Ford Puma advice

dublintuition

Hey

tis is the OP on her 2nd account as I'm still waiting on the password for my original one!! :mad::mad:

So I've bought the puma now, black like I wanted!! Picking it up tomorrow.

Its a 1.7. Does anyone know what mpg I get out of it?

Also - how often does the timing belt need to be changed? I've been told every 80K miles, but that seems a lot

ytareh

I ran a nice blue 98 1.7 one when it was only a year or two old with well under 30k miles up.Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.Before 48k I had to fit two new front shocks and a starter motor .These Pumas ,Kas and I presume Fiestas practically self destruct at 40 k miles.The engine MIGHT be ok (in fact its the most durable feature)but the suspension includings hocks and bushings will be hanging out of the car .It will be horible to drive over average irish roads with bumps and potholes .Some small consolation is that parts should be cheap(relatively speaking) but frequency of repairs will be frustrating.
In no way can you compare the milage on one of these with a 'normal' car .The Celica (best of the lot but tax and insurance will be far higher )will be in better shape at 140k miles than the Puma at 40!!!
Pumas rear seats and storage space is tiny.Having said all that I felt the 1.7 was a genuine SAFER Peugeot 106GTi alternative ...sure a second or so less to 60mph (8.4-8.9 vs 7.4-7.8).
I bought my Puma having driven my wife's Ka and being absolutely BLOWN AWAY by its handling .Genuinely limitless(your nerves would give out way earlier) in the dry unless you were a moron .I was a bit disappointed to find that the Puma actually didnt handle as purely .It has traction control which dulled the handling but perhaps kept you out of more serious trouble.
I recall the ABS brakes ( and traction control too) were useless in the snow and MPG was not great at 37mpg.
If you could pick one up REALLY cheap in farly good shape might be worth a risk .Green was lovely .Id imagine 1.4 a bit dull.

Ah hey I see you got one !Best of luck!(Youll need it to keep a black car clean in this weather !-Im sure the thrill will wear off after a few weeks of washing and it will be allowed get a bit grimy)The spark plugs DONT need to be replaced until very high mileage as far as I know but at their age might be a good precaution anyway ....wont be cheap

ytareh

If you dont like the integrated cd player or its not there or its broke you can buy a facia adaptor to fit your own new ('plain rectangular ' unit) one.The parcel shelf always falls down and the rear hatch drips water like amd when you open it -but doesnt leak.

dublintuition

ytareh wrote: »

I ran a nice blue 98 1.7 one when it was only a year or two old with well under 30k miles up.Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.Before 48k I had to fit two new front shocks and a starter motor .These Pumas ,Kas and I presume Fiestas practically self destruct at 40 k miles.The engine MIGHT be ok (in fact its the most durable feature)but the suspension includings hocks and bushings will be hanging out of the car .It will be horible to drive over average irish roads with bumps and potholes .Some small consolation is that parts should be cheap(relatively speaking) but frequency of repairs will be frustrating.
In no way can you compare the milage on one of these with a 'normal' car .The Celica (best of the lot but tax and insurance will be far higher )will be in better shape at 140k miles than the Puma at 40!!!
Pumas rear seats and storage space is tiny.Having said all that I felt the 1.7 was a genuine SAFER Peugeot 106GTi alternative ...sure a second or so less to 60mph (8.4-8.9 vs 7.4-7.8).
I bought my Puma having driven my wife's Ka and being absolutely BLOWN AWAY by its handling .Genuinely limitless(your nerves would give out way earlier) in the dry unless you were a moron .I was a bit disappointed to find that the Puma actually didnt handle as purely .It has traction control which dulled the handling but perhaps kept you out of more serious trouble.
I recall the ABS brakes ( and traction control too) were useless in the snow and MPG was not great at 37mpg.
If you could pick one up REALLY cheap in farly good shape might be worth a risk .Green was lovely .Id imagine 1.4 a bit dull.

Ah hey I see you got one !Best of luck!(Youll need it to keep a black car clean in this weather !-Im sure the thrill will wear off after a few weeks of washing and it will be allowed get a bit grimy)The spark plugs DONT need to be replaced until very high mileage as far as I know but at their age might be a good precaution anyway ....wont be cheap

thanks for the advice - it's the first bit of negative feedback I've had and I've gotten a lot! But thanks for the tips anyway!

dublintuition

ytareh wrote: »

If you dont like the integrated cd player or its not there or its broke you can buy a facia adaptor to fit your own new ('plain rectangular ' unit) one.The parcel shelf always falls down and the rear hatch drips water like amd when you open it -but doesnt leak.

