Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

ROAD TEST: Ford Puma deserves to be Scottish Car of the Year

Post Thumbnail

The Ford Puma was crowned Scottish Car of the Year for 2020.

Having spent three weeks with it over Christmas and another week with it this month my affection for the car has only deepened.

Ford’s baby crossover is stylish, fun to drive and practical. I’ve previously driven it in ST-Line trim with a six speed manual gearbox, but this time round it was the top of the range Vignale model with seven-speed auto ‘box.

My car was paired with Ford’s zesty little 1.0 litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine, tuned to deliver 125hp.

It’s packed with technology, and you can select from no fewer than five driving modes: normal, sport, eco, slippery and trail. It may not be a four-wheel drive, but reasonable ground clearance and specialist modes means it will take a snowy day, rutted track or muddy field in its stride.

Fords have as a rule always been terrific fun to drive but it took them a while to dial in the driving dynamics in their SUVs and crossovers.

The huge (and now discontinued) Edge was wallowy and stodgy, while the small-but-tall EcoSport leans into corners a bit too much.

The Kuga nails it though and so, I’m pleased to report, does the Puma. It proved a fantastic car to throw around some of my favourite Fife and Angus backroad bends, gripping nicely and staying flat under hard cornering.

Inside there’s a clear and easy-to-use touchscreen and superbly comfortable quilted leather seats in the high end Vignale version.

Other features on this top spec model include keyless entry and start, automatic lights, front and rear parking sensors, and a wealth of safety technology, such as lane-keep assist.

The back is perfect for three children, and will also take two adults without anyone feeling too cramped.

The 456 litre boot features a clever 80 litre storage box underneath the floor, which has a built in drain – making it perfect for soggy boots or wet beach gear.

The Puma starts at around £20,000 and my all-bells-and-whistles model nudged a little past £27,000 – not bad value for a lavishly equipped and stylish crossover.

I’m the president of the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers, which made this our Car of the Year. I’m glad we did.

jmckeown@dctmedia.co.uk