2015 Mondeo 2.0 ecoboost or 2015 Superb 2.0 TSI?

Rainmaker

Rainmaker

Rainmaker

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I've debated on whether or not to post this, but I know some of you really know your cars and I've nobody else to ask really. The OP is admittedly a bit long, but it's to hopefully answer the usual questions before they need asking, so I'd really appreciate some advice please guys.

I'm considering the switch to an auto gearbox (sacrilege I know, but severe arthritis etc etc)... Currently I drive a manual Mazda 6 2.0 NA petrol tourer (145ps). No it doesn't set the world on fire but it still manages 0-60 in 9 seconds and if you keep it on the boil (easy thanks to a fairly decent amount of low down torque and wide NA power band) it drives really nicely and has a lot of driver involvement. Once you're moving it keeps up with no bother and is really fun to drive. I do between 10k and 20k a year depending; most years 20k but this last year only 12k due to being in hospital a lot.

There's me and my wife plus two kids (9 years old and 8 months old), and a lot of our journeys are local/city with some long distance thrown in - 100 miles plus. I don't care about paying a bit more in fuel for a better drive, and actually find the SkyActiv petrol more economical under our usage than our previous 2.0 and 1.9 TDs anyway (which struggled to get 30mpg cold around town). The Mazda currently gives us around 35-40mpg around town and 45-50mpg on a motorway run, which is brilliant for a larger petrol car.

I'm 6'5" and a big bloke. Not massively obese or anything, but think 6'5" former rugby player and former heavyweight boxer and you're in the ballpark. Comfort is important (that arthritic spine/hips, and I'm currently waiting for a kidney removed), as is space for the kids, pram and shopping etc. I do love how my NA drives but after years of driving diesels I do also get along nicely with the best-of-both-worlds approach of a forced induction petrol.

I'm a trained advanced driver, so when I say it'll be nice to have more power on tap think easier/more relaxed overtakes, less stress on long journeys and more fun in the twisty roads, as opposed to hooning around McDonald's car parks or playing traffic light GP on council estates. :p By that I mean my driving style is relaxed and progressive, with firm acceleration wherever possible but with an emphasis on smoothness and connection to the road rather than simply hooning around. If my wife even notices I'm "making progress" compared to what's on the lollypop stick I consider it a failure (being swift up to speed and driving fast shouldn't have to mean driving jarringly) so that should give you an idea of what I like in a car.

I basically want a car that can be civilised on the shopping and school runs but still give me a smile on the twisty B roads and longer motorway journeys (we travel 5 hours each way to visit family at times). So yeah, typical dad's dilemma, really: I want a large safe family-mobile that is secretly a tight-chassis sports car lol. :o

As I'm disabled I choose to pay to lease Motability vehicles for convenience, and have just found the following choices now available:

2015 Skoda Superb 2.0 TSI DSG SE L Executive 6 speed DSG (216 BHP, 350Nm torque, 0-62 in 6.8s, 152mph top speed, 45mpg)

2015 Ford Mondeo 2.0 Ecoboost Titanium 6 speed slushbox (236 BHP, 340Nm torque, 0-62 in 7.6s, 149mph top speed, 38mpg)

Now I know I'll probably answer most of my questions when I test drive them both, and I actually faced a similar choice a few years ago and the Superb won (much smaller diesel engines at the time though!). Until then - and in spite of test drives - I'd appreciate any input and feedback from anyone who can offer it.

Pros for the Superb include being huge and comfy with a high perceived interior quality, heated leather seats, Android Auto integrated into the entertainment system, being faster to 60 despite being a lower power output (why DID Ford give a car with so many horses a gearbox that's so comparatively slow?!), and it's also apparently better on fuel. It also comes with full leather and has a few extra bells and whistles missing on the Mondeo, such as flappy paddle gear changes.

Pros for the Mondeo include being a Mondeo (despite the badge it's a solid battle tested drivers' family car), comfy sports seats, having a much larger platform than before for more space and comfort than older models so it now rivals the Superb, more BHP/power on paper, fast clear windscreen, and a proper auto box for sitting in traffic instead of a 'computer controlled manual', as well as all SYNC2's new nifty features.