Heard that about the parcel shelf actually and just read about the rear hatch too.

dublintuition

ytareh wrote: »

hocks and bushings.

Whats a hock?

EDIT: I get it, shock, sorry,my bad!!!

ytareh

HOCKS!?Sorry my bad Shocks of course ...If you ever sit in a similar aged Fiesta you will realise youre exclusive little sports coupe isnt quite so exclusive !They are almost identical inside !But it is a lovely car to drive IF its in perfect condition .But thats a Big IF...Engine sounds nice -its a 'kinda' VTEC job (ie fairly economical at lower revs but gets going at higher revs )and gear change is lovely (metal knob is freezing on cold mornings!)Sadly one of my abiding memories of my Puma is the indescribably bad odour of our Dalmatian puppy's salivating in bucketfuls on her few journies in the hatch area.NOTHING including enough onions to feed half of France could get rid of the stench !I was happy to get rid of the car in the end though ,the lack of reliability made the high price at the time too hard to stomach.I was only sorry I didnt get rid of it before the big bill for new shocks and starter motor before 45k miles ...

Henry Ford III

ytareh wrote: »

.....Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.....

I disagree. Most others will too. Fiestas and Pumas of that vintage are still fine cars.

All used cars will need ongoing maintenance and replacement of some parts.

37mpg from a 1.7 125bhp engine isn't bad in the real world.

Merch

AlanD wrote: »

We have a '98 Puma 1.7 sitting in storage. Only 50k on the clock, so we're keeping it til the kids get older and we can go back to use it then. A free car essentially.

What a cracker to drive though. Love it. Nippy, handles great and has never given us trouble.

I'd run that every now and again if I was you, nothing worse than any car (or a lot of kinds of machinery) sitting idle for causing problems.

Merch

ytareh wrote: »

I ran a nice blue 98 1.7 one when it was only a year or two old with well under 30k miles up.Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.

I tend to disagree, 40 or 50K miles depends on how it was kept maybe?
100k and getting 46mpg on long runs, long may it last, hope I havent jinked myself now

Merch

elleburp wrote: »

The mechanic told me I'd have to get the timing belt replaced around the 10 year mark (now!) which he assured me was standard for all Ford's like this one. So that'll be happening along with the NCT in Jan....

You might want to check that with ford, I think they revised some of their timing belt intervals down, maybe by 20k miles or equal to two years

dublintuition

Merch wrote: »

ytareh wrote: »

I ran a nice blue 98 1.7 one when it was only a year or two old with well under 30k miles up.Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.

I tend to disagree, 40 or 50K miles depends on how it was kept maybe?
100k and getting 46mpg on long runs, long may it last, hope I havent jinked myself now

How do you calculate the mpg? Is it just your own estimation or do you have a chip in the dash?

Is yours a 1.7?

Mine's 67K on it ans afaik (will ask this afternoon) hasnt been changed. I should really change it right away??

@ytareh If you saw what I'm driving now you would realise that given my price range - this is an exclusive car!! Currently driving a colt with a host of problems, which would probably end up costing me more than car's worth.

Reliable car, but just old (1997), was broken into, was my first car so a few dints, needs new tyres, needs alignment, is a strange rattle coming from under the car and I don't know the mpg but I do know I'm getting 40 miles of urban driving for €35!!! :eek:

Gatster

ytareh wrote: »

Like all small Ford cars of the era it is probably beyond economical use after 40-50k miles or three or four years old.Before 48k I had to fit two new front shocks and a starter motor .These Pumas ,Kas and I presume Fiestas practically self destruct at 40 k miles.The engine MIGHT be ok (in fact its the most durable feature)but the suspension includings hocks and bushings will be hanging out of the car .It will be horible to drive over average irish roads with bumps and potholes .Some small consolation is that parts should be cheap(relatively speaking) but frequency of repairs will be frustrating.

TBH, this is one of the worst generalisations I've ever read on here, and there's plenty.

