Ford's green alternative to the gas-guzzling SUV
Wednesday March 10 2010
BRILLIANTLY styled, smartly finished and powered by one of the better diesel engines in its class, the Ford Kuga is undoubtedly one of this year's must-have cars. With car-like driving allied to the allweather security of four-wheel drive, it is tightly priced and creating quite a buzz.
For a company that has counted on sports utility vehicles for such a huge proportion of its global earnings, Ford has had a surprisingly patchy track record in Ireland.
Where other manufacturers have rapidly jumped on the 4x4 bandwagon, Ford has tried half-heartedly with a succession of Mavericks none of which were ever that appetising. Now it appears to be trying a different tack. Rather than convince the public that they need a big, butch wagon, Ford has unleashed the Kuga, a socalled crossover vehicle that attempts to meld the best bits of 4x4 ownership with none of the antisocially obese excess.
With taut styling and economical turbodiesel engine, it's one of the few 4x4s that won't have you mumbling an apologetic justification when people ask what you drive.
Overall cost of ownership is a tough thing to tie down, due in no small part to the vagaries of fashion. Should the Kuga retain its desirability, residual values will remain strong and running costs should be reasonable. That doesn't always happen.
In giving up trying to sell us a conventional 4x4 and instead concentrating on a niche crossover vehicle, Ford might just have hit on something.
The Kuga looks great, it'll hopefully persuade a few 4x4 drivers to downsize into something more suited to their requirements and in equipping it solely with a 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine, Ford has made a statement regarding the environmental credentials of this sort of vehicle.
