The Ford Kuga introduced in 2008 competes for market share in the fastest-growing market segment in Ireland. With just 87,000km of motoring completed, the Kuga has led a trouble-free life with no minor or annoying faults.

The Kuga is finding favour with many motorists in Ireland with the driving position probably being the most important aspect. The SUV has a seat position more like that of a van of larger 4x4.

Another factor in the decision to change from a conventional car to an SUV is the higher clearance from the ground. On bumpy roads and lanes, there is less worry about the engine guard being damaged or the worst case scenario cracking the sump itself.

Clever Kuga

Driving the Kuga is a pleasant experience; the Zetec version is fairly well equipped. Cruise control is standard and very easy to use from the steering control paddle. The car has the advantage of having front and rear heated windscreens, which makes life a little bit easier on an early frosty morning. Missing from the car are parking sensors; they are an extra on this variant and standard on the Titanium specification in the 2014 model.

The Kuga is equipped with Ford’s Sync radio and phone system. It works well in that all contacts and call history are transferred to the car’s operating screen. A nice feature is that the system will read out text messages sent to the phone. The only problem I have is the location of the screen. It is recessed back in to the dash, and this makes an ideal storage shelf for keys and wallet. Ultimately, this obscures the driver’s vision of the Sync screen. The Sync system has a clever safety option. The emergency option, if selected by the driver, will automatically call the emergency services in a crash.

Sync will make the call if the airbag is deployed or the fuel-pump deactivated. The driver can choose to stop the call, or talk to the services if needed. Crucially, the system will supply vital information, such as the GPS coordinates, if the driver is unconscious. As part of Ford’s Intelligent Protection System (IPS) there are numerous safety features on the car, that have earned it a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating (see Table 1 for individual safety results in the test). For many family buyers, this is a very important factor when making the decision to buy a car.

The Kuga has dual zone lighting in the front and an illuminated vanity mirror for the make-up or the shave. The rear of the car cabin can be illuminated without bothering the driver too much. This model does not have a dual-zone climate control system, but air-con is standard. In the front, the wipers swish outwards and are very effective at clearing the relatively large front windscreen. The mirrors are heated and electrically controlled with integrated signalling lights. The Kuga has daytime running lights as standard, with front and rear fog lamps for extra visibility.

The lights are good, offering good coverage of the road up close, especially with the front fogs turned on. The extended main beam halogen is adjustable to three settings for distance. The car has touch button entry on the key for the doors, and keyless starting.

Other specifications include the tyre pressure monitors, roof rails as standard and 17in alloy wheels. The rear blackout windows are brilliant for the younger generation in the back of the car.

Behind the wheel

Despite the raised driving position and overall height, the Kuga still feels like other cars on the road. Driving into bends, there is very little fear that the back is going to step out of line. It gives the driver a little bit of extra confidence. If you’re buying a Kuga, it is possible that you’re approaching a more sensible stage of life and the sporty factor is not all that important. Yet it is fun to drive on either long or short journeys.

Road noise is reduced on this model, when compared with the original Kuga model from 2008, according to Ford. This model of Kuga is shod on 235/55R17 tyres coming originally on Hancock rubber.

The tyres did wear well and even, notching up just less than 65,000km before requiring a change to the front and back tyres, which remained in use for another 10,000km. The steering on the Kuga is Ford’s familiar electric-assisted power steering. It is responsive and well weighted to the car.

Ford says that this system saves fuel as it recognises straight-line driving and cornering, delivering the required assistance.

At just 87,000km on the clock, I have had no trouble with the steering at all. This model is fitted with Ford’s Duratorq 2.0 TDCI 115 PS engine. The same engine is found in many Peugeot, Citroën, Mazda and some Volvo cars. Power-wise, it as the low end of the market for the Kuga, pushing out 115hp through a six-speed manual transmission. Ford’s figures give a 0km/h to 100km/h of 12.2 seconds, so it is not a roadster. All I can say is it performs very well with the engine at 2,000rpm. Confidence to overtake and acceleration is very acceptable from the power and torque delivered by the engine. On incline, acceleration is reduced and the bigger engine would be a definite advantage for towing.

The Kuga ambles quite pleasantly along at a little over 2,000rpm on the motorway in sixth gear doing 120km/h. This version is front-wheel drive only; in terms of traction on the road I never really had a problem. Saying that, there has been no snow or remarkably heavy frosts for the past two years where I live. While the ground clearance is good, this model Kuga is helpless as a car in soft field conditions. So if you don’t know the ground conditions or the weather has been bad, my advice is to park a 2wd Kuga on the road.

Putting the boot in

The Ford Kuga boasts a 406-litre boot, which grows to 1,603 litres if you fold the rear seats. This can be increased if the Kuga comes without the space saver spare wheel. The seats fold flat too, making loading large items very straightforward. The boot has a wide opening. There’s no lip to lift luggage over and there’s minimal intrusion from the wheel arches.

Loading the boot is as easy as it can be. The 2014 Zetec model Kuga did not come with the automatic boot opening feature. The Kuga is very close to being best in its class for space. Boot space is one of the key motoring requirements for the young family and the occasional trip to Ikea. Compared with larger saloons, the boot on the Kuga has one big advantage and that is accessibility. A person can easily reach in to get luggage, without having to get into the boot.

Towing capacity

The model Kuga performs really well here for the size of car it is, with a towing capacity of 1,500kg.

Over the years, the SUV car has hauled some heavy loads of seed and fertiliser, of about 1,500kg including the weight of the trailer. It handled the load and braking in a comfortable fashion; now it is not going to give the performance of a larger 4x4. When compared with the largest of the family saloons, it comes out on top against most of them.

If looking at the Kuga for towing, the larger 150 PS engine has a towing capacity of 2,100kg.

Fuel analysis

The Kuga does not appear to be light on fuel and, over the two years of motoring, I averaged 7.6l/100km or 36mpg. Carrying out a test, I recorded the car’s fuel consumption on four occasions commuting to Dublin for work. The results showed that, on average, the car burned 7.25l/100km of fuel on the journey or 39mpg. I drove the car in the same fashion on all occasions, sticking to the speed limits, not passing 2,000rpm on the engine.

Variables such as traffic and time were impossible to eliminate. The distance never changed from service station to service station. This means that the Kuga’s own fuel metering is overestimating the fuel use by about 4.8% in theory. These figures are nowhere near the figures given by Ford of combined urban and extra urban driving of 4.6l/100km. This is the case with most car manufacturers, not just Ford.

Running costs

The Kuga has had no trouble at all, requiring routine maintenance for the work done by the vehicle. All work to the car is carried out by Colton’s in Tullamore where the Kuga was originally bought. The service bill for the Kuga amounts to €2,120.51 or 2c/km.

Depreciation is a cost that many people forget to factor in, as it is money that is not being paid out. Yet, it is one of the biggest costs. This car was originally bought for €28,500; in today’s market it is likely to fetch approximately €21,000. Losing €7,500 on the purchase price of the car.

Who will this car suit?

This SUV is suited to families, or sales drivers who prefer the more van-like driving position. The utility specification of the Kuga makes it appealing to business owners as the VAT is reclaimable on the four-seater Kuga. Anyone who has difficulty lowering themselves into cars through injury or back trouble could benefit from driving an SUV like the Kuga. For farmers, the 4wd version with the bigger engine is probably the best buy. Calculating the costs to own and run this model of the Ford Kuga comes to approximately 22c/km.