New Ford Mondeo ECOnetic announced

We only recently reviewed the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic and, apart from its low-rent trim, we found it to be a crackingly good car which, with a little effort, was capable of matching the headline economy figures. But we suggested that Ford would do well to launch the ECOnetic as an option across its range, rather than having ECOnetic as a standalone model within its range of cars.

We wouldn’t for a minute expect Ford to take the slightest bit of notice of us, but they have announced the launch of a second Ford Mondeo ECOnetic toady – this time an even ‘Greener’ version – so they’re going in the right direction!

The new Ford Mondeo ECOnetic sports a 2.0 litre, 115bhp diesel engine which achieves a remarkable 54.3mpg (and remember, the Mondeo weighs in at over 1500kg). It manages to slip in to the sub 140g/km CO2 bracket – making it VED (Band E- £120pa)  and company car tax friendly – and comes as either a saloon or estate.

Ford has tweaked this Mondeo down the Eco route by the usual methodology of fitting low rolling resistance tyres, lowering the suspension, tweaking the ECU and adding a couple of aerodynamic aids. They’ve also fitted the (irritating for some) little green arrow on the dash to show the most optimum up-change moments.

But this is still a Mondeo, so it drives well, looks good, has a decent spec (including Bluetooth, climate control and heated front screen) and is put together properly. The only downside is a lack of kudos, which Ford just can’t seem to overcome with the Mondeo. People still think of it as a cheap option; a modern Cortina. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is a class-leading car and – if ECO is your thing -  the new Mondeo ECOnetic should fit the bill if want a car that’s cheap to run, but doesn’t feel ‘Cheap’.

The new Ford Mondeo 2.0 litre ECOnetic is now now sale from £20,145

We’d still rather have ECOnetic as an option, though!