The Ford Kuga Plug-In Hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) was the best-selling PHEV across all segments in Europe during the first half of 2021, Ford announced on August 5. The automaker also shared key insights from drivers of the vehicle across Europe. 

Data from the OEM shows that customers are making the most of their vehicles’ 56 km WLTP (which stands for Worldwide harmonized Light vehicles Test Procedure, a series of tests required to certify that new vehicles abide by global regulation standards) electric driving range. Findings also showed that Kuga Plug-In Hybrid drivers across Europe so far this year have traveled 49% of their distance using externally charged battery power alone.

The Kuga Plug-In Hybrid achieved more sales in June than any previous month — with more than 6,300 models sold — and now outsells all other models in the Kuga range put together. Across April, May, and June this year, Ford sold almost 16,000 Kuga Plug-In Hybrids — over a third more than the next best-selling competitor during the same period. 

Sales of PHEV and all-electric passenger vehicles are surging across Europe as a growing number of people discover how their driving needs can be managed using at-home charging. PHEV models accounted for 8.4% of all new cars sold in Europe during the second quarter of this year, an increase of more than 255% compared with the same period last year. 

“We firmly believe that our customers buy hybrid vehicles to benefit from the advantages of driving on electric power, and this data shows that Kuga Plug-In Hybrid customers are keen to use their cars in EV mode as much as possible,” said Roelant de Waard, general manager, Passenger Vehicles, Ford of Europe. “We are committed to an electrified future for Ford, and the fact that Kuga is the best-selling PHEV shows that our customers want to join us on this exciting journey.”

Kuga Plug-In Hybrid Customer Usage

Anonymous real-world data collected by Ford helps to understand and optimize the PHEV ownership experience, with insights including:

• Drivers are using the battery-electric driving capability of their Kuga Plug-In Hybrid significantly. Almost half (49%) of the collective distance traveled this year has used externally charged battery power alone.

• More than two-thirds of Kuga Plug-In Hybrid customers’ journeys are shorter, local trips of 50 km or less that could be completed using just externally charged battery power. From more than 633,000 drive days this year, the vehicle made possible more than 420,000 drive days with zero tailpipe emissions. The average daily driving distance was 52 km, which is less than the vehicle’s 56 km WLTP pure-electric driving range.

• Customers are confident when it comes to using battery technology and are routinely able to access charging points. For every 100 drive days in a Kuga Plug-In Hybrid, there were 89 charging events.

• Customers are taking advantage of overnight charging and cheaper night-time domestic electricity rates to reduce their motoring costs. Thirty-five percent of charging events took place overnight with a plug-in time of 12 hours or more – twice the six hours required to charge the battery fully from a conventional domestic 230-volt supply. In total, 45% of all charging events took place overnight, demonstrating that customer car charging habits are similar to how they would charge their smartphone or tablet.

Ford earlier this year announced that 100% of its passenger vehicle range in Europe will be zero-emissions capable, all-electric or PHEV by mid-2026; moving to all-electric by 2030.