Shed of the Week: Ford Puma
Low mileage, rust-free and ready for track? Shed's found the perfect Puma!
Given half or even a quarter of a chance, most of us would be out there on the merrie tracks of olde Englande (other countries are available) having the time of our lives clacking mirrors with a bunch of like-minded fools.
Let's just take a sec to admire those rear arches
Just ask Editor Dan. In one morning of madness last week he trashed a pair of RS fronts, followed shortly afterwards by a trashed pair of Y fronts when he saw the bill, the tight Yorkshire git.
If you're a financially frustrated circuit clown in waiting, let Shed ride to the rescue with this highly tempting Ford Puma, pre-track-prepped so you don't have to.
Even without the various goodies thrown into the package, this low mileage, fully serviced and rust-free Puma with the added promise of a fresh MOT is surely worth all the wonga just as it stands.
Pumas always desirable, this one especially so!
Shed's Binatone calculator has just burst into flames trying to tot this lot up. He says that if this isn't the nearest thing to Santa's sack currently on offer in the PH Classifieds then he doesn't know what is.
The vendor has cunningly left enough sanitising bits in to keep this lovely little Puma sensible on the road. It's a true dual-purpose motor that, as he says, will deliver over 40mpg in everyday use and give you loads of fun on or off the track.
To keep her sweet you'll need to feed in decent oil. Wobbly idling or acceleration on Pumas can mean a dead oxy sensor in the exhaust, but looking at what's been done to this one that's unlikely to be an issue. Again, given the apparently diligent servicing regime that's been carried out, you wouldn't expect to fall foul of dicky thermostats and leaky core plugs, typically symptomised by hot or cold running.
And just enough inside to make it liveable
Let's just run through this again. For the same grand, or less, that you'd pay for shoeing a Focus RS, you'll be getting a whole Ford that will very likely last most of the season on the same set of tyres. Better still, the longer you make the tyres last, the less grippy they'll get and the more fun you'll have. Best of all, you can make your tyre budget stretch even further by buying plastic ones.
For anyone with a brain, this is a no-brainer. Bargain of the year, we'd say. Here's the (rather excellent) ad.
Hereis the (rather excellent) ad.
For sale my fastidiously maintained and prepared Ford Puma 1.7 16v, which has just 52k miles on the clock, full history and a huge pile of receipts. I bought this on a whim for a trip to Germany next month, but have since managed to grow a pair of balls and decided to take our Porsche instead! Subsequently I don't really need this, and as the insurance policy it's covered on expires in early June it makes sense to move it on.
It has only 52k miles on the clock and a comprehensive history file - the service book is fully stamped up, it comes with all original documentation including keys. It was serviced religiously every year despite such few miles being covered, and in 2013/4 was bought by and then prepared for tracks by a chap who has previously built cars for the XR2 Cup race series. Current MoT is until the end of June, so I will have it booked in and the car will come with up to 13 months' test.
It has a pile of receipts for the parts bought at this point, including OMP bucket seats, expensive adjustable mounts and Sparco harnesses. The rear beam is polybushed and Spax SSX 30mm lowering spring have been fitted with adjustable shock absorbers. The carpets and sound deadening have been removed with aluminium footplates fitted in the front and neatly lined in the rear. Doorcards etc are all still in place so it doesn't feel like a rattl-filled bean can - in fact there are no annoying squeaks or rattles, and it is a fantastic thing to drive on the road. The buckets seats are the larger fitting ones thankfully, as I am just over 6 foot tall and 15 and a bit stone, and fit comfortably. The rear wiper and motor have also been removed in order to save a little weight.
The engine and drivetrain is standard with the exception of a K&N air filter and cold air feed, a Jetex exhaust backbox and Hoffman Racing centre exhaust section. This means it sounds fruity while still being surprisingly quiet and refined in road use, and being a standard engine you can still get well over 40mpg when driving sensibly on-road. It has Mintex discs and pads fitted to the front, which work very well.
In terms of condition this is by far the best Puma I have seen. The rear arches have had the terrible carpet liners removed to prevent the arches rotting from the inside out (the usual Puma problem!), and these are completely rust free as are the sills. Someone has fitted small rubber protective strips on the edge of the arches. The bodywork shines up beautifully with very few marks, just a few stone chips and imperfections as you would expect. The reaction of most people when they it is that the bodywork is mint, and it's only really when you're cleaning it that you spot any marks. There's a tiny parking ding near the driver's door handle and chip in the windscreen, but that's about all there is to note.
Inside is fantastic, and surprisingly refined - definitely useable on a day-to-day basis. The bucket seats are still in as-new condition, and electric toys such as windows and mirrors work perfectly. It also has heated front and rear screens and a CD player. The air con doesn't blow icy cold, but you can't have everything! Removal of the original seats and belts has triggered the air bag light, and the indicators do not self-cancel.
Since completion it has only done 3 or 4 track evenings and it all feels incredibly tight still.
Sale of what must be one of the best Pumas around (I am admittedly biased!). Viewings welcome, and I'm more than happy to take any serious buyers for a proper blast across the Moors. As long as it's before June 6th!
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A prime example of manufacturers designing built in obsolescence. Makes you wonder what other sealed for life or electronic kill features are in today's cars? It's something no one is talking about and the more we are removed from working on our own cars it becomes ever harder to detect!
Great Shed sorry for off topic rant
Not something I yearn for myself, but a thoroughly great car to drive. The rust problems were, and are, utterly shameful. But it sounds as if this might one of the very few goos apples in the barrel. Hope the new owner appreciates it for the excellent car it is.
It created a lot of interest as it was one of the first cars in that 'new style' and I regularly got back to the car park to find people having a nosey - quickly embarrassed as I arrived only to be not so embarrassed when I was happy to talk about it.
The most annoying thing for me was the boot lid - looked great with the curvy design but whenever it was wet you always ended up with water peeing into the boot whenever you opened it.
Very unlikely to get 40mpg out of it either - other than on a steady run.
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