I always saw the Mondeo as the more willing drivers' car with the Superb being more of a luxobarge experience. Looking at the above though it seems the tables have turned somewhat. The Mondeo's steering isn't as sharp as it used to be on the new model, and some reviews questioned whether 'all the horses were awake and on duty' in the real world as it apparently feels rather sedate. Apparently that's the autobox's fault. Compare that to the faster (0-60) Superb with fast DSG up-changes and the option to use paddles, and you're starting to see things back to front, as it were!

In the real world I expect the Superb is marginally faster, but feels it, and is likely also better on fuel as reviewers say they struggle to better 32mpg real world in the Mondeo. The Superb also comes with full leather and a nicer entertainment system (with mirroring for my phone's sat nav etc)... But... I can't help but shake the notion the Mondeo may end up being the better car overall and I do sometimes regret not choosing the Mondeo last time as I've never actually owned one. My first ever car as a learner/new driver was a RWD Sierra 1.8 petrol though if that counts lol. I did have a new (at the time) Mondeo hire car for a month a few years ago and that was simply lovely to crunch miles in.

Lease prices are identical except the Superb is a couple of hundred quid extra up front which isn't a problem. So, what say you? If you've read this far, thanks! :)
 
Superb. Better built, more practical, easier to drive and more comfortable. Not entirely drab to drive, either. DCC adaptive suspension is worth going for if you can, though. The Skoda's dual-clutch gearbox isn't a an automated manual (although I don't think that's quite what you're implying), and it's fine in traffic. Feels more spacious than the Mondeo and is bigger in the back, too, as well as being more economical in the real world.

Not really been that impressed with SYNC2, but it works OK.

Parts availability seems a bit weak for the new Mondeo as well - bumpers, for example, are almost impossible to get hold of at the moment.
 
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Yeah you can pay for whatever additional options you like, same as anyone buying a car new. The only difference is you're basically paying for a feature you want which ultimately only lines the finance company's pocket at the end of the lease. :p Do you happen to know how much DCC is without me firing up the configurator?

I did think the Skoda might be the best overall bet and my last one was a beaut despite the low powered 1.9 PD dag dag. The only thing that swayed me back towards the Mondeo was reviewers saying the new Superb is a 'fidgety' drive and the Mondeo is still way more of a driver's car. Only one way to find out I suppose...
 
It sounds like looks are fairly down the list of priorities for the OP. The new mondeo seems to be an excellent car, but for a model that was always renowned for being a great drivers car, the reviews of the new one seem to say that its nowhere near as involving as the older ones - which is disappointing really. I've not driven one myself but had a look and poked around at one, the inside is a really nice place to be.
 
I took the new Mondeo out for a test drive a couple of months back.

The car itself looks fantastic in the Titanium X trim, inside is spacious and seems well screwed together.

I took the 140bhp (I think) Manual, which to be honest was a bit lethargic when pushing on. Whilst the car was very comfy to drive the steering felt very numb and disconnected, however not sure if this is an inherited problem with much of the newer cars.

Not driven or even seen the new Superb in the flesh yet so can't comment on how it looks, however I always think they look a bit droopy to look at, yet the Mondeo in my opinion is one of the best looking estate cars out there at the moment.

You can't go wrong with either, disregard any reviews and pick the one YOU like the best.
 
The build quality of Ford and Skoda/VW is no different, nonsense perceived VW build quality at play again. Try both and get the one you like.
 
Sorry to go a bit off topic but where did you find these listed on Motabilty? Not having much luck finding them on the websites.

Never mind. Found them.
 
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Thanks guys. A nice looking car is always a bonus, but you're right in that it's not the priority any more (by force of circumstances more than by choice lol). I did mention the 'perceived' better quality on VAG in the OP (i.e. I know Fords are just as well screwed together), but as some of you mentioned the apparent limpness of the newest Mondeo does concern me on what used to be a very involving car.

I'll book some test drives this week (if I can even find a dealer with 2.0 petrols lol) and let you know how I get on. Thanks very much. :)
 
Good luck finding either model with a 2.0 engine to test drive, all of my local dealerships just have the dagdag ones :(

I've driven the new Superb and the new Mondeo, both nice places to be. I felt the nav system sat a bit low on the Superb, it didnt feel natural having to look down to see the maps
 
I would say ford. The quality is fantastic and just as good as the skoda. I have the same engine in my Focus but with just a little more power. Its a fantastic engine.
 
