1. I drove the regular Mondeo.
Just came back from a three-week vacation on the Spanish Costa del Sol (Marbella). I chose Hertz because I knew they have Ford fleet cars and I wanted to drive a Mondeo. I got a silver Hatchback 2.0 Di with a diesel (!) engine (Hertz had no gasoline cars, the price of the gasoline fuel is about three times higher than in NA). I drove it for about 2000 miles.
First impressions: it is a «big» car! It is roomier than the previous (Contour) models with lot of rear and trunk spaces. It looks like a fat Focus to the point that it is sometimes confusing. For some reason nevertheless, the controversial Ford edge design is less bothering on the Mondeo. Maybe because it is bigger. The Mondeo also looks like a VW Passat and in fact sometimes, in the parking lots, I wondered why my remote did not open the doors: I was trying in fact to get in a same colour Passat! According to a European car magazine, the Mondeo is indeed a «copy» of the Passat. BTW the parking spaces in Europe are designed for much smaller cars. The previous drivers have scratched the car all around and I tried very hard not to add some of my own scratches...
Although it was a 90 HP diesel engine, it is a surprisingly nervous and quick car with great handling. I enjoyed driving the car both on the highways and on the mountain roads. The clutch is smooth, as is the shifting. However the 4-cylinder engine coupled with the diesel create an annoying truck-like noise at low rpm.
Even if it is a fleet car, this is what you get (and what we don't get on our stripped cars!): six airbags, a radio with an in-dash 6 CD player (my burned CDs that my stock radio refuses to play worked fine in the Mondeo), a volume and CD controls on the steering wheel, an automatic digital climate control, a complete instrumentation panel with a tachometer, an outside temperature indicator, brushed aluminium parts on the dashboard, the console and on the steering wheel, a retractable in-dash cup holder that «holds» cups and bottles and another one in the centre console, an analogue clock, front and rear fog lights, electric windows with four one-touch buttons, remote fuel control, a stability control system (ESP), illuminated passenger and driver mirrors, illuminated glove and engine compartments, three adjustable headrests in the back as well as a centre armrest that separates the folding back seats. Of course the car is equipped with ABS and 4-wheel disk brakes.
The car I drove had 16" wheels with Pirelli P6000 tires, which provide a reasonably comfortable ride. Another surprise for me was to discover that the spare tire was a full size tire.
Guess what. Did you notice that the thin carpet sheet that covers the trunk floor in our cars does not sit very well on the trunk floor? On the European models, as in the current Mondeo, the trunk carpet is backed with a 3/4" thick material and the whole carpet sits on 2" rubber that covers the trunk metallic floor. This surely reduces the road noise.
The seats are firm and are covered with a nice two-tone fabric. The front bucket seats are very comfy, as is the centre console armrest that covers a cleverly designed space for both cassettes and CDs. The driver seat height can be electrically adjusted.
I surely forgot other features but you get the picture of what the Europeans get in their cars and what we don't get on ours!
2. I test drove the new Mondeo ST220.
While in Marbella I visited a Ford dealer and asked to test-drive the new Mondeo ST220. This is quite a car my friends! The one I tested just arrived to the dealer. It was black with a black interior and red Recaro seats. This is a completely different car than the regular Mondeo and does not belong to the same league. Those of us who own an SVT will love the ST220. I tell you, if this car makes it to North America, I'll be driving it! With its 3.0 litre 220hp engine, it is much more powerful than the SVT and has much more torque but you can recognise the CSVT characteristics in the handling and the responsiveness. I could not (because the salesman would not allow me) push the car beyond 100 mph but this car is really capable of much more. I compare it favourably to the BMW 330i with a much modern styling and looks. Inside the car, you get what you always dreamed of: from every possible control to the metallic sport pedals and the front doors sills with the ST logo. On the outside, you get the 18" 16-spokes alloy wheels and the 240/40/18 tires that completely fill the wheel wells, xenon lights, special lowered front and rear bumpers with mesh grills, side skirts, dual exhaust tips. No side mouldings! But the ST220 has a very discrete spoiler as in the BMW M3.
While the regular Mondeo looks like (and is) an anonymous fleet car, the ST220 is definitely an eye-catching car as is the CSVT. However, the ST220 is higher and longer and the side skirts are more discrete than in the SVT. Because of that, the ST220 does not have that sporty look of the SVT with its more apparent ground effects. The ST220 has a combination of sport and luxury looks and the result is simply superb.
If the ST220 makes it to North America, expect to pay a lot more than for a regular Contour. Currently the Euro and the US dollar have about the same value with the Euro slightly higher by a couple of %. The base suggested retail price for the ST220 is 32 270 Euros. Some options are available such a sunroof, a cruise control, a navigation system, a distance sensor etc. which add to the base price. This is way up from the base price of a regular Mondeo of about 19 000 Euros. In fact, the ST220?s base price is close to that of the BMW 325i (32 600 Euros). The price of the BMW 330i (about the same hp) is however still higher (39 646 Euros). I already drove a 330i and I would say that the ST220 is at least as powerful, it is more fun to drive and it has a much more attractive look. This is obviously a personal opinion and Ford would probably have some difficulties convincing potential buyers to choose the ST220 instead of the BMW if these three letters represent an important parameter of the equation.
I hope that the ST220 will be brought to NA. If this happens, let us pray that Ford will not Americanise it beyond recognition!!
