Team-BHP - Pre-owned Ford mondeo vs Pre-owned Skoda octavia

Hi !,
I've been looking at buying a safe, well built car with both kmpl and safety being key concerns. Of course basic luxury at a 2nd hand price is also a requirement

Ive cornered down my search to two cars a 2003 ford mondeo Ghia Tdi (2.0 duratorq or something) at 75k mileage that gives 14km per litre of diesel, leather seats, etc at about 6.75 lakhs (65k mileage) and a Skoda 1.9TDI ambiente for 7.3 lakhs.

My question is which is a better car to own, gives better mileage and a better value for money. Also which of the two is cheaper to maintain and can be fixed quickly ie no delay of parts etc ?.

Here's my list of items that may assist you.,
Cars short listed - ford mondeo 2.0 ghia, skoda octavia 1.9 tdi

Price range - 6.5 - 7.5

Maintenance & After Sales Service (A.S.S.) expectations - Reasonable maintenance, good after sales service

Average distance traveled per month - 2000km

Where car will be mostly used (city / highway / rough roads etc) - city + highway

Chauffer driven / self driven - Self driven

Whether the vehicle will be shared by other members of family - No

Any specific requirements from car (ex. Better luggage space, responsive engine, rear seat comfort) - Comfort, safety, mileage

How long you intend on keeping this car (and how important resale is to you) - for atleast 2 years. Not-so-important for resale

Both cars are equally powerfull but the ford of course takes the cake, but im worried about maintenance, availability of spares as it is a general perception that ford mondeo's maintenance is very very high and there might be delay in acquiring spare parts as they aren't available

Skoda drives just right is no frills (no leather seats or even CD player).

Can someone advise ?.. im planning on taking a decision soon.
Also is the price right ??? (Chennai )

Asif

Asif, take my word for it and I am sure most here will agree....STAY AWAY from the Diesel Mondeo. The engine was discontinued soon after its launch.

The Skoda TDi on the other hand is a gem of an engine. Will be easier to maintain. Though the Mondeo is more comfortable it has flopped in the Indian market, if you were getting a petrol mondeo then maybe you could consider but since its the diesel one i suggest you scarp the idea totally.

Ford mondeo is overall an excellent car. Ford's pricing took the car down even though the marketing was done well.

Diesel mondeo is a fantastic car too. But the sourcing the parts and maintainence will be a big problem as ford was never able to back the car properly. It will be expensive as it has been discontinued for some years now.

at this price Skoda get the vote.

but if the Mondeo diesel goes around 6.25 or below on bargain, then dont miss the opportunity.