We've had Fords (including a Puma, which we still have as a 3rd car), another 3 mates who had Pumas and countless other Fords over the years - none of them came close to "practically self destruct at 40k miles", or had any suspension issues bar the regular wear and tear and all bar one were well above 40k. I accept there are lemons made in every car range, perhaps you were unlucky?

ytareh

Sorry but Im gonna stick by my guns on this ...Late 90s Kas and Pumas (and presumably Fiestas ) will have bushings and / or shocks gone at extremely low mileage which will totally spoil the driving experience on the irish secondary roads they should be most at home on.These items should NOT be 'normal wear and tear' below 80-100k miles.Ever stopped to wonder how Escorts (of that vintage) which were made up to the very late 90s and sold in their thousands here are now almost extinct ?

Henry Ford III

ytareh wrote: »

Sorry but Im gonna stick by my guns on this ...Late 90s Kas and Pumas (and presumably Fiestas ) will have bushings and / or shocks gone at extremely low mileage which will totally spoil the driving experience on the irish secondary roads they should be most at home on.These items should NOT be 'normal wear and tear' below 80-100k miles.Ever stopped to wonder how Escorts (of that vintage) which were made up to the very late 90s and sold in their thousands here are now almost extinct ?

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm?md=112

No mention of anything there. Suspension components wear in every car, and didn't fail prematurely on Pumas or Fiestas.

p.s. Older Escorts were, in general, rubbish.

Gatster

As stated by Henry Ford III, old Escorts were rubbish - go to the UK and count how many you see about nowadays (you'll be waiting a while ) and they sold in absolutely enormous numbers relative to Ireland. To clarify my earlier post, I should have wrote

"had any suspension or other issues bar the regular wear and tear"

Our Puma has done 92k on original suspension components, I'm in the process of giving it some 10 year anniversary TLC so it may well need new bushes and the belts definitely need changing, but I'd say that's to be expected at that age.

Another case was our older Fiesta ('97 I think) a few years ago, sold at something like 80k on the clock, again original components...there's plenty more examples as well.

ytareh

From your link Henry Ford!

"Front suspension bushes have been prone to wear so if the front suspension clonks this is probably why."

Anyway I hope the OPs is a minter !I enjoyed driving mine .

dublintuition

Thanks ytareh and without junksing myself I hope.... it does seem mint mechanically! Obviously I'm just going on what I could tell bringing it to the garage where I'm storing it (storing it until march so I can renew policy without incurring any charges for changing in the middle of a policy!) but it seems to be great.

One thing I would like to know though - if there's anyone who has one maybe they could help me out here...

when i put the alarm on I don't get a beep or anything to acknowledge that the alarm has gone one, rather I get a double flash of the indicator lights. Now the alarm hasn't gone off and I was considering setting it off to make sure it makes noise, but then I worried about how I might turn it off!!

so I'm wondering the following:

• Should I hear a beep or some noise to acknowledge that the alarm has gone on?
  
• If it goes off, how do I get it to stop?

JHMEG

dublintuition wrote: »

Thanks ytareh and without junksing myself I hope.... it does seem mint mechanically! Obviously I'm just going on what I could tell bringing it to the garage where I'm storing it (storing it until march so I can renew policy without incurring any charges for changing in the middle of a policy!) but it seems to be great.

One thing I would like to know though - if there's anyone who has one maybe they could help me out here...

when i put the alarm on I don't get a beep or anything to acknowledge that the alarm has gone one, rather I get a double flash of the indicator lights. Now the alarm hasn't gone off and I was considering setting it off to make sure it makes noise, but then I worried about how I might turn it off!!

so I'm wondering the following:

• Should I hear a beep or some noise to acknowledge that the alarm has gone on?
  
• If it goes off, how do I get it to stop?

Changing car mid policy won't incur any charges. Your premium will go up slightly anyway and it'll cost you a bit more I'd imagine as you're going to a bigger engine, but waiting till March won't save you anything.

Might not have an alarm. Lock with a window down and then unlock by hand from the inside, open the door and see what happens.

dublintuition

JHMEG wrote: »

Changing car mid policy won't incur any charges. Your premium will go up slightly anyway and it'll cost you a bit more I'd imagine as you're going to a bigger engine, but waiting till March won't save you anything.

Might not have an alarm. Lock with a window down and then unlock by hand from the inside, open the door and see what happens.

