2013 Ford Mondeo Delayed

by Derek Kreindler

Published: July 17th, 2012

The 2013 Ford Mondeo, aka our 2013 Fusion, was supposed to hit UK showrooms around this time, but the launch has been pushed back to September, so Ford can work out some quality-related bugs prior to its on-sale date. AutoExpress spoke to a Ford representative in the UK, who told the publication that the Mondeo would be delayed so that Ford could “ work through various issues to ensure a robust and high-quality launch”. Specifics weren’t given by Ford, but WhatCar, quoted another unnamed Ford spokesman as stating ‘We have a complex global vehicle programme, and we have to sort issues with the vehicle’s robustness and quality that would not be met with the original timings,’ he continued.The European Mondeos are all sourced from Ford’s Genk, Belgium assembly plant. In the mean time, the tried-and-true current Mondeo will be produced to supply the market.There’s been no indication that American-market Fusions will be afflicted with these sorts of problems (yet), but that doesn’t mean Ford hasn’t learned from the issues that affected the initial months of the Fiesta and Focus. Hopefully, they paid attention and learned from past transgressions. The importance of the Mondeo in Europe can’t be overstated, and a botched launch would be disastrous, perhaps more so than the DN101 Taurus kerfuffle was for North America.

#2013FordFusion #2013FordMondeo #America #Europe #Ford #FordFusion #FordMondeo #Launch #Quality

Derek Kreindler

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6 of 52 comments

Sportyaccordy on Jul 17, 2012

I feel like this is gonna bomb in Europe. Its a big mother lover. Actually I just checked the dimensions. Apparently the current Mondeo is like an inch smaller? I'm surprised. Maybe it will be a hit after all.

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- Mike978 on Jul 18, 2012
  
  The new Fusion/Mondeo is quite similar to the current Mondeo both in size and looks (especially the sides and back). The front has been "refined" from the current Mondeo but there are similarities. The current Mondeo is well regarded (just look at WhatCar.co.uk - the UK's equivalent of Edmunds) so solid expectations for this one too.
  
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Oldyak on Jul 17, 2012

Very nice looking!!!

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Jimmyy on Jul 18, 2012

I don't care for the looks of the new Fusion, but I don't think the looks are going to impact the sales. While it does not look great, it looks good enough. Personally, I would have done something a little more conservative because the majority of people don't want an overstyled vehicle. However what will make a difference is reliability. Long term reliability as measured by Consumer Reports and JD Powers is what really matters. If Ford is holding the vehicle back because it will not score industry leading reliability, then that is the smart move, even if the delay is very lengthly. Ford executives should allow such a delay, and consider the fault of the product managers who underestimated the project plan. Ford needs to become more Toyota and Honda like when it comes to releasing a products only when reliability is industry leading. If Ford adopts this strategy, it will find people on the coasts will purchase Ford products again. Only problem is this strategy takes about 5 years before long term reliability in Consumer Reports and JD Powers conveys the message to the public. But this is what it takes for Ford to match Toyota and Honda. Perhaps Ford has seen the light. If Ford appears in the Toyota and Honda crowd in brand reliability, and it's products are priced as Toyota and Honda, you will see a Ford in my driveway, even if it is overstyled. We will see. It hs hard for me to imagine Ford climbing from it's current ranking, but it is possible if Ford management worries less about technology gadgets and styling and more about reliability.

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- JREwing on Jul 18, 2012
  
  Don't look now, but the current and last-gen Fusion have ranked alongside the Camry and Accord in reliability since launch. The Focus and Taurus have also performed respectably.
  
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Faygo on Jul 18, 2012

as others have noted, the US Fusion was always planned to launch first, followed in ~6 months by the Mondeo. the US launch date has not moved to my knowledge and remains 4Q of this year. Mondeo has moved back a quarter or so from where it was previously planned. There would not be expected press drives or the like until late this year, in line with other Ford launches. debut of the production car in Detroit is also similar cadence to other recent vehicles. Primary engineering of the Fusion/Mondeo has been done here in the US, with regional support as is normal in this sort of global program.

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