Welcome to a re-booted Bargain of The Week. New for 2010 is our brand new virtual used car showroom. New and exciting stock will grace our forecourt and you’ll find a real eclectic mix of metal. No more bangers, no more insurance write offs (and twisted frame controversy), just cool cars which will get any petrol head, pistons’ slapping.
Most men love to peruse through any type of motoring classifieds whether its classics or exotics. Just the thought of owning one of these gets the mind wondering, even to the point of thinking of ways to finance such a purchase even though we probably can’t actually afford to.
Save your marriage and stick with us. It may be out of reach, or you could be fortunate and be in the market for a new set of wheels, either way, it’s always worth having a look round our used car stock because you never know what you might find. Bargains are our speciality.
With freshly painted walls, a spanking new showroom and plenty of stock, MTI’s Bargain of the Week Motors is open for business. Our first star of the week is this smashing Ford Racing Puma. Not many are seen around and that’s probably because only a 1000 were made and just 500 of them sold in the UK.
It might sound like a cliché but the FRP was really conceived within the walls of Dagenham, well Boreham to be precise, back in 1999. Spawned from Ford’s own in-house rally specialist team, the Racing Puma received special modifications including wider bodywork and track front and rear, larger discs and race-spec Alcon discs / 4 pot callipers up front, Sparco bucket seats, blue Alcantara trim and 17″ Speedline wheels. All 1000 were painted in Fords “racing blue” paint and were powered by a modified 1.7-litre engine.
The FRP boasted 155bhp, enough to get it to 60mph in 7.9 seconds and although the press raved about Fords last Puma edition and gave it plenty of editorial space, Ford struggled to sell all 500 UK cars and had to shift the remaining stock through their discounted management scheme. This actually paid off long-term as many ended up for sale at heavily reduced prices purely because they weren’t selling as well as the Blue Oval had hoped. Good prices, exclusivity and sudden demand turned the FRP around and for the next few years it finally got the status it deserved.
Only in production for 12 months, the Racing Puma was and still is extremely rare with only a few coming up for sale once in a blue moon. It may not be to everyone’s taste but as Fords go, paying around £7500 to £9000 for an unmodified example really is one of the most satisfying purchases of all and thanks to initial slow sales back in 1999.
Rarity or not, nothing more sums up our search for the best Bargain of The Week.
Ad reads:
Ford Racing Puma
3 Doors, Manual, Coupe, Petrol, 59,125 miles, Metallic Blue, 2 Owners. ABS, Air conditioning, Heated door mirrors, Alloy wheels, Passenger airbag, Traction control, Electric door mirrors, Drivers airbag, PAS, Radio/CD, Sports seats. Insurance Group: 15A. WE ARE DELIGHTED TO OFFER THIS STUNNING LIMITED EDITION FORD PUMA RACING.THIS CAR IS MODEL NUMBER 249 AND HAVING HAD ONLY 2 OWNERS FROM NEW AND COMPLETLY STANDARD THIS IS NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE USUAL RUBBISH AVAILABLE.WITH UP GRADED FUL SAINLESS STEEL EXHAUST.THIS CAR IS OFFERED WITH A FULL SERVICE HISTORY AND FULL 12 MONTHS M.O.T.JUST ARRIVED AND NOT TO BE MISSED. £7995
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