Test drive: Ford Kuga Titanium 2.0 TDCi PowerShift Auto 163PS AWD

SUV, or Sports Utility Vehicle, is an Americanism that, like the original truck-based vehicles of the late 90s and early Noughties, came across The Pond to good ol’ Blighty bringing big cabins, mostly unnecessary four-wheel drive and a mostly shocking appetite for fossil fuels. Thirsty, brash, wild (especially in the bends!) and, in its fattest form, surely now on the fast path to an early bath. 

But times changed quickly, especially in the UK, and SUVs had to up their game and curtail their eco-piracy. However, some new car buyers still want a loftier driving position (to count the endless motorway cones, perhaps), a large and airy cabin, and the perceived reassurance that the bigger the car the better it repels more serious fender benders.

Ford’s own all-wheel-driving, midsize SUV is certainly more compact than the behemoths of old, and being based on the quick-witted (outgoing) Focus; surely more nimble. And in this 2.0 TDCi turbo-diesel spec relatively frugal-friendly with a Ford-quoted combined fuel consumption figure of 41.5mpg. Time to get behind the wheel for our TotallyMotor test drive and see if this Kuga purrs…



Test drive: Ford Kuga Titanium 2.0 TDCi PowerShift Auto 163PS AWD

First impressions:
Personally, I’m liking the way this (top spec) Kuga looks. The Mars Red metallic paint – a £525 optional extra - certainly “pops” in this summer sun and shows a pleasing golden undertone when regarded from certain angles. And if you like angles, bonnet bulges and strongly solid bodylines you’ll probably be enjoying the Kuga, too.

SUVs like to make us feel safe and the Kuga looks tough enough, and there’s a presence to it that says chunky, but not lardy. Perhaps this stocky look is helped by the 18-inch alloys; standing one inch taller than 17-inch Titanium-spec standard. A £375 wheel option too far or all part of the beefy bravado? Bigger wheels work for me so I’d probably part with the extra cash.

SUVs should also exude a waft of exclusivity but bearing in mind the entry-level Kuga is nearly £6,000 more expensive than the Focus on which it’s based; that’s quite some serious waft.



Into the interior:
It’s a small upwards climb to reach the Kuga’s interior space, into that all-important, all-seeing driving position that SUV fans want. And it’s a pleasing and unobstructed view over and above those cheeky twin bonnet bulges. 

This fully loaded test car has had every conceivable wish-box well and truly ticked, on top of the Titanium top trim level base price of £27,010 OTR price. So we’d be right to expect some of the good stuff. 

We’ve got full leather, 6-way power and heated front seats; part of the £2100 Titanium X Pack that also includes bi-xenon headlights, a light-letting panoramic roof and a Solar Reflect Windscreen, and after a few flicks of the electric switch I was in a near-perfect driving position that proved very comfortable on longer trips.

More soft leather is found wrapped around the happy-to-hold steering wheel and indeed many of the interior places found by my fingers were of a modern and uncluttered look, tactile of feel, and screwed together tightly. There’s also a nice comfort touch in the way of elbow-cosseting pads on each window sill.

I wanted premium comfort as the driver and Kuga delivered it, with a few hours stopping and starting on the motorway no more painful than the slow progress suggests. Titanium Kuga certainly didn’t add to my motorway woes; helped no doubt by minimal-input automatic gearbox, easy-weighted steering and torque-accessible 160bhp engine. More on these later.

And while Kuga looked after me up front, it’s not the biggest out back; although a couple of kids - probably the usual backseat cargo in this kind of car – surely wouldn’t grumble about the second row seating space. There’s a split-opening tailgate keeping the back-end neat and groovy, too. 



The drive:
On the road is where this Kuga-cat gets into its stride with muscular and controlled “legs”, courtesy of its Focus underpinning genes. Firm and controlled; distinctly unlike the big ol’ SUVs gone by.

Yes, Kuga is a taller car and yes its longer suspension travel and higher centre of gravity all conspire against a flatter, faster handling characteristic, and while you shouldn’t pitch a Kuga against a Focus in the race through the tightest of bends; this taller cruiser holds its own line very well in a class that features a few wobblers. 

I’m personally a fan of the firm over the floppy when it comes to suspension, so Kuga’s more taught ride suits me just fine. This SUV gets good grip without much in the way of body-roll and that well-weighted steering lets you bowl her in with more gusto than her stature would suggest.
It all adds up to a safer-feeling on-road composure, backed up by brakes that get the job done once they’ve been firmly prodded into life. In short, for an SUV, it’s hard to fault Kuga’s handling package.

The PowerShift automatic gearbox works well in almost all situations and certainly takes the left-leg load off when nose to tail in traffic. My only complaint would be the second or two it took to find and deploy first gear when stopping – and quickly going again – at junctions and roundabouts. 

There’s enough shove running through that auto ‘box to deliver some surging acceleration on a fairly chunky wave of turbo-diesel torque, and with the sticky chassis and turbo-backed power I found the right kind of combo to hustle the Kuga safely and with excitement; should you fancy it. 

Top speed is 119mph and 62mph is yours in 9.6secs, however, most of the time I found myself nestled in leather luxury with one easy hand on the wheel letting the Kuga do the work as the journey rolled by; wafting the gas pedal rather than flooring it. And in this style this Kuga returned very nearly 39mpg during our week-long test, while at 179g/km of CO2 this model will cost £210 a year to tax. 

Kuga’s SUV status is earned by it four-wheel drive transmission that’s there if you need it – over a particularly steep speed bump, perhaps. And while most Kugas do indeed live life on the city streets, with a forth harsh winter in a row predicted for 2011, all-four-corners-powered is becoming more of a critical consideration to those that absolutely rely on their cars. 



Ten second sum up:
Ford’s Kuga, all-wheel drive midsize SUV feels big and chunky - without being hard to handle - and sports a solid appeal to its exterior styling. Inside there’s a well-executed interior and more air and space to its cabin than a standard car could serve up. Factor-in its SUV-defying chassis, decent engine choice and snow-ploughing, on-demand all-wheel drive and it’s got to be a strong option for buyers looking in this segment. 



Prices and availability:
The Ford Kuga range starts at £21,505 for the Zetec 2.0 TDCi 140PS 6-speed 2WD. Price as tested; £27,010, for the Titanium 2.0 TDCi PowerShift Auto 163PS AWD model, but with nearly £5,000 spent on options. Available now. 

www.ford.co.uk



Words & pics: Daniel Anslow

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