Sounding as how Bostonian John F Kennedy might pronounce Cougar, the Ford Kuga will enter the Irish market in the middle of next year as a further addition to the ever-increasing Ford range.
Based heavily on the Iosis X Concept that was shown at the Paris Motor Show last September, the Kuga's look has been designed under the guidance of Ford Europe's executive design director Martin Smith, and much of the concept car's styling cues have been retained.
The "suicide doors" and the high-mounted wing mirrors, along with the individual bucket seats, have gone, to be replaced by more standard offerings.
Much of the exterior lines have been retained, in keeping with Ford's "kinetic design" language that we have seen used so effectively in the likes of the S-Max and more recently, the Mondeo.
The Kuga will be based on Ford's Group C1 platform that is used on the Focus and Volvo S40 and V50 and is thought to use Volvo's 4wd technology. Volvo will produce a similar, more premium product, the XC60, in 2009 as a rival to BMW's X3 on the same platform.
Ford has not enjoyed good fortunes in the SUV segment in Europe with their Maverick and ill-fated Explorer SUVs best forgotten, and they are somewhat late in joining the compact SUV market dominated by the likes of the Toyota RAV4, preferring usually to leave Land Rover unchallenged in this sector.
However, with Ford now set to part company with its iconic British brands, Land Rover and Jaguar, they may look to increase their European SUV portfolio.
The Kuga is expected to be a rival to the likes of the Nissan Qashqai at the lower end, and the Land Rover Freelander and forthcoming Volkswagen Tiguan at the more premium end of the market. Expect to see 2-litre petrol and diesel engines at launch, as well as the high-performance five-cylinder 2.5-litre turbocharged unit from the Focus ST employed.
Ford products, especially the Focus and Mondeo have been praised for their dynamic chassis and their handling ability so expect this to be aimed as an on-road biased vehicle with, as Martin Smith asserts, "substantial off-road ability".
A preview model of the production vehicle will appear at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September with a production version launched across Europe from spring 2008 with expected delivery in Ireland mid-2008. Expect a starting price of around €35,000.