From Focus to Galaxy, Mondeo to S-Max, every time Ford launches a new car these days its position at or near the very top of its class for dynamic excellence seems assured. And the Kuga is no different.
By the standards of those with which it must compete, the Kuga is a fine-handling machine. But not even Ford can defy the laws of physics, and the fact that it’s a quarter of a metre higher and nearly a quarter of a tonne heavier than a Focus is apparent at every turn.
Even so, its steering is linear and direct, and has much of the weighty precision that has helped Ford earn its reputation. Body roll is also well controlled, but that is an attribute that has not been achieved without penalty.
The price paid, indeed, comes in the form of compromised ride quality. Again, the Kuga disappoints not because it’s bad but because experience shows us that new cars wearing the Blue Oval usually tend towards brilliance in this area. In fact, it’s quite a comfortable conveyance once you’ve ascertained that the firmness of its suspension does not translate into harshness in the cabin.
And the Kuga needs that level of comfort, as its performance never even approaches the engagingly sprightly. Thanks to the reasonably wide torque band of the engine and the sensible spacing of its six gears, you can make fair progress through traffic and overtake quite effectively. But anyone hoping that the Kuga will somehow break out of the terminally dull performance ditch in which all these cod-off-roaders wallow is in for a disappointment.
For the statistic fetishists among you, we lost 10.6sec of our lives waiting for it to reach 60mph, and after a considerably longer wait it eventually wound itself to 112mph.
There’s not even much fun to be had by slashing the gear lever around its gate, though the change quality is acceptable but a little slow and heavy in its action.