Hi all - just spent 3 weeks in Cornwall - touring with the family and the beast,
After 1500 miles through m/way -cornish moors and hillsthought I would share my thoughts on how it performed,
1st off - the loading, we had enough stuff to open a shop to try and pack in, ended up removing the polystyrene from around the spare wheel, and using this area for storage, which was very handy as it housed 4 sleeping bags, a few pairs of shoes and some camping groundsheets- we wouldnt have got it all in otherwise
when finally loaded, I expected the beast to be a bit sluggish with all that weight in it - but not at all, it still pulled like a train - in fact cruised happily at over ???
we think we used the AWD a few times after camping in some pretty boggy and hilly farmers fields - the beast is very competent and never got stuck - the ride through rough ground is very bouncy and still had to drive slowly as you would have done in a standard car - althoughI have never had another AWD type car to compare - I think it would be a nice touch for Ford to fit a light on the dash, so you can see if you are in AWD or 2WD mode
the beast was a competent cruiser on the motorway - quiet and refined, and pulled well up the cornish hills and winding roads leaving a lot of other cars for dead.
The beast did have a couple of niggles though, it would not lock on one occasion, not sure why? all doors and both boots were shut? - had to power back on , then off and it was ok
and it has started to leak fuel! as per thread in the technical section - will be contacting my dealer regarding this
also has any other AWD owner noticed a feint mechanical clunk coming from the rear/underneath of the car shortly after pulling away for the 1st time after starting? - Im assuming its just the Haldex clutch doing its thing?
also when in gear but driving down a steep hill, eg no throttle - a noticed a gearing type whirring noise from underneath the car - again im assuming this is the Haldex working?
are these noises normal?
MPG - still not good. I have done 2,500 miles now- I am getting around 40 MPG, BUTby driving using the most feint and delicate touches of the throttle and on flat open roads, and only going around 50/60 mph
as soon as you go to 70mph the economy drops to 30 MPG - and by driving the car as I would consider noramlly I was only getting about 30 MPG on long opencornish roads?- far from Fords claimed 45 something. For anything over 70MPH forget fuel economy, it guzzles the stuff!
My MPG ometer in instant mode goes down to 5MPG just by pulling sensibly out of a junction! is this normal? I had it checked and callibrated by my dealer before we left and it was ok according to them?
they also glued in my dashboard cubby hole as it kept on coming out, and during our trip it unglued itself and popped out again Grrrrr
the interior scan deactivation button was a godsend, as my eldest spent time in the car listening to her music!
we saw 3 other beasts too 1 x black and 2 x sea grey- My self and Mrs Moggith both waved at them, but their drivers just looked at us as it we were bonkers! lol
so to sum up, yes we had problems, and yes Im still not happy with the economy, but Yes the Kuga was awesome!
Beware the Beast of bodmin moor - it is an addictive drive!
After 1500 miles through m/way -cornish moors and hillsthought I would share my thoughts on how it performed,
1st off - the loading, we had enough stuff to open a shop to try and pack in, ended up removing the polystyrene from around the spare wheel, and using this area for storage, which was very handy as it housed 4 sleeping bags, a few pairs of shoes and some camping groundsheets- we wouldnt have got it all in otherwise
when finally loaded, I expected the beast to be a bit sluggish with all that weight in it - but not at all, it still pulled like a train - in fact cruised happily at over ???

we think we used the AWD a few times after camping in some pretty boggy and hilly farmers fields - the beast is very competent and never got stuck - the ride through rough ground is very bouncy and still had to drive slowly as you would have done in a standard car - althoughI have never had another AWD type car to compare - I think it would be a nice touch for Ford to fit a light on the dash, so you can see if you are in AWD or 2WD mode
the beast was a competent cruiser on the motorway - quiet and refined, and pulled well up the cornish hills and winding roads leaving a lot of other cars for dead.
The beast did have a couple of niggles though, it would not lock on one occasion, not sure why? all doors and both boots were shut? - had to power back on , then off and it was ok
and it has started to leak fuel! as per thread in the technical section - will be contacting my dealer regarding this
also has any other AWD owner noticed a feint mechanical clunk coming from the rear/underneath of the car shortly after pulling away for the 1st time after starting? - Im assuming its just the Haldex clutch doing its thing?
also when in gear but driving down a steep hill, eg no throttle - a noticed a gearing type whirring noise from underneath the car - again im assuming this is the Haldex working?
are these noises normal?
MPG - still not good. I have done 2,500 miles now- I am getting around 40 MPG, BUTby driving using the most feint and delicate touches of the throttle and on flat open roads, and only going around 50/60 mph
as soon as you go to 70mph the economy drops to 30 MPG - and by driving the car as I would consider noramlly I was only getting about 30 MPG on long opencornish roads?- far from Fords claimed 45 something. For anything over 70MPH forget fuel economy, it guzzles the stuff!

My MPG ometer in instant mode goes down to 5MPG just by pulling sensibly out of a junction! is this normal? I had it checked and callibrated by my dealer before we left and it was ok according to them?
they also glued in my dashboard cubby hole as it kept on coming out, and during our trip it unglued itself and popped out again Grrrrr

the interior scan deactivation button was a godsend, as my eldest spent time in the car listening to her music!
we saw 3 other beasts too 1 x black and 2 x sea grey- My self and Mrs Moggith both waved at them, but their drivers just looked at us as it we were bonkers! lol

so to sum up, yes we had problems, and yes Im still not happy with the economy, but Yes the Kuga was awesome!
Beware the Beast of bodmin moor - it is an addictive drive!