Used ford ka - worth buying?
Discussion
I'm getting rid of my first car and wondering if it would make sense replacing it with a first gen Ford Ka. My old car was a Peugeot 206, 1.1l, 51 reg - actually quite attached to it and the only thing I didn't like was how little power it had. Was told that it would cost at least £600 to get it through its MOT (not including advisories) and was advised by the garage that it might be better to get rid of it, so have been looking for a reasonably fun and cheap small car.
One of the cars that I've seen/driven and liked was the Ford Ka but it's actually almost too cheap as I was planning to spend £2000-£3000 on a car and they seem to cost more like £1500 at the most - if I found a good example do you think it would be worth buying?? Also in terms of age the cars I've been looking at have been sort of 2008-2009 and the Kas of this age are significantly cheaper than other models of the same age - is this due to them being less worth buying or is it partly just because they are an older model and seen as less desirable?
Thanks
One of the cars that I've seen/driven and liked was the Ford Ka but it's actually almost too cheap as I was planning to spend £2000-£3000 on a car and they seem to cost more like £1500 at the most - if I found a good example do you think it would be worth buying?? Also in terms of age the cars I've been looking at have been sort of 2008-2009 and the Kas of this age are significantly cheaper than other models of the same age - is this due to them being less worth buying or is it partly just because they are an older model and seen as less desirable?
Thanks
I would rather contract Aids than buy a Mk 1 KA.
Rust, wheezy engines, rust, poverty specs, rust, air conditioned rear quarter panels, rust, filler necks that fill the gutter with fuel rather than your tank, rust, crap performance, rust, basic, rust, horrible outdated thing, rust, rotten rear beams, rust, cills rot out, rust, oh, and did I mention rust?
Rust, wheezy engines, rust, poverty specs, rust, air conditioned rear quarter panels, rust, filler necks that fill the gutter with fuel rather than your tank, rust, crap performance, rust, basic, rust, horrible outdated thing, rust, rotten rear beams, rust, cills rot out, rust, oh, and did I mention rust?
Edited by Mexman on Monday 20th May 20:18
Mk1 KA's as already pointed out rust, the base model has keep fit windows and no power steering. However I find them great fun to blast around the back roads.
For 2008 i guess you might be looking at the Mk2 which is a Fiat 500 in drag ... i would rather have the mk1 .... but ultimately i'd keep the 206. For £600 it must need a lot of work. Normally its lower arms or drop links, the only big one is the rear beam. Rear discs can be expensive (if fitted) as they have the wheel bearings built in.
For 2008 i guess you might be looking at the Mk2 which is a Fiat 500 in drag ... i would rather have the mk1 .... but ultimately i'd keep the 206. For £600 it must need a lot of work. Normally its lower arms or drop links, the only big one is the rear beam. Rear discs can be expensive (if fitted) as they have the wheel bearings built in.
Just to redress the balance a bit – I picked up an 08 plate MK1 KA when my mum gave up driving. It’s got the later Duratec engine (big improvement over the old rattly Endura engines).
I actually quote like it – it’s great for nipping around traffic, easy to park, reasonably well equipped (air con, heated front screen, alloys) , iis fun to hack around the back roads and easily returns low-mid 40s MPG. It feels faster than it actually is, a bit like the original Minis.
You only have to look around MK1 KAs in order to see how badly they can rust, but seemingly not all of them – mine’s rust free in all the usual trouble spots (sills, rear panels, arches etc.)
The only thing I’ve had to replace on it is the heater control valve (common problem, easy and cheap to fix) and also replace the gasket on the thermostat housing. Routine service parts are cheap and (aside from access to the headlight bulbs) so far it’s been straight forward to work on. Oh, and the engine is chain driven, so no belt to replace.
Other than that it’s been totally reliable and always starts on the button.
There are loads about and they’re cheap to buy and insure – if you can find a good rust-free example (ok, maybe easier said than done) then I reckon they are good for a city runabout.
I actually quote like it – it’s great for nipping around traffic, easy to park, reasonably well equipped (air con, heated front screen, alloys) , iis fun to hack around the back roads and easily returns low-mid 40s MPG. It feels faster than it actually is, a bit like the original Minis.
You only have to look around MK1 KAs in order to see how badly they can rust, but seemingly not all of them – mine’s rust free in all the usual trouble spots (sills, rear panels, arches etc.)
The only thing I’ve had to replace on it is the heater control valve (common problem, easy and cheap to fix) and also replace the gasket on the thermostat housing. Routine service parts are cheap and (aside from access to the headlight bulbs) so far it’s been straight forward to work on. Oh, and the engine is chain driven, so no belt to replace.
