Ford built the first Kuga for only four years, while number two launches the seventh and traditionally last year. Unusual: Around twelve months before the market launch, Ford has already introduced the successor, which then rolls in the spring of 2020 to the dealer – and then with three different hybrid drives.
The fact that the carmaker has revealed the secret to generation three of its compact SUV so early, has two reasons: In the US, the Kuga, as usual as an escape, already this fall at the start. And he should usher in Ford’s departure for a hopefully better future. Because: in Europe, the business is bad, more than 400 million euros loss, the car maker retracted here last year.
An important part of the future strategy: electrification. Ford wants to power its models through the bank and the Kuga shows three options. Although the SUV is synonymous with conventional gasoline (1.5-liter three-cylinder with 120 hp and 150 hp) and diesels (two four-cylinder with 1.5 liter displacement and 120 hp or two liters and 190 hp) at the dealer.
The focus, however, the manufacturer puts on the hybrid: the mild hybrid is a 150-hp diesel powered by the 48-volt network with belt starter generator that boosts and recovers energy. Going one step further Full and plug-in hybrid. Both combine a 2.5-liter Otto with an electric motor to a 225-horsepower unit. The normal hybrid, which can drive only a few miles, is supposed to consume 5.6 liters per 100 kilometers; The plug-in stores electricity for around 50 electric kilometers in a 14.4 kWh battery. Charging the battery should take about four hours at the household socket; a purely electric version is currently not provided.
The Kuga is the first Ford SUV on the C2 architecture, which is not only much stiffer but also lighter. The SUV should weigh up to 90 kilograms less.
Bigger and visually more dynamic
No less important than the drive technology: the design. The new Kuga has grown neatly in length and width – it extends by 8.9 inches to over 4.60 meters – but looks more dynamic than its predecessor thanks to the slightly flatter roof. The clearly smoothed sheet metal dress with the sharp LED headlamps also contributes to this.
By adult impression indoors
interior it comes contrast down to earth to The patch infotainment screen seems a bit out of place, with lots of plastic, and at the first trial sitting on soft cushions come with little lateral support. Up-to-date, however, is the digital instrument cluster with a huge 12.3-inch display, the head-up display, unfortunately, works with a fold-out plastic disc, instead of projecting all the information directly into the windshield.
The fact that the new Kuga is always online, goes without saying for a car from the 2020s, with its own app you can also query the tank level at any time or lock the doors. And even with the assistance systems, there’s nothing to complain about: Abstandstempomat with stop-and-go function, automatic parking assistant, evasion assistant and a wrong-way-Warner to protect against ghost rides are only part of the security Armada – but you have to at least in pay extra for the basic version. What the Kuga costs, of course, is not fixed a year before the start, currently the price list starts at 27,400 euros. An action price from a good 20,000 euros to make the discontinued model but even tastier.