Faults:

Normal service and maintenance.

I replaced the often forgotten water pump belt due to age cracking, and will most likely do the pump as preventative maintenance.

I also have the occasional light clunk from the suspension, but I will forgive it due to the age of the rubber components and the terrible state of British roads.

General Comments:

I have been so impressed with this. After a Passat Estate, which felt solid but very dull to drive, it is a revelation. The engine is very smooth, sounds pretty good, and despite being only 170PS, it moves along very nicely. Unaffected by running the air con (which is still freezing cold) or having 5 people in it.

The ride is very controlled, firm enough to feel the road, but very supple and nicely damped; sharp imperfections don't thud through the car as in the Passat.

The steering is nicely sharp, but not twitchy, and the rear of the car follows the front very well, and you can tighten your line with the throttle as well as the steering, almost like a sports car. A little less roll would be the perfect compromise; maybe fitting a stiffer rear roll bar is on the cards.

Ghia X spec is great; heated leather seats, cruise, 6 CD etc etc etc, and being a black 4 door with cream leather and 17 inch wheels, it even looks pretty sleek. Certainly nicer than the usual silver or grey diesel hatchbacks with boggo spec levels.

Safety kit is good and ESP is standard on this model. Brakes are slightly numb, but work very effectively once you work them, and ABS cuts in nice and late. It cruises very well too at high speed with no shakes or wobbles, and feels a nice place to sit for a long period of time.

Moreover every electric feature on the car works perfectly, even after 13 years, and the engine is totally silent at idle; it's uncanny.

Nobody wants the V6 petrols any more, so they are cheap, but the MPG averages 29.8, which I think is good for mostly urban running, and this model suffers no DMF issues (doesn't have one) and no diesel type problems, injectors, turbos etc that instantly eat up any fuel saving and more. Plus... it just sounds and drives so much nicer than a nasty diesel!

Faults:

Nothing at all yet - everything working as it should.

General Comments:

As Jeremy Clarkson said "The perfect poached egg on the perfect piece of toast".

This sums the car up well. It's a machine - like a fridge or a microwave. It does exactly what it is supposed to do, and does it well. It's a motorway mile muncher and that's what I bought it for. It's comfortable, quiet, well enough equipped, reasonable on fuel.

I should explain, I collect cars and have several Porsches and powerful BMW's. But I wouldn't use these cars to do a 300 mile motorway trip. They are garage queens. So I need something practical that works properly - the Mondeo fits the bill. I had (still have actually) the old mk2 1.8. Here's how they compare in my view:

1) Steering and suspension - better on mk3, more stable and firm. Less understeer.

2) Brakes - marginally better on the mk2 actually.

3) Engine performance - mk2 has slightly more low down performance (despite 10bhp less), but the mk3 is smoother and quieter.

4) Clutch and gearbox - a real girls clutch in the mk3; the mk2 feels more purposeful. Gearbox in the mk3 is much nicer to use, although with a fair bulk to carry around and only 125bhp, it's wise to use the gears to the full.

5) Body and interior - mk3 all the way. Larger, more modern looking, better road presence, much nicer more Germanic cabin, none of the curvy stuff from the mk2, which now looks very dated, as do most things which were ultra modern looking when released: the mk3 is more timeless.

I would recommend this car for someone who needs cheap, reliable and comfortable transport. But if you are a petrol head, you'll need something else in your garage for that fun factor.