Ford Mondeo to live on as Takata recall ramps up

The sales of mid-sized sedans are suffering at the hands of the SUV onslaught, but Ford Australia has reconfirmed its commitment to its last remaining four-door, the Mondeo.

Competing in a space populated by cars like the Toyota Camry, Mazda6, Subaru Liberty and Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the Mondeo currently sits in third spot sales-wise, beating cars like the Skoda Octavia and Volkswagen Passat.

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It also outsells Ford stablemates like the EcoSport, but cedes to both the Focus and the Mustang.

Ford Australia insiders have confirmed that the Mondeo – which launched locally in its current guise in 2015 – will live on locally, with a mid-life update due in early 2019.

It’s expected that changes will only be minor in nature, with exterior updates and a slight interior tweak reflecting a recent update that launched in Europe.

Plans for a fifth-generation Mondeo are still up in the air, though, with Ford’s US operations recently canning the development and production of anything that isn’t a Mustang or a truck from the middle of 2019.

This puts the pressure on Ford of Europe to develop the next-gen Mondeo, possibly on a modified version of the platform that rides underneath the new Focus, which touches down locally in December.

Meanwhile, Ford has commenced a Takata recall program for the Mondeo, targeting more than 16,000 owners who have bought the mid-size sedan, wagon or sportback since 2007.

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The Takata airbag crisis, where faulty detonators in driver and passenger airbags may explode uncontrollably if activated and send shards of metal shrapnel into the car’s cabin, has affected millions of cars in Australia and around the world.

The company is appealing for customers to check their VINs on a dedicated Ford site, and book in as soon as possible.

“If customers have received a recall notice, it’s important they book their vehicle in for repairs at any of our Ford dealers nationally,” said Ford Australia’s president and CEO, Kay Hart. “I encourage any customer who receives a notice not to delay and book in for their free repair.”

Ford nationally has repaired 53,799 affected vehicles, including Mondeos, which represents 61 per cent of all Ford Takata recalls.

Hart said the company was “really pleased” with the progress.

“We still have a long way to go to ensure every affected Ford vehicle is accounted for, and the faulty inflators are replaced,” she said.