The launch of the new Ford Mondeo has been a long and rather tortuous one. Initially shown at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, the car didn’t go on sale until this year after Ford decided to close a plant and shift all production to Valencia in Spain.

Hard to believe that the Ford Galaxy has been around for almost 20 years. And in that time, over two distinctive generations, the big Ford seven-seater has established itself as one of the most significant private hire cars on the market.