RE: SOTW Special: Ford Puma

[y2blade]

damci said:

I have owned mine for just over 4-years and it has been the best car I have owned. It brings a smile to my face every time I drive it and costs relatively little to run. It has needed a few things replacing over the years but it is a 10-year old car so to be expected.

Sadly mine will be going soon as it’s just too small for us with a newborn on the way. It will be missed for sure and I hope to own another in the future if they haven’t all rusted away.

YHM

[Strachan]

damci said:

I have owned mine for just over 4-years and it has been the best car I have owned. It brings a smile to my face every time I drive it and costs relatively little to run. It has needed a few things replacing over the years but it is a 10-year old car so to be expected.

Sadly mine will be going soon as it’s just too small for us with a newborn on the way. It will be missed for sure and I hope to own another in the future if they haven’t all rusted away.

How did the exhaust sound?

[damci]

y2blade said:

YHM

Replied

hora said:

We have a 15month old boy, Babysitter Jogger, missus and me (I'm 6ft2).

No problems.

We've had sis in law and the above in the car as well.

I fell for the same 'trap' when we had ours on the way. I thought 'we have to get a baby/MPV/Sensible car'. but then how often does the baby go in the car?

Everything fits and theres no squeeze either.

I found the boot space is not really a problem for prams etc as it’s a decent size with it being a coupe, it’s just a bit cramped in the rear.

We have bought a Maxi-Cosi Cabriofix car seat and easy base 2 which just about fits if we push the passenger seat forward a bit.

I was looking at getting a C-Max or a Golf plus which is not really an exciting prospect but I guess it would be much more practical.

Strachan said:

How did the exhaust sound?

The Miltek? It looks much better than the original as it fills out the bumper hole much better but it is slightly noisier. Not OTT loud though.

[y2blade]

damci said:

The Miltek? It looks much better than the original as it fills out the bumper hole much better but it is slightly noisier. Not OTT loud though.

I think I'm regressing into a 20y/o....I fancy a raspy zorst on the Puma, I had a Magnex stainless system on my KA

[y2blade]

sparkythecat said:

Mrs S got a new Puma when they first came out in 1997. A second one followed in 2001 which she kept until 2005. Her average milage over this period was over 20k per annum and her only gripe was that the fuel tank was too small. A new Puma wasn't an option in 2005 so, she opted for an A3 2.0tdi, which she very quickly decided to hate, but kept until 2009 when she stopped commuting.

Now needing a car for only SD&PP she told me to find her the best Puma I could. It took a bit of finding, but I eventually found a rust free one owner car with 46k FSH and documentation for recent suspension bush replacement. The dealer put a new cambelt kit on as part of the deal and 20 months later she's still very happy and loves her Puma. The only downside is that the dreaded rust has started to appear on the rear arches.

I still enjoy driving the Puma occasionally. It's great for chasing along country roads, and has others have already said, handles superbly and is heaps of fun.

I don't know if this link has been posted, but make no apology for posting it again. It's the Top Gear Car of the year video for 1997

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3QuH7z1Z1o

just watched the video
Tiff was having a hoot in it wasn't he

[thetapeworm]

y2blade said:

I think I'm regressing into a 20y/o....I fancy a raspy zorst on the Puma, I had a Magnex stainless system on my KA

I have a 4" slash-cut Piper system in the garage if you want a cheap way of finding your inner 20-year-old chav. Lovely little pops when you back off

[y2blade]

thetapeworm said:

y2blade said:

I think I'm regressing into a 20y/o....I fancy a raspy zorst on the Puma, I had a Magnex stainless system on my KA

I have a 4" slash-cut Piper system in the garage if you want a cheap way of finding your inner 20-year-old chav. Lovely little pops when you back off

I better not, my otherhalf would disown me

[collateral]

Worth saying if they feel a bit scrabbly under power then get the tracking looked at. Transformed mine, although I think it needs doing again (stupid kerbs!)

[morgrp]

Pumas leave me cold - I'm not doubting they're a great steer as they are good to drive but if I wanted a small zingy coupe with an appetite for corrosion I'd buy a CRX V-tec

[Dave_ST220]

y2blade said:

I'm really keen to get back in a Ford....my last one was a 98 KA, and that was a lot of fun apart from the awful old Endura E lump (perhaps mine was a lemon but I had a brand new engine fitted under warranty within a month of buying it then a further 2 major Mechanical failures in just over 1 year)

No I think they were all just st! Used to be the favored coutesy car around here, brand new sounded like a rately under powered heap of st. The only good thing about it was my car felt super quick again for the drive home Brakes were bloody awful too.

Now compare that to the lovely 1.7 in the Puma

[zcacogp]

y2blade said:

sparkythecat said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3QuH7z1Z1o

just watched the video
Tiff was having a hoot in it wasn't he

Awesome, awesome video.

Clearly shows Tiff as the talented driver he is, with Clarkson nothing more than a (younger-looking) idiot. And poor old Willson stuck in the back seat ...

Makes me yearn for the days of proper TG as well.


