2017 Ford Kuga A Facelift
Here is the updated Ford Kuga, as the Blue Oval showed us the
North American version of the SUV with the facelifted 2017 Escape in Los
Angeles last year.
The Kuga gets
a more masculine nose job that draws on the latest Ford Edge, with a large
six-point grille, accompanied by a redesigned bumper and new bi-xenon
headlights with LED daytime running lights. At the back, Ford’s designer
revamped the tail lamps and re-trimmed the bumper.
There’s also fresh range of 17-, 18- and
19-inch alloy wheel designs, a new vibrant exterior shade named Copper Pulse,
with Ford adding a retractable tow bar that automatically stores itself out of
sight below the rear bumper when not in use, plus a hands-free tailgate.
The most visible change inside is the
bigger 8-inch touchscreen for the new SYNC 3 infotainment system that supports
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality and which enables pinch and swipe
gestures for the first time. Ford also replaced the conventional handbrake with
an e-brake, while there’s a newly designed steering wheel optionally offered
with heated leather, and fewer and “more easily distinguishable” buttons and
switches across the dash.
A new 1.5-liter TDCi turbo diesel engine
producing 120 PS joins the range in front-wheel drive only, offering a
combined fuel economy of 4.4 L/100 km with CO2
emissions of 115 g/km.
Also available are a 150 PS 2.0-liter TDCi diesel in both FWD and AWD versions, a 180 PS 2.0-liter
TDCi diesel with Ford’s Intelligent All Wheel Drive, and a 1.5-liter EcoBoost
turbo petrol in 120 PS and 150 PS with front-wheel drive, and a
182 PS version of the same unit with AWD.
Sales of the updated Kuga are expected
to start in Europe in the fourth quarter of the year.
