As I change cars most weeks, sometimes my wife has difficulty finding the press car in a supermarket car park. Was it a Ford or a Tesla this week, she is never sure. But no such problems last week finding the white Ford Puma EV, as it came in Frozen White which really stood out on those cold, frosty January days.
I got that ‘back to the future’ feeling when I sat into the Ford Puma Gen-E, which is full EV and not to be confused with the Gen Z generation. The dash in the interior reminded me of old Ford cars, like the Mondeo, Focus and Fiesta where the controls were so easy to use and the first item you saw when you started the car was the list of radio stations pop up on the infotainment screen. It also had a good old-fashioned button to control the radio volume, which was really appreciated.
In recent years Ford has changed direction and gone are the old reliables that I have mentioned above – in their place have come the Explorer and EV version of the Capri.
Now the Puma Gen-E, which is made in Craiova in Romania, is Ford’s fourth EV and one of the few small cars in the Ford range available in Ireland.
It’s a neat and attractive motor, but the range is poor and in winter time you will be lucky to get around 280km with a full charge.
Size-wise it’s about the same as the now discontinued Fiesta, but definitely not as spacious as the much loved Focus, especially in the back seat which can take two adults in comfort and where leg-room is tight.
I think this is the first time that Ford has used white lettering on their famous blue oval logo and the name Puma is also spelt out in white lettering on the boot. The daytime running lights are really cute.
Ford has very strong connections with Cork, but traditionally Ford cars have also been good sellers in the UK. We are told that over the past two years 200,000 units of the Puma were sold in the UK.
The dash, as mentioned above, is very neat and user-friendly. With most new electric cars there is no start/stop button, you simply engage the drive mode, put your foot on the accelerator and away you go. But the Puma does have a start-stop button on the dash.
One of the big selling points with the Puma Gen-E is the massive Giga Box in the boot which can hold a multitude of items. I don’t play golf and wasn’t if sure if that Giga Box could hold a set of golf clubs. So my son-in-law checked it out and yes you can get a golf bag in the boot, but not in the Giga box.
The Giga box is an ideal location to place items out of reach of would-be thieves. In the old days in Ireland, some people used to hide money under the mattress. The Giga box is safe, but I wouldn’t encourage people to put money in there. You also get a small Frunk at the front to hold the charge cables.
I have always liked Ford cars and the Puma was no different. It’s reasonably priced, but truth be told I would probably prefer it in a petrol version. Apart from Frozen White the Puma is available in five other colours, including Electric Yellow, Fantastic Red and Agate Black.
Prices start at €32,916, while the top of the range version will cost you €34,647.
