Ford Ka Studio 1.2 3dr Car Review - March 2012

The new Ka model is particularly efficient producing a small 115 g/km of CO2 emissions. With its fuel efficiency fairly high, offering 57.7 mpg on a combined cycle, running costs are kept low making it a fuel efficient vehicle that is likely to be convenient for regular drivers.

Not surprisingly the Ford Ka can only reach a top speed of 99 mph which may be a little lower than some buyers would like. However, this mode is not designed to offer the performance credentials of a sports car and this means it performs well for a car of its class.

That being said, the car is quite slow and it takes 13.4 seconds to travel from 0-62 mph. This means that the car performs well within the city but may struggle to keep up with other traffic on motorways and faster roads.

The performance credentials are provided by the efficient engine which produces 68 bhp of power. The engine isn't overly noisy when running but the car fails to block out wind noise making it relatively noisy to drive.

Within the interior, the basic Ka lacks equipment. Bluetooth, satellite navigation and MP3 connectivity are not standard features and this means it will be costly for drivers who want to have these added.

There are not electric windows or mirrors and the vehicle does not have air conditioning or climate control either. Furthermore, central locking is not included with this Ka model, making it extremely basic in terms of equipment.

The car can have rear parking sensors for those willing to pay an extra £200 but the car does not offer cruise control or other similar features.

In terms of style, the car can be made more sophisticated by opting for a metallic paint finish on the exterior. This costs an additional £445 on-top of the price of the standard model and with other limitations to the car's style some may find the cost unjustified and the improvement insufficient.

Interior wise the vehicle does not offer the option of leather seats, making it fairly basic and not overly stylish in any sense.

Airbags are an important feature of road vehicle safety but unfortunately the Ka car is short on the number of airbags which are present as standard features. Whilst the model does benefit from driver and passenger airbags it does not come with any for the front side of the car and this is a real disadvantage considering the vast number of airbags offered as standard on other modern cars.

As a city car, the car achieves fuel efficiency of 57.7 mpg which help to keep fuel costs low. However, for longer journeys it can difficult to find a comfortable driving position as the seats offer little adjustment and this means that the economic savings come at a price.

For drivers looking for a vehicle with generous boot space, the Ka could disappoint as it only offers a capacity of 224 litres when the seats are up. With the rear seats folded down the boot space increases to 747 litres but this will restrict the already limited occupant capacity of the car.

In terms of reliability Ford is a well known brand and therefore years of trouble free motoring can be expected. The car also comes with a three-year warranty for 60,000 miles to offer additional assurances.

To buy the Ford Ka Studio 1.2 3dr consumers will face a small purchase price of just £8,545. The low running costs of this model make this low price seem even more reasonable and there are plenty of benefits on offer with the Ford Ka despite its low price.

Unfortunately, the limited practicality and uninspiring performance credentials of the model are a real disadvantage and with a limited level of in-car kit offered it is evident why the car has such a low purchase price. With modern technology used throughout cars today, consumers are likely to expect a car with features such as MP3 and Bluetooth connectivity as standard and this puts the Ka at a disadvantage in the modern market.

That being said, the car is still desirable with something of a cult following and those willing to make small sacrifices on comfort and practicality will benefit from the cars strong efficiency.