The Ford Mondeo range of cars has proved to be popular amongst car buyers in the UK market during 2009. The word ‘Mondeo’ is similar to the Latin word ‘mundus’ which means ‘world’ or the French ‘Le Monde’ which means for ‘the world’. The name of the car itself speaks as to what kind of aspirations the manufacturer had about its appeal and success.
The Ford Mondeo launched in January 1993 was available as a four-door sedan, a five-door wagon and a five-door hatchback. There were four kitting options available then which were CLX, GLX, Si and Ghia and the option list included side air bags, cruise control, a side conditioner, a hatch and an on-board computer. With ABS joining in 1993, an all-wheel drive Mondeo with 116-horsepower and 1.8 litre engine was introduced in the market.
The year 1994 saw the addition of a 6-cylinder 2.5 litre engine that produced 170 hp and the same year Mondeo won the title of ‘The Automobile of the Year’. A year later, the company offered an all-wheel drive modification which had 113 horsepower 2.0 litre gasoline powered engine. The model was restyled in 1996 and the car got new front and rear optics, bumpers, wings, hood, glitter and trunk.
Safety was given high consideration in 1997 with the car getting extra features which included a side air bag, bigger air bags for the driver and the front passenger seats, side-door impact beams and special elastic polyfoam under the door skin. The backseat passenger safety was also improved by adding three-point seat belts and headrests.
The second generation Ford Mondeo made its debut in 2000 with cars provided with 1.8 litre and 2.0 litre Duratex HE engines. The model was restyled in 2004 with the power plant range extended with 1.8 litre direct-injection gasoline powered Duratec SCi engine, while six speed Durashift gearbox and five speed automatic gearbox were added to the transmission shift.
A new generation of the model was introduced in 2006 with kinetic design used in the new Ford Mondeo. The new generation S-Max and Galaxy had 1.6 litre gasoline powered engine and 1.8 and 2.0 litre diesel engines.