Fiesta and Focus had to die for this.

A 2019 car at a 2024 price.

When I watch this - its a reality check. I bought a new Mustang Bullitt in 2019 for R995k. I was at Ford the other day and looked at this Puma. it looked great. Until i saw the price. your review further adds detail to what is compromised here. Mustang has averaged 10,5l/100km over 60,000km. so 7,5l/100km for a 3 cyl isn't great consumption. There are so many things missing here. Pity. Ford normally get it right. I don't think they did with this one.

A 1L engine for R600K is insane.

I drive a 2013 Fiesta ST with the 1.6 EcoBoost motor. It has about 140 000km on it in over 10 years, and I've had zero issues. However... I service it more regularly than what Ford recommends. Sadly, despite how much I love my Fiesta, wouldn't buy another Ford in SA. Not because of the cars, but their customer service.

5:37 imagine cylinder deactivation on a 3cyl💀 a 3cyl!?😭

I have seen the Puma in person, it's smaller than a Jolion, it's about VW T-Cross size and not as big as the VW T-Roc

When he started singing, I thought of some other blonde south african motoring journalist that always sings while doing her review 🙈

You guys are most definitely the best motoring show in SA! Could teach the guys on Ignition TV a thing or 5. Personally, I would have some of the cheaper competitors. I like spare money! An H6 for R60k less!!! Even the Tiggo7Pro and the Mahindra!

😂really enjoyed your test👍 Currently owner myself of Ford fiesta ecoboost dsg 2017 and odo now on 220000 still running like a watch with no breakdowns of any kind. Also my first Ford and what a good buy.

I absolutely loved this review guys. You guys nail it with every single one of your reviews. I like this car but unfortunately it costs to much for the size of this car, I mean this car costs more than a Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max. But nevertheless I thoroughly enjoyed this review especially after a long day of work. You guys reviews calm me. Please do more budget car reviews this year guys when you get budget test cars as it's a very overlooked segment and not many people review them as thoroughly as you guys. I enjoyed that grand i10 review last year and I'm looking forward to more budget car reviews from this channel as well as times are tough. I trust you guys reviews with my life ❤😊

That price is crazy! Here in Australia, this has been on sale for 4 years and prices start at $30, 840 AUD currently (R383,051) which is considered to be on the higher end of the market compared to its rivals. Hasn't exactly done well here as well, due to that higher price and Ford AU's reputation for poorly marketing anything other than its Ranger/Everest models.

Market has its own way of adjusting. Second hand puma are gonna depreciate quickly

Glad you guys added sound system checks, it's a big thing for many South Africans and basically no car reviewers do it. I only realised how crap the jimny's sound system was when I sat in it.

LOL 600K for this?! Ford aren't serious

I actually own one of these. Vignale in Grey Matter. Yes, it is expensive but it also feels and drives like an expensive car. It replaced a 2018 Polo TSI. Fuel consumption is around 5.2 litres/100km. Happy with the car. Mine has massage function on the front seats and traffic jam assist. It takes the sting out of sitting in traffic because of load shedding.

Fun fact: This "crossover" has less ground clearance than a Polo

Ford should bring back the focus or Fiesta .500k plus is way to expensive, which is more expensive than the starting price of single cab ranger.500k can also get you mazda cx5 which looks way better and much bigger.

Favourite part of this video - Ciro belting out his ‘tunez’ 😂 Great video. I want to like this car. But the value proposition is killing it for me. Interested to see what the Territory will offer!

Got my 2013 Ford Fiesta Titanium on 300 000 km in December. No issues. Just need to drive well and look after your stuff. EZ

Ford SA can go kick rocks. R614K for a 1L 3 cylinder engine found in the departed Fiesta and EcoSport plus a maintenance plan or service plan is optional? Insanity. Bring the Focus back. Question how much ís that Ford Territory going to cost given the price of this hatchback on stilts? I'm done SA motor industry.

Would've loved to hear which cars from the legacy brands it compares to... E.g. T-cross / Roc or Corolla Cross???

I’ve got this car in the UK, and love it. The facelift has just been released - fortunately the outside is virtually identical, but the inside has been overhauled. A bigger screen, but a lot less buttons, which I don’t like. Glad I’ve got this version. A great review, with a good mix of information and humour!

Went to car dealer a few years ago, I was looking at a B-Max, was quite keen actually. Sales person wanted to show me another car, so pressed him for a reason, he just spoke soflty saying stay away. Nothing more. A rubber belt in Hot Oil .... mmmmmm .... This car, the Puma, has the same engine and similar mechanical layout to a Fiesta, B-max etc. Basically its late, very late to our market. Expensive and really not competitive. Haven't seen one on the road, other than the demo units.

