Cheap Mondeo - should I?

Hi,

My 1992 Rover 214 finally died two days before christmas, and I'm looking for a replacement.

I've seen a Mondeo 1993 'L reg' 1.6 GLX saloon at a reputable garage for 900 quid, it looks very very clean, not a single parking dent, stone chip or speck of rust, interior doesn't look worn or anything, but it only has service history to 50,000 miles and is now on 80,000.

I only really need it to last 12 months, longer would be good but not essential. Does it sound like a good buy? Should I look out for anything? It comes with 12 months MOT but I know this doesn't mean much. I'll most probably get the cam belt etc done. Is there anyway to judge if the clutch is ok I have read that this is an expensive job?

I appreciate there aren't many mondeo fans in this group after looking at google! But I'm really stuck finding anything within my budget and don't want to resort to a smaller car as I've had enough of driving Fiesta's on the motorway.

Any thoughts appreciated.

Boothby.

Reply to
Boothby
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In news:cr1una$cvm$ snipped-for-privacy@newsg2.svr.pol.co.uk, Boothby decided to enlighten our sheltered souls with a rant as follows

*HOW MUCH???*

Er, no. A ten year old Mondeo is not worth £900 unless it's truly perfect.

No 1.6 Mondeo will ever be perfect. 1.8 is the smallest you should consider.

1.6 Mondeo, L reg, 80k miles, from dealer should be no more than £550.
Reply to
Pete M

a=20

I traded in my (tatty exterior!) 120k miler, service historied 2.0 Ghia 98 = S=20 for =A3800, which is apparently what it would get at auction.

I concurr. Way too much for an 11 year, low spec, underpowered Mondeo. I've= =20 seen ST200, 5 years newer than that for that much!

Pete.

--=20 NOTE! Email address is spamtrapped. Any email will be bounced to you Remove the news and underscore from my address to reply by mail

Reply to
Pete Smith

Pete M ( snipped-for-privacy@blue-nopressedmeat-yonder.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Would there even have been such a bizarre combo as a 1.6 GLX? I'd have thought they'd keep the higher trim levels away from the base spec engine?

Reply to
Adrian

An ST200 for £900? Where?

Mike

Reply to
MSC

MSC ( snipped-for-privacy@spam.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

I can well believe it - but would you *want* to own it?

Probably interstellar mileage and umpteen big-money problems showing the first signs...

Clutch? Head gaskets?

Reply to
Adrian

In news:Xns95CFE65F1D2BFadrianachapmanfreeis@130.133.1.4, Adrian decided to enlighten our sheltered souls with a rant as follows

IIRC the 1.6 and 1.8 were both available with the same trim specs for the same price. Why anybody ever went for the 1.6 is a mystery.

Reply to
Pete M

steer clear, you could get a k plate sierra for just a couple of hundred, a sierra, while not exactly wonderful, drives better than a mondeo and is far easier/cheaper to fix and less likely to go wrong, especially in a terminal way.

Mondeos and Scorpios are the only fords I reject automatically ( I run a small car repair business)

I still work on anglias, mk2 escorts and cortinas, none of which give as much grief as the average mondeo.

mrcheerful

Reply to
mrcheerful

Reply to
Boothby

There's a 1997 P reg (new shape) Mondeo TD Ghia X on the forecourt at our local garage for £800. Granted, it has 170,000 miles under it's wheels, but even so... If you're only looking for a car to last a year or so then does it matter if it's low mileage, dent/scratch free, etc? As already suggested, a Sierra would cost peanuts to buy, is dirt cheap to run and simple to fix as long as it isn't a "Filler Or Rust Disaster".

Have you considered another (slightly larger) Rover - maybe the Honda-engined 416, or the 418 turbo diesel? You'll get an L-M reg Rover 400 for less than half the price of the Mondeo you're looking at and it'll be more reliable, have better bodywork and possibly more toys. Alternatively, if you're after a cheap motorway cruiser then look for a 620 turbo diesel as these can give nearly 50mpg and are a Roverised Honda Accord. Again, you should fine one far cheaper than that Mondeo (I bought one a few weeks ago instead of the Mondeo above).

