I bought one in June 2020 also, 120,000 miles - totally reliable so far, 35 mpg (short, urban journeys for work), good acceleration, slick gearchange, lovely steering (goes where you point it), the wheel arches are rusting but I've been spraying them with oil.
I had a Puma 1.7 from new (R plate) and did just over 120,000 miles in it. Most fun car I’ve owned... preferred its handling to both the Clio 182 and Lotus Elise that I owned afterwards. Thinking about looking for one to buy for weekend b-road drives.
I bought a puma in Russia for $800. I restore everything I can. The hardest thing is to find the wings, they simply don’t exist. great car, but not as cheap in Russia as you have in Europe :)
I had a 2001 Puma, the later mild face lift. Green in colour with custom tan leather, looked like a very very poor man's Aston in some lights haha Handling was simply sublime, could do whatever you wanted in it and the car would grip to the road. Nothing since I've had has handled as well. Still just a Fiesta Coupe and frankly the engine was rubbish, it needed something like a turbo or a Honda VTEC but then again the engine was the reason why I could afford to insure one in my early 20s. Ford were smoking the good stuff when they lined the under carriage with felt as it meant the rear arches disintegrated double time. Over all I miss mine, oh and please never mention the new "Puma" along side this one.
Loving this £1k challenge. I'm on the lookout for a practical classic with a not inconsiderable budget. But if I'm honest many of them aren't that pricey anyway. The real challenge is finding a clean example (that's not been snapped up by one of the speculative modern classic dealers out there). Oh and well done for showing the fixes you've done so far, interesting and very DIYable.
I don't know if I loved it much more than my very first car (Golf MK4) but I really still regret selling it. spend 4 years with it and I miss it so much. it's just amazing, for whoever has a change to drive it, just do it and in ten seconds you realize WHY it's so amazing car. and the "competition" are the Tigra or Huyndai Coupe, or Megane coupe? no comparison at all, Puma is two or three levels above them & pretty as well, but let's not talk about the looking of it but the way this thing makes you feel when you drive it. it's all you wanna do when you get into it. I had a silver with the 1700cc motor, model of 2001 with 1st licence of 2006, leather inside and with couple of senseless details, only two things I didn't like about it, the standard mirrors don't close and the console had no lighting but just a light green, just visible (of course you can change both of them). bought it 2014, sold it 2018. the car is light and the 1.7 motor of Yamaha is a diamond, it has 125 hp but makes you feel like it has 200+.. I believe it's VERY UNJUSTIFIED car, because its just wonderful. I heard that (Mazda) Xedos & Puma are the only cars whose the final product was better than the concept ones, which I believe it's true as well. JUST drive it if you have a change. I don't think anybody can explain how good it is, just drive it and you'll find out within ...seconds :)
Awesome, I love the Puma, we never got them here in Canada, just the Puma's big brother, the Cougar. WAIT....That car is from the late '90s/early '00s and it only has a 5-digit odometer???
Lol yep, only 99 models onwards of puma changed to digital odo. The cluster itself is the same as fiesta and even mk6 escort (even if the escort dash is different) I never understood why the old ford's were 5 digits. It's worse on metric cars because that means each 100k kms (62k miles) it resets 😅
Had one for 7 years now, by the time the rust shows on the outside of the arches, water has been leaking through the inner aches in to the rear 12 inches of the sill. These are complex multi layer and a have a a dividing diaphragm panel between inner and outer sill sections. They can be internally inspected with and inspection mirror and torch after removing the rear speaker panel. There is a polystyrene bung in the diaphragm panel that can be removed to see inside the inner sill section. Keeping water out of the rear part of the sills is important as they help support the rear beam mounts, front seatbelt mounting is also close to this area. This issue has cased the death of most pumas according to their mot history online. Anything other than a keen amateur welding repair would be prohibitively expensive and although sills are available they are a very complex fit and it it difficult replicating all of the panels inside the sill.
Hi Neil, that's very useful. So, basically, you are advising anyone other than a good welder to stear clear of a Puma that has rusting rear arches, as this is a symptom of structural inner sill rust? Do you know if there was anything that owners could have done to prevent the water ingress? I was intending to but a Puma, buy maybe a Ka Sport SE is a safer bet.
