Ford Puma Buyer's Guide
The original Puma (1997–2001) is the small Ford that got the steering and chassis right: a Fiesta-based coupé whose 1.7 was one of the sweetest front-drive packages of the nineties. Our two sold results, £7,875 for a 2000 Racing Puma and £13,000 for a 2000 standard 1.7, show a market that has stopped treating them as disposable, and where an exceptional ordinary car can now out-sell the homologation special.
Know your versions
One generation, three tiers. The 1.4 (and late 1.6) cars are the entry point and drive well enough, but the one to have is the 1.7, its 125bhp Yamaha-developed twin-cam with variable cam timing giving the car its zing. The Thunder was the 2001–2002 run-out special on the 1.7, with leather and unique paint. Above everything sits the Racing Puma: roughly 500 UK cars converted by Tickford, with a wide body, Alcon brakes, unique suspension and 153bhp. Our catalogue lists the 1.7, Thunder and Racing Puma, and all three appear in our sold and active data.
What to pay
Two sold results: £13,000 in August 2026 for a 2000 Puma 1.7 16v, and £7,875 in March 2026 for a 2000 Racing Puma, giving a median of £10,438. Read those carefully: the £13,000 standard car will have been an exceptional low-mileage example, and the £7,875 Racing Puma is cheap for the model, which normally carries a strong premium as the rarest fast Ford of its period. The active listings frame the ordinary market better: a 2001 1.6 estimated at £5,000 to £7,000 and a 2002 Thunder at £4,000 to £4,500. Treat mid-four-figures as usable-car money on that evidence, with condition and mileage able to triple it.
What goes wrong
Rust is the Puma's defining fault and the reason so few survive. Rear wheelarches are the notorious spot: the lip rots from inside and proper repair means cutting and welding, not filler, so lift the boot carpet and check the inner arches and sills too. The 1.7's VCT unit rattles on cold start when tired, and the engine demands the correct 5W-30 semi-synthetic and regular changes; cambelt intervals must be respected. Otherwise the mechanicals are shared Fiesta hardware, cheap and everywhere. Racing Pumas add their own economics: the Alcon front brakes and unique body panels are expensive and scarce, so a scruffy FRP is a much bigger liability than a scruffy 1.7. On any car, confirm the sunroof drains are clear and the rear screen surround is dry.
Our view
A rust-free 1.7 with history is one of the best-driving cheap classics on our books, and the £5,000 to £7,000 estimate band for ordinary cars still looks like an entry worth taking, with our £13,000 result showing where the best examples have already gone. The Racing Puma is the collector piece and £7,875 for one was a buy; parts exposure is the caveat. Whichever tier, buy on arches first and mileage second.
