Ford Mondeo Query

Croftman

2005 Ford Mondeo 2.0 litre TD - looking at buying one of these, any review good or bad?

Nissan doctor

If being used and maintained properly then failing EGR valves are about the only common thing I can think off hand.

George Dalton

TDDI or TDCI? If TDCI then is it 5 speed or 6 speed?

R.O.R

George Dalton wrote: »

TDDI or TDCI? If TDCI then is it 5 speed or 6 speed?

Surely all the 05's are TDCi aren't they? 90, 115 or 130.

Not aware of any major issues with them, but the clutch is an expensive job. If you can pick one up with that done recently then it should be good for galactic mileage.

George Dalton

No the TDDI was still available in 90bhp form in 2005. The 115 and 130 bhp diesels were TDCI.

bazz26

Don't DMFs give trouble in the TDCi models?

clancyoo7

Have had a 03 tdci mondeo since 07 and it has given more trouble than it is worth. The power steering pump and pipe went, 1 injector went, drive shaft and coil spring went, Dual Mass flywheel had to be replaced, Alternator failed. Hand brake cables replaced, Intercooler pipe had to be replaced. Its been a disaster:mad:.

maidhc

George Dalton wrote: »

No the TDDI was still available in 90bhp form in 2005. The 115 and 130 bhp diesels were TDCI.

There was also a 5sp 90bhp TDCI from 05/06 and a 115bhp TDDI up to 02 or so.

George Dalton

clancyoo7 wrote: »

Have had a 03 tdci mondeo since 07 and it has given more trouble than it is worth. The power steering pump and pipe went, 1 injector went, drive shaft and coil spring went, Dual Mass flywheel had to be replaced, Alternator failed. Hand brake cables replaced, Intercooler pipe had to be replaced. Its been a disaster:mad:.

All of the above are common Mondeo issues in my experience (we look after about 70-80 diesel Mk3s at a conservative guess) with the possible exception of the power steering pump, I couldn't tell you the last time I had to replace one of those.

They are generally a pretty decent car but if you are unlucky with one it can cost a lot of money to keep one on the road. It seems strange to me that the Mondeo has such a good reputation for reliability when it has just as many if not more faults than any other car in its class.

To add to the issues in the above post:

Common problems:
Wheels are pretty poor quality and bend and crack very easily, this applies to both steel rims and alloys.
Anti roll bar links and bushes wear, especially at the rear.
Rear subframe bushes wear out.
Rear brake line corrosion is extremely common.
The handbrake setup on them is pretty poor, especially the early ones with the self adjusting mechanism under the car below the lever itself. Cables and calipers seize up regularly.

Steering racks leak and can also develop a tight spot around the straight ahead position, more noticeable from a cold start..
Steering inner tie rods and track rod ends wear (at high mileage usually to be fair)

Front and rear wheel bearings fail, rears usually get noisy, the front bearing seal contains the wheel speed sensor pickup on post 03 cars and that breaks down over time and causes wheel speed sensor errors.

Cylinder head temperature sensors fail.
Timing chain tensioners fail causing the engine to be difficult or completely impossible to start.
EGR valve position sensor failure is quite common meaning replacement of the EGR valve itself.
Have seen a few water pumps leaking lately, mostly on later examples for some reason.
TDDI injector pump failure while not very common is still a regular occurrence.
TDCIs give all sorts of problems if not maintained correctly or if poor quality fuel is used in them. The early ones in particular could be a nightmare to keep running properly.

Keys wear out and need replacing, that stupid bonnet lock system on them gives bother, ignition barrels and the switch at the back of the barrel also wear out.

There are plenty of other niggles which some people don't consider problems at all but drive other owners crazy, for example they eat dash light bulbs, a small thing I know but annoying all the same, reversing light switches regularly stop working, the centre seat belt in the rear seat often gets stuck and won't come out, they blow fuses for the cigarette lighter more than any other car I know of, loads of them leak water into the boot past the rear light cluster seals, interior grab handles are very badly secured and often come off, glovebox locks break, ashtray covers break, on hatchbacks the hooks for the parcel shelf strings break off.

