The Audi A4 is a lovely car, but being a saloon means sticking the bike in for a triathlon is a bit tricky.

Fortunately I had a Ford Kuga on test, which does the trick admirably. I took it up to Blenheim for the Mazda Blenheim Triathlon last Sunday, along with my son Matt, who took the pictures (left).

I hadn’t tested this Kuga 2.5T before – it’s the latest model with a 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo engine (the one that goes in the Focus RS Turbo). Wow! It’s fantastic. A little on the juicy side, I must admit – I got 22.5mpg. But what a car.

You can read Sam Hardy’s road test of it here: Ford Kuga – top-class SUV. I would agree with Sam’s verdict – the Kuga is one of the best petrol SUVs you can buy.

The turbo engine provides lots of low down shove, producing just a muted warble. It’s surprisingly capacious, despite the sloping roof line which gives it those striking crossover-coupe looks. And while there’s some tyre noise, the overall levels of refinement – including the superb ride quality – are comparable to an executive car.

It feels like that inside. With its leather seats, colour sat-nav with bluetooth phone and iPod connectivity, it’s got all the toys. And doubles up as a practical estate when you need it.

Interestingly, if you do fancy one, a PCH (Personal Contract Hire) lease might be a good idea if your mileage isn’t too heavy. According to CompareContractHire.com, the difference between a Kuga Titanium petrol and a Kuga Titanium diesel is just £66 a month from Days Contract Hire over three years and 10,000 miles.

I had some neighbours crawling over it during the week. They want an SUV of some sorts. So far they’ve looked at the Nissan Qashqai; Honda CR-V; and the Ford Kuga. I opened the car up and let them have a look around while explaining some of the features. I suggested the diesel Kuga would probably be more parsimonious to run…but not half so satisfying to drive!

Ford Kuga to the Mazda Blenheim Triathlon