Ford ends Mondeo production after 29 years

A: Olivia Hall

The Ford Mondeo will be axed this month, nearly 30 years since it was first introduced to buyers in Europe and after more than five million models produced.

The large family hatchback and estate car line up is not being replaced in Europe after dwindling sales due to buyers favouring SUVs and crossovers.

The writing has been on the wall for the Mondeo for some time and Ford announced last year that European production would end this month at the company’s Valencia factory in Spain.

The sales figures reveal how the once family favourite model fell out of favour with buyers and fleet managers. In 1998, Ford sold more than 320,000 Mondeos across Europe but ten years later this had halved to 163,000. 

However, despite the car being no longer available new, the Mondeo is still a great car and a popular used buy here at cartime. Offering great practicality, impressive specifications and smart looks, it could be your perfect next car. If you want to get behind the wheel of a nearly new Mondeo while you still can have a browse through our current stock of Ford Mondeo’s here.

History

The first generation Mondeo was introduced in 1992 with sales starting shortly after. It was available in hatchback, saloon and estate models. 

Introduced in 1992, with sales starting in March 1993, the Mondeo replaced the Sierra as Ford’s large family car, and it became a hit with private and fleet buyers immediately. It was even crowned European Car of the Year in 1994.

Offered in hatchback, saloon and estate guises, by 1994 it had become Britain’s best selling family car beating off competition from Vauxhall’s Cavalier and Rover Group’s 400 and 600 models.

After just three years the Mondeo was heavily revised and received a new fresher look and also the introduction of the ST24 and ST200 performance models. 

It was this first-generation car which Tony Blair popularised the phrase ‘Mondeo Man’ at the Labour Party Conference in October 1996. He used the term to target ‘centrist, no-nonsense, hard-working voters’ and a year later the party won a landslide election. 

By this time the Mondeo had received a major refresh and a more modern interior, including the introduction of sporty ST24 and ST200 performance models. By the end of the decade, it had become the fourth most popular car of the 1990s, behind Ford’s Escort and Fiesta and Vauxhall’s Astra. In total 718,720 models were sold in the UK during the 90s.

A new millenium and a new Mondeo - the second generation sported Ford's 'New-Edge' styling which was first seen on the highly acclaimed 1998 Focus. 

In 2000, the second-generation was launched with sharper ‘New-Edge’ styling, following the immensely successful Focus launched in 1998. This model also focused heavily on diesel engines which by the turn of the millennium had become the go to models for best fuel efficiency.

It was still available as a hatchback, saloon and estate as well as being offered in ST performance guise as well.  Following a mild refresh in 2004, the car was then replaced by a whole new model in 2007 which received its world debut in the James Bond film, Casino Royale. 

Receiving its world debut in the James Bond film Casino Royale in 2006, the car went on sale the year after and remained in production for seven years. 

Once again it offered buyers a more up-to-date model with cleaner, more efficient engines and greater technology than ever before. By now the saloon model was a poor seller, but hatchback and estate models still found buyers with popular trim levels such as Zetec S and Titanium X.

The fourth and final generation of Mondeo was introduced in 2014 and was based heavily on Ford’s Fusion model from the US. By now Ford already had a range of crossovers and with competition from German rivals, the American giant has finally called time on its family car.

The fourth and final generation for Europe, this Mondeo was based on the US Fusion model and as well as petrol and diesel options, buyers could also get a plug-in hybrid version. 

The Mondeo story continues in China where the fifth generation has recently been launched, once again with more modern styling, cleaner engines and a 27-inch touchscreen but this model wont come to Europe. 

Like the whole automotive industry, Ford is focusing on electric models as well as crossovers and SUVs. Along with the Kuga and Mustang Mach-E, it’s likely its Evos and Everest SUVs will be introduced to UK buyers as well.

A low-slung mid-size crossover SUV, the Ford Evos has already gone on sale in China and it maybe coming to Europe as well. 

If the Mondeo isn’t your cup of tea, we also have a fantastic range of Ford's other models and you can browse through them by clicking here.