, bigger tyres and more life I exchanged it for a 2.5 Outback ?56 reg. automatic. I think that I?ll stay with this one for a while.
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