A new Ford Ka doesn't come around every year. In fact, it looked like the model was going to be discontinued for a long time. But now that we have it, what do we do with it?
The Ka+ has to be the biggest city car ever made, as it's almost the size of the Fiesta and even slightly taller.
Ford is well known for making fun, agile little critters, so it was only natural that people started imagining the Ka+ as a hot hatch. But we think X-Tomi stretched the idea too far with the RS model he made.
By grafting on the front end of the Focus RS, as well as some polished alloy wheels and a trunk wing, he made the Ka look like a baby rally car. But we have no hope of ever seeing such a machine entering production.
One of the reasons is that it has been designed to be cheap. As with the EcoSport crossover, assembly takes places in India. Only two 1.2-liter naturally aspirated engines will be available at launch, offering a maximum power output of 84 HP (85 PS) and 152 lb-ft (112 Nm).
It's typical for the segment, but a few rays of hope have emerged recently. The first is the Renault Twingo GT, a warm hatch with a 0.9-liter turbo engine that's been tuned to 109 hp. It's nowhere near as impressive as the old Renaultsport Twingo, but it's a start.
Volkswagen is also rumored to be working on an Up! GTI. However, considering the power will come from a 1-liter turbo engine, we think calling it a GTI is out of the question.
But what about the Ford Ka+? Well, this car was originally developed for the Brazilian market, where it made its debut a couple of years ago. The platform is derived from that of the previous Fiesta, which means it could use much bigger engines than this 1.2-liter.
We are 50% sure Ford are going to make a hot version with the 1-liter EcoBoost engine. They always give the fans what they want, but it's also a question of how long it will take.
Ford is well known for making fun, agile little critters, so it was only natural that people started imagining the Ka+ as a hot hatch. But we think X-Tomi stretched the idea too far with the RS model he made.
By grafting on the front end of the Focus RS, as well as some polished alloy wheels and a trunk wing, he made the Ka look like a baby rally car. But we have no hope of ever seeing such a machine entering production.
One of the reasons is that it has been designed to be cheap. As with the EcoSport crossover, assembly takes places in India. Only two 1.2-liter naturally aspirated engines will be available at launch, offering a maximum power output of 84 HP (85 PS) and 152 lb-ft (112 Nm).
It's typical for the segment, but a few rays of hope have emerged recently. The first is the Renault Twingo GT, a warm hatch with a 0.9-liter turbo engine that's been tuned to 109 hp. It's nowhere near as impressive as the old Renaultsport Twingo, but it's a start.
Volkswagen is also rumored to be working on an Up! GTI. However, considering the power will come from a 1-liter turbo engine, we think calling it a GTI is out of the question.
But what about the Ford Ka+? Well, this car was originally developed for the Brazilian market, where it made its debut a couple of years ago. The platform is derived from that of the previous Fiesta, which means it could use much bigger engines than this 1.2-liter.
We are 50% sure Ford are going to make a hot version with the 1-liter EcoBoost engine. They always give the fans what they want, but it's also a question of how long it will take.