The all-new 2020 Ford Puma is now on sale in Australia, and independent crash-testing authority ANCAP has awarded the compact SUV top marks.
Based on tests conducted by sister firm Euro NCAP last year, the Ford Puma wears a 2019-stamped five-star safety rating, based on scores of 94 per cent for adult occupant protection, 86 per cent for child occupants, 77 per cent for vulnerable road users and 74 per cent for safety assist.
The rating applies to all Puma variants in Australia and New Zealand.
Dual frontal, side chest-protecting and side head-protecting (curtain) airbags are standard, as are autonomous emergency braking (City, Interurban and Vulnerable Road User), and lane-keep assist with lane departure warning.
According to the test results, the Puma scored highly all round, with the only real dent in its armour being ‘Marginal’ protection of the driver’s chest in the frontal offset test.
“In both the side impact and oblique pole tests, protection of all critical body regions was Good and the Puma scored full points in both of these tests,” said ANCAP director for communications and advocacy, Rhianne Robson.
“In terms of active safety, the Puma’s autonomous emergency braking system is able to detect pedestrians and cyclists as well as other vehicles, and in these tests the system’s overall performance was rated as Good with collisions avoided or mitigated in most scenarios.”
“Lane-keep assist functionality also scored well, with the Puma able to detect dashed and solid line markings as well as the road edge, and provide assistance to the driver to help avoid the vehicle straying from its intended lane or running-off-road,” Ms Robson added.
The Ford Puma is on sale now, with the Blue Oval announcing national drive-away pricing across the Australian range a fortnight ago.
Prices start at $31,990 drive-away for the entry-level Puma FWD, climbing to $33,990 drive-away for the mid-range ST-Line and topping out at $36,990 drive-away for the flagship ST-Line V.
All models are powered by a 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder EcoBoost petrol engine developing 92kW of power and 170Nm of torque, channelled to the front wheels exclusively via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic as standard.
For our full pricing and specifications breakdown, click here.
