Ford ka..1st car opinions

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hi guys. right the savings account is increasing. the theory test is booked and my first driving lesson (well not quite as i have had lessons before but didnt enjoy them) is booked for thursday at 2.30

i plan to buy a ford ka as my first car. cheap to buy cheap to run and being female insurance is also cheap. well cheaper anyway

the boyfriend and all his friends think its a good choice. plus i really like them, i can "see myself" driving it, colour coded bumpers though of course

i just wanted some opinions from you guys and any info about experiences or problems you've had with them

thanks in advance
 
The Fiesta is a MUCH better car than the Ka - I found it truly dreadful. If you get the 1.3 Endura engine, the performance is beyond woeful, being as it's ancient as the hills. The 1.25 Zetec lump in the Fiesta is much better and overall they are the better car.

The Fiesta will also generally be better equipped and with lots around you can afford to be choosy, insisting on nice alloys, a CD, electric windows & quick clear screen if poss.

The Ka, avoid like a dose of aids tbh.
 
Kitchster_uk said:

My thoughts on the situation also.. alas my ex went out and bought one.. silly girl..

How small do you need the car? Fiesta is a decent car.. i like the polo's also..

how much you looking to spend? :)
 
awwww haha u cant kill my dream haha

i can afford a decent ka newish i suppose with the budget. my budgets about 3grand

i did consider other cars but the ka always comes first for me :)

a lady i work with has had hers since new, shes never had a problem with it and its now 9 years old

ive heard so many good things about them which is why they win. and again the fact that i like them

edit: when i say newish i mean 02 reg
 
Ignore the above, its nonsense.

I was talking about KA's yesterday with a guy, they are almost the perfect throw away car. dirt cheap, reliable, fast enough, well equipped if you get the right spec, handle and stop, they are just a little slow.

We couldnt think of a better first car for the money.
 
The Ka was a disaster from the start.

The technology in it is so darn old. It's got push rods, it's not galvanised, the list goes on...


The new Ka (coming Januaryish???) will be a much better car.
 
atpbx said:
Ignore the above, its nonsense.

I was talking about KA's yesterday with a guy, they are almost the perfect throw away car. dirt cheap, reliable, fast enough, well equipped if you get the right spec, handle and stop, they are just a little slow.

We couldnt think of a better first car for the money.

i dont need speed. im not gonna go out racing. its just my little run around. fed up of relying on other people and public transport
 
Phoebs said:
i dont need speed. im not gonna go out racing. its just my little run around. fed up of relying on other people and public transport

So long as you're not keeping it for long then it's justifiable.

But sell it or crash it before you have to start welding plates onto cills etc.
 
Is a Fiat Panda in budget yet?

Not sure how quickly they have depreciated.
 
atpbx said:
Ignore the above, its nonsense.

I was talking about KA's yesterday with a guy, they are almost the perfect throw away car. dirt cheap, reliable, fast enough, well equipped if you get the right spec, handle and stop, they are just a little slow.

We couldnt think of a better first car for the money.

There are much better first cars out there for the money!

To OP

Unfortantly.. it seems like my ex you have your heart set on the ford ka and nothing is going to sway you ;) You know this.. all that matters to you is that its cute and you like the looks.. admit it :D :p
 
I had 2 Ka vans (don't all laugh at once!) one had the endura engine which was very poor, and the other had the duratec which was a lot better.

I can imagine them being very good first cars, I wouldn't complain if it was my first. They handle nicely, are reasonably pokey especially around town, pretty frugal, cost buttons to run and insure.

As said by atpbx, get the right spec and it'll be hard to beat for the cash.
 
Ignore the above. ;)

I had one for my first car (an 03 plate). It came with half decent alloy wheels, aircon and a cd player as standard. Its quick enough and is very reliable and cheap to service and run. Also parts are cheap for it. However, make sure you get a Duratec engine as these are the new ones in the 03 and later models. The endura engine is old now, although still fine for what it does, but the duratec is a much more up to date engine and in 3 years of ownership and fairly hard driving the only thing i had to change in it was a sensor that was dodgey.

