Was the Ford Ka's WILD style a hit & how did it all go wrong?!?

If you’re lucky enough to get the chance to name a car, you should pick a name that’s obvious to pronounce. Even though Ford picked a car name with just two letters (probably a record unless you count cars like the Ford Model T), people have found multiple ways of pronouncing the car that we’re talking about. Is it the Kah, the Kaa, or simply the K A? Even Ford didn’t seem to know, with their marketing department using all three ways to say it. It seems, to me, that the name was a clever play on the word “car”, and if Ford isn’t clear on how you pronounce it, that’s what I’m going to go with it in this video at least. In the 1990s Ford was known for predictable, dependable cars, but no one looked to Ford for funky innovative styling. So where did the wild looks of the Ka come from? Was it a hit, and how did Ford try to continue the Ka tradition?

Sources:
Steve Saxty – Secret Fords Volume 2

#bigcar

[AndrewMeggs]

The 2nd gen was such a missed styling opportunity considering how well the Fiat 500 has aged, and was definitely overshadowed by the Fiesta at the time.

[rogerking]

I bought one when they first came out. Thanks to its avant garde looks I received more attention from the public than if I'd bought a Ferrari. It was a brilliant little car, probably the best small car I've ever owned and I wish I could buy another one today exactly the same. Particularly memorable was the brilliant handling. But it had one small problem; when I booked it in for its first service the following conversation ensured, "I'd to book my Ka in for its first service", "Yes sir, what sort of car is it?", "It's a Ka", "yes sir, but we need to know what model it is", "It's a Ka", "Yes sir, but we need to know what sort of car it is before we can book it in", "As I just said, it's a Ka". Seeing as Ford themselves were advertising it and pronouncing its name as "Car" it was all a little frustrating.

[mattw]

That TouringKa concept looked great! 😍 Shame that Ford never went with it.

[stephenphillip]

"A "Noddy" car, I wouldn't have one of those *given"* was the quote from my mother - she then had 3 in succession & she loved them (the 2nd one was a bit of a dog) nearly as much as her Hillman Imp 20 years before. She gave up driving aged 91 but kept the 56-plate Ka for 3 years beyond that (🤨). Finally sold to someone in the same town, I saw it regularly, only disappearing last year. It lives on, on Google maps when I search for my own postcode - she's turning the Ka in our street!

[Lisdexanfetamine]

As a Brazilian, i can say that the 3rd gen Ka (or Ka+) was a H I T, (and still is on used market). Quick research show that Ka maintained inside the top 3 best selling hatches from 2016 - 2020. Ford bailed out of Brazil last year, so all Fords suffered a great hit on sales afterwards...

Ka+ on Brazil proved to be just what we wanted. Small and somewhat spacious, economic (brazil adopting the downsizing to the max using 3cil engines) and technological (given it had the Superior and beautiful Fiesta interior)

[LucasBortoliniKuhn]

Ka+ was a big hit here on Brazil, as someone has said. Specially because our market values cars that can do it all: be a city car, a workhorse and also a travelling vessel. Something we can add, though: the major rework mentioned here is a second-generation Ka, since it uses a new platform, following on its roots and renewing on the back of the new Fiesta chassi that came in 2004 to Brazil but surely was around earlier in EU and US.

The first gen (classic Ka) had to compete with one of the biggest foes anyone can battle with in terms of entry-level cars: Fiat Uno, which could take 5 people in the back and had more space due to the flat roof and smaller console. Also, it had to face the titan in Brazil, the longest best-selling car of our market, the Volkswagen's successor to the Beetle, the Gol, which was the best-seller from 1987 to 2013.

Nowadays city car's started making a little bit more sense around here, but not enough for it to be a big entry-level market. So it was obvious that the Brazilian third-generation Ka would be eyeing a different thing: competing with small family cars, such as the Dacia Sandero (here sold as Renault Sandero and Renault Logan too).

The Brazillian Ka (or Ka+ in Europe) had, in that regard, a stiff suspension that could handle our harsh roads, a big internal space and an enormous trunk in the sedan version. Also, it did come with one of the best steering and clutch, making for a massively pleasant driving experience.

All while costing less than the Fiesta, which could barely accomodate any adults on the backseat and felt overall smaller on the inside.

Ford left Brazil recently, so I guess we probably won't see a Ka again. Their focus now is on bigger vehicles with bigger margins, and even familiy small cars with such a high sales volume don't make up for them in terms of production costs. City cars are even worse on that regard, even though electric ones could present them with the big margins they seek on SUVs and large trucks.

