This year may be a quieter year for new cars. One exception, however, is Ford’s new Kuga SUV. This 2013 Kuga replaces the very succesful former model from Ford that debuted a few years back. Some of the highlights of the new Ford Kuga are the SUV exterior becomes smoother and less chunky, the headlights and tailights have been stretched, and there are a number of clever features that make the Kuga a Smart user-friendly machine that you are going to love living with.

A feature that tops the Kuga’s cool list, is the ‘open the tailgate with your foot’ feature. No, you don’t have to have taken yoga classes to reach the boot gate handle with your toes, all you have to do is pass your foot underneath the rear bumper of the Ford Kuga, and the tail gate opens automatically. How many times have I been frustrated carrying shopping to the car only to find the boot shut on arrival, leaving me the unpleasant job of setting an arm full of groceries or bags down on the dirty sidewalk to open the boot lid manually? Ford you’re clever! These are the sorts of features everyday people want and are going to adore in their cars.

How about the massive new Panorama glass roof? Everyone enjoys a look outside to see what the weather is up to. Open the interior blind on the glass roof, and the light floods in to the Ford Kuga cabin. Children always enjoy a chat about the big blue sky or the stars above.

Then there is the new Ford Kuga Voice Control feature. You can just talk to your Kuga and things like the audio system will set in motion. You can tell the new Kuga to play the song again, shuffle to the next song or hook you up to satellite communications so that you can chat to your friends anywhere around Australia by phone association. Again, this is a hit with all Ford Kuga occupants. The safety of keeping your eyes on the road while you speak the Voice Control commands makes a lot of sense in a techno mad world, where things like texting while driving is terribly common! With Microsoft SYNC technology, Ford Kuga vehicles can be asked to read out incoming text messages. Now that’s a much better way for driving safe.

At each corner of the new Ford Kuga there are sensors which locate vehicles and objects around the car’s exterior. These are a great help for ensuring that you don’t bump into anything while driving (Blind Spot) or parking (Active Park Assist). Safe driving is also enhanced with Ford’s Adaptive Cruise Control feature. Adaptive Cruise Control not only checks and sets your speed, it monitors your distance from other traffic.

Cities are some of the worst driving conditions for unpredictable events that might happen. A child chasing a ball out on the road, the pedestrian who doesn’t look properly or even the car that pulls out in front of you can be very unnerving. The busyness that cities bubble with means that you have to take extra care while driving. Ford knows this, and they have equipped the new Ford Kuga with Active City Stop which detects a sudden stop under 30 km/h and will initiate braking for you. Parking hassles are taken care of with the Ford Kuga Active Park Assist function, where the car will do the parking for you!

Is the new Ford Kuga capable in the rough? This is a good question when you are looking at buying into an SUV-type vehicle. The good news is that the Ford Kuga boasts Intelligent AWD, and so controls wheel slip to all wheels in just 16 milliseconds. While the Kuga isn’t a heavy duty 4WD, the higher ground clearance and AWD traction makes it ideal for fording small streams, heading up to the ski slopes or getting well off the road for a private picnic lunch.

All Ford vehicles are distinctive and stylish, and the Ford Kuga looks the goods and offers three model variants. Firstly, the Ford Kuga Ambiente kicks off the line-up with its 1.6-litre GTDi EcoBoost Petrol engine. A six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission are available. These have good equipment levels and are a nice comfortable ride.

Next in line is the Ford Kuga Trend with the 1.6L GTDi EcoBoost Petrol engine found in the Ambiente version but with a six-speed automatic (with sport mode) option, only. Also available for the Trend model is the punchy 2.0L TDCi Diesel engine with a six-speed PowerShift Automatic (with sport mode). Things like dual-zone climate control, an electrochromatic rear vision mirror and a nine-speaker audio system are features you won’t find in the Ambiente.

Last of all is the fully equipped, luxurious Ford Kuga Titanium flagship model which boasts an array of premium features and technologies. Engine and transmission choice is the same as for the Kuga Trend model.

When it comes to the crunch, the Ford Kuga’s next generation airbag system is surrounding you, and with five-star safety credentials, the Ford Kuga is a Smart medium-SUV choice.

The current Ford Kuga models include the:

• Kuga Ambiente
• Kuga Trend
• Kuga Titanium

For any more information on the new Ford Kuga or, for that matter, any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Ford dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!

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