@@pauldonatantonio7785 Yes, although I would love to see more pumas saved as they are a fantastic little car, they all end up with the same problems. Knowing what I know now, I wish I had bought one at 3 or 4 years old and carried out rust prevention works, sadly we are all blessed with 20/20 hindsight. Even the ones advertised at 5 or 6K have the problems listed in their MOT histories. Unless you can find a car that has a photographic history of the repairs correctly conducted or you buy a tidy MOT failure and learn to weld yourself then they will be a risky buy. Eventually there will be so few left and the prices will go so high that companies will set up to specialise in restoring them properly. They have all the signs of a future classic, low volume, rust issues and not really recognised for what they are by the buying public until there are no longer many left. You could buy now and store until values rise enough to make professional repair economically viable.
@@neiljarvis8911 what would constitute a proper repair though? I've just acquired a rust-free one, looking to get it thoroughly rust proofed, but now think I need them to inspect inside the sill as well!
The 1.7 is the only one Yamaha had involvement in I believe.... and that's the one people who know these cars want. Just my 50cents worth. Phil Weedon, wasn't he involved with car mechanics magazine?
Don't know much about Pumas specifically, but I do know mk4 Fiestas. Rust is the biggest issue, but you know that. They eat bushes. Expect to change wishbones and drop links every few years. It's not a big deal though, they aren't expensive. IB5 boxes tend to have a bearing noise when in neutral that goes away when you press on the clutch. If yours is doing this, don't worry about it. Carry a spare coil pack. It's cheap and if you ever develop a misfire, this is usually the cause, and they take like 5 minutes to change. Also keep a spare heater control valve. Cambelt is a bit of a devil to change, good luck getting the starter off to fit the timing tool without rounding the bolt heads off. Late mk5 fiestas had a horrible stretch aux belt arrangement with no adjustment, also an absolute pain, but the earlier cars like this tension on the alternator and with a tensioner, which is much easier to deal with. Otherwise they're solid little cars. I really them, my favourite era of fiesta.
Owned 2 and what a peice of kit the first one was an e model heated front screen.yes it had fiesta floor pans so it was a fiesta in a skirt and fast down hill seen 130mph 1.7
great video, Puma is definitely getting rarer, I had a local one until recently :( just fyi block Frederique apparently them accounts can harm your account...
27/2 22. 1.7 engine 'developed' with or 'tuned by' Yamaha? Built in Valencia - tuned in Japan - fitted in Colonge - sold in UK & Europe. What All Season tyres would you recommend & current engine oil spec' please for the 1.7. By 'current' spec oil l mean has engine oil changed since 2000 that would benefit the 1.7 engine? Would head lamp bulbs benefit from upgrades too?
The front end and the wheel covers are wonderful. However, I don't like the back end. It doesn't go with the front end. Should have been beefier looking in order to match.
Great little cars.. I have a 98 R plate with just over 17k on the clock. It's as good as the day it rolled off the production line. I love the wee thing.
Looks like this car has already has corrosion in the rear sill area but will likely have had a patch over the top of a hole hiding the ongoing corrosion within the panels that come together at this junction. This is using online mot history data, though hope your car has been repaired properly.... I'd give it a bit more inspection. Everything else said below about pumas is true they are a great little car..... rear wheelarches can be repaired using arch from Pug 206 front wing swapped left to right a and vice versa having peiced but welded paths to inner arches first. Beam brushes can be tricky to remove but having hacksaw through void's to separate bush inner part allows outer sleeve to be split with hacksaw internally an the collapsed with a chissel. New polly bushes are really easy to fit. Fiesta ST 150 brakes are a simple bolt on improvement at is KYB gas shocks all round, add a new St of toys proves and you will have years of fun. Good luck!!
The clutch of the 1.7 was way too weak and a complete new one begun the slip after only three years, but otherwise congratulation for this great choice of a car! It is perfection. Especially these dials with KMH and MPH are lovely.
Great reliable dynamic car and unlike the first very unstable unsafe Audi TT it won’t leave the road at higher speed and kill you or the people around you. They needed a shocking complete redesign to make safe on the road at higher speeds.
one of the best cars I've ever owned, really regret selling it., Mine had 140k on the clock and was sweet as a nut.