My mother bought one new in 2005 (90bhp TDDI) and it has been serviced every 15,000km since new. There is around 230,000km on it now and apart from service parts and consumables it has needed:

Steering rack (twice but it was a dodgy recon unit that failed the second time so not really the car's fault)
Inner tie rods and track rod ends.
A few alloys wheels.
About 4 sets of dash light bulbs ( I know bulbs are consumables but thought this deserved a mention)
Handbrake cables.
Timing chain tensioner.
Rear links and anti roll bar bushes.
One rear wheel bearing.
It is currently on the second key as the first one wore out.
Strangely the flywheel has never been done, and equally unusually it has never broken a coil spring.
The airbag light has come on a few times due to bad connections on the plugs under the seats.

So overall it has been good but it does get very well looked after and only gets driven hard on rare occasions where myself, my dad or my brother end up driving it

Apologies about the post turning into a bit of an essay, I hope the info is of some help to the OP.

john reilly

long post most of which is probably right although ive never expierenced any steering problems,and only hatchback leaks also parts are usually dirt cheap. but couldnt you compile a list on just about any car. they are quieter and faster with better road holding than a passat

maidhc

john reilly wrote: »

long post most of which is probably right although ive never expierenced any steering problems,and only hatchback leaks also parts are usually dirt cheap. but couldnt you compile a list on just about any car. they are quieter and faster with better road holding than a passat

I had the steering issue/tight spot on my focus at 140k miles. Always noticed it leaving work in the evening. I though it was me imagining things at first.

Croftman

Thanks for all that,really big help and has turned me off them completely.My alternatives to the Mondeo are 05 Mazda 6 2litre and 05 Octavia 1.9litre,both diesels.Would really appreciate similar comments.Thanks

Nissan doctor

Croftman wrote: »

Thanks for all that,really big help and has turned me off them completely.My alternatives to the Mondeo are 05 Mazda 6 2litre and 05 Octavia 1.9litre,both diesels.Would really appreciate similar comments.Thanks

If your turned off the mondeo......then forget a diesel mazda 6:eek:


A VAG 1.9tdi is a very solid engine..

George Dalton

Croftman wrote: »

Thanks for all that,really big help and has turned me off them completely.My alternatives to the Mondeo are 05 Mazda 6 2litre and 05 Octavia 1.9litre,both diesels.Would really appreciate similar comments.Thanks

Forget the Mazda anyway as Nissan Doctor says.

I could give you just as big a list of possible issues with an Octavia as well. I wasn't trying to turn you off buying a Mondeo. I was just trying to counter the reputation they have as being trouble free. They are still on the better side of average for their class IMO.

George Dalton

john reilly wrote: »

but couldnt you compile a list on just about any car.

Yes you could but for example if you look on the internet for VW Passat common faults you will find them all listed no problem. You won't find the same for a Mondeo. Therefore the consensus on this and other motoring forums is Passat = bad, Mondeo = good. The reality is it isn't that simple in my experience.

john reilly

Croftman wrote: »

Thanks for all that,really big help and has turned me off them completely.My alternatives to the Mondeo are 05 Mazda 6 2litre and 05 Octavia 1.9litre,both diesels.Would really appreciate similar comments.Thanks

why do you not want to buy any car

john reilly

Nissan doctor wrote: »

If your turned off the mondeo......then forget a diesel mazda 6:eek:


A VAG 1.9tdi is a very solid engine..

maybe but its noiser and slower than mondeo tdci

john reilly

George Dalton wrote: »

Yes you could but for example if you look on the internet for VW Passat common faults you will find them all listed no problem. You won't find the same for a Mondeo. Therefore the consensus on this and other motoring forums is Passat = bad, Mondeo = good. The reality is it isn't that simple in my experience.

maybe thats because they belived the v.w hype and where badly let down or maybe they just paid too much for their passat

Nissan doctor

As has been said, you could make a sizeable list of problems that people have had with ANY car that is 5-6-7 years old. It doesn't, by any means, say that everyone, or even most people, will have these problems.


There are also many 'reliability' problems which are caused by peoples driving style and poor/incorrect maintenance or use.

2012 Rio

All of the above are common Mondeo issues in my experience (we look after about 70-80 diesel Mk3s at a conservative guess) with the possible exception of the power steering pump, I couldn't tell you the last time I had to replace one of those.

Fleet cars? But shure company cars are all wrecked and abused anyway. Fellas don't own them so they don't care, simple as that. however, the long term performance of fleet cars is a very good measure of a car's reliability.

mk3 mondeos are good, but the Mk 2 was way better in reliability and ruggedness terms. My dad had a 1.8 TD and drove it like a battle tank, pulled heavy trailers regularly and threw it down back roads. It never missed a beat in all 310,000 miles we had it. We sold it to a few polish lads for €900. Still see it around town now and again, they refurbished and polished it up really well.

the Endura DE 1.8TD is the daddy of all engines in the reliability department. Bulletproof. unstoppable. immortal.

