Ford Kuga - Practicality, comfort and boot space

​As well as offering good all-round visibility, the Kuga is full of neat, practical touches that make life a bit easier. All versions feature a heated windscreen, cruise control, front and rear parking sensors, and a sliding feature for the rear seats. Ford’s Easy Fuel system is also included, which makes it virtually impossible to fill up with the wrong fuel. It’s a capless set-up – useful because you don’t have to handle a grimy fuel cap at the filling station.

During our own testing of the Kuga, we did find the sports seats to be fairly uncomfortable. While they have plenty of adjustability, the seat base is almost completely flat, which will impact comfort – particularly on longer journeys.

Size

The Kuga is 4,626mm in length, 1,690mm in height and 1,882mm wide (without mirrors). In comparison to the Toyota RAV4, it’s a little bigger in all areas, while the Kuga is noticeably larger than its Skoda Karoq rival which is 4,382mm long, 1,841mm wide and stands 1,603mm tall.

13

Leg room, head room & passenger space

There’s plenty of room upfront in the Kuga, and although overall space isn’t as good as the Skoda Karoq or Toyota RAV4. Accommodating another passenger in the middle rear seat might be a bit of a squeeze, but head and leg room are generally fine. Rear knee room is fantastic, and with the versatility of a sliding (and reclining) rear seat, the Kuga is one of the roomiest cars in the class.

Family car buyers will be pleased to find the rear door opening is sizeable, and there are two ISOFIX points on the outer positions of the rear bench.

Boot Space

With sliding rear seats, the Kuga offers versatility in prioritising space for passengers or luggage. With the seats in their normal position, the Kuga offers 412 litres of boot space, which increases to 526 litres with the second-row seats moved forward, and 1,534 litres of load space if you fold the rear seats flat. This is trumped by the Karoq’s 1,605 litres (1,810 litres if the Skoda’s VarioFlex rear seats are removed).  

There’s no lip to load heavy items over, though, and the empty spare wheel cavity gives more space to stash things away, or you can fill it with an optional space-saver wheel.

Towing

The towing capacity of the Ford Kuga naturally depends on which engine you choose. The maximum braked trailer towing capacity ranges from 1,500kg for the PHEV model, 1,600kg for the regular hybrid, to 1,800kg for the 1.5-litre petrol. Those figures are respectable considering that similar hybrid versions of the Hyundai Santa Fe or the four-wheel drive Toyota RAV4 can tow up to 1,650kg.

You’ll need to revert to a traditional diesel-equipped SUV if you need something that’ll tow more. The diesel Santa Fe and Kia Sorrento can lug up to 2,500kg.