Ford Mondeo (New)

WHAT'S good for fleets is not necessarily good for the pack of motoring journalists which reports on car launches for national and regional Britain. Even with the pre-production left-hook models we tend to be presented with for a first opinionated drive along palm-lined roads, a dog of a car is a rare thing. Occasionally someone will discover a handling problem that would give cause for concern to the L-U-Natic School of Motoring, but mostly the 'howevers' consist of nits picked in desperation from a well-made vehicle for which the printed or aired conclusion 'it's good' just won't do.

But new Ford Mondeo - it's a problem. It's good. Worst of all, alongside the best in its upper medium volume class, it's still good. Design is sharp and modern inside and out; build, fit and material quality is in the German league; the engines - even the diesel - are something to write home about; ride and handling are spot on; ventilation, passenger seating and driver position can't be faulted and the standard equipment list is class generous.

Regular readers should be familiar with what's gone in to the new Mondeo from a steady run of reports on wholelife costs, technical specifications, fleet strategy and initial driving impressions but, in brief, it was developed in record time (two years) on an all-new, larger platform with longer wheelbase and wider track in which computer-aided design had a major role to play.

Body styles are saloon, hatch and estate (the latter's out early next year), trims are LX, Zetec, Zetec-S, Ghia and Ghia X; engine choice is 1.8 and 2.0-litre Duratec HE petrol (both new), a 2.0-litre Duratorq direct injection diesel (also new) and a revised 2.5-litre V6 petrol and active and passive safety systems are top of the pile.

Not long before its public debut Ford announced a three-year warranty at long last, and then dropped the big one - recommended retail prices down by an average of 13%.