After my Rover 414 blew head gasket (three days after passing MOT and having new catylytic convertor fitted ) I have decided to move on ......
Have been offered a Mondeo Ghia year 2000 2 litre - seems tidy, only MOT till Feb but Tax till next Sept - runs Ok, 78,000 on clock. He's asking £985.
Can anyone offer any advice, it's a private sale - it puts tax and insurance higher, is it going to be a gas guzzler?
Edited by Pugugly on 15/10/2008 at 23:02
|
>>is it going to be a gas guzzler?
My 1997 2.0 Ghia with 100k miles on it wasn't - I could easily get 35mpg out of it on a run and 40 mpg if taking it steady - almost as good as some modern diesels but with less complexity and 12p per litre cheaper to fuel. I enjoyed mine, good engine and gearbox with sorted handling made it an enjoyable drive pressing on and a relaxing cruiser. If you haven't already, check out the car by car breakdown on this site to see what to look for and you'll find HJ rates the car (and the 2.0 engine) quite strongly.
|
|
|
If it's in good nick then fine, go for it. I've had several 2.0 petrol Mondeo Mk 1 and 2s and they were all very good cars.
As long as you get the manual gear box then fuel economy will be fine, the auto is not such good news and may be problematic at that mileage. Again - manual box will be fine, just avoid the auto.
|
I had two - 2.0ltr petrols both did sterling service on long commutes.
I got around 36mpg - and I was usually pressing on.
MPZ
|
It's a good car, I bought a 2000 W reg model and the only issues have been rust where the rear wheelarches meet the sills (I had both sides replaced for £400 but only because I'm perfectionist) and my A/C didn't work (the radiator is a known weakspot, budget up to £300 for a new one)
I'd go and buy it if I were you.
|
|
|
You would have a lot of hunting around to get better value than buying a Mark 2 Mondeo. Very reliable car, economical and a superb engine. Got nearly 40mpg out of my 2 litre on a recent run to Wales.
They don't go wrong very often. Had to change the water pump on mine earlier in the summer, but then it has done 133,000 m. Got the aircon fixed, too, needed a new condenser plus a regas, cost about £200 all in, and had the cambelt changed at 100,000.
Had the lower wishbones replaced at 60,000, brake pads and discs at about 80,000. Still has the original rear brake shoes, my MOT tester says they last forever on these cars! Broke a front spring at about 100,000 but this is a common problem on lots of modern cars, not just Mondeos.
Watch for a water leak in the boot, cured by resealing the rear lamp clusters, check the aircon is working.
|
|
|
|
|
Good cars. I had a 1.8 Estate and loved it.
Knock £100 off the price and I reckon you've got a bargain!
Check out Autotrader for a comparison of similar age/engined/spec/mileage models.
Check passenger front footwell for damp caused by leaky pollen filter.
|
|
|
|
Thanks for all the info, I'm going to arm myself with a print out from the website on what to look for and arrange to see it again at the weekend, and make sure I look out for the side pull on the steering etc when I test drive. To me the seller seemed a genuine careful owner he said he would have kept the car but he has now got a company car and hasn't got space. Forgot to say the aircon has had a recent regas , it has two brand new new tyres and new front discs, major service at a Ford dealer last December. Everything works, the owners comment ' I don't like things that don't work' which sounds reassuring ! Wish me luck...
|
From what you say lady driver it sounds like a very nice car.
If you're going to have a look I would also add check the clutch isn't slipping, which is an expensive job to do on a Mondeo, but I wouldn't worry too much because mine, as I said, has done 133,000 miles and is still on it's original clutch.
Also, if you do buy it and the cambelt hasn't been changed then I would certainly see about getting it done, possibly a bargaining point prior to purchase?
For £5.00 it's worth going to the RAC website and doing a vehicle history check (similar to HPI but much cheaper) before you go along to view. You will need the registration number.
If at all possible go along to view with someone, preferably male who knows something about cars (sorry, hope that doesn't sound too sexist!)
Other than that wish you the very best of luck, and please don't forget to come back onto here to let us know how you get on!
|
|
Decided not to buy after viewing again....it may not be a lot of money but it's all I've got to spend so I had a few doubts and decided to walk away as a result. My male co viewer immediately noticed a poor overspray job on two passenger doors and that the underside of the car had also been sprayed, which the guy selling it claimed not to have noticed in the 2 years he owned it.... Just goes to show how you can't trust a brief first impression! Thanks for all the info though. The search continues!
|
|
|
|
|
I've just got a 1999 2.0 Mondeo - it's done a few miles and has a knock or two, so only cost £300. Been great so far though - the only problem is the feeble bumpers! The crack in the rear bumper caught the wind on the motorway and ripped a chunk out!!
|
These are good, tough cars which are easily capable of 200,000+ reliable miles if looked after. The aforementioned clutch is the big problem due to the cost of replacement, but other than that they can be fixed for buttons, and don't go wrong much in the first place. Something I noticed when I had mine too was that mechanics seem to rate them. My MOT tester reckons he regularly services and tests two quarter million + milers which still plod happily on.
Cheers
DP
|
I'm no expert on this or any car, or car prices.
But if I decided this was the car for me, rather than haggle the price down a few quid, I'd be tempted to offer the full asking price but demand a 12 month MOT.
|
|
|
|
