Upmarket drive

Ford Mondeo Vignale 2.0 TDCI 180PS

Vignale models sit at the top of the Mondeo range and have unique exterior and interior elements and are designed to offer superior comfort, writes Matt Joy.

What’s more they are finished in a special area of Ford’s Valencia factory with additional layers of paint and higher quality standards, and if you buy one you can only do so from specially-chosen Ford dealers. You’ll get a higher standard of service too with free collection and pick up from your dedicated Vignale dealerperson.

On the outside there’s unique alloy wheels, a gloss finish to the grille and pillars and some extra chrome detailing, plus those unmissable badges. The Mondeo Vignale is also available in just four colours; black, silver, white and ‘Nocciola’ – brown to you and me.

It’s a handsome machine, arguably more so in estate form, and, while the Vignale extras do make it feel a little more posh, there’s no denying it’s still clearly a Mondeo. It’s very early days for this subbrand and only time will tell if buyers respond to its perceived elevation over the standard car.

It gets better on the inside however. As the Vignale sits above the Titanium X in the Mondeo range, it is positively groaning with kit.

There’s a big Sony audio system with nav and Ford’s SYNC2 system, active noise cancelling (more of which later), ambient lighting and you can even have ventilated massage seats.

There’s also leather, tons of the stuff. The seats have their own pattern (designed to echo that of the front grille) plus it’s on the dashtop, the doors and even on the centre armrest. It’s here you begin to feel you’re getting something for the additional outlay, although it is just as practical as a regular Mondeo.

As you’d expect the Vignale is standard Mondeo underneath, but that’s no bad thing. What has changed is the suspension has been tweaked to deliver a smoother ride, while there’s acoustic side glass as standard and noise cancelling system to keep the cabin hushed.

With the most-popular 2.0 TDCI unit and the Powershift transmission taking care of gearshifts, piloting the Mondeo Vignale is a genuinely relaxing experience. The ride may be smoother but it still has the Ford sharpness of response you’d expect, while the reduction in noise levels is a welcome improvement. Most of the German competition go for a sporty feel whereas the Mondeo Vignale is comfortoriented, which potentially gives it an advantage on the UK’S poor roads.

Take a look at the spec sheet £29,345 2.0-litre diesel unit producing 178bhp and 295lb.ft of torque

Six-speed manual gearbox driving the front wheels

Top speed 140mph, 0-62mph in 8.3 seconds

combined km of CO2

62.8mpg 117g/

and the final price makes sense. The options list is very small, while the standard spec runs to that sophisticated Sony system including sat nav, a rear view camera, ambient lighting and a fully-electric driver’s seat. A complete leather interior and alloy wheels come with it.