Large Family Cars
FIRST
Ford Mondeo
76 variants
from £17,795 to £30,695
The new Ford Mondeo blew critics away when it was launched in 2007. It delivers just about everything you would expect from a family car, being big, safe, comfortable, affordable and good to drive. In short it's the best all-rounder in this segment, so it gets our number one vote. Punchy but frugal diesel and petrol engines are one of the Mondeo's strongest attributes. The mid-range 2.0-litre TDCi is particularly good and flexible enough to suit town drivers and motorway milers alike. Meanwhile the keenest drivers can plump for the powerful 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo borrowed from the Focus ST, but running costs will be very high indeed. The Mondeo comes well equipped in all but entry-level models, and has refinement and comfort levels that you might expect of a car wearing a more upmarket badge. It's also surefooted and sharp to drive thanks to Ford's handling department. In fact this latest model is a match for the likes of BMW's 3 Series and Mercedes' C Class in terms of dynamics. However it's large size could intimidate some at first. The latest Mondeo's bigger dimensions do mean more cabin space than its predecessor thoutgh, and a huge boot, while the estate version is cavernous. There's already loads of Mondeos on the roads, and residual values aren't likely to be hat strong. But this car does offer almost everything. Apart from badge bragging rights.
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SECOND
Skoda Superb
72 variants
from £17,675 to £30,755
The Superb has a simple formula - a Passat-Plus body at Golf prices. The interior is more limousine than saloon and the driving behaviour and build quality gives nothing away to its VW siblings. Indeed a few years ago, insiders reckoned that Skodas, with their brand new factory, were generally better built than VW's own cars, although VW has since closed the gap. There are not many ways of beating the system when buying a new car, but the Superb is one. The good news is that people are slowly cottoning on and Superb sales are going up. That means it will not be an orphan at resale time. Fifth Gear did a test of public opinion by covering up the Skoda badges and asking what car people thought it was. Most said it looked German and expensive. Enough said.
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THIRD
Vauxhall Insignia
150 variants
from £19,815 to £35,780
The Insignia may not have deserved its Car of the Year title (how can a car that is not even the best in its class be the best car of the year?), but it is still a good product. The Insignia is night-and-day better than the old Vectra - hence the decision to change the name. It is at its best on the motorway, where its refinement provides hours of stress-free cruising. On twisty roads it is still not quite the equal of the Mondeo, but it runs the Ford surprisingly close. The styling may not be to everyone's taste but, in itself, that is a huge improvement on generations of invisible Vectras and Cavaliers. The only problem is that the coupe-like profile does limit headroom in the hatchback and saloon.
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