Car prices are simply ridiculous. In 2022, I bought a Nissan Navara 4x4 with 1500km on the clock for the same price as this Ford Puma. I simply can't get my head around the fact that this little hot wheels car costs the same as my bakkie 2 years ago.

I feel like this misses the mark. I had the 2018 ecosport (pre facelift) and paid just under R300k for the titanium. This car is double the price and you’re just getting fancy tech like electric tail gates and what what but it’s basically the same car. Same engine, similar size. For this price, you can pick up a second hand suv with more creature comforts, you could even get a bakkie (that’s what I did). I get that the ecosport doesn’t exist anymore but imagine ford trying to tell an ecosport owner that need to spend double to get a slightly fancy version of the same car?!

Awesome review Ciro! On a side note - what is happening with new car prices in SA if an affordable Ford is R500k + 😐😐

Remember when Ford had like 10 cars to choose from and the cheapest one started from like R180,000.

Trust me that 1.0 is problematic. Uber drivers tried that engine and it kept on breaking down. There is a lot about that engine notwithstanding the very many awards it won.

Finally!!! This is a really nice car, the price point is definitely insane considering Cherry and Haval's offerings these days. Hopefully this car will also price down like the Fiat 500x did!

Came for the review, but stayed for the pure class entertainment. 🤣

Nice Review as always...Next time try a white t-shirt with those white Nike Air Force1

Direct comparison is Opel mokka which is more premium compare to this ford. Great video as always, don't forget to bring back cooler box

death by the groot doos 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 good one

How many Puma varients have they sold since its arrival in october?

Far too expensive for what you get. Your second hand car site offers a lot and have many features the other sites don't have wich you obviously looked at . But it is too complicated.

This guy is a legend.

Is this the Ford motor with the oil soaked rubber cambelt and oil pump drive belt?

This is meerly a stop-gap replacement car. It has at the most, another 3 years left in Europe and we are just an after-thaught for Ford. It also indicates the financial outlook Ford expects for sales in SA. 😅

Hi Ciro. I love the style of your reviews as well as your very useful insights. Your accent also makes me miss home. I moved to Auz 9 years ago, and at that time prices in SA and Auz were almost identical. Fast forward 9 years and Saffers seem to be getting fleeced when purchasing a car. The Puma ST line is R475,000 in Auz. (at todays exchange rate). This would not include a maintenance plan. A few months ago my wife and were shopping for 2 small SUV's. We tested the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross (1.4 turbo, CVT), Mazda CX30 (2 L naturally aspirated, Torque converter), Suzuki Vitara (1.4 turbo auto), Ford Puma as per your test, VW T-Cross (1L turbo, DCT), VW T-Roc (1.4 with torque converter), Skoda Kamiq (1L turbo, DCT) , Kia Seltos (2L CVT). All in the Puma's price range. My wife and I put the Puma at the bottom of our list. My wife chose the Kia Seltos Sport + that has every conceivable comfort and safety feature available. She liked the styling, real SUV looks (not pumped up hatch back), high stance, effortless ride and low price. Only real downside is the higher than average fuel consumption, but it uses the cheapest 91 Octane fuel. I went for the Skoda Kamiq which is not available in SA. It's a more spacious, slightly better handling/performance, more premium interior, more goodies and at a better price than it's VW T-Cross cousin. After I bought the car, a saw a site called Chasing Cars. They compared about 12 small SUV's and they crowned the Skoda Kamiq "king of the heap". The Kamiq has about double the rear leg and headroom of the PUMA and the NVH is much lower to. The Kamiq also beat the Puma in the Moose and breaking test. The Kamiq has things like dual zone climate control, 4 usb ports, wireless phone charging, digital dash, Android Auto, Apple Carplay, all the safety features, adaptive cruise control and 18" rims. BUT here is the kicker. I bought the Kamiq new 6 months ago for R 452,0000 and it came with a 7 year warrantee and a 7 year service plan (free car loan when servicing). Given Australia's proximity to China we have all the Chinese vehicles and they are starting to make in roads due to their competitive price (For most traditional Azzie's, Chinese cars are taboo, but they are popular with immigrants from non European countries and the budget conscious. Having said that, the MG small SUV is a top selling vehicle. MG electric cars are very popular too). For me the price difference is not enough to switch from a European brand, but if I was in SA, buying Chinese would be a no brainer given the high prices of the traditional brands.

