Ford Puma - Reliability and safety

Ford’s 30th-place finish in the 2024 Auto Express Driver Power customer-satisfaction survey means that the manufacturer beat only Fiat and MG to avoid the bottom spot. Far fewer owners of the Italian brand’s models (11.8 per cent) experienced faults in their first year of ownership than Ford drivers (20.8 per cent), too. 

The Puma has slipped in terms of its safety ranking, downgraded from a five-star result to four stars after Euro NCAP retested it in 2022. The industry safety body criticised the Puma’s front seat and headrest design, but it isn’t the only small SUV to receive a four-star score; the Hyundai Bayon and Vauxhall Mokka also came up short under the same assessment. If you’re looking for class rivals offering a five-star rating, then you should look at the SEAT Arona or Toyota Yaris Cross.

The Puma does win back some points because it features all the safety technology you’d expect, including cruise control, a lane keeping aid with departure warning, Pre-Collision Assistance with Autonomous Emergency Braking, Pedestrian/Cyclist Detection and Post-Collision Braking. Other useful features include auto headlights, rain-sensing wipers and a tyre pressure monitoring system.

Those wishing to upgrade further can opt for the Driver Assistance pack (£950), which adds a blind spot warning, adaptive cruise control and a rear-view camera, among other features.

Warranty

Every new Puma comes with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty from Ford. Many rivals now offer owners a stronger, longer package than this, including Kia (seven years, 100,000 miles), MG (seven years, 80,000 miles) and Hyundai (five years, unlimited mileage).

Servicing

Ford offers a competitive service plan for the Puma, which comes to £370 based on a three-year agreement. Unusually, Ford recommends a service every two years or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.