THE car that defined the aspirational business car driver of the ’90s is set to reclaim its company car crown.

According to a new study, more than half of UK business drivers have the fifth generation model topping their next company car wish-lists.

In the largest study of its kind conducted by Sewells Intelligence, half of those asked and who usually consider lower, upper and executive cars in the User Chooser Barometer (UCB) survey said they would definitely or be likely to consider the Ford Mondeo as their first choice for their next company car.

The fifth generation Mondeo will be available from the end of 2014 with Ford’s range of ultra-economical EcoBoost engines and, for the first time in the UK, a hybrid petrol-electric option. It will also come packed with a host of new technology, including Ford’s SYNC 2 Infotainment system and Active Park Technology, which can automatically steer the car in and out of tight spaces.

Despite Sewells research earlier this year that almost half of company car drivers are ‘badge snobs’ preferring German brands, Ford remained the second most desirable brand to company car drivers, second only to BMW.

Introduced in 1992 as the replacement the Ford Sierra, the Mondeo became known as one of the major aspirational models, winning multiple awards including Now Magazine’s ‘Most Attractive Car for a Man to Drive award’ in 2012.

It became a piece of popular culture in 1996 when Tony Blair used the phrase ‘Mondeo Man’ in his Labour Party Conference address. Describing an affluent generation of home and car owners, Blair shared the experience of talking with a self-employed electrician while polishing his car who had turned ‘into a Tory’ now he was doing well in life.

The story was attributed with Labour’s landslide victory in 1997 General Election and is still recognised by the Collins English Dictionary as a definition of a middle-class man.

Simon Staplehurst, commercial manager at Sewells Research and Insight, said: “It’s easy to be blinded by the kudos of a premium badge yet surveys like the UCB highlight that company car drivers still consider or buy other options like Ford. Given that this generation of Mondeo will also offer a hybrid petrol-electric option, a first for Ford UK, it’s only likely to increase interest from drivers.

Read more about the new Mondeo

Our review of the of the 2.0 TDCi version is here.