Ford of Great Britain remains the nation’s Number One car brand, thanks to the might of both Fiesta and Focus model lines. Yet, it is worth reflecting on its days of true greatness, from when the Cortina was the nation’s biggest selling car through four generations from 1967 to 1982. However, thanks to a combination of ‘downsizing’ and the growth of the premium brands, the Escort/Focus and Fiesta have shared the best-selling status more recently.
Yet, Mondeo is a world car that is produced for several markets and is a most impressive model in both hatchback and estate car forms. Spacious, modern, technologically advanced, well-equipped, accessible and promising affordable medium sector motoring, the Mondeo presents a worthy model range. List prices start from £19,445.
However, Ford’s most recent effort to grab a competitive advantage has been to introduce the Vignale brand (the name arising from an Italian styling house that the company acquired in 1973). In important hybrid form (£30,495), it is also the only four-door saloon Mondeo sold in the UK. Finished in Vignale trim, powered by a 2.0-litre petrol-injection engine, accompanied by an electric engine that drives through an optimised constantly variable transmission, it is immensely clever technology that is familiar to hybrid users.
Having relegated most of the pushbutton functions to a touch-screen in the centre console, it is very easy to set-up the sat-nav, Bluetooth-link to a mobile phone, listen to your sounds of choice, manage the in-cabin conditions and generate information on the car. Using already generous interior space more proficiently, the driver’s hide-wrapped seat and steering column are multi-adjustable to provide a comfortable, safe and commanding driving position.
Ford pioneered the use of thumb switches on the steering wheel spokes several years ago and their logical operation links the driver to an information grid that is consummately easy to navigate. However, the hybrid also contains a ‘vine-leaf’ graphic, the more prolific the ‘growth’ of which, the kinder the driver is being to both environment and the back pocket. However, the instrument panel is also programmable, which allows all normal dials to be placed legibly ahead of the driver.
The rest of the cockpit is upmarket Ford, with some very fine detailing around the abundant space on offer. Externally, the styling revisions follow current trends for extra ‘bling’. Looking past the latest slim-line LED headlamp units and the ‘Hybrid’ badges on the flanks, to the tail of the car, an aerodynamically-optimised hint of a tail spoiler on the boot lid and a splitter below the rear bumper unit are very elegant.
Opening the boot remotely reveals a decrease in the amount of carpeted space, due to the on-board rechargeable battery pack, which reduces luggage accommodation by around a third over the hatchback model (seats up). The space is usable but features some odd dimensions that will favour squashier, rather than hard suitcases.
The Mondeo Vignale’s petrol engine delivers an electric motor combined power output of 184bhp, although the torque figure is 221lbs ft, which is more than enough to propel what is a fairly heavy car from 0-60mph in 8.9 seconds, topping out at around 116mph. While top speed in a car like this is purely academic, I have witnessed 122mph on the Hybrid’s speedometer in an earlier ‘closed circuit’ test.
Exceptionally refined, even with full throttle engine demands, the CVT transmission provides unerringly smooth progress, even if a constantly variable type of transmission is unfamiliar to the driver. Conducted at normal speeds, the Mondeo drops into Electric Vehicle (EV) mode across all aspects of its performance delivery. As a result, against the Official Combined fuel return of 67.3mpg, I believe that my 54mpg result for a week’s worth of motoring is not merely respectable, considering the footprint of the car, its relative dimensions and the broad mix of town, country and motorway driving entailed, but is also delightfully frugal.
In fact, it also compares favourably with the 210bhp 2.0TDCi diesel (62.8mpg Official), although the 240bhp 2.0T Ecoboost petrol unit is somewhat thirstier (38.7mpg). Boasting a CO2 emissions rating of just 99g/km, there is a slight reduction in list price over the conventional petrol model and the same value of increase over the equivalent diesel model. This helps to amortise the hybrid version’s value-for-money within the range. Thanks to the EV mode, in which the Mondeo can run for several miles before the petrol engine kicks into play, its Urban Fuel consumption is stated as 100.9mpg and it could be significantly more, if driven with care.
I should state that making the vines grow and maintaining progress within the blue bands of the various efficiency graphs that can be dialled into the dashboard can be immense fun and progress around town is not just silent but quite stately too. The increased weight of the batteries over the rear axle line combined with the electric engine up-front add enough extra weight to the car that the Mondeo feels well-planted and secure on-road.
Although mild understeer can be felt, when powering through bends, or circulating roundabouts, the spring and damper rates ensure that vehicle stability is not compromised. The ride quality, on 18-inch alloys, is almost sublime, aided by both a moderate length of wheelbase and slightly taller tyre sidewalls. The steering, which accommodates a ‘city’ mode, is pleasantly weighted and the brakes, which also aid battery recharging, provide secure stopping power in a typical hybrid car manner.
