Soon to be owner

[Mike]

Brave man ordering a car without informing your wife

I have done the opposite to you and gone from a 70 plt Puma ST line x 155 which I had from new and still looked it when I traded it for a new BMW 128 Ti 23 plt

Sister has a Duster from new on an 18 plt and it has been faultless.

[Exduster]

Brave man ordering a car without informing your wife

I have done the opposite to you and gone from a 70 plt Puma ST line x 155 which I had from new and still looked it when I traded it for a new BMW 128 Ti 23 plt

Sister has a Duster from new on an 18 plt and it has been faultless.

I work on the one bollocking theory Mike. I always say there is no point having an argument about getting something or changing something and then you get approval, only to go through it again later Best just to sort it all out in one go when things arrive, however usually the wife comes round to my way of thinking and agrees that what I have done is for the better give or take a few bad car choices over the years!

Congratulations on the BMW by the way. It is a lovely car but in my case it was just too good for the use it gets from me as that amounts to average 20-30 minutes a day to and from work and possibly a couple of hours on a Saturday. My one was Storm Bay metallic on a 70 plate which was exactly a year old the day I picked it up, having cancelled a new order for the same model due to some of the extras being deleted from the spec due to the semi-conductor shortage and Covid plus the BMW dealer being less than honest about things, it had all the extras that I had specced on the new one I ordered. Had it approx a year and traded it for the Duster Extreme SE in Urban Grey which I really like despite it being classed as a cheap car. I got it last October and it has been a perfect runner and faultless which I hope I do not regret moving over to the Puma. Dusters and Dacia in general are renowned for their longevity and trouble free motoring, in fact I was hoping to get either the new Duster when it comes out next year or even the Bigster but this itch to try the Puma came and so I scratched it. The Puma has a lot more refinements but just slightly less height which may prove to be better for my back in the long run. Will definitely keep the Puma 3 years minimum and then either pay the residual payment or a trade it in for most likely another Dacia. Enjoy your BMW and it would be great if you could post a quick update on what you think of it compared to the Puma.

[Mike]

I really liked my puma which was quite nippy in 155 spec and on a recent trip to Norfolk average 56 mpg which I was happy with, kept it 30 months and was thinking of keeping it because I had tried Cupra formentor which I didn’t like and didn’t really like much else, went to see if the 1 series was an option and ordered mine in Misano blue, electric tailgate, lumber support, heated steer wheel and privacy glass.
Obviously lower to get in and out, firmer ride and effortless to drive especially with the auto box but you know all this having owned one, I took advantage of the trade in value of mine which was just starting to drop and hopefully I have no issues.
I think Ford could learn a bit about updates etc because as I understand it they are downloaded to your phone and updated to the car when your in it, also the information/ sat nav system is a little better and I like the fact I can put a destination on the sat nav on my phone in the house and send it to the car for when I jump in.
I only use it on weekends as I have a van also , had very few issues with the puma and even though it only did 11000 miles I never really had any battery issues, main problem on mine was noisy brakes , Ford replaced rear discs / pads and front pads but th8nk they should have replaced the discs, rear discs stayed looking good so not sure if it was a material issue or transport and storage problem. Any issues I contacted Ford and they liaised with the dealer, also got several amounts of cash for the couple of problems I had neither of which stopped me enjoying the car maybe just slightly annoying at times.

[Exduster]

Thanks for that last post Mike. Great to hear your thoughts on the BMW, the phone app on the BM was really good as was the electronic dipstick as I could just sit in the car while the wife was in Tesco and check the oil. Also liked the sense of humour it had, i.e. "Hey BMW I'm bored" to which the reply came back "I can't imagine you're bored, have you tried sport mode? " and then this mode was activated automatically. You also had the option of it telling you a joke but the best part of the voice activation was the ability to turn on heated seats and wheel, adjust cabin temp. open windows etc, etc. I didn't find it too firm on the suspension but good to hear the Puma is slightly less firm. Interesting you tried the Cupra Formentor as originally I was going to go for the Cupra Ateca but backed out as wanted to keep below the higher road tax, £40,000 limit so started looking at the Formentor too. But for the price the Puma has everything I need plus the dealer is on the doorstep should any issues arise. Thanks for commenting on the minor problems you had with the Puma as that re-assures me that I will should have relatively few issues with the car, though it will have the 3 years warranty anyway. Enjoy the BMW, it is a really nice car.