Ford Puma 1.7 Review

“Before I had the Puma I had a Ka for 18 months and I...”

Written on: 12/04/2004 by guyincognito1975 (1 review written)

Good Points
Superb Handling, peerless chassis, rev hungry motor, looks, driving position.

Bad Points
Water ingress at boot, poor rear three quarter visibility.

General Comments
Before I had the Puma I had a Ka for 18 months and I thought I would struggle to replace it with something that gave such a buzz from driving at legal speeds.

I was wrong, I actually test drove a 1.7 when they first came out but I couldn't afford it so got the Ka2 instead but prices came down and I now own a shiny Green 1.7 Puma.

On a short back road journey it feels like a rally car, you really struggle to find understeer unless you are completely inept. Even on a long journey (Edinburgh to Forres) you step out feeling good and with a huge smile on your face.

Downsides? Tiny fuel tank! The mpg figure is fine if you go carefully but frankly if you want fuel economy buy a turbo diesel. The boot lid will run water straight into the boot and the wheels kick dirt up the sides of the car really quickly. I fitted the Ford Mudflaps, it is a fiddly job but well worth it as it looks OK and protects the paintwork behind the front wheels especially.

My advice is buy one before the boy racers start buying them. You can pick up a FSH 1.7 with 50k for £5.5k.