MONDEO ST220
WHY YOU WANT ONE…
• Ford will never again build a machine like this: normally-aspirated V6 petrol power and sublime handling in a big, family-car package.
• If you’re looking for practicality, the ST220 takes some beating – the saloon and hatchback have massive boots, and the estate’s load space is truly cavernous.
• Anyone in the know appreciates the ST220 as a genuine driver’s car with a fabulous chassis – and as they’re becoming rare, their value should rise higher than the running costs.
WHY YOU DON’T…
• Mondeo Man infamy still lingers from the autocracy of Tony Blair, and it’s unlikely the ST220 will ever recover from an undeserved image of mundanity.
• Running costs can be extortionate for the performance on offer, with low-20s to the gallon being common, and jaw-dropping road tax for late-model ST220s.
• Still lingering in banger territory means many ST220s are poorly serviced, riddled with niggles, badly modified and in the process of rotting away. Extra stickers don’t make a cure.
HOW MUCH TO PAY
PROJECT: £750 TO £1500
There’s no such thing as a cheap ST220 – unless you’re in it for the long haul. Breakers with blown engines and slipping clutches are inexpensive to buy but costly to fix. If you want something useable, spend a little more…