Before purchasing any Ford with the 3 cylinder ecoboost motor, you should research the issues with the degradation of the the internal rubber timing belts that run in oil. There is currently a class action on the go in Canada. I for one would not purchase any vehicle with this engine. The life of this engine beyond ten years seems to be an issue. These belts are very expensive to replace. You should check your drained oil for rubber debris. These debris can block the oil pickup and cause oil starvation with catastrophic results. Comments from Ford SA on this potential issue would be welcome.

Recently bought a new Renault captur intens for R370k low mileage 113kw and 270nm - 7sp dual clutch gearbox Wonder why Ciro never took it for a review?

613k 😢 you can get a base model new ranger 😂 Not to mention other closer companions such as Cherry, Haval and VW that are way better on that 613k . I wanna drive it just to experience the switching off 3rd cylinder 😅 Great Review Ciro 💯

Just an FYI, Ciro, the 1L Ecoboom has just been recalled in the US and UK for various issues related to it cannabilising its own timing belt and clogging up the oil pump. But you know Ford won't give us that recall treatment until we get a few "accidents".

The day I saw this car at a Ford branch I questioned an individual's sanity for buying it due to having owned ford for a while. Just dealing with their services brings instant ticks and eye twitching. Notwithstanding the price? How do they justify that other than inflation and customs charges? But then again, I tend to purchase vehicles with an intent and not look.

Heard from 2 friends that they needed a full engine replacement from failed pistons on the 1l turbo from ford.

Remember those things we used to get, affordable sedans.... They used to offer this ability.

Is the kuga not more of a direct than the comparison vs the ecosport

As USUAL, great unbiased straight talk review. You ve summarises this car very well.

Please do s buyers guide of the corolla quest 2014 model

That Sound system is fire... Please review the 2023 Jeep Grand Cheerokee

There’s also the returning Ford Territory coming soon, interested in what the price bracket might be , probably ranging between the R700K-R800K margin

It's intriguing. Looks small like a Datsun Go, yet it's sizeable

In about 10 years, most of the big brands wont be in SA anymore. The way our economy is going, the Chinese and Indian brands will be the majority on the roads. Sad…

It is not all that bad and it looks great in that colour with those wheels!

I thoroughly enjoy all the content you produce and especially the buying advice, I will never use your website for purchases though. There is no option to report the dodgy dealers who are advertising on your website, do you not have a team that is checking that all the listings are valid and not false advertising or is your company only interested in the revenue it gets from dealers posting listing on your site? there really needs to be some sort of verification process to protect the buyers using your website to look for vehicles

From the side, this Puma looks like a jacked up Baleno or Starlet I would definitely go for the Chery's or Havals rather than this.

What was Ford thinking... Their direct competitor would be the T-Roc RLine 2023 with 6000KM R650 000 😊

We need a head to head in the Ford puma and GWM Ora!!!. But for small city / town living

Regarding the 1.0L Ecoboost engine: I have a 2016 Ford focus, 8 years old with 160 000km on the clock, not a single problem to date.

My 2L GTi was 600k and comes with more features with a bulletproof engine and gearbox..just can’t imagine paying that much for a pap 1litre from Ford. Especially since it’s not exactly spacious in terms of practicality.

Please always do a sound system test

I would rather travel from PTA to Cape Town on a skateboard than pay this price for a big Shoe with wheels 😂

Nice review, Ciro. I reckon this car will sell like hot cakes - just like that Fiesta B-Max.

One would be insane or completely lost to pay for this 4 year old car, which is going to be upgraded in April anyway 😅

9:54 the real question is, how does the scientific camera box test compare to the tried and tested coolerbox test 😂

Whats the name of the intro song!?

Sad fact @fordsa got this so wrong that the Puma would properly quietly disappear from our market. Due to lack of sales and they just created another problem for themselves. The new Territory needs to be priced higher than the Puma so it doesn't steal sales. So the Territory will complete with the Chery 8Pro and Haval H9. But again once when the Puma is off the market they can introduce a budget Territory to fill the gap. Its not like we need a armrest, usb ports, vents, electric windows or seats at the back 😂. Puma is a great car just R150 000 - R180 000 over priced.

