1.8 petrol Mondeo Vs 1.8 petrol Vectra

alarmed

I know theres a few experts out there that will advise me honestly...
Looking at both models in an 03/04 plate as both fit the bill perfectly in terms of buying used/insurance and practicality being a family of four.

Any 'reviews' of both appreciated,things to look out for to help me make my mind up,why I should consider one over the other model etc appreciated.

Al

motorguy

alarmed wrote: »

I know theres a few experts out there that will advise me honestly...
Looking at both models in an 03/04 plate as both fit the bill perfectly in terms of buying used/insurance and practicality being a family of four.

Any 'reviews' of both appreciated,things to look out for to help me make my mind up,why I should consider one over the other model etc appreciated.

Al

Having been dealing in cars like this this past few years, heres my comments.

Vectra - any problems we've had with them have been 2003 / 2004 cars. Never anything major but seem more prone to rear suspension knocks and bushings than previous or subsequent years. Never anything very bad, so listen for suspension clunks. The pollen filters clog up very easily but are a £4 fix for a new one - put the blowers on full to the window and it should blow 'strong' - if it doesnt, knock off the air con and see if that helps. If it does then its just the pollen filter. Its a two minute job to sort out and can be done yourself. Had some problems with heater boxes (ie, the fans not working) and the CD players stopping working. Also watch for the dash centre display not working or pixellating. Problems with the immobilisers too, so make sure the doors lock and unlock correctly and that the car accepts the key every time when you put it in the ignition.

Mondeo. Not much to report really and i would have less experience with them. Have had some and cant think of any specific issues and they seem robust enough.

I would probably go for the Mondeo at that age personally. 1.8 Zetec trim.

boundy

I had a 2006 Vectra SRi estate with the 1.8vvti engine and it was pretty good, got about 35mpg round town. If you go for one try to get a vvti as the older 1.8 is not as good on fuel and is in a higher tax band.

alarmed

motorguy wrote: »

Having been dealing in cars like this this past few years, heres my comments.

Vectra - any problems we've had with them have been 2003 / 2004 cars. Never anything major but seem more prone to rear suspension knocks and bushings than previous or subsequent years. Never anything very bad, so listen for suspension clunks. The pollen filters clog up very easily but are a £4 fix for a new one - put the blowers on full to the window and it should blow 'strong' - if it doesnt, knock off the air con and see if that helps. If it does then its just the pollen filter. Its a two minute job to sort out and can be done yourself. Had some problems with heater boxes (ie, the fans not working) and the CD players stopping working. Also watch for the dash centre display not working or pixellating. Problems with the immobilisers too, so make sure the doors lock and unlock correctly and that the car accepts the key every time when you put it in the ignition.

Mondeo. Not much to report really and i would have less experience with them. Have had some and cant think of any specific issues and they seem robust enough.

I would probably go for the Mondeo at that age personally. 1.8 Zetec trim.

Thanks Paul for the excellent advice.

motorguy

boundy wrote: »

I had a 2006 Vectra SRi estate with the 1.8vvti engine and it was pretty good, got about 35mpg round town. If you go for one try to get a vvti as the older 1.8 is not as good on fuel and is in a higher tax band.

The VVTI came out late 05 and usually in SRi or top end trim, so i suspect will be outside the O/Ps budget, but yes, a good engine.

YorkshireBoy

Always been a Ford man.

Ran my '03 Mondeo 1.8LX from new for 9 years and £101K miles until I swapped it last year (for a 163 BHP Mondeo Diesel Titanium X).

Only 'issues' I ever had were rear brakes and handbrake cables (they were prone to such issues apparently).

Just before I sold it I had to have a new coil pack on (loss of power and hesitant under acceleration).

Still on the original exhaust system as well!

39 mpg average.

Vectra?...would never have one!

motorguy

Portly_Pig wrote: »

Cam belt every 40k or 4 years too.

Easy and cheap to replace though.

DantheMan

Drove a Diesel 04 Zetez S Mondeo and have to say, it's a solid car, nice torque out of the engine and good road handling. Never had an issue with it at all.

Only problem was me being stupid and writing it off.

I now have an 03 Fiesta that feels just as robust, very good cars with the 'new' (at the time) Duratec engines, nice solid runners and would definitely prefer the styling over the Vectra

addyboy1982

Vectra 1.8 (Ecotec not the VVT) is a cracking engine, I ran my old 03-plate to 167k without anything more than routine servicing.

As mentioned before, rear bushes and anti-roll bar drop links can go, and also coil springs.

Other than that, they're a great motor.

boundy

Forgot about the rear springs, I had one break on my estate but was an easy job to sort, took me about 2 hours working off the floor.

If I couldn't get a facelift Vectra with a vvti lump then I would go for the ford

andygb

motorguy wrote: »

Having been dealing in cars like this this past few years, heres my comments.

Vectra - any problems we've had with them have been 2003 / 2004 cars. Never anything major but seem more prone to rear suspension knocks and bushings than previous or subsequent years. Never anything very bad, so listen for suspension clunks. The pollen filters clog up very easily but are a £4 fix for a new one - put the blowers on full to the window and it should blow 'strong' - if it doesnt, knock off the air con and see if that helps. If it does then its just the pollen filter. Its a two minute job to sort out and can be done yourself. Had some problems with heater boxes (ie, the fans not working) and the CD players stopping working. Also watch for the dash centre display not working or pixellating. Problems with the immobilisers too, so make sure the doors lock and unlock correctly and that the car accepts the key every time when you put it in the ignition.

Mondeo. Not much to report really and i would have less experience with them. Have had some and cant think of any specific issues and they seem robust enough.

I would probably go for the Mondeo at that age personally. 1.8 Zetec trim.

Excellent advice on the Vectra, but the Mk3 Mondeo had the Duratec engine - the old Zetec (which I have in my car, and absolutely love) was not used on the later Mondeos.