Ford Puma ST Fast Fleet test – 12,000 miles in the 200bhp crossover

A year and 12,000 miles after we took delivery, time is up for the Fast Fleet Puma ST. During that time Ford’s performance crossover has been an intriguing presence in our line-up of long-termers, which is exactly why we wanted to run one: to find out how much appeal a car of this kind has for people like us. 

To get as many different opinions as possible, our Puma changed hands a fair number of times in the year we had it, but it started in mine. With the Jenkins household also in possession of a Mk8 Fiesta ST at the time, it made for a fascinating comparison. Based on the same underpinnings as its hatchback sibling, the Puma’s numbers are near-identical, but a 78kg weight disadvantage, higher centre of gravity and tweaked chassis set-up remove some of the Fiesta’s playful edge. Nevertheless, a more practical crossover that can offer at least some of the Fiesta ST’s thrills is surely a proposition worth exploring.

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Open the door, slide into the well-bolstered Ford Performance seat and it’s Fiesta all over. While positive in some aspects, the increase in cabin space you’d anticipate from the crossover over its hatchback relative proved not quite as pronounced as we’d hoped. What the Puma does gain is a larger boot and a nifty 80-litre ‘MegaBox’ compartment under its floor, offering useful storage capacity the Fiesta simply can’t muster.

Should your particular use case call for this added practicality, the Puma ST can be a great tool. Its ride is a tad harsh at low speeds and busy on a B-road for everyday driving, but the ability to fill it to the brim with goods and passengers while enjoying elements of the Fiesta ST is unmatched. In a world of all-wheel drive, automatics and complex hybrid assistance, the Puma’s back-to-basics hot hatch drivetrain was particularly appreciated – our car also came equipped with the Performance Package, giving it a Quaife limited-slip differential and making it even more entertaining on the right roads.

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The Puma ST does have its foibles though, with its controls requiring a longer period of acclimatisation than you might expect. As staff photographer Aston Parrot took the key, he immediately noted its oversensitive brakes, which are unusually difficult to modulate during normal road driving. He also discovered the car’s oddly quick steering rack, one that’s faster than even the Fiesta ST’s. Combine these factors with a sharp throttle response and that fussy ride and you have a car that’s tricky to drive smoothly on first acquaintance – not ideal for a volume car with broad appeal.

With time and miles, though, the Puma ST began to make more sense, with its excellent 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder the star of the show. From its thrummy, flat-six-esque exhaust note to its keen, torque-laden power delivery, the 197bhp, 236lb ft engine suits the Puma perfectly. The six-speed manual it’s connected to isn’t awfully satisfying, but a brief drive in a Mountune-modified Puma proved that a more tactile billet aluminium shift knob and a short shift kit go a long way to improving this. The only drawback of the engine is its fuel economy – an overall average mpg in the low 30s is on the cards if you’re keen on a spirited drive, making it not particularly economical given its modest capacity and minimalist cylinder count.

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Richard Meaden, who owns a Mk7 Fiesta ST200, enjoyed elements of the Puma ST in isolation. After some time behind the wheel though, he began to find it a little tiresome. ‘The suspension is lumpen and struggles to settle, and the steering tends to pull and be generally distracted by cambers and white lines,’ he said. ‘There’s decent grip and a playful balance, but country roads always feel a bit of a fight as you try to keep it on an accurate course. You also feel like you’re being tossed around, head continually bobbling about like you’re experiencing turbulence in an airliner.’ Stuart Gallagher had similar opinions, noting: ‘The Puma feels one dimensional in comparison to the Fiesta, with a blunt approach to dynamics and a heavy-handed feel to its steering and ride.’

In the end, none of us fell in love with the Puma ST, but then the laws of physics dictate that a hot hatch will always take precedence over a crossover for evo-minded people. However, there’s no other car in its class we’d rather have spent time with, and for those who are seeking something compact but need that extra shot of practicality, the Puma ST is worthy of consideration.

This story was first featured in evo issue 311.