Very very nice video! A warm hug from a Brazillian car lover.

[rainerbarbosa]

Great video! There was a joke in Brazil that says that Ford didn't had the money/time to make a full car ('carro' in portuguese), so they made half of it (ka) hahaha. I'm brazilian and over here Ford struggled to mantain the car on production. Brazilians don't like 2-door cars since mid-90s, so Ka was a blind shot that Ford was oblied to mantain because it never sold very well over here. Although is still common to see on the roads, any gen. When Ka became big in 2009 and bigger in 2014 it was more successful at sales. It sold well and even killed the local production Fiesta.

[simonhodgetts]

I enjoyed driving an early Ka - I specifically requested one as a hire car, because I’d heard that they were fun to drive. And it was! The bigger surprise that it was also quite brisk, given its diminutive stature and engine. I nearly bought one, but ended up with a mk1 Punto 6 speed. I contemplated buying one again, many years later, when I was looking for a cheap runabout, but sadly by then, many had succumbed to tin worm.

[TheGalacticEmperorOfLabels]

I almost bought a MK1 KA as a cheap runabout circa 2016. The test drive was cut short when, whilst climbing behind the wheel, my foot went through the floor, which had rusted away and been packed with *cardboard!* Fine cars in their day, but by that point their day was clearly over. Another great video. Thanks.

[freedun]

The Brazilian Mk2 and Mk3 might have disappointed many but the Mk1 deserves some praise for its XR trim level. While Europe didn't get the 1.6L Duratec until the launch of the SportKa in 2002, this engine was made available in the Brazilian Mk1 a year or two earlier and you could actually get a very nicely equipped Ka back then!

[edwardtrickett]

Before I even watch this video, I KNOW it will be well researched, presented and edited
I just know to expect this from this channel and I am grateful for its existence

Thank you for your hard work Andy 🙂

[Spudchucker]

The mock up of a touring estate Ka actually looked pretty cool.

[tdolan]

The Ka was my first car and I absolutely loved it. With some proper suspension and tyres it was an absolute riot to drive. You could lift the handbrake at any speed and it was just so stable. The feminine styling turned a lot off but in my opinion it was like a modern mini.

[sbomorse]

So glad you pronounced it correctly. It irritates me no end when people mispronounce it because it was such a great name!
I think the Ka will end up being a future classic. Basic, cheap to buy and run, superb design (the rare alloys made up of KA lettering!) and loads of fun to drive! That is of course if you can find one that's not rotten (especially around the fuel filler!)

[Eleftheria_i_thanatos]

I hated them. Then I drove one. Ended up having two of them. Great little cars. Shame about the rust.

[joannaatkins]

I learned to drive in a SportKa because it was my instructors car. I won't lie that I look back on them fondly because of that! It wasn't fast but it was fun and grippy, and I appreciated it

[zanmk]

When I was 4 or 5 years old my mother brought me to a toy store, somewhere around '99 or 2000, and there must have been at least hundred different cars displayed on the wall. And the car that I've picked was Ford Ka, soo there must have been something interesting in the design that took my attention.
I wouldn't have pick it today.

[mafiousbj]

I swear this little car has chased me for the last ten years (here in Argentina)! The girl I fancied in college had a 2nd Gen Latin America Ka, which we used to drive home after classes, and my mother in law still surprisingly keeps a 1st gen Ka in working order, although the thing sound like a motorcycle, it might be missing one or two cylinders.

Some random facts I can provide about the Latin American life of the Ka:
-You think the MP3 edition was obnoxious? Here we had a 1st gen "Tattoo Edition" that charged you more just for some tribal decals added to the fenders.
- The 2nd gen Latin American Ka had also a saloon version, mostly to entice taxi fleets which run in GNC here (should send you pictures) People still love their separate trunks here for some reason.
-Funnily enough, there was never a pronunciation issue in Spanish, since the name "Ka" is basically the sound/name for the letter "K" in our alphabet

Anyway keep up this awesome videos!

[modelandrei]

I have a first generation ka. It's from 2001 with the 1.3 endura engine. It was my first car and I drove it for 1 year, even got it repainted in the original yellow with black plastic bumpers. The air con broke down and because it was really noisy on the highway, I bought another car. But I still have it... I'm keeping it for when it becomes a classic :)

[siviter]

The Ka, like the Twingo is a car that tread its own path. Didn't try to fill a segment or follow a trend, it's not to everyone's taste but it sure is a classic in the making. Two other models I feel fit this mould are the Citroen C4 Cactus and the Skoda Yeti. Really enjoy your videos, thanks for making them.