Any car with Steve McQueen in its advert is class.
I owned an R reg Puma - mine was the metallic green and also 1.7, best car I ever owned. 😎👌🏼
Had a 98 1.7 puma best car I've ever owned great fun car to drive
I bought one in June 2020 also, 120,000 miles - totally reliable so far, 35 mpg (short, urban journeys for work), good acceleration, slick gearchange, lovely steering (goes where you point it), the wheel arches are rusting but I've been spraying them with oil.
Notice any oil drop if you drive it at high rpm?
@@SandStormPower I've hardly driven it at high RPM, has used a tiny amount of oil in 10 months.
The Puma is one of those cars, you have to drive it to understand. I don't know anyone who's actually driven one who doesn't love them.
We absolutely love them!
I had a Puma 1.7 from new (R plate) and did just over 120,000 miles in it. Most fun car I’ve owned... preferred its handling to both the Clio 182 and Lotus Elise that I owned afterwards. Thinking about looking for one to buy for weekend b-road drives.
I have a V50 T5 AWD, a V70 T5, A civic 1.7cdti, an S2000 and what did I buy for my everyday rides? PUMA!
@@TheWolverine76 Nice! Just such a great handling car.👍
I do have a green one from 1998
A blast to drive! Mine's lowered 30mm with H&R springs. Simply superb!
I bought a puma in Russia for $800. I restore everything I can. The hardest thing is to find the wings, they simply don’t exist. great car, but not as cheap in Russia as you have in Europe :)
I had a 2001 Puma, the later mild face lift. Green in colour with custom tan leather, looked like a very very poor man's Aston in some lights haha Handling was simply sublime, could do whatever you wanted in it and the car would grip to the road. Nothing since I've had has handled as well. Still just a Fiesta Coupe and frankly the engine was rubbish, it needed something like a turbo or a Honda VTEC but then again the engine was the reason why I could afford to insure one in my early 20s. Ford were smoking the good stuff when they lined the under carriage with felt as it meant the rear arches disintegrated double time. Over all I miss mine, oh and please never mention the new "Puma" along side this one.
Looks good, would love to see some more videos about this!
Stay tuned, one to come in a few weeks!
Loving this £1k challenge. I'm on the lookout for a practical classic with a not inconsiderable budget. But if I'm honest many of them aren't that pricey anyway. The real challenge is finding a clean example (that's not been snapped up by one of the speculative modern classic dealers out there). Oh and well done for showing the fixes you've done so far, interesting and very DIYable.
I don't know if I loved it much more than my very first car (Golf MK4) but I really still regret selling it. spend 4 years with it and I miss it so much. it's just amazing, for whoever has a change to drive it, just do it and in ten seconds you realize WHY it's so amazing car.
and the "competition" are the Tigra or Huyndai Coupe, or Megane coupe? no comparison at all, Puma is two or three levels above them & pretty as well, but let's not talk about the looking of it but the way this thing makes you feel when you drive it. it's all you wanna do when you get into it.
I had a silver with the 1700cc motor, model of 2001 with 1st licence of 2006, leather inside and with couple of senseless details, only two things I didn't like about it, the standard mirrors don't close and the console had no lighting but just a light green, just visible (of course you can change both of them). bought it 2014, sold it 2018.
the car is light and the 1.7 motor of Yamaha is a diamond, it has 125 hp but makes you feel like it has 200+.. I believe it's VERY UNJUSTIFIED car, because its just wonderful. I heard that (Mazda) Xedos & Puma are the only cars whose the final product was better than the concept ones, which I believe it's true as well.
JUST drive it if you have a change. I don't think anybody can explain how good it is, just drive it and you'll find out within ...seconds :)
Awesome, I love the Puma, we never got them here in Canada, just the Puma's big brother, the Cougar.
WAIT....That car is from the late '90s/early '00s and it only has a 5-digit odometer???
Lol yep, only 99 models onwards of puma changed to digital odo.
The cluster itself is the same as fiesta and even mk6 escort (even if the escort dash is different)
I never understood why the old ford's were 5 digits.
