Ford Ka

[Deleted User]

melbury wrote: »

Thanks for the information, do you have to ask a dealer to turn it off for good or can you do it yourself?

I think you can do it yourself by following the info in the handbook. He says his Ka came with it already switched off.

Tiexen

Deleted_User wrote: »

I think you can do it yourself by following the info in the handbook. He says his Ka came with it already switched off.

I don't think so (nothing in the handbook) - he probably has an early one that doesn't have it fitted.

[Deleted User]

Tiexen wrote: »

I don't think so (nothing in the handbook) - he probably has an early one that doesn't have it fitted.

He does have it as his manual says so and the dealer said so too.

Tiexen

Deleted_User wrote: »

He does have it as his manual says so and the dealer said so too.

Is it a Brand new one then? I think Fiat have fitted the option to the lastest 500's so it may have filtered through.

But then why would you want to?

You pull up a set of lights put it in neutral hand brake on and the engine stops - stereo/lights stay on. as you see the lights change you press the clutch down and the engine starts (its not like turning the key just a gentle trum) and away you go.

[Deleted User]

Tiexen wrote: »

Is it a Brand new one then? I think Fiat have fitted the option to the lastest 500's so it may have filtered through.

But then why would you want to?

You pull up a set of lights put it in neutral hand brake on and the engine stops - stereo/lights stay on. as you see the lights change you press the clutch down and the engine starts (its not like turning the key just a gentle trum) and away you go.

He has a 13 reg from last May.

Tiexen

melbury wrote: »

That's interesting because the UP is supposed to be the best of that trio and is certainly quite pricey.

As mentioned, I have seen some incredibly good deals on Ford Ka's (not in my area though) with savings of almost £2000 on the rrp - these are 14 plate with less than 100 miles on the clock, so really brand new.

I think the UP is a very good car but you are paying for the VW name, the Skoda is probably the best value.

Although I have a KA - Ford seem to have lost interest in it, look at the the 500 and all the different models (Abarth/soft-top) - and why no 1lt Ecoboost or even the Fiat Twinair.

Mr_Mink

Having had an Up for nearly two years I can give you a good idea of life with it if you want.

The short version is that it's both excellent and terrible at the same time.
It's a great car to drive, cavernous inside considering how small it is and the real world mpg is excellent (in the 75 hp I have I'm getting between 54 - 62).
On the downside, some really basic stuff if missing, as mentioned earlier, driver has no control of passenger window, there's no boot light (you would be amazed at how much you'd miss one) and the gear changes and engine can get rather vocal, it also goes through oil at a rate I've never come across before.

melbury

Mr_Mink wrote: »

Having had an Up for nearly two years I can give you a good idea of life with it if you want.

The short version is that it's both excellent and terrible at the same time.
It's a great car to drive, cavernous inside considering how small it is and the real world mpg is excellent (in the 75 hp I have I'm getting between 54 - 62).
On the downside, some really basic stuff if missing, as mentioned earlier, driver has no control of passenger window, there's no boot light (you would be amazed at how much you'd miss one) and the gear changes and engine can get rather vocal, it also goes through oil at a rate I've never come across before.

Thank you, that is really interesting. A couple of months ago I had decided on a 14 plate pre-reg SEAT Mii, but just missed out:(

This trio seem to be pretty much the best I have read about for returning close to the predicted mpg, a fact which you confirm, so that is good. As for the other stuff, that doesn't really bother me at all. I am quite happy to open the doors with a key and wind the windows down manually. It is just for me to drive to work and back, so it is usually just me in the car anyway.

Bit worrying about the oil usage; could this be a particular thing with your car do you think?

Some people have mentioned gearbox problems with this trio, but they certainly get exceptionally good reviews on all of the car sites.

Mr_Mink

melbury wrote: »

Thank you, that is really interesting. A couple of months ago I had decided on a 14 plate pre-reg SEAT Mii, but just missed out:(

This trio seem to be pretty much the best I have read about for returning close to the predicted mpg, a fact which you confirm, so that is good. As for the other stuff, that doesn't really bother me at all. I am quite happy to open the doors with a key and wind the windows down manually. It is just for me to drive to work and back, so it is usually just me in the car anyway.

Bit worrying about the oil usage; could this be a particular thing with your car do you think?

Some people have mentioned gearbox problems with this trio, but they certainly get exceptionally good reviews on all of the car sites.

If you don't mind the little things then the car could well be ideal for you (by the car I mean whichever one you can find because they're all basically the same). I would recommend checking out the Kia Picanto/Hyundai i10 too, I took a Picanto out for a test drive and was extremely impressed.

Regarding the oil, I've had two separate VW dealerships confirm that this is "well within operation tolerances". It isn't anything drastic like a Mazda RX8 but still far more oil than I've ever needed to put in any of my previous cars.

As for the gearbox, it hasn't caused any trouble so far, just noisy which in a strange way I kind of like.

So yeah, overall a good car but with some strange omissions. If there's anything specific you want to know about it, feel free to ask.

melbury

Mr_Mink wrote: »

If you don't mind the little things then the car could well be ideal for you (by the car I mean whichever one you can find because they're all basically the same). I would recommend checking out the Kia Picanto/Hyundai i10 too, I took a Picanto out for a test drive and was extremely impressed.

Regarding the oil, I've had two separate VW dealerships confirm that this is "well within operation tolerances". It isn't anything drastic like a Mazda RX8 but still far more oil than I've ever needed to put in any of my previous cars.

As for the gearbox, it hasn't caused any trouble so far, just noisy which in a strange way I kind of like.

So yeah, overall a good car but with some strange omissions. If there's anything specific you want to know about it, feel free to ask.

I have read about Picantos and i10's but they don't give the good mpg. In fact on one site some people were saying they only got 35-45mpg from Picantos, which is awful.