New Edge Design, Old School Fun

Like countless others, I began my post-test driving career in a car shared with the parents. It was a pretty leggy but very endearing 1998 Mazda 121, basically a MkIV Ford Fiesta with a Mazda badge on both ends. As a first taste of independent motoring, it was pretty well-suited. Good to drive, pretty practical, cheap to run (and repair) and powered by the pretty ancient 1.3 litre Endura-E Ford motor that can trace its iron block roots back to the 1960s Ford Anglia.

Again, like countless others, this car went to meet its maker with the tempting proposition of a £2000 incentive from the UK government's scrappage scheme. So as I headed off to higher education, the Mazda went to a higher place, and I was to be car-less for a very long 16 months.

After a great degree of saving, searching, and a fair degree of luck in a surprisningly cut-throat second hand car market, I have once again mirrored countless others, as my first, proper 'own' car is... a Mk1 Ford Ka.

My new pride and joy was built in 1998, 2 years into the Ka's marathon life span, and the same year as the then-revolutionary Mk1 Focus. The Ka debuted Ford's New Edge design language and was the Blue Oval's first proper attempt at modern city car. As anyone from the UK or Western Europe will testify, Ford hit the nail on the head with more than just beginner's luck; the Ka was so successful it remained at the top of the sales charts for its class, without a facelift inside or out, until 2008, so it's not as dated as you might first think.

My particular Ka is a fine example of the breed, with far more kit than the Mazda possessed. Being a '3' model, this top of the line example featured such luxuries as electric front and vented rear windows, rear head restraints, a CD player, central locking, 14" alloy wheels, air conditioning and metallic paint. Not a bad spec list for a cheap city runabout in the late Nineties.

Having been well looked after, all this gear still works faultlessly, though my car has succumbed to the common Nineties Ka and Fiesta faults with the heating-related electric system, causing the heating to become stuck on when the blower is activated. While a simple task to repair on the lesser models, Ka 3's with air conditioning require professional garage tools and know-how to sort the problem properly, so while the funds for that are gathered, the interim solution has been to ingeniously remove the heater's fuse. With my corner of England currently basking in the hottest spring for a decade, there's no rush to sort the problem.

The Ka might be no spring chicken in design terms but the fact it remained on sale for 8 years pays tribute to its agile, chuckable handling, ample grip, and 'fun factor' in the drive that was simply unheard of (and arguably unnecessary) in the city car class. It marked the genesis of Ford's modern renaissance as a driver's brand, cemented by the Focus and continued by everything from the successor Mondeos and Fiestas.

The main change for the Ka in its lifetime was the 2002 swap from the Endura E engine to a more modern Duratec unit with 10bhp more than the 59bhp Endura motor, and longer gearing to capitalise. Thankfully, my Endura has been treated well, with low mileage, no leaks or squeaks (touch-wood) and mated to an equally willing, snickety gear change which still feels slick and enjoyable after 14 years.
The Endura might be an old design but it was substantially revised for the Ka in 1996 with a then-advanced electronic engine management system and specific tune to deliver maximum torque at medium revs, making the Ka very nippy in the town environment it was designed for. Certainly, at 930kg, a good 200kg less than the Fiesta-based Mazda, the Ka is very still usefully quick everywhere one could hope to use it, with only a long motorway cruise betraying its low cost, lightweight roots.

So, as a keen driver, and budding car journo, how does my Ka stack up? Well it's mercifully standard, with no crass modifications that afflict other unfortunate cars. It's quick enough, massively fun to drive at perfectly legal speeds, spot on in term of my practical needs, surprisingly comfortable, and therefore very recommendable. Don't settle for one with overt rusting, there are so many around that playing the waiting game is always worthwhile.

There'll be more to come on Tyre Roar with experiences, incidents and observations as they come, but I'm very much looking forward to enjoying this 'bottom rung' of the motoring ladder this summer and beyond.

I also wonder whether the Ka is actually just as, if not more relevant now, than it was upon its launch back in '96. Lighter, smaller engined cars are very much flavour of the month right now, and will be for the foreseeable future. Being very economical, the Ka is well suited to sky high petrol prices, and while its relatively primitive engine technology means it can't possibly achieve the touted mpg figures of Polo Bluemotions and Nissan Leafs (Leaves?) it's still thoroughly reasonable when driven carefully. Unlike many modern downsized motors, the Ka is naturally aspirated, so without a tiny turbo to spool up to deliver that valuable mid-range shove, the Ka has very accurate and surprisingly sensitive throttle response that one may not expect given its insubstantial power output.

N.B. Despite my glowing praise the car seems determined to blot its record with spreading electrical gremlins: a cross-town drive has uncovered an intermittent fault with the right hand indicator when in use while simultaneously braking. Fingers crossed it's just a bulb on its way out...

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