Focus 1.8Tdci Or Mondeo 2.0

[Obey_R 23]

Morning all,

 

The 205 has been sorned now due to work commitments, so I'm looking to replace it with a comfy diesel cruiser. I will potentially be doing up to 1000 miles a weekend so needs to be good on the motorway.

 

Budget is £2k but could stretch if needs be, so far I've been looking at the mk3 Mondys, 2.0tdci with cruise control etc, or the focuses of similar age but less toys and less miles.

 

But then I've heard lots about the dual mass flywheel and injectors being a problem.

 

Any tips and these or any other vehicle would be great!

[welshpug 1,657]

This would be my suggestion

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2000-VOLVO-V70-2-5-TURBO-DIESEL-ESTATE-FINANCE-PARTX-CAR-OR-BIKE-/261153562386

 

or this

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volvo-S60-D5-/140909983466

 

 

 

 

Any vehicle will have its known faults, however given the number of vehicles produced and out there you'd be quite unlucky if you found one suffering all the ailments!

 

DMF's and Injectors aren't quite consumable they once were, most of the tales are from when parts like that were introduced some 15 years ago and they were wearing out about ten years ago, yes you do still get failures but not at the rate it may seem to be.

[pug_ham 244 3 Cars]

I've seen some 04 plate mondeo's for shocking low money (just looked on Autotrader & there is a 2001 Y with 130k for £500 or a 52 plate with 107k for under £600 but with short or no MOT & Tax) & you get a lot of car for that which considering you say you could be covering 1000 miles in a weekend I think would be a better choice of the two if you're set on a Ford.

 

As with any used car, mileage isn't such an issue with modern cars, how they've been cared for is more of a factor so one with only one or two owners (if you can find one) is a better pick than one with lower miles yet multiple owners imo.

 

g

[Obey_R 23]

The Volvos are nice but would my insurance up by almost £250, whereas the Ford's are only £60.

 

Mondeo is it by the looks if it, unless theres anything similar anyone can suggest?

 

 

[DamirGTI 342]

Id go with Mondeo , had one but with petrol 2.0 engine and really liked it .. great value for the money , lots of space , comfy , very good handling as well as feel on the steering wheel ... done a tad more over 400,000 Km's with it !

 

It's perfect for eating the motorway (doesn't make you tired and with rheumatism syndrome after long trip !) , and yet it's still fun on twisty bendy roads ..

 

Damir

Edited February 2, 2013 by DamirGTI

[ablister 31]

My dad had a S60 d5 engine and it had a lots of dpf/regen faults in his ownership so i've never been overly keen on them since!

 

My mate has a 53 plate focus tdci which i look after and it's been spot on

[ORB 227 1 Cars]

I vote mondeo.

 

We had one as a family bus from new till a few years ago, it had 155k on it when we sold it and it had NEVER gone wrong. Constant 50mpg and safe as houses.

[welshpug 1,657]

what's 68p a day when you have the comfort style and safety of a swedish barge?

 

DPF is easy to fix, junk it and get it mapped.

[ablister 31]

what's 68p a day when you have the comfort style and safety of a swedish barge?

 

DPF is easy to fix, junk it and get it mapped.

Volvos are no more swedish than my 'billy' book case!

 

Anyway, DPF may be easy to to fix for yourself but not so easy for my dad who is retired...

[welshpug 1,657]

does he not use garages then?

[DamirGTI 342]

My ex GF had Volvo V40 estate with 1.9 TD engine ... been driving it for a while , also nice car , but had a fair few issues with starting and clutch problems ..

 

Also , i've had a S40 with 1.8 petrol engine few months ago which lost compression on one cylinder completely ! haven't dismantling it cos the man opted for replacement engine .. suppose the piston rings went off

 

As for the Mondeo , really didn't have any problems with mechanics just regular service and back on the road ..

 

Damir

[ablister 31]

does he not use garages then?

No

 

(the volvo was under warranty for the problems he kept having)

[welshpug 1,657]

My ex GF had Volvo V40 estate with 1.9 TD engine ... been driving it for a while , also nice car , but had a fair few issues with starting and clutch problems ..

 

bloody renault engines

[dcc 855]

Cant fault my 406 yet 2.2 hdi

[pug_ham 244 3 Cars]

Cant fault my 406 yet 2.2 hdi

 

Give the bsi time to get upset by disconnecting the battery incorrectly.

 

g

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

As much as the Mk3 Mondeo is a good car, personally I would only buy one with history of a flywheel change. Out of 4 people I know with 2.0 TDCi Mondeos, 100% have needed a flywheel, and that is too short odds for my liking. The injectors and turbos can expire but that can be said for most modern turbo diesels due to how hard they work the turbocharger.

 

Personally I would look for something VAG with the bombproof 1.9 TDi engine, it is comparatively an old design but because of this is well proven and superbly reliable, aside from the 150bhp variant there are no real common failures, if economy is more important to you than speed then the 105 or 115bhp versions will do even better on fuel, the 130bhp version will still return over 50mpg without much effort. Passat, A4, Octavia are about Mondeo sized, or you could look at Golf/Bora, A3, Fabia.

[ablister 31]

 

Personally I would look for something VAG with the bombproof 1.9 TDi engine, it is comparatively an old design but because of this is well proven and superbly reliable, aside from the 150bhp variant there are no real common failures, if economy is more important to you than speed then the 105 or 115bhp versions will do even better on fuel, the 130bhp version will still return over 50mpg without much effort. Passat, A4, Octavia are about Mondeo sized, or you could look at Golf/Bora, A3, Fabia.

I wouldn't call a 1.9 tdi engine bombproof, camshafts becoming worn causing all sorts of problems, injectors wearing out and damaging cylinder heads, water pump impellers breaking off.

 

Granted all cars/engines have their faults so just get whatever you can afford/like