Ford Kuga set to pounce

We saw a rendering of it two months ago (more here), and now Ford has issued the first official photos of its all-new Kuga crossover, which debuts at the imminent Frankfurt motor show.

Conceived to line up against the likes of the ever-popular Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4 and Nissan X-Trail, the newcomer launches internationally in early 2008.

Like most other baby SUVs on the market, the Kuga will be pitched as an AWD crossover that's biased mainly towards good on-road dynamics.

That said, Ford is boasting of "substantial off-road ability", which suggests it may incorporate some all-terrain know-how from its Land Rover stablemates, in particular, the recently launched Freelander 2.

Just one powertrain has been announced for now -- a 2.0-litre, 100kW Duratorq TDCi common-rail turbodiesel engine, mated to a Durashift six-speed manual transmission. However, as with all of Ford Europe's offerings, a range of powertrains will make up the eventual showroom line-up.

Visually, the Kuga derives many of its design cues from the iosis X concept revealed at last year's Paris motor show.

Combining elements of SUV and estate car design with a coupe-like profile in a package similar in size to a Focus hatchback, the Kuga embodies Ford's so-called 'kinetic' design.

The concept features a wedge-like profile and flared wheel arches, which are nicely filled out with bling-bling 19-inch alloy wheels -- but it's a safe bet production versions will come with 17s and 18s.

Although inspired by the iosis X Concept, Ford says it raised the roofline to provide a slightly higher silhouette that enables five people to be accommodated in comfort.

Practicality is said to be a key attribute and the luggage compartment is accessed via a split tailgate. Together with the divided rear lights this ensures the maximum full load width is available for loading and unloading.

A harbinger of the technology coming in Kuga, and other future Ford models, is reportedly the new Blaupunkt navigation system, which incorporates a seven-inch colour display to also show images from a rear-view camera incorporated into the tailgate.

Will the Kuga be offered in Australia? No official word as yet, but it seems a distinct possibility, given the high volumes being generated by the compact SUV segment.

The Kuga could also serve as an ideal entry point for SUV shoppers into the blue oval fold, and these buyers could subsequently be encouraged to graduate to the larger -- and homegrown and therefore more profitable -- Territory.

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