Ford Puma SUV review (2019 - 2025)

What is the Ford Puma?

When the Ford Puma compact SUV (or, more correctly, crossover) was announced in 2019, the internet was awash with naysayers bemoaning Ford for using the Puma badge on its new crossover model. It's hard to imagine why anyone really cares that the badge was previously used on a small coupe, especially as the Puma name had lain dormant for nearly 20 years before Ford stuck it across the pretty rump of its latest crossover.

Fitting under the similarly feline-themed Kuga in the Ford crossover line-up, and alongside the unremarkable – in both looks and driving manners – EcoSport, the 4.2-metre long Puma has injected a bit of style into compact crossover class.

Ford hasn’t forgotten that it needs to be practical, too, and has given the Puma boot space that’s among the biggest in the class. As of 2025, you can also now get the Puma with a pure electric powertrain. The Ford Puma Gen-E gets a 43kWh battery and a range of 233 miles, which puts it up against rivals like the Skoda Elroq, MGS5, Jeep Avenger and Kia EV3. It is sold alongside the 1.0-litre Ecoboost mild hybrid petrol Puma, which takes on everything from other small SUVs like the Renault Captur and Nissan Juke, through to traditional family hatches like the VW Golf.

Pragmatism aside, being based (loosely) on the Fiesta, it’s fun to drive. The Puma is easily the sharpest, most engaging car in a class that’s largely devoid of smiles behind the wheel. The steering is light and accurate, the suspension controls the body and wheels well, delivering the overall effect of an exciting, enthusiastic car, but one with a decent ride quality as well.

How practical is it?

Ford has clearly focussed on practicality with the Puma, and despite its supermini roots this compact crossover is surprisingly spacious. In the back there’s just enough room for two six-foot adults to squeeze in, although they won’t thank you for keeping them there for any length of time, but for kids it’s great. Access is also fairly easy thanks to wide-opening rear doors, while the car’s slightly raised ride height makes it a fraction easier to load and unload child seats – although you will find a bit more headroom in the Skoda Kamiq and Kia Niro than you do in the swoopy Ford.

Up front there’s a wide range of seat and wheel adjustment for the driver, so there should be no problem getting comfy. You can even get the seat nice and low for a sporty feel behind the wheel, or jack it right up to make the most of the Puma’s narrow height advantage of more conventional small cars. There is also a useful amount of storage in the Puma, with deep door bins, a large glovebox and – as of the facelift in 2025 that bought plusher materials, a bigger touchscreen and the addition of the electric Puma Gen-E – a raised, double-level storage area between the front seats.

More impressive is the Puma’s boot, which at 456 litres rivals some models from the class above. There’s also a false floor that can be used to keep valuables out of sight or lowered to create more space for larger items. Fold the 60/40 split/fold rear bench and there’s up to 1,216 litres of carrying capacity.

However, the star of the show is the deep ‘MegaBox’ compartment that’s hidden beneath the boot floor. This adds 80-litres of additional capacity, in a deep, waterproof-lined space and comes complete with a drainage plug, making it ideal for transporting muddy boots or sea water-soaked wet suits. Go for the Gen-E and that box (called the’GigaBox’ in honour of its bigger stature) is even bigger, at 145 litres, making for a total boot capacity in the electric Puma of 523 litres; way more than the boot of any similarly-sized rival.

What's it like to drive?

The Puma's crisp handling, front-wheel-drive chassis is powered by Ford’s 1.0-litre Ecoboost engine, which his a three-cylinder, turbocharged unit, complete with mild-hybrid (MHEV) technology and the choice of a six-speed manual or seven speed automatic transmission. That MHEV system is basically an advanced stop-start system that uses an electric motor to assist the 1.0-litre three-cylinder EcoBoost petrol engine to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. It works really well, whether in its 168bhp (on the sporty ST only) or 153. bhp or 123bhp guises. Then there’s the electric Puma Gen-E, which gets 165bhp and will do 0-62mph in 8.0 seconds.

You don’t need the range-topping ST to have fun with the Puma, though, because it’s enjoyable regardless of which model you pick. If you value ride comfort over outright agility, the standard car with its smaller 17-inch alloy wheels and less focussed suspension will be more appealing, but every Puma has neatly tied-down body control, lively handling and plenty of confidence. Even keen drivers will find something to enjoy here, this small Ford having enough dynamic appeal to make you genuinely consider taking the long way home.

