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I spent a few days in the beach town of Sayulita, Nayarit State, Mexico last week. Talk about your outstanding mix of battered-yet-proud survivors and Stuff We Can't Buy Up Here! Let's take a look. More »
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Ford's decided smaller may not always be better. CEO Alan Mulally told Automotive News this weekend they won't be selling the Ka minicar or the next-gen-for-the-global-marketplace 2012 Ford Ranger pickup here in the U.S. [AutoNews] More »
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Remember how Ford used to claim the Ka was too small for American tastes? Well, it appears American tastes have sufficiently downsized, and Ford CEO Alan Mulally, during an interview on a local Detroit radio show, said an Americanized Ka has quite a few supporters in the halls of the Dearborn automaker. For those not familiar with the Ka (and since it's never been sold here, that may be many of you), the little city cruiser is about the same width as the old Kia-sourced Ford Aspire — remember the Aspire? — and roughly ten inches shorter. Fortunately, the new Fiat 500-based Ka is also rumored to be at least an order of magnitude more fun to drive, so we're looking forward to finally seeing one on these shores in something other than a James Bond flick. More »
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The 2009 Ford Ka is apparently going to be making a cameo appearance in the worst-named Bond movie in history — Quantum of Solace. We're a little terrified by the graphical shenanigans on the side of this car — "Greene Planet" — which we assume means there's going to be some kind of trendy Earth-friendly tie-in. Well, at least there's Bond girl Olga Kurylenko to brighten things up. More »
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Ford decided the world had seen enough unofficially official photos of the all-new 2009 Ford Ka. The spinmeisters at Ford Europe have let loose with high-resolution versions of the three leaked shots we've already seen, plus a press release sparse on real details, but huge on adjectives. Yes, the marketers have supped heavily from the well of hyperbole, describing the new Ka as "full of youthful and cheeky Ka spirit," "exciting," "bold" and yes, "fashionable." Full specs will be released prior to the actual debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show in October, but enjoy the tease below the jump. More »
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Earlier this week, we got the first unofficially official look at the 2009 Ford Ka, the biggest little thing to hit the Ford lineup in years. Today we get an unofficially official look at its tail-end and the center stack, albeit in small-image fashion. Worry not though, as it seems everything is going according to plan, and the car looks just as it did when pre-production photos of the Ford Ka leaked out in May. Expect to see the littlest Ford debut at the Paris Motor Show in October. More »
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The first official image of the already-leaked 2009 Ford Ka has hit the web courtesy of the folks at CarTribe. Though we've seen shots of the car before, this is the first one we've seen given the photo studio treatment. As we reported, a Ford and Fiat agreement has led to a new Ka that shares many of its mechanicals with the cute and lovable Fiat 500. The car is supposed to be officially unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, so we're assuming we'll see more forthwith. Click here for the high-res version of the shot, then hit the jump. More »
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A Saturday Wall Street Journal report claims Ford is working up plans to retool its North American assembly plants to build a number of European models. Ford hasn't confirmed the report, but it is expected to announce the shift during its second-quarter earnings conference on Thursday. While the paper mentions only the Mondeo specifically, conventional wisdom has the Euro Focus and possibly a C-Max/S-Max joining it. We'll take one with a diesel and 6-speed stick, please. [WSJ via Automotive News (Sub. Req.)] More »
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After what feels like the world's longest production run — in reality a mere 12 years (seriously!) — the Ford Ka is finally getting an all-new model, and here's the car doing the replacing. As we reported way back in 2005, the 2009 Ford Ka will be based on the Fiat 500 in a bit of magical platform prostitution, and though that's a good start, the 500 definitely has some room for improvement. We hope Ford has worked its small car suspension magic on the little bugger cause the 63 HP 1.2-liter, 100 HP 1.4-liter gas and 75 HP 1.3-liter Multijet diesel engines won't set the world on fire in the same way a tossable chassis can.