It's worse on metric cars because that means each 100k kms (62k miles) it resets 😅
Had one for 7 years now, by the time the rust shows on the outside of the arches, water has been leaking through the inner aches in to the rear 12 inches of the sill. These are complex multi layer and a have a a dividing diaphragm panel between inner and outer sill sections. They can be internally inspected with and inspection mirror and torch after removing the rear speaker panel. There is a polystyrene bung in the diaphragm panel that can be removed to see inside the inner sill section. Keeping water out of the rear part of the sills is important as they help support the rear beam mounts, front seatbelt mounting is also close to this area. This issue has cased the death of most pumas according to their mot history online. Anything other than a keen amateur welding repair would be prohibitively expensive and although sills are available they are a very complex fit and it it difficult replicating all of the panels inside the sill.
Hi Neil, that's very useful. So, basically, you are advising anyone other than a good welder to stear clear of a Puma that has rusting rear arches, as this is a symptom of structural inner sill rust? Do you know if there was anything that owners could have done to prevent the water ingress? I was intending to but a Puma, buy maybe a Ka Sport SE is a safer bet.
@@pauldonatantonio7785 Yes, although I would love to see more pumas saved as they are a fantastic little car, they all end up with the same problems. Knowing what I know now, I wish I had bought one at 3 or 4 years old and carried out rust prevention works, sadly we are all blessed with 20/20 hindsight. Even the ones advertised at 5 or 6K have the problems listed in their MOT histories. Unless you can find a car that has a photographic history of the repairs correctly conducted or you buy a tidy MOT failure and learn to weld yourself then they will be a risky buy. Eventually there will be so few left and the prices will go so high that companies will set up to specialise in restoring them properly. They have all the signs of a future classic, low volume, rust issues and not really recognised for what they are by the buying public until there are no longer many left. You could buy now and store until values rise enough to make professional repair economically viable.
@@neiljarvis8911 Thanks Neil. Only just seen your response. I'll keep looking! Did Racing Puma suffer same rust problems?
@@neiljarvis8911 what would constitute a proper repair though? I've just acquired a rust-free one, looking to get it thoroughly rust proofed, but now think I need them to inspect inside the sill as well!
@@pauldonatantonio7785 maybe not because the rear whellarces ar constructed differently to the std shell.
my dad has a 2001 1.7 puma in green with 24000 miles all original paint and arches, no rust at all and I love it to bits
Fantastic cars, aren't they?
The 1.7 is the only one Yamaha had involvement in I believe.... and that's the one people who know these cars want. Just my 50cents worth.
Phil Weedon, wasn't he involved with car mechanics magazine?
He was indeed! Our Phil was the editor at one stage
Had a new one in 2000, loved it
decent on the track too!
I had a black then a thunder they all suffer the rust and rear beams also not the easiest cam belt to change but one of the best cars to drive
Don't know much about Pumas specifically, but I do know mk4 Fiestas.
Rust is the biggest issue, but you know that.
They eat bushes. Expect to change wishbones and drop links every few years. It's not a big deal though, they aren't expensive.
IB5 boxes tend to have a bearing noise when in neutral that goes away when you press on the clutch. If yours is doing this, don't worry about it.
Carry a spare coil pack. It's cheap and if you ever develop a misfire, this is usually the cause, and they take like 5 minutes to change. Also keep a spare heater control valve.
Cambelt is a bit of a devil to change, good luck getting the starter off to fit the timing tool without rounding the bolt heads off. Late mk5 fiestas had a horrible stretch aux belt arrangement with no adjustment, also an absolute pain, but the earlier cars like this tension on the alternator and with a tensioner, which is much easier to deal with.
Otherwise they're solid little cars. I really them, my favourite era of fiesta.
Ohh i love the hands free kit, i'm sure one could modify it with a magnetic mount and route though usb c charge cable. Factory look!
Owned 2 and what a peice of kit the first one was an e model heated front screen.yes it had fiesta floor pans so it was a fiesta in a skirt and fast down hill seen 130mph 1.7
great video, Puma is definitely getting rarer, I had a local one until recently :(
just fyi block Frederique apparently them accounts can harm your account...
You have picked a nice one by the look of it. Good, practical, fun little car!
It really is!
best car to drive. still driving it (and other 3 previously). thnx for this video.
