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  Carparazzi has caught the 2010 Mondeo facelift during a test drive in the European alps. (pic by Carparazzi) Photo Gallery

Less than a month after Ford Australia updated and sharpened its Focus attack in Australia the next step in the story has been revealed in Europe.

It's an updated Mondeo which is should be in showrooms in the first half of next year, although there is likely to be a delay on deliveries down under. The Mondeo has been underperforming for Ford since the day it arrived, partly because it runs up against the full family-sized Falcon, but that changed when the sedan was dropped and Broadmeadows shifted its emphasis to the five-door hatch and station wagon models. As well as the diesel.

Now Carparazzi has caught the 2010 Mondeo facelift during a test drive in the European alps. The caravan behind the car is not for camping but likely to contain high-tech measuring equipment to monitor durability driving.

The shots clearly show Ford is working on a makeover of the company's largest European model, even though Carparazzi believes it is an early update for a car which has only been on the road for two years. The disguise of the prototype suggests the facelift will be concentrated on the front end, and that the rear bumper and lamps might be left alone.

Then again, Ford could be doing engine work or delaying the changes to the rear end to avoid creating too much early interest in an update. There is no hint yet on what is likely to happen in the cabin.