5.0 Sneak Peek
Can you hear the rumble in the distance? That's the sound of a pack of 2,000-plus horsepower Pro 5.0s about to blow the candles off the biggest birthday cake in Ford drag racing. That's right, the Mobil 1 World Ford Challenge is back for its fifth birthday at Gateway International Raceway outside St. Louis, Missouri. On May 16-19, 2002, WFC5 will feature seven heads-up classes, five open-comp classes, and three bracket classes searching for more than $130,000 under the prize-money wrapping paper. Besides the racing, the Mustang Monthly/Mustang & Fords Auto Show Spectacular is returning, with more than 700 show cars expected. And you can bet the manufacturer's midway and swap meet will be packed. Count on 5.0 Mustang & Super Fords to capture the whole birthday party on film.
European Verification
Last year, Ford launched its all-new Mondeo in Europe. The irony surrounding the new car is that clearly Ford felt stung by the American criticisms leveled against the original Mondeo, sold in the States as the Contour. The main beefs included a tight interior and value-for-money issues (an immeasurably better car, and priced accordingly, it was still seen by the public as the replacement for the Tempo). The irony is that this new, larger vehicle, which is far better suited to American tastes, will never make it to our shores since it matches Taurus dimensions almost exactly.
So we had to travel to Europe to sample an '01 Ford Mondeo Zetec-S 2.5 V-6, and did so-over two weeks, over 1,800 miles, and through England, Wales, France, Belgium, and The Netherlands. The car reeks of a quality that most American Fords don't possess-not that ours are bad, but this is better. The shape, the purposeful yet fashionable details, and even the quality and texture of the interior plastics and fabrics all have a warm feel, a certain heft, and a reassuring solidity. Quite VW Passat-like-not a bad thing.
Underhood, the tried-and-true 170hp 2.5 Duratec mill was hooked up to the slick-shifting MTX75 five-speed gearbox. Below 4,000 rpm, we had a hard time hearing the engine, so isolated was it from the cabin. Occasionally, when the stereo was cranked, we'd forget to shift into Fifth. With 3,200 pounds of its own curb weight to launch, as well as two passengers and two weeks worth of luggage, acceleration was leisurely (if Haagen-Dazs smooth) clear up to the 6,500-rpm redline. Granted, all-out performance isn't the point of the Mondeo, so it's forgiven. A stick in a car of this size is a treat in itself.
Out on the motorways of England and France, where 95-plus mph cruising is not uncommon (the posted, and universally unobserved, speed limit on the Autoroute from Calais to Paris was approaching 90 mph), Mondeo's rock-solid stability impressed. Only wind-noise around the A-pillars lets you know you were topping the century mark. This, on an open, unpatrolled stretch of Autoroute where you can really make time, is where the shocking lack of cruise control makes itself known.
It was on a stretch of Welsh B-Road that the Mondeo really came alive; a front-driver of this buggy's heft shouldn't be so much fun to chuck about. Endless switchbacks on a stretch of tarmac exactly one and three-quarters car-widths wide mean an obscene amount of fun. Mondeo wouldn't be our first choice, normally, though its poise is a testament to its fundamental solidity as well as a suspension that didn't understeer at the mere sight of a hard left. Certainly the massive 18-inch wheels on 225/40-section rubber came into play here, but big tires can't compensate for a crap chassis, and Mondeo simply excelled. Steering, brakes, all worked in concert. Try these same roads in a comparable Taurus and watch yourself become unglued right quick.
It's a shame we'll never see it here. - Jeff Koch