New Ford Kuga flagship family crossover coming 2029

Ford will unleash a flagship family crossover – effectively the new Kuga – in 2029 as part of a wholesale renewal of its European product line-up.

The all-new car – which will share an architecture with two SUVs from Chinese auto maker Geely – will sit in the heart of Europe’s most popular market, ‘C-segment’ midsize SUVs, where rivals typically measure around 4.5m-long and include cars such as the Volkswagen Tiguan.   

The crossover is a multi-energy vehicle, offering a broad range of electrified drivetrains to appeal to diverse customers. The car will be assembled alongside an upcoming compact SUV that belongs to Ford’s Bronco family, as well as the two Geelys, with Ford entering a manufacturing joint venture with the Chinese group at its production hub in Valencia, Spain.

“[Valencia is] going to be launching vehicles that are multi-energy,” explained Jim Baumbick, president of Ford of Europe at a press conference announcing the manufacturing JV. “We’ll start with EV first, but there are extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs) and plug-in hybrids. We think that a whole portfolio of solutions are absolutely critical to the goal of achieving net zero over time.”

Partnering with Geely opens the door to Ford using petrol/electric powertrains from Horse, the joint-venture drivetrain supplier formed by its two partners Geely and Renault. 

Ford has said future vehicles such as the new crossover will be spacious and inspired by past rallying glory, with sporty designs and high performance capability. “You're going to see a very focused passenger vehicle portfolio based around rally-bred, adventure and thrill territory,” said Baumbick. 

How differentiated will the new family crossover be from its Geely cousins, Auto Express asked Baumbick? “Make no mistake, the Ford product will have a completely unique top hat [body]. This is not a reskin. We don't do boring cars. This is a uniquely engineered, truly unmistakably Ford product that will be differentiated from Geely's product and their target customers.”

Partnering with Geely and pooling component sourcing will help Ford deliver new cars at a lower price for consumers. “The reason we're co-developing is to leverage scale,” explained Baumbick. “What we're trying to do is ensure that we can actually demonstrate the lowest possible cost while building products specifically for European customers in Europe.”

The Valencia plant currently assembles the Kuga, which is set to continue in production potentially to 2028. But Ford is acutely sensitive to the power of bringing back beloved nameplates – think of how the Puma coupe’s name was revived for the UK’s best-selling small SUV in 2019 – so it’s highly likely the Kuga name will be carried over to the new C-segment crossover. 

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