AS well as being fun to drive, practical and economical, the Ford Puma has stylish looks and that has made it popular in the UK and the rest of Europe.

When the company stopped making Fiestas the Puma filled the gap and it is now Ford's best seller.

I have sampled just about every version of it since it arrived on the scene back in 2020 and it is still a car I like to spend time in.

It brought something new to the Crossover party when it was launched and it offers many innovative features.

It also has some neat touches like the pouncing Puma that appears in the dash when you press the starter button or as a puddle light in the dark.

It is also a family pleaser because there is plenty of room for four to travel in comfort and you can pack in five for shorter journeys.

A smart steering wheel houses the usual push-button controls while the dashboard layout is typical Ford with a central display screen for connectivity and sat nav but it also comes fitted with a smart TFT instrument cluster and a huge amount of equipment.

The manual seats are very comfortable and fully adjustable and there is good all-round visibility. As in all Fords the switches and controls are clear and easy to read and use.

A Quickclear heated windscreen is ideal for this time of year and there is a decent sound system as well as Ford SYNC 3 navigation and full smart phone integration.

On the practical side the Puma boasts impressive carrying capacity. The boot is large for a car of this size and comes complete with Ford's MegaBox.

This is an 80-litre storage space which lies beneath the split level boot floor and is ideal for carrying wet sports equipment, muddy wellies or anything else that is liable to cause a mess. It has a drain plug at the bottom and can be hosed out afterwards.

If you need even more space you can collapse the split-folding rear seats to get class-leading room.

This ST-Line X sporty version costs £31,350, and has a 1.0-litre EcoBoost three cylinder petrol engine linked to mild hybrid technology and is good for 155ps.

As a result it takes just 8.7 seconds to tackle the sprint to 62mph before going on to a top speed of 124mph.

According to the official figures it is capable of as much as 56.5mpg and a combined average of 47.9mpg that I easily matched during mixed driving.

You get lots of advanced driver assistance aids like cruise control and pre-collision assist plus lane departure warning andhandy drive modes for Normal, Eco, Sport, Slippery and Trail conditions.

You also get autonomous emergency braking, pedestrian/cyclist detection and hill start assist

This model features exclusive 18-inch alloys, privacy glass, front fog lights, LED projector headlamps and LED rear lamps.

The kit list wants for nothing and you get a wireless charging pad, B&O sound system, Ford ST-Line body kit, special steering wheel, power tailgate, rear camera with parking sensor and synthetic leather seats with synthetic suede inserts and neat red stitching.

I liked this Puma and it was a fun car to drive with great handling and a comfortable ride. It also had a Winter Pack at an additional £350 and a Panorama opening roof at an extra £1,000. It came in Desert Island Blue which came in at £800.