Would really like one of these. Just need to find a good one. Like the later alloys from 2000/ 2001 onwards.
27/2 22. 1.7 engine 'developed' with or 'tuned by' Yamaha? Built in Valencia - tuned in Japan - fitted in Colonge - sold in UK & Europe. What All Season tyres would you recommend & current engine oil spec' please for the 1.7. By 'current' spec oil l mean has engine oil changed since 2000 that would benefit the 1.7 engine? Would head lamp bulbs benefit from upgrades too?
The front end and the wheel covers are wonderful. However, I don't like the back end. It doesn't go with the front end. Should have been beefier looking in order to match.
Great little cars.. I have a 98 R plate with just over 17k on the clock. It's as good as the day it rolled off the production line. I love the wee thing.
Congratulations on a well preserved car, Mike!
Looks like this car has already has corrosion in the rear sill area but will likely have had a patch over the top of a hole hiding the ongoing corrosion within the panels that come together at this junction. This is using online mot history data, though hope your car has been repaired properly.... I'd give it a bit more inspection.
Everything else said below about pumas is true they are a great little car..... rear wheelarches can be repaired using arch from Pug 206 front wing swapped left to right a and vice versa having peiced but welded paths to inner arches first. Beam brushes can be tricky to remove but having hacksaw through void's to separate bush inner part allows outer sleeve to be split with hacksaw internally an the collapsed with a chissel. New polly bushes are really easy to fit. Fiesta ST 150 brakes are a simple bolt on improvement at is KYB gas shocks all round, add a new St of toys proves and you will have years of fun. Good luck!!
I have a 1.7 black edition and love it to bits it's not everyone's cuppa with putting a bgw on and lowering it but I love it
Do what you love! That's the main thing
My favourite car iv ever owned had a 51 plate puma thunder in gun metal grey . Just the rusty rear arch issue but great drive
We'd agree! We can't tear Jeff away from this one!
First Puma I've seen in a while that didn't have a severe case of tin worm around the arches.
The search was long! - Jeff
Top video. The red trainers make it.
Jeff's a man of impeccable style!
The clutch of the 1.7 was way too weak and a complete new one begun the slip after only three years, but otherwise congratulation for this great choice of a car! It is perfection. Especially these dials with KMH and MPH are lovely.
Great reliable dynamic car and unlike the first very unstable unsafe Audi TT it won’t leave the road at higher speed and kill you or the people around you. They needed a shocking complete redesign to make safe on the road at higher speeds.
Unfortunately 1000 pounds isn't really out of banger territory anymore.
I’ve been looking for a project car, and this one is perfect… but I live in the United States.
I just bought 1998 Puma 1.7 for 500€. Needs a lot of work... And floor panels... And rocker panels... And VIN needs remarking...
bought a 1998 puma yesterday for 300 euros… needs also a lot of work but engine is in very good condition
@@tobyhillaudio Nice. Mine is almost done. Only LSD and 4.27 final drive need to be done. I have one video in my channel.
@@siimu111 I want my puma to sound like yours.. what did u do? I will remove middle silencer and install supersport exhaust.. and maybe k&n kit
Cool car! If only the car was allowed to be imported to the United States. I’d buy it in a heartbeat.😊
I wanna buy it, but I don't even know if I can fit in one lol.
best car i've ever owned.
One time I thought about buying one , because I enjoyed driving and tuning it in forza motorsport. 😂
Any tall puma owners able to chime in? 6.2
Will I fit?
Many of our team are 6ft plus and we fit just fine with the seat pushed back, just don't expect to get rear passengers in...
I bought a puma for my wife...£300 with a yrs mot...that was 5 yrs ago....im 6.1 and fit in it ok, its a cheeky car to drive
I love my puma 1.7.....
Very nice car!
How pathetic that your ‘colleagues’ (aka frenemies) couldn’t wait to start criticising….
The Pumas a great car but I ended up buying a mgf
Both excellent choices!
Used own one, the 1.7 fun but handled awfully in my opinion..
Toyo proxes.
fugly car.
Questa macchina è l'amore mio!!!!!!!!!!!!!!♥️👏🙌🇮🇹👍👌🦾💪