Also, on a side note, they are very fun to drive and quite chuckable, if you feel like a bit of a laugh. Fair enough, they're not v roomy in the back though! I say go for it. They do their job brilliantly.
 
ZG002 said:
There are much better first cars out there for the money!

Such as? (queue the "you should get a toyota MR2 twin turbo!!") ;) :p

BigglesPiP said:
The Ka was a disaster from the start.

Funny, i thought/most other reviewers thought it did the job it was supposed to do wonderfully!
 
Last edited:
Gaygle said:
Such as? (queue the "you should get a toyota MR2 twin turbo!!") ;) :p

Mr2 TT...

;)

The Fiesta is a better car.
The Pug 306 would be better, HDi could be had for that money, nice and economical for you. Could also get a decent 206, either petrol or diesel. That's more like the Ka in appearance (without the fat ass).
 
You cant get a MR2 twin turbo :p

She aint buying new.. and as a first car i wouldnt imagine she will be keeping it for any more than 2-3 yrs.. So a car that lasts that long would do.. a fiesta is a nicer place to be than the ka.. same with a polo even a yaris is a nicer place to be.

But like i said.. shes getting a Ka tis no two ways about it :p
 
Ka is a perfect first car as long as you don't do lots of motorway miles. Nothing wrong with them if you look at them in context.
 
Checking autotrader it does seem possible to get a Panda for approx £3000, get that much nicer then the KA.
 
POB said:
Checking autotrader it does seem possible to get a Panda for approx £3000, get that much nicer then the KA.

If that's right the new Panda is really nice and quirky, good little cars from the reviews I've seen.
 
Kitchster_uk said:
Mr2 TT...

;)

The Fiesta is a better car.
The Pug 306 would be better, HDi could be had for that money, nice and economical for you. Could also get a decent 206, either petrol or diesel. That's more like the Ka in appearance (without the fat ass).


Ahhh are we talking about how you don't like the looks, or the actual mechanics of the car? I fail to see how the fiesta is a much better car? Sure it may be a tiny bit better engine/roomy in the back, but apart from that, it isn't better at all. The Duratec engine is a massive improvement over the endura one. The 306, lets face it, is a boring shape and not really a girly kind of car. 206 looks nice enough if you're a girl (like the ka) but the reliablity has been pretty bad.

So far i can only see the fiesta being a contender to the KA. Even then, its definately not worth getting the fiesta just to get that minute bit of performance out of it, if she prefers the KA anyway.
 
Gaygle said:
Ahhh are we talking about how you don't like the looks, or the actual mechanics of the car?
No, although it doesn't llok particularly good, the technology is ancient, non-galvanized body so if it's lived near the sea/been out lots in winter, tin worm is waiting to eat it alive.

Gaygle said:
I fail to see how the fiesta is a much better car? Sure it may be a tiny bit better engine/roomy in the back, but apart from that, it isn't better at all. The Duratec engine is a massive improvement over the endura one.

Much better engine, better spec as standard, not as prone to rusting, newer design and the Ka was the bargain basement, entry-level - no frills, just lob together and taget the ladies. They were cheap and nasty new.

Gaygle said:
The 306, lets face it, is a boring shape and not really a girly kind of car. 206 looks nice enough if you're a girl (like the ka) but the reliablity has been pretty bad.

Reliability on the 206 - ok, it's french but it is not a massive issue, certainly no more so than the Ka. My mate's missus drives the Derv 2.0HDi and treats it like a hound - labours the engine, does'n't know where the bonnet release is and oil...fry your chips in that don't you...? Still it runs without issue.

Gaygle said:
So far i can only see the fiesta being a contender to the KA. Even then, its definately not worth getting the fiesta just to get that minute bit of performance out of it, if she prefers the KA anyway.


I was on holiday in Ibiza a couple of years back and we saw what appeared to be a smart that had been in a crash with a Rover 600. The rover had some damage but was driven onto the back of the recovery truch under it's own steam. The 'smart' was actually a Ka - it had just crumpled. Not very safe. The Fiesta will hold a slightly higher resale value, particularly if a decent model is sourced and whilst the 306 may be a bit square, fair enough, the 206 run rings around the Ka.
 
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