WHAT'S good for fleets is not necessarily good for the pack of motoring journalists which reports on car launches for national and regional Britain. Even with the pre-production left-hook models we tend to be presented with for a first opinionated drive along palm-lined roads, a dog of a car is a rare thing. Occasionally someone will discover a handling problem that would give cause for concern to the L-U-Natic School of Motoring, but mostly the 'howevers' consist of nits picked in desperation from a well-made vehicle for which the printed or aired conclusion 'it's good' just won't do.

But new Ford Mondeo - it's a problem. It's good. Worst of all, alongside the best in its upper medium volume class, it's still good. Design is sharp and modern inside and out; build, fit and material quality is in the German league; the engines - even the diesel - are something to write home about; ride and handling are spot on; ventilation, passenger seating and driver position can't be faulted and the standard equipment list is class generous.

Regular readers should be familiar with what's gone in to the new Mondeo from a steady run of reports on wholelife costs, technical specifications, fleet strategy and initial driving impressions but, in brief, it was developed in record time (two years) on an all-new, larger platform with longer wheelbase and wider track in which computer-aided design had a major role to play.

Body styles are saloon, hatch and estate (the latter's out early next year), trims are LX, Zetec, Zetec-S, Ghia and Ghia X; engine choice is 1.8 and 2.0-litre Duratec HE petrol (both new), a 2.0-litre Duratorq direct injection diesel (also new) and a revised 2.5-litre V6 petrol and active and passive safety systems are top of the pile.

Not long before its public debut Ford announced a three-year warranty at long last, and then dropped the big one - recommended retail prices down by an average of 13%.