Ford Puma, undervalued and bloody brilliant.
Discussion
I felt I should write this post to share my experiences recently with a Ford Puma incase anyone else is considering buying one.
First off I'd like to say I love Japanese cars and have owned many Mr2's, Celia's, various Honda Type R's and quite a few MX5's over the years. I have never been interested in Fords from an ownership point of view as I always questioned their build quality and on the whole they just never really did it for me. However recently I've had a real hankering for a Fiesta St (the new one) and after a brief test drive I was smitten. What a truly great car.
Whilst trawling the internet reading every post and review I could find from current ST owners I read a comment from someone who basically said "save yourself £16000 and buy a Puma instead". This got me thinking and after a bit of research I realised just how cheap they are now and apart from rust they are basically pretty reliable. Worth a punt then?
Long story short just after christmas I bought myself a 2002 Ford Puma 1.7 in silver with full service history, 69,000 miles on the clock and for only £700! Oh and with no rust!
Driving the 4 hour journey home from collecting it was pretty scary and part of me feared a brake down or some sort of failure so the first hour was spent with the radio off and worrying about every little noise I could hear. It performed faultlessly all the way and the main things that stood out initially where what a great engine it has, amazing handling and just how taught and solid the whole car felt. I don't know why but I thought a Ford of this age and mileage might be starting to feel a bit tired and rattly but it feels brilliant. I kept saying to myself over and over again, what a great car for the money.
So after a month of driving here are my thoughts.
Great engine, very torquey for a 1.7 and it makes a great noise. Performance feels much stronger than the quoted stats and the whole drivetrain is perfectly matched.
The gearbox is beautiful and must be one of the best ever and that's coming from someone who's owned a mk1 MX5 and DC2 Integra previously.
The handling and steering are brilliant for a front wheel drive car and you can really throw it into corners, it has loads of grip at the front the steering feels well weighted and very connected. Mine is fitted with budget tires which are shocking and just dangerous in the cold and wet but I can't wait to get it on some decent rubber and really push it. The handling feels as good as I remember my DC2 feeling just without the diff. The Puma however feels smaller and that inspires a bit more confidence when placing it on the road. I'm not trying to say the Puma is better than the DC2 but it is very close and in some areas I prefer the Puma and when I consider that I sold my DC2 for 10 times what I payed for the Puma it really makes you think.
What don't i like? The brakes are pretty poor and the pedal box, brake,clutch and accelerator all feel very cheap and flimsy which is at odds with the very mechanical and solid feeling gearbox and steering. Also the A pillars get in the way occasionally on roundabouts.
The interior is pretty bland and cheap feeling but then it is from a fiesta but everything feels well screwed together and solid. I get the feeling Ford saved money on the interior and used it to develop the drive train and chassis which are brilliant.
Conclusion.
I love it and think it is a brilliant car for very little money. I don't think I could have bought anything better for £700. I won't say its under rated because people have praised them from the moment they came out but I am aware that a lot of people would overlook one or even look down on it due to their perceived girly image. I've got a bit of stick already from people saying its a hairdressers car. However if you are like me and don't care how a car looks or what other people think but are more concerned about how a car drives and makes you feel I believe it is the best sub £1000 performance car on sale. I also believe that as lots of them slowly rust away the prices will soon begin to rise and they will one day be very collectable.
So if you are in the market for something cheap, practical and reliable but thoroughly entertaining I really don't think you can do better.
I won't post any pictures, you all know what they look like.
First off I'd like to say I love Japanese cars and have owned many Mr2's, Celia's, various Honda Type R's and quite a few MX5's over the years. I have never been interested in Fords from an ownership point of view as I always questioned their build quality and on the whole they just never really did it for me. However recently I've had a real hankering for a Fiesta St (the new one) and after a brief test drive I was smitten. What a truly great car.
Whilst trawling the internet reading every post and review I could find from current ST owners I read a comment from someone who basically said "save yourself £16000 and buy a Puma instead". This got me thinking and after a bit of research I realised just how cheap they are now and apart from rust they are basically pretty reliable. Worth a punt then?
Long story short just after christmas I bought myself a 2002 Ford Puma 1.7 in silver with full service history, 69,000 miles on the clock and for only £700! Oh and with no rust!
Driving the 4 hour journey home from collecting it was pretty scary and part of me feared a brake down or some sort of failure so the first hour was spent with the radio off and worrying about every little noise I could hear. It performed faultlessly all the way and the main things that stood out initially where what a great engine it has, amazing handling and just how taught and solid the whole car felt. I don't know why but I thought a Ford of this age and mileage might be starting to feel a bit tired and rattly but it feels brilliant. I kept saying to myself over and over again, what a great car for the money.
So after a month of driving here are my thoughts.
Great engine, very torquey for a 1.7 and it makes a great noise. Performance feels much stronger than the quoted stats and the whole drivetrain is perfectly matched.
The gearbox is beautiful and must be one of the best ever and that's coming from someone who's owned a mk1 MX5 and DC2 Integra previously.
The handling and steering are brilliant for a front wheel drive car and you can really throw it into corners, it has loads of grip at the front the steering feels well weighted and very connected. Mine is fitted with budget tires which are shocking and just dangerous in the cold and wet but I can't wait to get it on some decent rubber and really push it. The handling feels as good as I remember my DC2 feeling just without the diff. The Puma however feels smaller and that inspires a bit more confidence when placing it on the road. I'm not trying to say the Puma is better than the DC2 but it is very close and in some areas I prefer the Puma and when I consider that I sold my DC2 for 10 times what I payed for the Puma it really makes you think.
What don't i like? The brakes are pretty poor and the pedal box, brake,clutch and accelerator all feel very cheap and flimsy which is at odds with the very mechanical and solid feeling gearbox and steering. Also the A pillars get in the way occasionally on roundabouts.
The interior is pretty bland and cheap feeling but then it is from a fiesta but everything feels well screwed together and solid. I get the feeling Ford saved money on the interior and used it to develop the drive train and chassis which are brilliant.
Conclusion.
I love it and think it is a brilliant car for very little money. I don't think I could have bought anything better for £700. I won't say its under rated because people have praised them from the moment they came out but I am aware that a lot of people would overlook one or even look down on it due to their perceived girly image. I've got a bit of stick already from people saying its a hairdressers car. However if you are like me and don't care how a car looks or what other people think but are more concerned about how a car drives and makes you feel I believe it is the best sub £1000 performance car on sale. I also believe that as lots of them slowly rust away the prices will soon begin to rise and they will one day be very collectable.
So if you are in the market for something cheap, practical and reliable but thoroughly entertaining I really don't think you can do better.
I won't post any pictures, you all know what they look like.
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