Perhaps I can be of some assistance as I have driven the new Mondeo very recently and had a good look around and a sit in the Superb although not driven it, I was having a good look when buying an Octavia vRS last weekend, which just happens to have the same engine and gearbox combo you are looking at.

The short version is, I would go with the Superb based on my experiences, better looking inside and out and I like the engine and gearbox combination more. Looks are of course subjective. I found the old Superb to look droopy and overweight at the rear and jusr bland at the front ...not so the new onem which looks very smart and has some nice styling touches, I particularly liked detailing in the lights and the sharp grill design.

The Mondeo I drove was light years ahead of any previous Mondeo's for interior fit and finish and technology ...and it does look very good from the front, not so great from other angles though. But it's rather ordinary in terms of drive I found, the old Mondeo was a sharper drive and the MK2 sharper still, better steering and less mushy feeling over all, the reviews are spot on here. I have owned a MK2, although that was an ST220 so perhaps not a totally fair comparison as it was designed to be firmer and sharper.

The Mondeo I drove was an automatic and had the 240PS ecoboost petrol with autobox and was Titanium spec. So very well specified with the right engine and gearbox (this was all I was potentially interested in buying) ....it was a nice car, a very nice car, very civilised but I thought the steering feel was lacking and it really didn't seem as quick as I expected, comparing to other cars with the same sort of power, a bit less actually for the VAG's ...the Mondeo seemed rather sluggish, I think this was largely down to the autobox though which I found annoyingly lazy, it's not so easy to get it to drop down a gear and go just by nudging the throttle a little sharply, reminded me of an older Jaguar actually, you really have to shove the peddle like you 'mean' it or switch it to sport mode. The decent torque means you don’t really ‘need’ to but if you really want it to use the power I just found it took a bit too much persuasion for my liking. The Mondeo irons the road surface out better than the Octavia vRS and is better insulated from outside noise (no surprise there, but I have no doubt the Superb is too).

Really it was the amount of kit you get for the money in the Mondeo that impressed me, it's not wanting for much of anything really, it does feel much more upmarket now, but not as much as the Superb does.

The Skoda Superb, I did not drive as I said so I can't comment on that, I can comment on the 6 speed DSG and the 2.0 TSI 220PS engine combo though as it's in my vRS and it's very good, I have no doubt in the comfort oriented Superb it's not quite got the same delivery or the fruity engine note, it’s likely very suppressed but the engine is strong, free to rev, smooth and has lots of torque through most of the rev range and the DSG is both smooth and quick and it's quite happy to go at the flex of a toe without the 'persuasion' the Mondeo requires. In fairness though the Superb may have a different setup with the DSG so maybe it's less willing ...I don't know. The VAG engine did seem better in every way really, it feels more powerful, the figures bear this out too (even though it's apparently less powerful), it’s more flexible and easier to drive I found …not that the Mondeo is any hardship at all mind.

What I can say about the Superb specifically is it looks and feels more expensive I think, the interior is nicer, feels more upmarket to me, the infotainment system is ‘better’ I think although the Ford's LCD screens are better both in terms of placement, quantity and size, I guess what I mean is, the Skoda system gets the job done with more panache and less fussing but the Mondeo makes a good show of it with so much screen real-estate. The seats are better in the superb aswell and I liked the steering wheel more. I’m actually not totally sure what spec Superb I was looking at, I do know it wasn’t the top L&K spec though and it didn’t have leather.
 
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Moeks said:
MK2 sharper still, better steering and less mushy feeling over all, the reviews are spot on here. I have owned a MK2, although that was an ST220 so perhaps not a totally fair comparison as it was designed to be firmer and sharper.
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I think that whilst the 'real' mk2 Mondeo was just a fairly major facelift of the mk1 - so it could be argued that it's still a mk1 or mk1.5 - the one you're referring to (ST220) is pretty much universally known as the mk3 and not the mk2.. Just to avoid confusion :).
 
Howard said:
I think that whilst the 'real' mk2 Mondeo was just a fairly major facelift of the mk1 - so it could be argued that it's still a mk1 or mk1.5 - the one you're referring to (ST220) is pretty much universally known as the mk3 and not the mk2.. Just to avoid confusion :).
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...bahh it's a MK2 ...but yes I suppose :p ...provided someone knows the ST220 bit, that's enough.
 
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