I drove UK’s best-selling car and realised there | Tech News

Recent figures reveal that the Ford Puma continues to be the UK’s top-selling car. After clinching the title in 2024, the micro-SUV may very well be set to repeat its success in 2025. According to SMMT information, to this point this 12 months, 30,764 models of the Puma have been bought. The Puma’s recognition has been considerably baffling, significantly after it changed the esteemed Fiesta as Ford’s smallest offering.

There had been considerations that discontinuing a vehicle that had been the UK’s best promoting car for 12 consecutive years and of which 4.1m models had been bought would journey up Ford. However, eight months into the 12 months, and the Ford Puma has solidified its place because the UK’s best-selling car, in line with Autocar. This begs the query, why is everybody shopping for one? As a critical (yes, very) journalist I felt compelled to seek out out.

After one week, I was nonetheless not sure why. The Puma is not a unhealthy car, in actual fact, it is fairly good and succesful all issues thought-about. But I did have some questions. The essential downside I have is the price. To be honest to the Puma, compared with its rivals, it holds its own.

The entry-level Titanium model begins at slightly below £27,000, making it a match for rivals just like the Toyota Yaris Cross and £500 cheaper than the Peugeot 2008. However, that is nonetheless about £1,000 more than the Volkswagen T-Cross.

If you are after one thing with a bit more energy, you may need the ST-line trim. The top-of-the-range Puma ST-Line X, full with its 1.0 litre Ecoboost engine and 7-speed computerized gearbox plus a few non-obligatory extras, will set you back £34,730.

Strip away a few of these choices and the usual on-the-road price is available in at £30,830.

And frankly, £30,000 feels a tad steep. From a purely superficial, first-glance, judging-a-book-by-its-cover perspective, it appears like paying for business class however flying economic system. Sure, they each land on the similar time, however that is nonetheless a hefty sum.

But, retaining that well-known literary metaphor in thoughts, what is the Puma like when you delve into a few chapters? Inside, the appeal to most patrons turns into instantly obvious – its very good practicality.

The boot is deeper and roomier than the Mariana Trench, and there are a lot of cubby holes and storage compartments for stashing further buying, keys, and varied bits and bobs.

Despite mourning the loss of most buttons, the central contact screen is user-friendly and one can simply regulate to it and different controls. It’s a car that is simple to get the dangle of, and I can see why it is perhaps chosen over its rivals.

The similar practicality was evident within the 2025 model we had for our second spin with the Puma during the week. This second vehicle was barely cheaper, priced at £29,280 in commonplace spec, however with added choices it totalled £32,680.

After a drive to Southend on a cloudy July day, my opinion remained unchanged. So what occurs when this compact car encounters corners, motorways, and different newly laid stretches of tarmac? I wasn’t anticipating Fiesta-like agility, but it surely got here semi-close. The chassis grips effectively, the engine is torquey, the steering responsive, but it surely feels let down by tyres that appeared to lose grip at comparatively low speeds.

There’s additionally the problem of the steering wheel, which, being massive and sq., feels too massive for the sort of car it is in; it really works effectively within the Ford Explorer, however not right here.

Perhaps it was the street, or possibly the current rainfall, however there was a noticeable lean and an acute awareness of being in a car that had as soon as been small however was now tasked with behaving like a bigger vehicle. The Puma’s measurement lends it a sure presence and stability on motorways and different roads, and its splendid one-litre engine makes it a pleasure to cruise in.

However, I walked away from each experiences harbouring the identical sentiment. Why would not you merely go for a second-hand Ford Fiesta as a substitute?

Granted, the Fiesta is older and not as spacious, it isn’t an SUV, but it surely’ll be more reasonably priced, more satisfying, practically as sensible, and possible simply as cheap to restore.