If I may add something left field. I always stated the best Fords are the European made ones, traditionally. Mondeo Mk3 - you could not beat it. The Puma is made in Romania, almost Eastern block, almost Europe, but it qualifies. So it will be made better that an Indian Ford for example. The one other plus point Mr. De Siena did not touch, where I believe the Puma will have the upper hand over the chinian cars will be fun factor and good handling characteristics. After all, it runs on the famously brilliant Fiesta platform. And that in itself in my opinion makes it worth the extra rhinos. My 2004 2.0 Mondeo still gets less that 7 l/100km on the open road with 350k on the clock. I am sure the Puma will easily trump that. Keep in mind also the chinian cars are not renowned for frugality and we do not really know how they will last either. The upcoming Territory may be the the nail in the coffin for the Puma in South Africa, so if you want one, get it now.

To put this into context, you only need to add R9k to get the tiggo 8 pro with 145kw and 290N

What happened to the cooler box?

Maybe they just build the 1.0 eco boost properly for SA. The engine in the EU, UK and USA got the nickname the "ecoboom" because of how unreliable it is. Something about poorly designed oil feed lines clogging up, and a timing belt (or guide, I forget which) which is soluble in oil...

Ford SA are smoking Tik if they think that this car is good value for money at that price... These things are everywhere you look in the UK and you can pick them up for silly money on the 1000`s of finance deals available here...

Juliet stopped singing, and you started 😂 Hard pass on the car. The price is eye watering for what you get. For that I’d rather but a second hand BMW X3.

This Vehicle is price my wife went from Ford Fiest 1.0 trendline to a Mazada CX-5 , I would think my wife would be the perfect target market, school runn, toddlers prams and Shopping getter but even the second-hand market has a better alternative Q5/Q3 low millages would be less then 600k

for the MegaBox i would just get a drill and a universal rubber grommet and boom wash box UK spec my guy!!!🤤

My mother bought a B Max brand new. One service in the engine went bang. As in Ford had to replace the engine. Other than that nothing out of the ordinary has failed. But an engine going kaput while the car is quite new is rather something.

So basically, the near sell by date stock they trying to get rid off in SA before new stock arrives. Would love to see how this compares to the VW T-Cross 1.5 Rline

This is going to be my next car, but ill wait for 3 year before getting it.

The Carly Rae Jepsen section of this video absolutely slapped 🙌🏽

What is better this car or Suzuki fronex or the Kia Sonet ? I’m not to sure

Thanks, great review. Always enjoy the videos. When I can buy a T Roc for that price…sorry no not for a fiesta on stilts 😅

Bring back the cooler box test

I m driving an EcoSport. Tried to trade in my Eco for this Puma. I didn't like the Puma. Even with the seat in the lowest position i couldn't see the instrument cluster clearly, to see the suspended traffic lights i was forced to look at it in a awkward position. I am a 1.9 m tall person so I quit on trading in our EcoSport ( yob 2019). Bigger/deeper boot than on the EcoSport, which by the way is not eco nor sport, especially with automatic gearbox. The puma (at least with a manual gearbox) is more agile compared with the EcoSport.

I loved my 1L ecoboost Ford Focus. Amazing power and seriously great to drive. 600k.... ouch!!!

Great useable review Ciro covering all important aspects. This car doesn't make sense and yet it costs so much with no basic features. How can a car that costs over R600 000 have no rest USB ports and Air vents. Ford has lost the plot here and yet someone out there will buy this car.

Mazda CX5 money for this Puma is crazy.

I broke on of the pistons in my Ecosport on 138000km. Needles to say, I had it fixed and traded it in. I don't really think the 1L ecoboost engine I'd that great.

Surprised to find Bang and Olufson in a Ford. Wow

If it had a starting price of about R480 000 it would have been out of stock by now

...would like to hear your comments when the engine has complete failure and Ford SA is absent...

A couple of things: -Great review! -Overpriced -How did they sell so many in their first month at that price??? -Ford service levels in SA are horrible. That is why I sold my Ranger. -Is this engine not like 10 years old? How is the car still so expensive with no additional engine development costs? -Car looks cool, but pricey.

A brand new Ranger Double Cab starts at slightly less price than Puma, the issue is that more people can comfortably move around with Puma than with Ranger.

Boot is clever. However, go and have a look at the previous generation Peugeot 3008 . It is even better..... so sad they changed it on the new 3008 ....

Look at the Proton x50 premium, R580k. Bigger engine, great interior. Well specced.

My old corolla has a dranage system in the booth lol

Ford wholeheartedly priced themselves out of the the South African market on this one. They have lost the plot completely after discontinuing the Fiesta, Figo and Focus.

Utter madnes, Ford South Africa are mad!! I was also looking at but decided against, the government needs to look into the price of new cars something isn't right here.

recall on the ecoboost 1L

The review is a lot better than the car. In my view.