What they said when the Ford StreetKa was new… ( Mar 3 2003)
IT'S stunning.
The Ford Streetka is going to be an instant hit from the moment it rolls into showrooms this month.
I have no reason to doubt that Ford will be able to sell every one of the 6,000 it expects to receive each year in the UK.
The company's first small roadster to be made in Europe, it is roundly aimed at the 20-somethings who love pop music and art, who want a car which is also a fashion statement and do not want to pay the earth for the privilege of flaunting their personality.
It has come from a Ghia concept through Ford engineering to completion by the legendary Pininfarina company.
With that sort of pedigree you could expect something special, and it is.
From the debut of the original Ka in 1996, the same year the Renault Scenic created a new MPV market, Ford's first city car was crying out for a convertible.
But it took a further four years for the car to lose its roof. Ghia's ideas were revealed at the Turin 2000 motor show and caught the imagination of everyone.
Ghia's Saetta concept was given the project approval by development boss Martin Leach, now president Ford of Europe, and worked on by design head Chris Bird and engineered by Andrew Pollitt, who liaised with Pininfarina.
Replicating the essential look of all great roadsters over the years, which resemble a boat when viewed from above, the Streetka also has to meet the toughest safety regulations and remain affordable.
For this reason it has only a folding fabric roof to keep down cost and weight. Weight has, in fact, gone up because of the need for body-frame strengthening to replace the the three door version's roof, but the engine is a 1.6 litre eight-valver.
Keeping it as standard as possible minimised development and manufacturing costs, and it has worked very well.
Strictly a two seater, the Streetka's roof quickly folds under a metal tonneau cover, which takes up the coupe's rear seat room and means it leaves a useful boot behind. Elbow and oddments room is tight.
Inside it is a familiar Ka but with wider sills and some well hidden cross bracing. Twin roll-hoops are attractive and functional. With the roof erect and quickly clipped onto the header rail there is very low wind noise and a lot of headroom.
Limitless headroom is achieved in seconds with the roof folded under its cover and the turbulence is very low at speed with side windows up. The complete absence of scuttle shake, mirror shimmer or characteristic rattles point to rigidity and chassis integrity.
In fact, the refinement of the bodywork and chassis is very high and it feels better than the three door model in some respects.
Two up, the 95bhp engine struggles up some hills but it is smooth and fairly quiet. Matched to a neat five-speed gearbox - there is no automatic - the car is brisk with 0-60mph taking around 12 seconds and top is claimed to be 108mph. Expect to average 36mpg overall.
But the real joy of the Streetka is its safe and sure roadholding on a larger track and tyres than the hard-top model. In town the power steering does not have a particularly tight turning circle, however, but at least it gives you more time to be seen!
Ford has already taken over 1,000 orders for the first £13,745 "special edition" Streetkas which have heated leather seats, air conditioning and a sophisticated sound system. But if you wait there will be a £12,495 version without leather and air-con and a more basic audio system.
It goes on sale this month in the UK but most European markets will have to wait until the late summer or autumn. Lucky us.
Words: Robin Roberts
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