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With foreign car magazines like AutoBild you can never be sure if what you're getting is on the up and up, but these photos of the 2009 Ford Ka look legit when compared to other pics we've seen. Based on the Fiat 500, the littlest Ford should continue to maintain its popularity with this latest design. We look forward to the ST sport version and possible mild hybrid system that is in the works. The full scan below. More »
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We understand the Ford Ka is a roomy vehicle. Hell, it's even big enough for James Bond and many Bond girls, but the means this Spanish commercial goes to in order to express that notion is going to cause us to have some serious trouble sleeping tonight. The first one to identify what the hell those creatures are gets a cookie. [Neatorama] More »
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We've got a chance to check out some exclusive video from the set of the new Bond flick, "Quantum of Solace." Yes, it's a silly name for a movie. But you know, the "Ka" is a silly name for a car — except for, you know, in Boston. So it seems like the two would work well together, which, if the video's right, will be just the case. The clip appears to show the new, and as yet un-revealed, Ford Ka hitting the silver screen in the new 007 movie, complete with some strange graphics running down the side. Well, we'd have preferred a new Mondeo like the last movie, but beggars Ka-n't be choosers. Ha. We slay ourselves. But what do you think? Is that the new Ka-Ka? Video after the jump. More »
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Autocar has images of a disguised production version of the 2010 Ford Ka. Ford Europe has partnered up with Fiat for their new baby, it's based on the same chassis as the 500 and Panda. Evident in the shots is a heavy sharing of interior parts with the 500, although Ford claims no visible parts will come from Fiat. More »
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You don't have to travel all the way to Southern Europe to see a New Ford Ka, as they're apparently running around Dearborn, Michigan (the Riviera of the Midwest, surely). It was lucky for us then that Jalopnik commenter TheMadAdder was around to snap some photos of a diminutive Ford hatchback as it weaved its way through traffic during the evening rush on the M-39. Another photo of the tiny hatch making its way across town below the jump. More »
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We're a bit curious how the new Fiat 500-based Ford Ka is going to turn out, especially given how much we like the bizarre dimensions of the Mk. 1 Ka every time we see a Central American one driving down I-10. Will it stay true to its original form or is it destined for a boring, but more acceptable design? A new set of spy shots seems to indicate that the answer to that question is what we want to hear. More »
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With the Fiat 500 getting all the media attention, accolades and kisses from Italian supermodels, we almost feel bad for the new Ford Ka. After all, the mini sister ship to the 500 will be a far less-fashionable progeny of the Ford-Fiat small-car alliance. The UK's Car says the Ka will arrive at the Paris Auto Show in 2008, so there's still time for a big ad campaign, parties sponsored by global vodka brands and a mess of branded accessories. But it'll never have the 500s history, and thus likely become just another minicar parked on a European street designed for quarter horses. C'est la vie. [Car] More »
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According to our sources at Interpol, Fiat's revealing its new 500 minicar this week. As as such, early press shots have already leaked to the web. The new minicar, which takes its cues from the classic Cinquecento by way of the Fiat Trepiuno concept car of 2004, will hit dealerships in Europe later this year. The joint project will Ford Europe is also expected to spawn a replacement for the Ford Ka built on the same platform. Still no word on the Abarth tuner version, but you know that's coming. [UPDATE: They didn't so much leak as premiere for those who signed up at www.fiat500.com. But be careful, you only get one look.] – Mike Spinelli More »
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It's official: Fiat is building a new Cinquecento (500) minicar with an unlikely partner. As you may remember, Fiat showed an updated 500 in the guise of the Trepi no concept in Geneva this year. Now, the company has announced it will develop a production version of the Italian icon — the cultural equivalent of the New Beetle — with Ford, which will rebadge the product as its new European Ka. The companies will use Fiat's Panda small-car architecture to underpin the new models, which will be launched in 2007 (Fiat) and 2008 (Ford). Italian-languant fluents can read more at Autoblog.it. [Update: CNN/Money picked up the story. Thanks, Chris.] More »
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