Mondeo gets a facelift 25 | 08 | 2010
THE REDOUBTABLE Scottish family favourite, Ford's Mondeo, will get an updated facelift ready for the September registration change. the new-look marker leader will benefit from a tweaked exterior and restyled interior.
The new car will also benefit for the first time from the inclusion of Ford's higher performance 238bhp derivative of the new 2.0-litre Ford EcoBoost turbocharged petrol engine; it joins the existing 201bhp version of this engine, already introduced in the Mondeo, new S-Max and new Galaxy earlier this year. For diesel lovers, the latest Mondeo also introduces a revised and more powerful version of the 2.2-litre Ford Duratorq TDCi powerplant which now delivers 198bhp, an increase of 12%.
The facelifted version will be instantly identifiable from the outside by its new LED lighting, bolder graphics and proportions at the front end, including larger lower trapezoidal and slimmer upper grilles, plus a revised bonnet profile.
Inside the car, which remains cavernous enough to lose half a football team, there's new interior door panels, a new central overhead console featuring LED ambient lighting, a woven headliner and a redesigned centre console. New technology will also play a big part in the evolution of the Mondeo with driver assistance aids such as the updated model include lane departure warning, driver alert and auto high beam. All these features rely on a new high sensitivity camera unit located at the top of the windscreen in front of the rear view mirror.
Some features which have already appeared on the latest S-Max and Galaxy models will also surface on the Mondeo, with Ford's blind spot information system, speed limiter, rear door power child locks and rear view camera being among them.
For the first time, LED lighting technology is used for the daytime running lights and rear tail and brake lamps as well as inside the car. Prices will remain the same, with the entry-level starting at £17,295. The high-level Titanium series will increase by £200 to £19,945.
Jim McGill