Other than that it’s been totally reliable and always starts on the button.
There are loads about and they’re cheap to buy and insure – if you can find a good rust-free example (ok, maybe easier said than done) then I reckon they are good for a city runabout.
Matt-il77s said:
They rot, a lot. Have you looked at Mk6 Fiesta 1.2 at that price?
I tried sitting in one but didn't like it all that much for some reason, I'm not really too fussed about how basic the car is so don't mind if the Ka doesn't have as many features as the Fiesta. Apparently Fiestas are really good to drive though so will think about it, unfortunately the cars I've liked the most at the moment seem to be the least reliable ones 
stevemcs said:
Mk1 KA's as already pointed out rust, the base model has keep fit windows and no power steering. However I find them great fun to blast around the back roads.
For 2008 i guess you might be looking at the Mk2 which is a Fiat 500 in drag ... i would rather have the mk1 .... but ultimately i'd keep the 206. For £600 it must need a lot of work. Normally its lower arms or drop links, the only big one is the rear beam. Rear discs can be expensive (if fitted) as they have the wheel bearings built in.
With my 206 I was originally told it would be £350 minimum to get it through its mot but I left it a few months to think about it and after deciding to repair it then took it back and they were unable to complete the mot due to the engine overheating which then took it up to £600 just to get it through the test. They said they thought I was doing the right thing in getting rid of it, don't know much about cars though so not really sure what to do :/ I think because it's already got something else wrong with it before I've even started driving it again it makes me think it might be better to get rid of it especially as I got the car for free to start with so haven't really spent any money on it yet, but I do like it so it's difficult!For 2008 i guess you might be looking at the Mk2 which is a Fiat 500 in drag ... i would rather have the mk1 .... but ultimately i'd keep the 206. For £600 it must need a lot of work. Normally its lower arms or drop links, the only big one is the rear beam. Rear discs can be expensive (if fitted) as they have the wheel bearings built in.
yeager2004 said:
Just to redress the balance a bit – I picked up an 08 plate MK1 KA when my mum gave up driving. It’s got the later Duratec engine (big improvement over the old rattly Endura engines).
I actually quote like it – it’s great for nipping around traffic, easy to park, reasonably well equipped (air con, heated front screen, alloys) , iis fun to hack around the back roads and easily returns low-mid 40s MPG. It feels faster than it actually is, a bit like the original Minis.
You only have to look around MK1 KAs in order to see how badly they can rust, but seemingly not all of them – mine’s rust free in all the usual trouble spots (sills, rear panels, arches etc.)
The only thing I’ve had to replace on it is the heater control valve (common problem, easy and cheap to fix) and also replace the gasket on the thermostat housing. Routine service parts are cheap and (aside from access to the headlight bulbs) so far it’s been straight forward to work on. Oh, and the engine is chain driven, so no belt to replace.
Other than that it’s been totally reliable and always starts on the button.
There are loads about and they’re cheap to buy and insure – if you can find a good rust-free example (ok, maybe easier said than done) then I reckon they are good for a city runabout.
thank you, I'm glad somebody's got something good to say about it! I actually quote like it – it’s great for nipping around traffic, easy to park, reasonably well equipped (air con, heated front screen, alloys) , iis fun to hack around the back roads and easily returns low-mid 40s MPG. It feels faster than it actually is, a bit like the original Minis.
You only have to look around MK1 KAs in order to see how badly they can rust, but seemingly not all of them – mine’s rust free in all the usual trouble spots (sills, rear panels, arches etc.)
The only thing I’ve had to replace on it is the heater control valve (common problem, easy and cheap to fix) and also replace the gasket on the thermostat housing. Routine service parts are cheap and (aside from access to the headlight bulbs) so far it’s been straight forward to work on. Oh, and the engine is chain driven, so no belt to replace.
Other than that it’s been totally reliable and always starts on the button.
There are loads about and they’re cheap to buy and insure – if you can find a good rust-free example (ok, maybe easier said than done) then I reckon they are good for a city runabout.
Down and out said:
Don't see many MK1 kas about around here anymore, maybe because I live near the sea?
They do rot a lot, not worth buying one now.
If you're dead set on a ka with 2-3k surely the MK2 is the way to go?
I guess that would be the logical thing to do but tried sitting in one and didn't really like it, felt too high up to me :/ I seem to prefer older cars to newer versions, finding it difficult looking for something newer and more modern that I like!They do rot a lot, not worth buying one now.
If you're dead set on a ka with 2-3k surely the MK2 is the way to go?
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