Photo: SB-Medien
Hot hatchbacks are cool, but you have to admit that they've been around for way too long. Some companies have dropped them all together and are developing hot EVs instead, like Peugeot or Renault. But not Ford, which is one of the few companies to start the development of a performance mini crossover, the Puma ST.
The concept is easy; you take a small city-friendly crossover and breath fire onto it. Many companies have produced concepts, but either chickened out at the last moment or delivered something boring. For example, the Nissan Juke was kind of slow for a 200+ horsepower car and lacked feel though the steering.
And while the Puma ST isn't much smaller than a VW T-Roc R, the two can't really be compared. We've seen examples of the hot German car costing over €50,000 thanks to their ample options list. You could probably get the Puma for around half that money. And does spending more money give you access to extra fun? Probably not in this case.
The drivetrain itself is easy to guess, as all the prototypes boasted a single exhaust muffler with double tips, just like the Fiesta ST. So we're getting a 1.5-liter turbo with 200 horsepower. It does tricks too, like launch control, a sort of torque vectoring and 2-cylinder mode to save fuel under light loads.
The latest test prototype shows how the Puma ST will deviate from the ST-Line body kit. It's got a much deeper chin spoiler, a rear diffuser and possibly wider fender flairs. On the chassis front, the ST will sit about 15mm lower on oversized wheels. Ford will hopefully spend its money not on frills, but on performance enhancements that matter, such as the clever rear suspension shocks which offer progressively more force as you lean into the corner.
And while the Puma ST isn't much smaller than a VW T-Roc R, the two can't really be compared. We've seen examples of the hot German car costing over €50,000 thanks to their ample options list. You could probably get the Puma for around half that money. And does spending more money give you access to extra fun? Probably not in this case.
The drivetrain itself is easy to guess, as all the prototypes boasted a single exhaust muffler with double tips, just like the Fiesta ST. So we're getting a 1.5-liter turbo with 200 horsepower. It does tricks too, like launch control, a sort of torque vectoring and 2-cylinder mode to save fuel under light loads.
The latest test prototype shows how the Puma ST will deviate from the ST-Line body kit. It's got a much deeper chin spoiler, a rear diffuser and possibly wider fender flairs. On the chassis front, the ST will sit about 15mm lower on oversized wheels. Ford will hopefully spend its money not on frills, but on performance enhancements that matter, such as the clever rear suspension shocks which offer progressively more force as you lean into the corner.
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