Ford Kuga
The new Ford Kuga the concept, the design sketch, the wait. Is this finally the real thing?
Yes it is. After a concept car, and then sketches of the production car, this is the real production car. And it will be unveiled at this month’s Frankfurt Motor Show, alongside the Verve concept (the next Fiesta).
The Kuga will be made at Ford’s Saarlouis plant in Germany, but won’t go on sale in the UK until May 2008. But don’t fret, because in that time this car’s rather stunning looks won’t change one bit.
The Kuga still looks rather different from the Iosis X concept though? That it does, but were you really expecting it to look the same? Then again, when the looks of your competition don’t exactly set the world alight then Ford could well be laughing all the way to the bank with its Kuga, and sell more than its predicted 60,000 per year.
But Ford is very late to the SUV party, with offerings already available from the Japanese (Toyota, Honda, and Nissan). The Europeans have also recently got in on the act with Vauxhall’s Antara, VW’s Tiguan, while Renault say there is a 90 percent chance that a production Koleos will appear at Frankfurt. And that’s not forgetting the PSA twins, the Peugeot 4007 and Citroen's C-Crosser.
A mix really. The centre console’s seven-inch screen is closely related to the unit found in the Ford Mondeo, S-Max and Galaxy. However, being Focus-based the Kuga retains a somewhat boxy-feeling interior.
But to liven it up you can spec – at cost of course – the iPod white trim, orange piping and panoramic roof of this car. On the outside that white paint job and 19-inch wheels are also cost options while, on a more practical note, the car has a split-folding tailgate.
Kuga, as in 4x4, not the dire Mondeo-based coupe of the 1990s. And the Kuga will definitely be a 4x4 here in the UK. Continental buyers can pick between two or four-wheel drive, depending upon engine choice. The Kuga is on the C1 platform that underpins the Volvo S40/V50, so uses the Swedes' four-wheel drive system with front-drive most of the time and drive sent rearwards only when traction is lost. Expect the Kuga to be very closely related to Volvo’s forthcoming XC60.
The Kuga to be shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show comes with Ford’s 134bhp 2.0-litre diesel and a six-speed manual ‘box. No further details have been released but CAR can reveal there will also be a 2.0-litre petrol and the five-cylinder unit from the Focus ST. A hybrid Kuga is also on the cards.
But whatever fuel you use the exhaust gases will exit through twin tailpipes that are flush with the diffuser. Just don’t expect the rear diffuser to have the same effect it has on the Ferrari 430 Scuderia. Expect the Kuga range to start from £18,000.