Oli.

[y2blade]

what is the story with the "Millennium" Edition ones?

[FWDRacer]

Nice black leather seats - God awful yellow exterior paint

[y2blade]

FWDRacer said:

Nice black leather seats - God awful yellow exterior paint

I thought it looked good
hopefully going to have a look and talk cash on Saturday as there is one just up the road on a small car-lot

[Potto]

y2blade said:

what is the story with the "Millennium" Edition ones?

I have a Millenium. Yes, it is now a few different shades of yellow, but the perforated leather recaro interior really make the interior feel special. The seats themselves are fantastically supportive with big bolsters, and they are also set lower than the standard ford jobbies which helps not only access but also driving position.
The Milleniums also come with most of the available spec options for the car, air-con (which still works perfectly after 11 years), heated front screen and a few other bits. I bought mine off my brother as a go-between car after my 200sx, and that was a year and half ago. I'm worried that if I sell it to buy something else, it will cost more and not be as much fun.
Puma ownership should be a cheap experience, with half decent tyres for ~£40 (used to be less than £30 6 months ago) and all the parts for sale cheaply it should be cheap to run.
Do check your cambelt regularly though. There is a special ford tool required to fit it properly. The reason i'm quite so edgey about this is that mine slipped a tooth on a perfectly in-date under-milage cambelt last month and it was whole new engine jobbie to fix, although I got a low milage engine delivered for less than £300.
The only grumbles I would have about the Puma is that whereas the brakes feel strong enough during normal driving, when you have to emegency stop they are left lacking and can lead to some bowel-emptying moments. Also, 5th gear is geared a bit too short to be a real motorway car. At 70mph the car is doing 3500rpm, which is a bit noisy with the Milltek have fitted and isn't great for economy but none of this matters when you're chucking it down a twisty challenging b-road, grinning like a simpleton. Here she is in Marmite yellow..
And some oldskool recaro porn:


Oh, and for any doubters out there, this man chose a Puma in which to do his driver training VHS..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTgXI1RlseE

[Potto]

Its probably only quite so noisy on mine because of the full Milltek system I have fitted, and under normal conditions the noise of the exhaust is very throttle dependent, it doesn't make loads of noise when you're not pushing it but motorway speeds it sounds a bit droney.
I used to have a Forester as well hora and my mother still has one but when I drive that now the lack of feedback through the steering wheel is quite frankly a bit scary after being used to the Puma..

[collateral]

Dave_ST220 said:

y2blade said:

I'm really keen to get back in a Ford....my last one was a 98 KA, and that was a lot of fun apart from the awful old Endura E lump (perhaps mine was a lemon but I had a brand new engine fitted under warranty within a month of buying it then a further 2 major Mechanical failures in just over 1 year)

No I think they were all just st! Used to be the favored coutesy car around here, brand new sounded like a rately under powered heap of st. The only good thing about it was my car felt super quick again for the drive home Brakes were bloody awful too.

Now compare that to the lovely 1.7 in the Puma

A while ago someone on here posted up photos of a Ka with a 1.7 conversion. Bet that was quite a giggle.

Used to know of a bloke with a turbo'd Puma but it seemed to be constantly broken/being fixed, and then he got an S3 instead

[thetapeworm]

hora said:

On the gears/gearing- its spot on IMO however a 6th gear would make it perfect (As the motorway gear). Saying that at 4,000 steady revs it doesn't sound especially loud or strained does it?

6th would be ideal, I used to find myself constantly trying to shift into an invisible gear on the motorway after thinking I must be in 3rd. This became more of an annoyance on a trip to Poland and back, even a 7th might have been useful

[y2blade]

collateral said:

Dave_ST220 said:

y2blade said:

I'm really keen to get back in a Ford....my last one was a 98 KA, and that was a lot of fun apart from the awful old Endura E lump (perhaps mine was a lemon but I had a brand new engine fitted under warranty within a month of buying it then a further 2 major Mechanical failures in just over 1 year)

No I think they were all just st! Used to be the favored coutesy car around here, brand new sounded like a rately under powered heap of st. The only good thing about it was my car felt super quick again for the drive home Brakes were bloody awful too.

Now compare that to the lovely 1.7 in the Puma

A while ago someone on here posted up photos of a Ka with a 1.7 conversion. Bet that was quite a giggle.

Used to know of a bloke with a turbo'd Puma but it seemed to be constantly broken/being fixed, and then he got an S3 instead

Pumaspeed (iirc) were doing a drive-in drive-out conversion for £3k back when I had mine

[y2blade]

Potto said:

Its probably only quite so noisy on mine because of the full Milltek system I have fitted, and under normal conditions the noise of the exhaust is very throttle dependent, it doesn't make loads of noise when you're not pushing it but motorway speeds it sounds a bit droney.
I used to have a Forester as well hora and my mother still has one but when I drive that now the lack of feedback through the steering wheel is quite frankly a bit scary after being used to the Puma..

I got your Email and very interested please keep me posted
I did try replying but my phone threw a hissy-fit