The Ford Puma is a little happy pill with several surprises

Things are currently going so well for Ford Europe that 4,000 factory employees in Germany had to be laid off and sales are falling. What keeps them afloat are light transport vehicles. However, now they have decided to electrify their best-selling model in Europe, the Ford Puma, and the price starts at SEK 379,000. The comparable petrol version Puma ST starts at SEK 382,000, but an additional SEK 7,162 tax is added in the first three years.

The Ford Puma Gen-E is based on the same platform as its petrol sibling and therefore had to make some compromises in terms of space. It is probably also the space that ensures that the battery remains at 43 kilowatt hours and the range according to the standardized WLTP cycle is 376 kilometers. There are 169 wild horses hidden under the hood and it accelerates from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in eight seconds.

The standard equipment doesn’t include much more than the car, there aren’t a lot of bells and whistles. For the Premium package you have to pay SEK 20,000 extra and then you get a power tailgate, a keyless system, electrically heated rearview mirrors, Matrix LED high beams (which is really good for the class) and a larger sound system. Regardless of the basic version, I would also recommend the ADAS package for 10,000 SEK. It includes things like a 360-degree camera, steering assist, smart cruise control (can automatically adjust speed according to the license plate), and some security systems. Then we reach SEK 409,000 and you already have a well-equipped car.

Something is missing, and what became clear in the test is a heat pump. A heat pump helps warm the passenger compartment and battery more energy efficiently and is most effective at around 0 degrees. Since the car now lacks a heat pump, consumption was higher and the range was significantly lower when driving around zero. It will be almost 200 kilometers on the motorway and around 250 kilometers in city and intercity traffic.

When charging at home, charging takes place at 11 kilowatts; when charging quickly, the maximum is 100 kilowatts. Ford has reduced charging time from 10 to 80 percent to 23 minutes, and during the week of testing I managed to charge 2 to 80 percent in 27 minutes, just as the Volvo EX30 manages 10 to 80 percent.

You might imagine that a 4.21 meter long car wouldn’t have that much luggage, but Ford shows that it’s entirely possible. 574 liters is almost as much as the 40 centimeter longer Skoda Enyaq. As soon as you open it, you have a normal piece of luggage with a hook and 12V socket, but when you lift it to the floor you find a Gigabox of almost 200 liters. Since the total includes everything under the hat shelf, the total is significant.

This Gigabox is not only suitable for shopping bags, but is at least equally suitable for garden waste and the like. The pod itself is made of hard plastic and is scratch-resistant. There is also a drainage hole in the floor that you can open to rinse the room clean with a water hose. While the cabin may not be suitable for the dog, it makes the car more practical than anything else in its class, possibly the Renault 4, which can also fold down the front seat. As if this Gigabox wasn’t enough, you can also pay SEK 8,000 for a removable towbar that allows you to tow 750 kilos.

The back seat is what it is damaged due to size. With a height of 180 centimeters, I can fit behind myself, but not really. The bottom is high because there was room for the battery and you sit half folded. Of course you can also take a 10-minute ride with your colleagues to the lunch restaurant, but not on a longer car trip, you have to be a model child of around 10-12 years old.

In the driver’s seat you have a huge driver screen in front of you. So big that you had to take the steering wheel off a truck. Okay, maybe not that bad, but the steering wheel is really too big for the car. Fortunately, it has physical buttons and offers all the settings and choices you want. Behind the steering wheel is the gear selector, which has been so popular lately. This is clever because the center console can then offer more storage and space, in this case 2.5 cup holders.

The center screen is 14 inches and features Ford’s own software. It’s not quick between menus, but I’ve seen much worse. There’s also wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto, which is what you normally drive with. There aren’t many physical controls, a volume control and a few shortcut keys under the screen.

The chairs feel soft and would have liked more support on both the sides, backrest and thighs. The padding is foamy and you “sag” so you don’t want to sit for several hours. In this sense, it is perhaps fortunate that the range is so small.

Something Ford has always been able to do We can be proud of their good driving characteristics. We saw it on the Mustang Mach-E, but then it disappeared on the Capri and Explorer. With the Puma Gen-E the good driving characteristics are back and because the battery is so small, the car is also relatively light (for an electric car). Even though it takes 8 seconds to get to 100, it feels quicker and you’re happily cheered on by the car’s fake engine sound. A sound that you want to hear and therefore enjoy driving in sport mode, where it is played particularly loudly and especially when accelerating. Yes, don’t worry, it is also possible to turn it off completely.

The steering is perhaps not as direct as I would have liked, but there is a communication in the steering wheel that is often missing today, the feeling of knowing what the front tires are doing. It will help you with a little more active driving and when you want to return to everyday life when it is slippery outside, because it becomes noticeable when the car starts to lose grip. The accelerator pedal is linear and comfortable when starting off, when you have to be careful not to be pushed forward. One-pedal mode is available and provides strong braking. If you’re above it, it can be scary, but if you’re used to the driving mode, for example if you drive a Tesla or Volvo EX40, you’ll quickly appreciate it.

Comfort is the downside in Puma Gen-E. The car is loud and a lot of road noise penetrates the interior, on the highway you have to raise your voice to talk to passengers and the suspension feels hard. Again, this is appreciated on a twisty 70-mile road, but is less fun when driving in an urban environment with all the bumps and well caps.

What Ford really needs is a reasonable private leasing price. Few people buy cars of this class, they use private leasing and this is clearly visible in competitors Renault 4, Volkswagen ID.3 and Volvo EX30. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Ford pulls it off, because the Puma Gen-E doesn’t deserve to sit still in the garage, it deserves to be driven at around 70-80 kilometers per hour on a winding country road.