Ford Kuga SUV - Interior & comfort

The last Kuga was generally quite refined but was a little noisy on the motorway. From our drives so far, it seems that its replacement is better in this regard. The 2.0-litre diesel with mild-hybrid tech sounded a little vocal under hard acceleration but it settles down when cruising.

We found that the bases of the sports seats fitted to our Titanium-spec test car were a little flat for our liking, making them uncomfortable on longer drives. Otherwise, the Kuga features plenty of equipment to take the stress out of the daily commute; lane-keeping assistance, all-round parking sensors, cruise control and hill-start assist all come as standard.

Ford Kuga dashboard

Ford has decided to keep things simple, giving the Kuga the same interior as the Fiesta, Focus and other models. A Peugeot 3008 certainly has more design flair inside, but the Kuga’s interior is simple and intuitive, whether you’re familiar with Ford interiors or not. Besides, the cabin design is a marked improvement over the old Kuga, which was really showing its age having been around since 2012.

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An eight-inch touchscreen sits on top of the dashboard, with redesigned graphics to bring it up to date. Beneath that is a panel for audio controls, the air vents and the heating controls, with a few extra buttons each side of the gearlever. Despite being quite a high-spec model, our test car had a surprising number of blank buttons.

The material quality is good in the places where you’ll touch, but there are cheaper, scratchier materials lower down. It all feels well-built, though, so it should stand up to years of family life.

Ford’s SYNC 3 infotainment system is fitted as standard and provides plenty of connectivity. It includes both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, allowing your phone’s apps to be displayed on the screen, plus DAB radio and Bluetooth. Voice control is also part of the package, so you can access the screen’s functions without taking your hands off the wheel or eyes off the road.

Equipment

Buyers have a choice of five trim levels. Zetec is the entry point, and includes luxuries like keyless start, auto lights and wireless phone charging. It also gets sat nav, cruise control and a handy heated windscreen, but you need to step up to Titanium in order to get dual-zone climate control and auto wipers. Titanium brings LED headlights, keyless entry, ambient lighting and a premium B&O sound system, too.

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ST-Line gets sporty detailing inside and out, plus a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, sports seats and cornering LED fog lights. ST-Line X models can be distinguished by larger alloy wheels and a panoramic sunroof. There’s also a powered tailgate and electrically adjustable heated front seats.

The top-spec Vignale model aims to look elegant rather than sporty, and has lots of equipment to offset its high price. You get upgraded LED headlights, a heated steering wheel, automated parking assistance, a head-up display, leather upholstery and active noise cancellation. Metallic paint is also included.

Options

Once you’ve picked your trim, you can then select from a number of options including a Technology Pack (upgraded headlights and a head-up display - £400), a winter pack (four heated seats and a heated steering wheel - £500) or a powered tailgate for £450. We’d recommend spending £100 on a space-saver spare wheel instead of the standard-fit tyre repair kit.