The family car market is already big (as all manufacturers know) and it’s only going to get bigger. And although they dominate the market Ford do have challengers bringing up the rear, so are Ford really still the best manufacturer for Families? To find find out I’m going to compare Ford and its competitors to see who I think comes out on top and reigns supreme in 2015. My main points of reference in terms of Ford will be the latest Focus and Mondeo, as these are the favoured family cars right now.
Space
Space is a particular concern for parents with young families who may need to be constantly taking buggies and prams in and out of the car. For Ford the obvious candidate here is the Mondeo with its big long body offering plenty of room in the boot and in the back seats. I’d place them top of this category although there is stiff competition from the Audi A3 and the Vauxhall Zafira. Neither car quite handles its space quite as well as the Mondeo though.
Affordability
Families often have to live on a budget so it’s important they get value for their money. It’s quite difficult to measure affordability as it depends on the situation of the individual. But it’s important that a car at least offers them everything they expected when they handed over their money – however much it was. In this category the Ford Mondeo would be my number one. Click here for more Fords if you want to check out some other makes. For everything it offers it is more than worth the £15,000 you’d spend buying one from a dealership.
Reliability
With the pressures of taking children to and from school and work commitments, reliability is important in a family car. By studying huge amounts of data from all different sources Warranty Direct managed to actually calculate which family car was the most reliable. Unfortunately for the Ford Mondeo it was only placed 8th. This means there are 7 cars which can be considered more reliable. The number one spot went to the Toyota Corolla which had a breakdown rate of 7% per year.
Safety
It’s hardly surprising that when buying a family car most people place safety at the very top of their list of priorities. Parents understandably want a safe car above all else. Although the Ford Focus hatchback is one of the safest family cars on the market I think Ford’s best car for safety would be the Ford Kuga SUV. The Kuga SUV has electronic stability and as many airbags as you could possibly need. However I still wouldn’t put it top of this category with the Volvo V40 currently regarded as the safest on the market. We all know by now that Volvo has a reputation for making incredibly safe cars and the V40 is no different, beating the Focus and Kuga SUV.