Darren (ex. Ford owner)

Reply to
Darren Jarvis

At half the price I'd start to think about it. The 1.6 though is woefully underpowered and needs a lot of thrashing to get anywhere.

Reply to
Chris Street

Boothby ( snipped-for-privacy@all.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Which would be...?

Are you sure you live in the UK?

There's your problem. WTF are you doing buying from the trade at that price?

Autotrader shows 156 cars on private sale between £500 and £1000 within 40 miles of me.

That includes 10 Mondeos. A £900 112k '96 2.5 Ghia X looks most interesting, but most "sensible" are umpteen 1.8s and TDs 3 years newer than "your" slug. Doesn't take much of a budget stretch to get a facelifted one - £1295 for a '97 1.8LX with 72k - and that's the asking price, of course.

The other option is to buy where the garage does - the auctions. Find a mate with a clue, and go down there a few times without any money on you. You'll be horrified at how much mark-up the garage is putting on. Remember

- they've got to make a living out of it. He probably paid £200 for that £900 "bargain" Mondeo. You think he's done £700 of work to it?

Reply to
Adrian

My area is south worcestershire.

The reason I'm looking at dealers is the last time I went looking at private sales it was a complete waste of time, cars advertised as vgc were worn out and tatty. If I buy from a local dealer which has a good long reputation does it not act as some kind of peace of mind? Also can't find anything private with more than a couple of months MOT.

The Honda engined Rover is a good option, I never had any problem in 6 years with my 214 other than the inevitable head gasket failure.

I don't understand the advantage in buying a newer vehicle if it has 170,000 miles? Aren't most components such as alternator, starter motor, fuel pumps etc designed for 150,000 miles use?

Is the Sierra really as good as a mondeo?? Maybe it has more driver satisfaction but I also need comfort and a relaxing journey. I used to borrow my Dad's 2 litre Sierra which was pretty quick and fun but in no way refined, I hate getting to the end of a 3 hour motorway journey with my back aching, ears ringing and feeling generally completely knackered!

I am NOT a Ford fan btw! I have previously owned a MKIII Escort and MKII Fiesta, both of which rusted away.

Boothby.

Reply to
Boothby

In news:cr24p4$3a3$ snipped-for-privacy@newsg4.svr.pol.co.uk, Boothby decided to enlighten our sheltered souls with a rant as follows

Could be because the Mk3 Escrot and Mk2 Fiesta were two of the worst Ford products ever.

Reply to
Pete M

Unfortunately I'm very limited in time, I need a car by the end of next week. To go viewing cars I have to rely on people to take me which doesn't help.

Doing the same search on autotrader in my area within 40 miles gives 36 results. Ignoring Land Rovers, big engined BMW's and non-starters, I'm left with the creme de la creme of.... a Clio for £600 8 months MOT, 115,000 miles; Pug 205 lowered with full body kit obviously been thrashed to death;

1991 Astra 125,000 miles 3 months MOT; the only few worth looking at are a 93 Golf but it's a 1.4 and £825! Or a 306 1.6 for £900! A 95 concerto with full MOT and 80,000 maybe the best bet for £500.

Boothby.

Reply to
Boothby

What area are you in?

Reply to
JackH

I'd see someone about your Vauxhall allergy, and go for a '95 plate private Cav, 1.8 or 2l, nice cars to play with (both driving and maintenance)

A personal, and biased view

Regards

Reply to
Mike Dodd

In news:41d4a0c0$0$19164$ snipped-for-privacy@news-text.dial.pipex.com, Mike Dodd decided to enlighten our sheltered souls with a rant as follows

Whereas I share the OPs Vauxhall allergy and agree with him wholeheartedly.

Don't go Vauxhall, it's really not worth it. GM have never made a decent FWD car, ever.

Reply to
Pete M

You live in Kensington or summat?

P reg Mondeos up here fetch £500 at best. I only paid £650 for a 1997 Rover 620 with FSH on 83k.

Reply to
Conor

Not at all. In fact they can be worse as most car dealers are practised professional liars.

They'll have been replaced.

Reply to
Conor

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