Ford Kuga
Encyclopedia
The Ford Kuga is a compact
crossover SUV
designed and produced by Ford. The car is based on the C1 platform
that also form the underpinnings of the Ford Focus and Ford C-MAX. Both front-wheel drive
and four-wheel drive
are offered, each with a choice of 2.5-litre petrol or 2.0-litre diesel engine.
The Kuga went on sale in the first half of 2008, and is built at Ford's plant in Saarlouis
, Germany
. In the UK, emphasising the car's premium market aspirations, only high-end Zetec and Titanium specifications are offered. It is similarly priced to the other small SUVs in the market such as the Citroen C-Crosser/Peugeot 4007
and the Vauxhall/Opel Antara
, and is on sale in the UK with a starting price of around £20,500. The combined fuel consumption is 44.1 mpgimp and the CO2 emissions is 169 g/km.
Diesel
. On July 24, 2008, WDIV-TV
had announced that Ford is re-considering bringing the Kuga to North America after all. On October 22, 2009, news leaked that Ford will build the Kuga at its Louisville plant, possibly as the 2012 Ford Escape
. On June 23, 2010, it was announced that Ford will end production on the second generation Escape in 2011 in anticipation to the Kuga's North American launch as the next-generation Escape. The Ford Kuga is now also available in Argentina since 2010 and in Japan and New Zealand since 2011.
A facelift will be released in late 2010.
That redesigned Kuga will form the basis for the 2013 Ford Escape sold in the U.S. Both vehicles will likely offer a hybrid option, as Ford announced in May 2010 that it would build unspecified hybrids at a plant in Valencia, Spain. If built, the Kuga Hybrid would be Ford's first hybrid to be sold in Europe, though it has sold over 100,000 Escape Hybrids and Mercury Mariner Hybrids in the U.S. since 2004.
Compact SUV
Compact SUV is a class of small sport utility vehicles with a length roughly between . This class should not be confused with mini SUV, which refers to smaller vehicles.- Background :...
crossover SUV
Crossover SUV
A crossover SUV is a vehicle built on a car platform and combining, in highly variable degrees, features of a sport utility vehicle with features from a passenger vehicle, especially those of a station wagon or hatchback.Using the unibody construction typical of passenger vehicles, the crossover...
designed and produced by Ford. The car is based on the C1 platform
Ford C1 platform
The Ford C1 platform is Ford's global compact car automobile platform. It replaces Ford C170 platform and Mazda's BJ platform. The C1 platform debuted with the European Ford Focus C-Max compact MPV in early 2004...
that also form the underpinnings of the Ford Focus and Ford C-MAX. Both front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...
and four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
are offered, each with a choice of 2.5-litre petrol or 2.0-litre diesel engine.
The Kuga went on sale in the first half of 2008, and is built at Ford's plant in Saarlouis
Saarlouis
Saarlouis is a city in the Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2006, the town had a population of 38,327. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located at the river Saar....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In the UK, emphasising the car's premium market aspirations, only high-end Zetec and Titanium specifications are offered. It is similarly priced to the other small SUVs in the market such as the Citroen C-Crosser/Peugeot 4007
Peugeot 4007
The Peugeot 4007 is a compact crossover SUV produced by the French automobile manufacturer Peugeot since July 2007.The equivalent Citroën badge-engineered version is the C-Crosser, both of which will be produced by Mitsubishi in its Nedcar plant, in Netherlands on the basis of the new Outlander...
and the Vauxhall/Opel Antara
Opel Antara
The Opel Antara is a compact crossover SUV, which was a co-development between Opel, the German subsidiary of General Motors , and GM Daewoo, the South Korean equivalent. The Antara, based on the GM Theta platform, shares its underpinnings and powertrains with the Chevrolet Captiva. However, it has...
, and is on sale in the UK with a starting price of around £20,500. The combined fuel consumption is 44.1 mpgimp and the CO2 emissions is 169 g/km.
Engines
Petrol- 2.5 L DuratecFord Duratec engineThe Duratec is a range of four, five, and six-cylinder gasoline engines produced by the Ford Motor Company, used in Ford, Mazda, Volvo, Caterham, Morgan, Tiger, Ginetta cars and by specialist engine tuner Cosworth....
turboTurbochargerA turbocharger, or turbo , from the Greek "τύρβη" is a centrifugal compressor powered by a turbine that is driven by an engine's exhaust gases. Its benefit lies with the compressor increasing the mass of air entering the engine , thereby resulting in greater performance...
I5Straight-5The straight-five engine or inline-five engine is an internal combustion engine with five cylinders aligned in one row or plane, sharing a single engine block and crankcase...
, 200 PS
Diesel
- 2.0 L DuratorqFord Duratorq engineThe Ford Duratorq engine, commonly referred to as Duratorq, is the marketing name of a range of Ford diesel engines first introduced in 2000 for the Ford Mondeo range of cars....
, 136 PS
- 2.0 L DuratorqFord Duratorq engineThe Ford Duratorq engine, commonly referred to as Duratorq, is the marketing name of a range of Ford diesel engines first introduced in 2000 for the Ford Mondeo range of cars....
, 163 PS 4 x 4 and powershift models.
Worldwide markets
On July 20, 2007, a report indicated that Ford executives were considering the prospects of sales in North America. This idea was later scrapped after it was determined the car could not be sold both competitively priced and at a profit in the US due to the current dollar-Euro exchange rateExchange rate
In finance, an exchange rate between two currencies is the rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another. It is also regarded as the value of one country’s currency in terms of another currency...
. On July 24, 2008, WDIV-TV
WDIV-TV
WDIV-TV, virtual channel 4, is an NBC-affiliated television station based in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is owned by Post-Newsweek Stations and is the flagship station and home base of the group with the offices of the group located alongside WDIV's studios; the "Local" branding now...
had announced that Ford is re-considering bringing the Kuga to North America after all. On October 22, 2009, news leaked that Ford will build the Kuga at its Louisville plant, possibly as the 2012 Ford Escape
Ford Escape
The Ford Escape is a compact SUV sold by the automaker Ford Motor Company introduced in 2000 as a 2001 model year and priced below the Ford Explorer. Although technically it's a crossover vehicle, it is marketed by Ford as part of its traditional SUV lineup rather than its separate crossover lineup...
. On June 23, 2010, it was announced that Ford will end production on the second generation Escape in 2011 in anticipation to the Kuga's North American launch as the next-generation Escape. The Ford Kuga is now also available in Argentina since 2010 and in Japan and New Zealand since 2011.
A facelift will be released in late 2010.
That redesigned Kuga will form the basis for the 2013 Ford Escape sold in the U.S. Both vehicles will likely offer a hybrid option, as Ford announced in May 2010 that it would build unspecified hybrids at a plant in Valencia, Spain. If built, the Kuga Hybrid would be Ford's first hybrid to be sold in Europe, though it has sold over 100,000 Escape Hybrids and Mercury Mariner Hybrids in the U.S. since 2004.