If I was to get a second hand ford it would be one of these. Lovely cars and very comfortable.

I'd never, ever, for the life of me get any sort of WV. ugh. Horror stories of breakdowns. My sisters passat is constantly failing - injectors, handbrake, BCM. I tell her she should burn the f*cking thing. I can't figure out why they have a high resale value though given the reliability issues. They're a friggin ball of sh!te!

maidhc

2012 Rio wrote: »

the Endura DE 1.8TD is the daddy of all engines in the reliability department. Bulletproof.

here here. Once you watch the belt intervals.

2012 Rio

A VAG 1.9tdi is a very solid engine..

Erm, no its not. Its a ball of sh!te. Performance might be very good but it's about as reliable as a heroin addict.

I'd choose reliability and longevity over performance any day of the week.

Nissan doctor

2012 Rio wrote: »

Erm, no its not. Its a ball of sh!te. Performance might be very good but it's about as reliable as a heroin addict.

Really? Discuss....

john reilly

2012 Rio wrote: »

Fleet cars? But shure company cars are all wrecked and abused anyway. Fellas don't own them so they don't care, simple as that. however, the long term performance of fleet cars is a very good measure of a car's reliability.

mk3 mondeos are good, but the Mk 2 was way better in reliability and ruggedness terms. My dad had a 1.8 TD and drove it like a battle tank, pulled heavy trailers regularly and threw it down back roads. It never missed a beat in all 310,000 miles we had it. We sold it to a few polish lads for €900. Still see it around town now and again, they refurbished and polished it up really well.

the Endura DE 1.8TD is the daddy of all engines in the reliability department. Bulletproof. unstoppable.
If I was to get a second hand ford it would be one of these. Lovely cars and very comfortable.

I'd never, ever, for the life of me get any sort of WV. ugh. Horror stories of breakdowns. My sisters passat is constantly failing - injectors, handbrake, BCM. I tell her she should burn the f*cking thing. I can't figure out why they have a high resale value though given the reliability issues. They're a friggin ball of sh!te!

to be fair toyota carina and 406 1.9td werent bad either

2012 Rio

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Really? Discuss....

The injectors fail. then they replace them (ripping you off in the process) and then they fail again....and again.

VW's in general are very poor in reliability terms. I'd never get one and I'd advise anyone against them.

My sis had 2 passats. Both were train wrecks in the reliability dept.
My neighbour has a Polo. every time I meet him he is giving out about the latest fault and his frustrations with the dealer.

Friend from work has a golf which is also troublesome.

Nearly everytime I hear about VW, its because its casuing trouble. Expensive trouble.

for me reliability trumps all.

Nissan doctor

2012 Rio wrote: »

The injectors fail. then they replace them (ripping you off in the process) and then they fail again....and again.

VW's in general are very poor in reliability terms. I'd never get one and I'd advise anyone against them.

My sis had 2 passats. Both were train wrecks in the reliability dept.
My neighbour has a Polo. every time I meet him he is giving out about the latest fault and his frustrations with the dealer.

Friend from work has a golf which is also troublesome.

Nearly everytime I hear about VW, its because its casuing trouble. Expensive trouble.

for me reliability trumps all.

We aren't talking about VAG's in general, I said the 1.9tdi is a strong engine, which it, almost without argument, is. The injector issues you've read about are mostly a 2.0tdi problem.


Actually, we shouldn't be talking about VAG's at all in this thread.

Chuck_Norris

2012 Rio wrote: »

A VAG 1.9tdi is a very solid engine..

Erm, no its not. Its a ball of sh!te. Performance might be very good but it's about as reliable as a heroin addict.

I'd choose reliability and longevity over performance any day of the week.

Just to go even more o/t, but I beg to differ.

My car has a 1.9tdi engine. Currently has 174,000km on it (small mileage, I know) and it has been absolutely bulletproof. No issues with the engine. Ever.

Case closed.

maidhc

Chuck_Norris wrote: »

Just to go even more o/t, but I beg to differ.

My car has a 1.9tdi engine. Currently has 174,000km on it (small mileage, I know) and it has been absolutely bulletproof. No issues with the engine. Ever.

