The new Ford Mondeo is up against some stiff competition and must therefore excel in all areas.

Honda’s Accord rivals are the Vauxhall Vectra, VW Passat and Lexus IS, which all offer buyers much the same luxury and equipment.
Ford plans to fight its corner with the top-of-the-range five-door Titanium X Sport fitted with a 2.2 TDCi engine.

At first glance, the chunky styling and 18-inch Y-spoke alloys, along with tinted passenger side and rear windows, show it is aimed at people who want prestige.

Inside the Mondeo are Alcantara leather seats with red stitching against ‘Piano Black’ interior trim.

Two screens, one on the centre console and another in front of the driver by the speedo, show everything from temperature to which radio station is playing.

Basic driving controls are easy to find, although time needs to be spent working out the myriad of other useful functions such as sat-nav, heated front seats and Bluetooth connectivity, with the auxiliary socket located in the glovebox.

Although the gearing is quite short, making quick gear changes necessary at times, the car really shone on the motorway, where it effortlessly cruised at 70mph. 

There was plenty of torque available for overtaking.

A generous-sized boot and plenty of rear legroom will find favour with buyers, as will the parking sensors.

Ford claims that the Titanium X and Titanium X Sport will make up 20% of all 5,000 annual Mondeo sales.