Long-term report: Pitting our Ford Puma ST against the fantastic Fiesta ST

The Ford Fiesta ST has carved itself out as the undisputed king of the small hot hatch market. Sure, the Hyundai i20 N has been pushing for top honours, but the safe money has long been on the Blue Oval’s effort.

The Ford Puma ST, meanwhile, is a much newer contender. The regular Puma crossover has been a huge hit with buyers looking for a smart crossover that’s great value for money, so it was no surprise that a performance-focused ST would come along.

I’ve been running a Puma ST for a few months now, and it’s been a tale of genuine brilliance and regular frustration.

To cut a long story short, I can’t believe how good Ford has made this crossover when you’re driving it hard. The higher ride height in particular should play against it, but it feels entirely natural when you’re pressing on in corners.

However, the ride quality in everyday driving is just too stiff. Maybe I’m just getting old, but when I’m popping to the gym on my lunch break or heading to to do the weekly shop in the evening, I quickly get bored of the stiff suspension banging and crashing its way along the road.

I was always sure the Fiesta ST was much more composed, and with the Fiesta and Puma sharing so much under the skin, it seemed like a good excuse to book one in to compare the two.

When an Azura Blue hot hatch pulled onto my driveway I was excited. The hot Fiesta still looks fantastic, especially so in this hue, which is unique to the more hardcore ‘Edition’ model.

This is an imperfect comparison, because yes, this is a Fiesta ST Edition. Put simply, this is the ultimate version of the hot hatch, specially honed on the Nurburgring Nordschleife to make it better-suited to track life.

Changes? It has two-way adjustable coilover suspension that drops the ride height further, lighter alloy wheels, a Quaife limited-slip differential and some styling tweaks.

First impression: Was the Fiesta ST always this stiff? Sure, this Edition model has a new suspension set-up and there’s no way I’m risking ruining the balance by adjusting it myself, but it’s on par with the Puma.

Like its high-riding sibling, the Fiesta walks the tightrope of acceptable stiffness for everyday use. On a long motorway, I was left pretty exhausted as it hunted out every imperfection.

It seems that my 30-something spine is less forgiving than it was in my 20s, but driving the pair back-to-back did bring up a few interesting differences.

The first is that the Puma’s driving position definitely makes it more appropriate for urban driving, as you sit slightly higher and have a better view of your surroundings. It makes it easier to navigate and comfortably cut through traffic.

However, when pressing on, the Fiesta’s cocooned seating is infinitely better. While you can genuinely feel the Puma fighting its high pivot point in hard corners, the Fiesta seems to swivel more naturally around its centre point.

The result is more confidence in the middle of a turn and a less stressful drive. It feels like the car is working with you rather than fighting its inherent shortcomings.

However, I think most of this gap in ability is all in your mind. True, being comfortable in a performance car is vitally important, but if we’re looking solely at the cars’ abilities, I don’t think there’s much in it. That’s hugely impressive for the Puma, which has a base inherently flawed for an enthusiast car.

Takeaways? I have a new respect for the Puma ST. Yes, we compared it with a much more hardcore version of the Fiesta, and I think the regular ST might be slightly more composed on the school run… but there’s next to nothing in it.

And yes, the Puma ST is too stiff for my liking, but driving it back to back with the best in the business makes you realise just how close the crossover is. If you want a Fiesta ST but also want that family friendly crossover shape, the Puma is a fantastic alternative.

But did I mention it’s very, very stiff?