Ford Ka
In the last few weeks we've featured quite a few big domestic cars; so what better subject than a featherweight European hatchback with a domestic nameplate? I've always found European Fords somewhat jarring; it's this incredibly familiar nameplate on generally unfamiliar cars. GM at least differentiates their unique European-market offering with Opel and Vauxhall nameplates, and Chrysler tends to just import the same cars it sells in America. Meanwhile, European Fords, with their air of Continental sophistication and mystery, seem like the intoxicating and sultry cousins of the girl next door.
Anyway, modern, mass-produced cars don't get much more featherweight than the Ford Ka--either in terms of mass or its name. Its minimalist, two-letter, one-syllable name actually sounds a bit like an Australian pronunciation of "car" (Nicole Kidman to Tom Cruise in Days of Thunder: Let me out of the Ka, Cole, let me out of the Ka!").
The Ka debuted in 1996 and occupies the entry-level slot in the Ford of Europe lineup. Its humble status is the source of its genius; in its simplicity lies its rare combination of agility, quick reflexes, and sweet mechanical harmony captured both by the original Volkswagen GTI and its spiritual forebear, the first-generation Ford Fiesta. The Fiesta is often overlooked as a performance car, but unlike the blander Festiva that followed, the Fiesta was an eager little car--light, honest, and direct. As we've discussed, driving a slow car fast can be a great deal of fun, and the Fiesta turned out pure pint-sized driving magic.
The Ka, like the Fiesta, isn't a fire-breather; it is a lightweight by today's standards at only 2,000 pounds, but with less than 100 horsepower on tap from even the most powerful engine it won't win many drag races. Handling is a different question; both the Ka and its dressier siblings, the Sportka and convertible Streetka, change direction in a blink of an eye. Who wouldn't want an economy car that can double as a go-kart?
The Mini is considered one of the best-handling modern cars, and the Ka, even now more than a decade into its run, is very nearly its equal. What's more, I think I prefer the Ka's application of Ford's New Edge design philosophy to the Mini's slavish retroism. Okay, well maybe not. I want to like the Ka's Peugeot-ish rear hatch line, but it might be a little too quirky even for me.
The original Ka is slated to be replaced in the very near future. With the temptation to make the new model softer and more opulent, I doubt it will be as tiny, stylish, and direct as the current model. Here's hoping Ford bucks those expectations.
I included the commercial below because I have absolutely no idea what's going on--and I love the driver's expression after he drives into the guy's house. Random and bizarre. And speaking of random and bizarre, the Sportka is perhaps best known in the U.S. for these two commercials, which have been circulating virally for years now (1, 2). Great stuff for the demented among us.
The photos are all from Flickr; the top is from CARLOS62, the second is from photossvl, the third from KameraAssault.
--Chris H.
Tom on January 09, 2009 at 07:18 AM
Ford US is all about trucks. Whislt at Ford Europe and ultimately Jaguar and Aston Martin, many of these hand-down winners (european car of the year twice for the Focus) we pushed back and pushed back.
Trucks. The yellow-book report that Ford manages - showed though that many of the other stable products were loss-leaders (for market presence) and trucks were simply cash cows.
Its sucks - i even remember working on hybrids and the big man at the top; Billy (and the family pushing out Jaques) led to an abandoment of all hybrid/ fuel-cell work.
It sucks ! Now living in the US - there are so many cars that could do so well. Renault, Citroen, Fiats even !