Case closed.

Not really, when you have twice or even three times that then perhaps.

jessie j

my husband got one, a good car, infact supposed to be a brilliant car. They can be hard on front tryes, so you might be replacing them very often because of their heaviness. Not the most economical of diesels either, not like Volkswagen, but mechanically it never gave any trouble. Hope that help. ps my husband says you can't blow the engine even if you tried.

randy hickey

29 posts and nobody has offered up the ubiquitous Toyota Avensis 2L diesel to the OP!!

Chuck_Norris

maidhc wrote: »

Not really, when you have twice or even three times that then perhaps.

I did say in my post that it was small mileage.

But my reasoning was very simple. To balance out the very negative comments on the engine.

That's just from a 1.9tdi that I've driven personally. I could give plenty of anecdotal evidence from friends/ family/ work collegues with significantly higher mileage, who not had any issues with the engine, other than usual maintenance.

And could give even more anecdotal evidence of 1.9tdi engines which had been abused, and we're indeed bulletproof.

But I don't want to drag the thread anore I/t than I already have.

maidhc

Chuck_Norris wrote: »

I did say in my post that it was small mileage.

But my reasoning was very simple. To balance out the very negative comments on the engine.

That's just from a 1.9tdi that I've driven personally. I could give plenty of anecdotal evidence from friends/ family/ work collegues with significantly higher mileage, who not had any issues with the engine, other than usual maintenance.

And could give even more anecdotal evidence of 1.9tdi engines which had been abused, and we're indeed bulletproof.

But I don't want to drag the thread anore I/t than I already have.

I do agree btw. I know of a lot of 1.9TDIs, in particular the older 90 and 110bhps that have done mega mega milage. I actually think it is a wonderful engine, and I remember when my granddad bought one of the first of them in the Audi 80 back in 1992 it was amazing compared to everything else.

ninty9er

randy hickey wrote: »

29 posts and nobody has offered up the ubiquitous Toyota Avensis 2L diesel to the OP!!

You'd have to go for the 2.2 really

Forgetting the engine particulars I've owned a facelift 04 Mondeo for about 14 months.

I'm relatively happy with it and I've put up a little under 20k miles.

The issues I've had:
Headlight washers seized, easily fixed
Boot electronics - at irregular intervals the button on the dash and the one on the lid itself cease to function, it's an inconvenience, but not a tragedy
My exhaust manifold gave up and I was inhaling carbon monoxide in the cabin unbeknownst to myself.
I have a leak coming into the driver's footwell that I haven't figured out
The handbrake cable rubs on the fuel tank creating a rattly murmuring noise. Easily fixed if I could get under the car (it's quite low).

maidhc

ninty9er wrote: »

I have a leak coming into the driver's footwell that I haven't figured out

With the Mk1 and Mk2 this was the seal around the pollen filter housing. Easy cheap fix if it is the same, take of the scuttle panel and do the obvious.

randy hickey

ninty9er wrote: »

You'd have to go for the 2.2 really

Tbh I'm in the market myself at the moment, and following a lot of research ( including on here!), I had it narrowed down to;

1) 2.0L tdci Zetec or ST Mondeo

2) 2.0l D4D Avensis Luna/T3X/T4 etc.

Both in '07ish vintage.
While the Avensis was the default choice, I started looking at Mondeos due to quite a lot of positivity about them on here.Also, they are relatively cheap as chips in comparison to some of the crazily priced Avensis stock out there!
The more I looked at the Mondeos, the less convinced I was.Now, thanks to George Dalton's informative post above, I've just made up my mind.I'm gonna focus on gettin me a decent Avensis!
Btw it was definitely mentioned in a thread in here that the 2.2l d4d gives more hassle than the 2.0.

maidhc

randy hickey wrote: »

.Now, thanks to George Dalton's informative post above, I've just made up my mind.I'm gonna focus on gettin me a decent Avensis!
Btw it was definitely mentioned in a thread in here that the 2.2l d4d gives more hassle than the 2.0.

