Ford Kuga Readying for the Chinese Market

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I don’t particularly like using the phrase “Game Changer” but in all honesty, I cannot think of another phrase that sums up the introduction of the Ford Kuga into the Chinese market. The Kuga is currently road testing in the Chinese market ahead of being put into production via the Chang’an-Ford joint venture in Chongqing, likely coming down a similar production line to the new Ford Focus. You see the Chinese market is hot for compact SUV’s, Honda’s CRV is the best selling SUV at the moment although GreatWall claims its Haval series is but you can’t compare a series of SUV’s to a single SUV. Toyota’s RAV4 and Highlander, VW’s Tiguan, Mitsubishi’s ASX and Outlander, Subaru Outlander, Forrester and soon to be introduced XV and not forgetting Nissan’s Qashqai and X-Trail are dominating the market, but with increased taxes on SUV’s over 2.0L we can guess that sales of 2.0L and above SUV’s might taper off, thus leaving smaller displacement turbo powered SUV’s to rule the roost. VW’s Tiguan, powered by the choice of a 1.8T or a 2.0T and a soon to be introduced 1.4T have been rocking the sales charts since the compact cars introduction in early 2011, dealers have long waiting lists for cars and are offering potential consumers the opportunity to jump the queue by adding a 15,000rmb or 20,000rmb (2400USD – 4000USD) to pick up their car early.

So, enter Ford’s Kuga. The Kuga is somewhat larger than the Tiguan and is powered by the choice of a 1.6T and a 2.0T, the same 2.0T that is found in more prestigious vehicles such as the Volvo XC60 and Range Rover Evoque. Ford’s Chinese sales have been somewhat muted when compared to its rival, GM, but of course GM has multiple brands to play with in the Chinese market where as Ford only have one – they did try to introduce Lincoln via the Navigator but sales were low. Ford’s China sales grew to 519,390 units in 2011, on the other hand Chevrolet sold 595,068 units and 645,537 Buick’s were sold over the same period, Ford’s China line up is just five models, four locally made: Fiesta, Focus, Mondeo and S-MAX with the Edge SUV being imported from Canada. The introduction of a larger than the Tiguan compact SUV but selling in the same price range (200,ooormb – 300,000rmb) is likely to upset the market in a major way and will likely make the Kuga Ford’s biggest seller in the Chinese market in the next 18-24 months.