We do have one gripe regards the Gen-E, though, and that’s with the one-pedal mode. This is the heaviest setting for an otherwise very moderate brake-regen setup on the Puma, and it means that you can drive around town without even needing to use the brake pedal. Just lift off the throttle and the car will slow to a complete stop, gathering energy to boost the car’s range and efficiency. It’s a feature in lots of electric cars, but in the Puma it’s a bit too grabby and you have to work quite hard to moderate the accelerator pedal very precisely if you want smooth stopping. Still, in the standard regen’ setting the Puma’s a doddle to drive smoothly, so it’s not likely to be a deal breaker.

Technology, equipment & infotainment

Ford offers four trim levels on the regular Puma, but such is the competitiveness in this class you really don’t need to pick anything other than the entry-level Titanium model. The standard equipment list includes 17-inch alloy wheels, a leather steering wheel and gearknob, cruise control, lane-keeping assist and lane-departure warning, automatic headlights, reversing camera, rain-sensing wipers and more. Just remember to add the £350 Winter pack to get heated seats, and keyless entry is also a £750 option. Keep in mind that the ST-Line trims, and faster ST model, all get sports suspension – so if comfort is more of a priority than style and razzy handling, the Titanium is definitely the Puma for you.

The electric Puma Gen-E is just as well equipped in the entry-level Gen-E Select, while top-spec Gen-E Premium adds bigger 18-inch alloy wheels, a Bang and Olufsen sound system and full Matrix LED headlights. You’ll still need to add those heated seats, though…

As of the 2025 facelift, all versions of the Puma are fitted with a new, 12-inch touchscreen with Ford’s SYNC 4 infotainment system, complete with nav, Bluetooth, over-the-air software updates and – most importantly – wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. We’d rather the air-con controls were separate to the screen, and some of the icons are a bit small and fiddly, but generally the system responds quickly and is easy enough to use.

Ford Puma running costs

It might be bigger in every dimension, but the Puma’s still basically a Fiesta with an on-trend crossover body. That should translate to supermini-like running costs, which is a good thing.

The engine choices don’t deny you fun for their parsimony, with fuel economy around the 48-52mpg mark in the WLTP combined fuel consumption testing schedule. CO2 emissions are between 122- and 135g/km on the same testing cycle. That means that the Ford is competitive on Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) company car tax and efficiency, next to its rivals, but a self-charging or plug-in hybrid alternative such as the Toyota C-HR will be usefully cheaper. Or, fully electric vehicles are by far the cheapest if you’re paying company car tax, making the Ford Puma Gen-E is a great option.

List prices are very competitive regardless of which Puma you’re considering, but we’d like to see the monthly PCP costs for the electric Gen-E drop a little lower.

Servicing can be purchased optionally on a two- or three-year Ford Protect Service Plan, which covers regular service costs with an easy monthly payment, and also extends the Ford Assistance offering. Or, if you go for the Puma Gen-E, Ford has no introduced its ‘Power Promise’ on all of its electric cars, which includes five years free servicing, 10,000 miles of charging costs and a free home charger. Given the savings that the Power Promise brings, together with competitive pricing from under £30,000 and class-best real-world efficiency, the Puma Gen-E promises to be one of the cheapest electric family cars to run.

All Ford Puma models are a long way under £40,000 – including the Gen-E - so you’ll not pay any additional VED payments or ‘premium car tax’, either.

Ford Puma reliability

While there have been a couple of recalls related to the Puma, it's worth remembering that these are common on many cars. The first relates to the hybrid battery connections, which could lead to a fire. Likewise, there has been a recall relating to the airbags, which may result in their protection function being impaired in the event of an accident. All of this should have been remedied already, but it’s always worth checking the registration of any potential purchase with Ford.

Ford doesn’t always cover itself in glory in the reliability stakes. In the 2024 What Car? Reliability Index, the Puma finished 19th out of the 23 cars in the small SUV class. Ford as an overall brand did a bit better, with a middle-of-the-pack 14th finish out of 31 brands in the survey.

There’s a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty on the Puma, which looks stingy these days, with Kia, MG, Hyundai and Toyota offering much longer warranties. At least the Puma Gen-E’s lithium-ion NMC battery comes with an eight year, 100,000 mile warranty – much the same as the battery cover on most EVs.