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The Ford Puma Gen-E is an electric version of the brand’s best-selling petrol model; it may not have a bespoke EV platform, but it does offer a sporty driving experience, and it’s eligible for the highest level Electric Car Grant of £3,750.
Ford’s first electric offering over recent years was the Mustang Mach-E, followed by the electric Explorer and Capri – both of which shared their platform with the Volkswagen ID.4/ID.5 (and Audi Q4 e-tron, Skoda Enyaq and Cupra Tavascan). Now Ford has given us the electric Puma Gen-E, a five-seat sub-compact crossover. The ICE Puma has been one of the best-selling cars in the UK over recent years, so is Ford onto a winning formula with the electric model?
Pricing Insight: Save up to £5,400 per car across the range – see Price and Model Range section below for more details.
The current Ford Puma was introduced in 2019, so the electric model is based on a six-year old car – and the platform was used in the Ford Fiesta before that, first introduced in 2017, so it’s an eight-year old platform. In comparison, many of the Puma Gen-E’s competitors are built on new dedicated EV architecture.
Ford has replaced the Puma’s engine with a 53kWh battery (usable capacity of 43kWh), and a 168 PS electric motor driving the front wheels. Externally, apart from the blanked-off front grille, the ‘Gen-E’ model looks almost identical to the petrol model; there aren’t even any exterior badges saying that this is an EV.
The interior is also similar to the ICE Puma – a typical workman-like Ford affair compared to the modern, premium-chasing dashboards found in many of the latest EVs from Chinese manufacturers.
Rather than being located under the floor in cars with a dedicated EV platform, the battery is positioned under the rear seats, which results in the seats being quite high, and rear legroom is relatively limited. However you get a large boot; if you remove the false floor there’s a huge space where the spare wheel used to be (Ford calls this a ‘gigabox’) – this gives 523 litres of space without the floor, and 1,283 litres with the rear seats folded. There’s also a front trunk (‘frunk’) offering 43 litres of storage.
A result of the Puma Gen-E being based on an eight-year old platform that’s been converted from housing a petrol engine to incorporating a battery and electric motor is that it feels like a petrol Puma in terms of driving dynamics. It may not feel as modern and refined as one of the latest EVs built on a dedicated electric platform, but it does give the Puma Gen-E a unique selling point in this class: a sporty driving experience, and this is accentuated if you select ‘propulsion sound’, which mimics a petrol engine.
The Puma is quite compact at 4,313mm-long, it has a higher ride height than a Fiesta but with good body control, sharp steering, and instant torque through the front wheels from the electric powertrain – all of which results in the Puma Gen-E being fun to drive. One downside of the suspension delivering tight body control is ride quality that’s not particularly comfortable on roads that are full of potholes – despite the car’s high profile tyres.
To deliver the maximum sporty and responsive driving experience you need to choose Sport mode. Other drive modes are Normal, Eco, and Slippery, and you can bring these up on the touchscreen using one of only two physical buttons on the dashboard.
All other controls are selected via the large 12-inch touchscreen. There are some permanent climate controls at the bottom of the screen, which are still visible even when using Apple CarPlay, but there are none of the normal, helpful shortcut buttons such as for nav, media, phone etc. Instead there’s just a home button in the top right of the screen, and you have to press this to access all further menus and sub-menus. That means a lot of button-pressing to operate basic car controls, including to switch off the lane departure warning system, but thankfully there’s a physical button on the steering wheel to do this.
The gear selector is a stalk on the right-hand side on the steering column, with the options of R, N, D and a P button on the end of the stalk, and there’s a small button for ‘L’, which stands for ‘low’, ie. increased brake regeneration. There’s also a separate button on the touchscreen for one pedal driving.
There’s no electric adjustment for the driver’s seat, but the driving position is still good, however the steering wheel feels big, and there’s nowhere to rest your left foot when driving.
The Ford Puma Gen-E Premium Standard Range (the only Range option available at the moment) has an official WLTP combined electric driving range of 233 miles. Our Premium trim test car with 18-inch alloy wheels had a WLTP range of 226 miles. After a week of mixed driving the real-world range was averaging 220 miles – so very close to the official figure.
The Puma Gen-E has a WLTP energy consumption figure of 4.5 miles/kWh, which is better than some rivals, and a maximum DC rapid charging rate of 100 kW, which should deliver a 10% to 80% charge in 24 minutes.
The Ford Puma Gen-E is available in three trim levels: Select (from £29,995), Premium, and Sound Edition. Our Premium spec test car was priced at £31,995, with extras of metallic paint (£800) and Advanced Driver Assistance Pack (£950), taking the total price of our test car to £33,745. The Ford Puma Gen-E is also eligible for the highest level Electric Car Grant of £3,750.
Ford Puma Gen-E – typical real-world pricing
Save up to £5,400. Real-world discounted prices for the Ford Puma Gen-E typically start from £24,750, or £2601 a month on PCP, depending on version and finance terms.
Pricing, including illustrative monthly PCP payments¹, is based on independent real-world market research from Insider Car Deals and is correct at the time of publication.
Insider Car Deals helps you understand what prices are realistically achievable when you are ready to buy a new car. Whether you’re sense-checking a quote you already have or preparing to negotiate with dealers, detailed pricing insights will help you avoid overpaying, buy with confidence and get a better deal. Find out more HERE.
1 All PCP monthly payments shown are illustrative only and do not constitute an offer or financial advice. Figures are based on manufacturers’ published PCP terms and, unless stated otherwise, assume a 4-year term, 8,000-10,000 miles per year, a 15% customer deposit, and any applicable manufacturer finance contribution. A Guaranteed Future Value (GFV) or final payment may be required to keep the vehicle at the end of the agreement. Always request a full written quotation from a supplying dealer before committing to purchase.
The petrol Ford Puma has been one of the best-selling cars in the UK over recent years, so it’s obviously a hit with car buyers. Ford is hoping that this success will be replicated with the electric Puma Gen-E. It may be based on a relatively old ICE platform rather than a dedicated new EV architecture, which means that elements such as the car’s packaging aren’t as efficient as some rivals, but the Puma Gen-E has one particular characteristic that may appeal to certain buyers: it’s sporty and fun to drive. It’s also priced towards the more affordable end of the EV spectrum, and it also it’s eligible for the highest level Electric Car Grant of £3,750. The Puma Gen-E is awarded a Green Car Guide rating of 9 out of 10.
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Paul Clarke, GreenCarGuide Editor
