Ford Puma (2024 - ) review

When the Puma launched it offered great value for money, yet prices for the mild hybrid have crept up and it now sits in line with full hybrid rivals such as the Renault Captur and Toyota Yaris Cross. Running costs should still be reasonable, though, with our 155 horsepower 1.0-litre EcoBoost automatic test car managing a reasonable mid-40s mpg. Alternatively, Ford has just launched the all-electric Puma Gen-E. This will cost much less to run if you can charge at home, plus you’ll get more standard features. The Gen-E will also be the Puma of choice for company drivers looking to reduce their Benefit In Kind.

Ford has ranked in the mid to lower half of recent reliability surveys and has an average reputation more generally. All Fords come with a three-year or 60,000-mile warranty which is industry standard, though not as generous as Kia or MG. For extra peace of mind, you can of course extend your cover for a fee. Our test car felt pretty solid, but on one occasion the air conditioning didn’t turn on. No matter how many times we jabbed the touchscreen to adjust the fan speed and temperature, nothing happened, so we had to resort to turning the car off and on again, which eventually got the cold air flowing.

All Pumas come with the usual list of safety features, including emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, lane keeping assistance and cruise control. You’ll also get a reversing camera and rear parking sensors as standard. However, the Driving Assistance Pack adding adaptive cruise control with steering assistance, all around parking sensors, a 360-degree camera, and blind spot monitoring is a paid option on all but range-topping ST cars. This adds nearly £1,000 to the cost of the car, which seems rather steep. We had this pack fitted to our test car and found the bind spot monitoring – which is usually one of our favourite assistance systems – to be a bit overly sensitive. On a few occasions it flashed when nothing was there and could easily be triggered by parked cars on the other side of the road, which at least forced us to be extra diligent at checking our mirrors before every manoeuvre.

The first thing we noticed when we got into the Puma was the steering wheel, which is large and squared off top and bottom so you can see the big display behind. It feels out of place in such a compact car, and it means you catch a protruding corner as you steer around even the gentlest of bends. This creates a disconnect between you and the car, which is a shame given the driving position is otherwise good and the seats are comfy with ample lumbar support. Our test car had the sports suspension fitted to cars with ST-Line trim or above. The ride is on the firmer side, but not uncomfortable and it gave us a lot of confidence in the corners. The Puma’s rear seats offer an average amount of space and enough room to fit two adults comfortably, or three at a squeeze. Then there’s the Puma’s party piece. Under the height-adjustable boot floor hides what Ford calls the “MegaBox”. This utilises the space which would usually be taken up by spare wheel gubbins creating a waterproof storage area and there’s even a plug so you can hose it down.

Following the latest round of updates Ford has shoehorned a new larger central touch-screen and digital driver's display into the Puma’s dashboard. The SYNC4 infotainment system is a little drab compared to Renault’s Google-powered set up, but it does the job and supports wireless CarPlay and Android Auto. There are three levels of trim – Titanium, ST-Line and ST-Line X – plus the sportier ST model. ST-Line Puma’s gain some aesthetic tweaks over the standard car with body colour wheel arches, sportier styling, and ST-Line upholstery with red stitching. Moving to ST-Line X adds a synthetic leather and suede interior, a powered tailgate, keyless entry, a Bang & Olufsen sound system and a wireless charger. You’ll also get puma-shaped puddle lights. Costs mount up quickly if you want extras like the panoramic sunroof and you have to go all the way up to the ST to get heated seats and steering wheel, which feels a little stingy.

The Puma evolved out of the Fiesta, and inherited the same nimble handling. This gives the Puma a much more involving driving experience than its key rivals. The fizzy turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol engine is available as a manual or automatic with either 125 horsepower or 155 horsepower. All are aided by a mild hybrid system, which helps efficiency but doesn’t allow for any all-electric driving. The Puma can be a bit rumbly around town, but our 155 horsepower automatic test car had plenty of pep to get up to motorway speeds. It was a little slow to get going when we needed a quick burst of power for overtaking on a twisty road, though. The Puma’s selectable drive modes – Normal, Eco, Sport, Slippery and Trail – do alter how the car responds, but accessing them via a touch-screen is fiddly to do on the move. If you are after something a bit sportier, the Puma ST offers 170 horsepower from the same 1.0-litre mild hybrid engine, however, this has lost 30 horsepower on the previous model. It is also now only available as an automatic which will be a blow to those looking for maximum fun in a practical family car.