Faults:

For clarity, this was a company car I had from new, so someone else took care of maintenance and repairs. To the best of my knowledge over the 2 years I had the car, there were no major problems, only an initial recall for something electronic to be fixed under warranty.

General Comments:

Was given this as a company car back in 2015, with a choice between this Kuga, or Nissan's Juke. Despite not liking this car much, I think I made the right choice.

OK where to start. For some background, I like cars, and have had many luxury saloons and coupes over the years, so that has heavily influenced my views on this car. If you are new to driving you'll probably find this car just fine, but for everyone else, this car is mediocrity on wheels.

First of all I have no idea why these silly crossover vehicles exist. It's one of those cars that does not know if it wants to be an MPV or a 4x4. I tried hard to see the appeal but just could not.

Zetec spec is mid range, so that means enough electrical equipment, a nice set of alloys, etc. But nothing can be done to sharpen this car up - it is (in my opinion) ugly. All cars like this are. Usually a nice colour and wheels do wonders for even the ugliest cars, but this car is one big chunk of modern plastic and steel built with no passion whatsoever.

On the plus side the interior is spacious, I like the fact it still has a lever for a handbrake and not those silly electronic buttons, visibility is excellent, drive is smooth and quiet, and the 2.0 is economical as expected. Fast enough as well.

When I was finished with it in 2017 I was glad to see the back of it. Moved on to a new job where I could buy my own car again, and certainly would not consider a Kuga. I suppose at the very least it wasn't all bad if all you want is modern transport that functions at the most basic level, but if you like cars, then you're in possession of a heartbeat/soul, so please choose just about anything else, and not a crossover type vehicle.

Faults:

Nothing at all.

General Comments:

The Kuga is Ford Europe's first venture into the SUV market... and what a result!!

The Kuga is fantastic. I am not normally a 4x4 or SUV driver as I have always had quite sporty cars, but I immediately fell in love with the Kuga on first sight.

Looks wise, nothing in this sector comes close. Ford were late to the SUV market, but quite literally blew everyone out of the water!

It's not the most hardened off roader by any means, but will hold its own over most rough ground (I have taken my off road, even though most Kuga owners won't)

I chose the Zetec version with appearance pack (blacked out windows, 18" alloys and roof rails) in Panther Black and it looks amazing.

The 2.0 TDCI engine is a peach, and is perfectly suited to the Kuga in every way. Bags of torque for overtaking and a fantastic cruiser due to the 6 speed manual gearbox.

Interior quality is second to none, all the materials are fantastic and everything feels very well screwed together.

The dash is beautiful and the drivers seat is a great place to be.

There is plenty of room up front, and the higher seating position gives a brill view of the road ahead.

Rear space is adequate, but anyone over 6ft will struggle over long distances.

The boot is not huge; for a car of this size it should be bigger, but I find it OK for my family's needs. The split rear bootlid is an absolute gem, you don't realise how handy it is until you start using it.

List price of my Kuga was £21500; with the employee privilege voucher (dad works for Ford) and dealer discount I paid £17350 for it, which puts it at higher spec VW Golfs, and in my opinion the Kuga is a different class.

I'm currently getting around 38mpg (420 miles a tank full), but from my experience of Ford TDCI engines, I will see a lot more once the car has covered around 10k miles.

All in all, a fantastic car from Ford. I have had mine for 2 months and 3000 miles and I still love getting into it every time.

Do yourself a favour and try the Kuga before you buy a Qashqui, Tiguan, Freelander, FRV or any other SUV available.