THIS is the sort of news that company car drivers like – Ford’s stylish new Kuga SUV is bigger, more efficient but also cheaper than before.
Thanks to the arrival of a business-friendly 150 PS 1.6 EcoBoost petrol engine, the starting price for the new Ford Kuga range, at £20,895, is about £1,000 lower than before.
The full engine choice consists of 150 and 180 PS 1.6-litre EcoBoost petrols, and 140 and 163 PS 2.0-litre TDCi diesels.Trim levels for the new Ford Kuga – Zetec, Titanium and Titanium X – are carried over, and all variants are cheaper than their equivalents in the old line-up.
All-wheel-drive diesels can be ordered with Ford’s PowerShift self-shifting transmission. Dispense with four-wheel drive and the new Ford Kuga can deliver emissions as low as 139g/km with the 140 PS diesel – that’s a company car tax band of 22% for the 2013/14 tax year.
The new Ford Kuga packs in quite a bit of additional luggage space – 82 litres to be precise – and a lot of extra technology as well.
The new Ford Kuga can deliver emissions as low as 139g/km with the 140 PS diesel – that’s a company car tax band of 22% for the 2013/14 tax year.
Among the optional driver aids are the parallel parking aid Active Park Assist, and also the Blind Spot Information System, which uses a warning light on the door mirror to indicate that a there is a hazard in the driver’s blind spot.
For 4×4 versions of the new Ford Kuga, a smart AWD system continually assesses road conditions, adjusting the torque split in order to provide the best blend of handling and traction.
Finally, there’s SYNC, Ford’s voice control, device integration and connectivity interface. This includes Emergency Assistance, which, upon detecting airbag deployment or activation of the emergency fuel shut-off within the car, uses the on board GPS and a Bluetooth-paired phone to make an emergency call from the new Ford Kuga and provide location information.
SYNC is also able to read aloud incoming SMS text messages from compatible mobile phones, which will provide additional duty of care reassurance for any small business company car policy.
