Ford adds new two-wheel-drive Kuga

Dec 1 2008 Steve Hughes

FORD is going to opposite extremes with new versions of its Kuga crossover vehicle.

One of two new models is a version with front wheel drive rather than four wheel drive, powered by a two-litre turbodiesel engine to reduce emissions to 159g/km.

The other new model has Ford's 2.5-litre petrol engine from the Focus ST and is aimed at downsizers who want a smaller 4WD without forgoing the pulling power to which they have become accustomed.

Several manufacturers now offer 2WD versions of vehicles that appear to be 4WD, such as Nissan's Qashqai, because they retain most of the benefits of the medium-sized off-roaders that rarely venture off tarmac anyway.

When legislation changes in April the Kuga 2WD will benefit business users who become eligible for a 20 per cent annual allowance against Corporation Tax for a vehicle with less than 160g/km CO2 compared with only half that for a vehicle over 160g/km.

The performance improvements resulting from less friction and drag are minimal but there is a slight improvement in economy, which rises by 2mpg to 46.3mpg.

The 2.5-litre five-cylinder petrol model with permanent 4WD has a power output of 200bhp and a figure for torque, or pulling power of 320Nm from just 1,600rpm.

This translates into a 0-60mph acceleration time of just over eight seconds and a top speed of just under 130mph in six-speed manual mode, with the option of five-speed automatic transmission.

Economy is 28.5mpg for the manual model and 27.4 for the automatic, with CO2 figures of 234g/km and 244g/km.

Prices are £18,595 for the 2.0 TDCi 2WD and £20,460 for the 2.0 TDCi 4WD in Zetec trim and £20,553 for the 2.0 TDCi 2WD, £22,418 for the 2.0 TDCi 4WD, £23,788 for the 2.5 manual and £24,962 for the 2.5 automatic with Titanium trim and equipment.