So you’re in the market for a Ford. Not the tiny ones, but a “Ford”. So you strut into the dealer’s office, puff your chest out and make your way to the Falcon. It’s Australian-born and Australian-raised and there’s a certain cachet attached to it. Unfortunately, your inflated pectorals might have blocked your view of another great choice, the Mondeo that now comes in a wagon.

We hate to compare Australians to Americans, but we don’t really see why there has been no appreciation for the Mondeo. It would seem that with a host of Australian-based options, Ford’s Euro-fighter just doesn’t have the popularity it needs. It’s the same sort of problem that companies face in bringing European-designed cars to American shores.

The thing is, though, that the Mondeo wagon is a pretty great car that you can use to haul a veritable haul of gear, keep the youngsters happy and not get a sense of self-loathing when you go on long trips. Rather than a normal review, we felt it would be a good idea to give you an introduction to what a Mondeo wagon offers.

If you’ve ever driven a Volkswagen or an Audi or even a BMW, you know that the Euro wagons offer a well-sorted interior and good seating for the front row. The Mondeo has that, and it even offers comfortable bench seating in the rear. You get the handling that belongs on the Autobahn, too, with a suspension that is firm without leaving backsides sore. On the corrugated roadways you may sometimes find yourself, the damping does an excellent job of absorbing the irregularities.

With the LX trim, it’s equipped with the 2.3 litre petrol engine, which is decent but made a lot better by the six-speed automatic it’s mated to. You won’t set land speed records, but they do an admirable job of joining with the suspension and getting you up to speed. The combined rating below 10L/100km doesn’t hurt either.

Safety ratings are tops thanks to a bevy of airbags and the standard electronic stability control, traction control and electronic brake force distribution. Every occupant gets three-point safety harness and there are anchor points for child seats in the back row.

Speaking of the back row, it might surprise you to find that with all of our compliments about handling, the Mondeo can haul its share. In numerical terms, we mean 1005 litres with the seats still available for five occupants. Fold the rear 40/60 split seats down, and it grows in capacity to more than 2,163 litres. Seriously.

While we’re still on the cabin, we should make mention of the voice recognition, steering wheel-mounted controls for the CD player and the cruise control that are easy to get used to and height adjustable headlamps. Further points of note include the trip computer and the quality air conditioning, although we’re a bit befuddled by a car that requires passengers in back to roll their own windows.

But these are minor quibbles on a car that in many respects does just about as well as its older brother, the Falcon XT wagon, in terms of both legroom and storage. In fact, it almost matches the Holden Commodore for rear legroom, and beats it by more than 100 litres of storage capacity.

Mondeo is an ad agency take off of Mundo, or world. It pains us to say that in Australia we haven’t found ourselves making the Mondeo wagon as popular here as it is in Europe. At less than $33,000, you might want to be the first buyer to climb on the cresting wave. It’d be a pretty view from within the Mondeo’s cabin, and an affordable one compared to other Euro cars.

Specifications:
Engine: 2261cc DOHC four-cylinder (16 valve)
Power: 118kW @ 6500rpm
Torque: 208Nm @ 4200rpm
Induction: Multi-point
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Driven Wheels: Front
Brakes: Discs with ABS, EBA & EBD
Top Speed: 180km/h (Claimed)
0-100km/h: 11.1 seconds (As Tested)
CO2 Emissions: 227g/km
Fuel Consumption: 9.5L/100km (ADR)
Fuel Consumption: 9.8L/100km (As Tested)
Fuel Tank Capacity: 70L
Fuel Type: 91RON Unleaded
ANCAP Rating: Five-star
Airbags: Front, Side, Curtain & Driver’s Knee
Safety: ESC with Traction Control
Spare Wheel: Space Saver
Suspension: Strut (F) / Multi-link (R)
Cargo Capacity: 1005L / 2163L
Tow Capacity: 1200kg (Braked)
Turning Circle: 11.5m
Warranty: Three Year / 100,000km
Weight: 1545kg (Tare)
Wheels: Steel 16 x 6.5-inch