Ford Kuga review

Up front, this is almost all from the Focus. The steering wheel, with over 20 buttons on well-specced versions, along with the dashboard architecture and main console is all from the Focus, which in turn is barely changed from the Fiesta. This means the same’s true of those cars: great ergonomics, but a pretty grey, dowdy ambience. 

Even post-facelift it’s still fairly uninspiring to sit in, and the hard plastics on the door handles are a constant reminder that this isn’t a premium-chasing machine like a Peugeot 3008. However, it’s a lot easier to operate than a Vauxhall Grandland or even an Audi Q3, on account of being blessed with a much simpler touchscreen.

Speaking of, how's the tech?

The 12.3-inch standard fit digital instrument cluster is a showroom winner but, besides its party trick of multiple colour schemes as you cycle through the Kuga’s various driving modes, it’s not actually as adaptable as say, Peugeot or Audi’s alternative.

On the plus side, it’s handy in the hybrid for its clear and simple renderings of what power source you’re using when, but do you really need to know how much braking force was harvested into the battery every time you come to a halt? Thankfully you can turn that pop-up off. 

All versions post-facelift now get a 13.2-inch infotainment display complete with Ford’s latest SYNC 4 operating system which has twice the computing power of old, along with 5G connectivity, a cloud-based navigation system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa.

It all looks very smart, with clear graphics and a nicely responsive touchscreen, but the climate controls are now displayed in a strip along the bottom, instead of the previous physical switchgear. Better than in some rivals for sure, but still not as convenient as before.

Shame. Will my passengers enjoy the ride?

Up front the seats are comfortable and electrically adjustable. In the back there’s room for two adults for long trips, but a third will have to straddle the transmission tunnel. The sliding rear bench allows for up to a metre of legroom. Beat that, Bentley.

Big side windows make the car feel airy in the back, and there’s the option of a full glass roof, but it feels roomy.

The boot measures at minimum 412 litres, though sliding the rear seats forward allows for or up to 140 litres of extra bootspace. Does anyone ever actually deploy that feature though? Or just set the seats once and then forget about it?