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Tuesday, 6th of January 2009

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Ford Kuga 2.0-litre TDCi Titanium Road Test Report

2.0-litre TDCi Titanium

The Ford Kuga is a brand new model for the Blue Oval –known as a crossover SUV it’s the first time that Ford has entered into this segment of the car market. The car is certainly a head-turner but Ford’s Kinetic design may not be to everyone’s taste – read on to find out whether we enjoyed the latest product from the Blue Oval.

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Performance

Our test car was powered by a 2.0-litre Durateq TDCi engine – with 136PS on tap, the Kuga is sprightly right through the gears and take off is as easy in second as it is in first gear. According to the maker the Kuga will achieve zero to 62mph in just over 10.5 seconds while you have a maximum speed of 112mph. Overtaking is made easy as the power plant delivers 320Nm of torque at 2,000rpm. The engine is refined at idle and when at speed– although you can hear a faint turbo whistle (which we liked) from time to time when you step on the power. The Kuga is equipped with a Haldex intelligent AWD system with variable torque distribution – this means that the system will provide optimum torque distribution when accelerating and decelerating giving you a better power delivery when needed.

Ride & Handling

On road, the Kuga’s manners are impeccable. It has been fitted with front McPherson struts and fully independent rear multi-link control blade suspension, which means that the car has a very comfortable ride – and if you push on the car will deliver through the majority of bends with minimum body roll – Ford has always been renowned for their cars’ good driving ability. The Kuga is accurate and grippy through corners, and the steering offers you a choice of assistance weights - all three are precise and communicative just like the Focus that the Kuga is based on.

Build Quality & Reliability

The Kuga has quality written all over it. The interior is plush and there are no panel gaps and all the shut lines are well finished. The materials used are on a par if not better with the so-called ‘premium’ end of the market, the plastics give a sense of quality, while the brushed aluminium is tasteful. Living with the car should not be too much of a chore as it has service intervals of 12,500 miles and you have a large dealer network to choose from.

Safety & Security

The Kuga is packed with safety and security equipment. To start with the Kuga has been manufactured with the stiff body structure that absorbs the impact energy that’s defined in crush zones and this should allow the safety cell to stay in tact protecting the passengers. There are a total of six airbags, this includes front and side plus head and shoulder curtain airbags for both the front and second row of seats. A feature already seen in Ford’s larger cars is the Horizontal Stroking Steering Column – explain… If you need to install a child seat – ISOFIX fasteners are fitted on both outer rear seats of the second row for easy handling. It has remote central locking an engine immobiliser.

Space & Practicality

First things first – the location of the engine stop-start button is a bit odd, as it sits between the two main air vents but this is where the negativity ends. This is Ford’s first entry into the compact SUV class and it comes out with flying colours – the interior has a stylish premium look. It’s not quite as spacious as some rivals however it does use its space well – the boot is accessed through a handy split tailgate, which holds loads of up to 410 litres, and there’s extra storage under the load floor. Jump in and you’ll find that you have a fantastic driving position and all-round visibility is good.

Ownership & Value

The Ford Kuga has got the head turning wow factor. It is the first genuine entry into the compact SUV class for Ford and it is already leap to the top of the class. It has been designed mainly for driving on tarmac so that’s why it comes with a chunky look – you’ll either love it or hate it on the design front – we think the Kuga is mega compared to some rivals. It’s make sense too as the Kuga should return 44.1mpg on the combined cycle while Co2 emissions are 169g/km – now that’s really green for a SUV.

Submitted: 28/05/2008 13:52:43

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