New Ford Mondeo Estate

Not many people know this... but the Ford Mondeo Estate is like a pop group. But why? Music executives 'manufacture' bands to appeal to a wide market. So, there might be a beautiful blonde, a muscle-man, and a brainy brunette. Society then considers the line- up - and most of us see something we like. Ford's family workhorse is exactly the same. Its sharp looks, for starters, are surprisingly attractive for the class. This represents our beautiful blonde. And the top-spec 2.0-litre 240PS petrol engine is like the band's muscle- man. It propels the Mondeo Estate to 62mph in only 7.8 seconds, and on to a mighty 150mph. The only thing faster is a 'has-been' pop group plummeting from the top-ten.

That brings us to the brainy brunette. She represents two things: cargo capacity and running costs. The Ford Mondeo Estate has a monstrous boot. Capacity is 537-litres, and this increases to 1,728-litres when the rear seats are folded into the comfortable and nicely equipped interior. That makes this music lover one of the most spacious in its class. More good news comes in the form of the 1.6-litre TDCi engine. This produces 115PS and averages a cash-saving 65.7mpg. Furthermore, these variants can be taxed annually for only £30 thanks to the rock-bottom emissions. No wonder this workhorse 'charts' so highly.

By Stephen Turvil, motoring.co.uk

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