Well it suits me to wait so I can get the full amount together for tax for year, but I'm with 123 and they have told me that they will charge me. They charged me for the temp sub to move it too.

Cheers for the advice on the alarm. What will stop it going off if it does have one? Just unlocking it?

JHMEG

dublintuition wrote: »

but I'm with 123 and they have told me that they will charge me. They charged me for the temp sub to move it too.

123 is a broker, and charge admin fees. One of the reasons I don't deal with brokers any more.

dublintuition wrote: »

Cheers for the advice on the alarm. What will stop it going off if it does have one? Just unlocking it?

Yeah, the unlock button on the fob.

Ghost Rider

By the same token, ever stopped to wonder why you see so many Fiestas on the road of precisely that vintage? They're incredibly reliable - that's why - and Pumas are too. They have their faults but mine has over 100k on the clock and the engine runs like a dream.

ytareh wrote: »

Ever stopped to wonder how Escorts (of that vintage) which were made up to the very late 90s and sold in their thousands here are now almost extinct ?

Ghost Rider

Pumas came with an alarm and immobiliser as standard. Test it by rolling down the window and opening the car from the inside. To switch it off, just unlock the car with the key fob.

Mine makes a fairly pitiful noise - it uses the horn - but I think I read somewhere that later models have a "proper" one.

dublintuition wrote: »

Well it suits me to wait so I can get the full amount together for tax for year, but I'm with 123 and they have told me that they will charge me. They charged me for the temp sub to move it too.

Cheers for the advice on the alarm. What will stop it going off if it does have one? Just unlocking it?

slinky2000

Ghost Rider wrote: »

By the same token, ever stopped to wonder why you see so many Fiestas on the road of precisely that vintage? They're incredibly reliable - that's why - and Pumas are too. They have their faults but mine has over 100k on the clock and the engine runs like a dream.

I've had 2 mk4 fiestas now and there nothing but a joy to drive little car! never had any major problems!

My brother has a 1.7racing puma engined fiesta at the moment! awesome little car!

Can I just mention the ford door locks are guarnteed to go at some point if not caught early with some wd-40 preventative action!

ytareh

In my experience and that of some others Ive known changing 'mid policy' usually works out cheaper.I think theyre less included to try 'take advantage ' when you might threaten to leave while they still have some of your money, so to speak .Renewals can be scarey though so Id change now .Id guess youre looking at cost of a few magazines at most and then youre set for next 'year' hopefully.

dublintuition

ytareh wrote: »

In my experience and that of some others Ive known changing 'mid policy' usually works out cheaper.I think theyre less included to try 'take advantage ' when you might threaten to leave while they still have some of your money, so to speak .Renewals can be scarey though so Id change now .Id guess youre looking at cost of a few magazines at most and then youre set for next 'year' hopefully.

You really don't think this car is going to last me the year, do you?? lol

Well my renewal is in 2weeks and I don't have the money to tax it til then anyway so I will wait, but I do appreciate the advice!

dublintuition

Also - does anyone know of a manual I could get for the puma? Tried haynes and they don't seem to have one. Any ideas?

zilog_jones

A lot of it should be similar to the Mk. 4 Fiesta, except for that engine. The Zetec-S is based on the Zetec-SE (1.25, 1.4 and 1.6 found in Fiesta) but I don't know where the similarities end (it's got VCT and probably other fancy things). Electrics and stuff like that are more or less identical.

dublintuition

Ghost Rider wrote: »

Pumas came with an alarm and immobiliser as standard. Test it by rolling down the window and opening the car from the inside. To switch it off, just unlock the car with the key fob.
.

Did this tonight. The car remained locked (central locking) so the alarm didn't go off.

Is it a bad sign in itself that the alarm allowed itself to be armed with the window down? Short of smashing a window I don't feel I'm gonna get an answer on this one...


Also I noticed tonight that there is a small build up on condensation in the head and rear lamps. Is this a common complaint? Will this have an influence over whether or not it passes an NCT?

thanks

JHMEG

dublintuition wrote: »

Did this tonight. The car remained locked (central locking) so the alarm didn't go off.

Is it a bad sign in itself that the alarm allowed itself to be armed with the window down? .

You're supposed to unlock it by hand in thru the open window, open the door, and see what happens.