MONDEO Man may be a dying breed in terms of sales, but it didn't stop UK suppliers delivering wide-scale price cuts during May, according to data released by the independent price monitor, CarPriceCheck www.carpricecheck.com

New car transaction prices for the month compared to April showed an average market fall of 1.16 per cent with fierce competition in the large family class dominated by the Ford Mondeo forcing much of the pace.

Data showed that prices fell for 61 per cent of the models in this segment by an average of 1.59 per cent.

French rivals, Renault and Citroen, whose cars, the Laguna and C5, dropped 2.9 per cent and 2.18 per cent respectively, recorded the biggest price cuts.

Other prime movers were Vauxhall's soon to be replaced Vectra, down 1.8 per cent, and Nissan's all-new Primera, down 1.67 per cent on average.

Ironically forecourt prices for the market leading Mondeo remained relatively static, but the manufacturer itself improved discounts via its direct sales channel on 48 models by just under one per cent.

For the first time since October 2000, average transaction prices fell for all market segments.

The continued success of Superminis like the Renault Clio and Peugeot 206 helped edge prices down by 0.67 per cent in May compared with April.