Ford Kuga 2.5 Turbo Titanium Review: Escape to Kuga town

The original Focus is notorious for its lack of quality and perceived luxury on the inside. While the second generation Focus offered a significantly better cabin than its predecessor, the popular Ford still lacked behind the high standards set by contemporary Volkswagen models. With a cabin derived from the Focus's the Kuga's interior suffers the same shortcomings as its hatchback sibling.

The dashboard design is derived from the Focus's but with a more sloping centre console while everything else, including the aluminium look silver inserts on the dash, switchgear and instruments look similar to a Focus's which means the Kuga's cabin feels and looks a little unrefined and unpolished when compared to a Golf's or Tiguan's. The Kuga's small and nondescript looking keyless engine start button, below the switch for the hazard lights on the dashboard, certainly looks like an afterthought.

The driving position is comfortable and spot on while rear passengers will appreciate the generous amounts of leg and headroom but the overall cabin ambience is somehow not as classy and luxurious as some of its rivals'. The lack of a classy and high quality cabin can be attributed as the Kuga's biggest shortcoming when compared to some of its competitors. Ford shouldn't have the excuse of not being able to replicate Volkswagen levels of build quality and perceived luxury at the Kuga's price point.

The boot is well-sized and offers a very usable loading area. To further improve the Kuga's versatile and practical nature, it features a rather clever automatically retracting load cover as well as a Range Rover style split opening tailgate.

Standard equipment on the Tianium spec Kuga offered here includes b-Xenon headlamps, keyless operation, dual zone climate control, cruise control, trip computer, all-round electric windows and so on.

The Kuga might not offer the efficiency of classy cabin of a Volkswagen Tiguan but it offers an engine that is full of character thanks to its five-cylinder layout and unsurpassed handling dynamics for a relatively tall crossover SUV. Keen drivers who appreciate dynamic handling will not have a better model to choose among contemporary compact crossover SUVs from than the Kuga.

Credits: Story and Photos by Mark Yeo