We have an Avensis 2.0 D4D from new since 2002, 170k miles, serviced every 7/8k miles, proverbial woman driver all its life. Drivetrain issues cannot be explained to driver as the car before it and treated the same way (a mondeo) never needed a clutch in 240k miles

1) Needs gearbox number 2
2) 3x flywheels
3) rust issues sorted under warranty
4) Cd player dead
5) Juddering when braking that is proving hard to solve
6) Starter failed
7) Bits of trim fall off from time to time
8) Lights dim occasionally for no good reason, alternator maybe

The 2007 has a different engine and a six speed box. In fairness I would get a low milage well minded late model mondeo over a more used avensis if reliability is your concern. We have never had an engine issue so far in fairness.

ninty9er

randy hickey wrote: »

Btw it was definitely mentioned in a thread in here that the 2.2l d4d gives more hassle than the 2.0.

It's the engine used in the Lexus IS. I wouldn't say hassle, but wouldn't be expecting Corollaesque fuel economy.

George Dalton

john reilly wrote: »

maybe thats because they belived the v.w hype and where badly let down or maybe they just paid too much for their passat

I agree 100% with you. People believe the hype and consequently tend to throw their toys out of the pram a bit more when a VW breaks down or hits them with a big bill. It doesn't mean they are bad cars. In fact they are good cars. This is confirmed when you consistently see Skoda near the top of "reliability" surveys. They are the same car as a VW mechanically so suffer exactly the same mechanical faults. So how come they score much higher in the surveys? Brand perception seems to be the answer.

john reilly

George Dalton wrote: »

I agree 100% with you. People believe the hype and consequently tend to throw their toys out of the pram a bit more when a VW breaks down or hits them with a big bill. It doesn't mean they are bad cars. In fact they are good cars. This is confirmed when you consistently see Skoda near the top of "reliability" surveys. They are the same car as a VW mechanically so suffer exactly the same mechanical faults. So how come they score much higher in the surveys? Brand perception seems to be the answer.

correct. v.w high expectations = dissapointment. skoda low expectations = nice surprise

john reilly

maidhc wrote: »

We have an Avensis 2.0 D4D from new since 2002, 170k miles, serviced every 7/8k miles, proverbial woman driver all its life. Drivetrain issues cannot be explained to driver as the car before it and treated the same way (a mondeo) never needed a clutch in 240k miles

1) Needs gearbox number 2
2) 3x flywheels
3) rust issues sorted under warranty
4) Cd player dead
5) Juddering when braking that is proving hard to solve
6) Starter failed
7) Bits of trim fall off from time to time
8) Lights dim occasionally for no good reason, alternator maybe

The 2007 has a different engine and a six speed box. In fairness I would get a low milage well minded late model mondeo over a more used avensis if reliability is your concern. We have never had an engine issue so far in fairness.

sure you could throw injector problems in there and cost of parts

working fool

I had a 02 tddi for a week
Got rid of it fast thank god
Leaking cracked alloys
Engine very noisy
And flywheel problem
Also handbrake problems .

My sister has a 2.0 tdi passat 06
Nothing but trouble
Injectors
Gearbox

Mate of mine has an 04 avensis d4d
Sound engine but it's on it's 3rd gearbox

I've a 02 Octavia 1.9 tdi
Old , high miles
But still banging away

Breaker19

Mondeo getting a bit of stick - I have one (Petrol)01 mark 3. Yep a few problems with it. Coils and leads go like nobodies business - at the moment they need replacing again cause she's misfiring to beat the band. leak in the boot! switch for boot on dash and boot itself work only in sunny weather. have to open the boot with button on key. engine light comes on and off - no idea why (but its being doing it for the last 60k miles so at this stage i don't notice at all). mechanics haven't a clue either! Cat converter gone too so God help anyone who stands behind me with the engine on!

But despite this, i'll buy one again - all the above are small problems that you'll get with any car. difference with the ford is that its cheap to replace. and its an honest car. Handles great, still looks good and does what it says on the tin. 140K miles on the car at the moment and she's still tight.

Had a golf a few years back and it absolutely broke my heart! everything went wrong with it.in fact the engine never really worked properly. utter POS!!

By the way. had a crash a few months back. some knacker rear ended me and tried to blame me for the problem so i called the Gardai. Was speaking to the cop and he was admiring the fact that there was feck all damage to the Mondeo. reckons they're brilliant cars. said they drive the sh!te out of them in the force and they stand up to the abuse no problem. he did say that they are currently being replaced by avensis cause toyota are giving longer warranties to the force than ford are, but he said that the avensis are already causing trouble (pardon the pun). and by the way, the car that hit me folded completely. some yr 2000 korean heap that buckled - and i don't think it was crumple zones either!!!