Ford Ka considered for U.S.

The Ford Ka may be coming to the U.S. Ford CEO Alan Mulally seems to be interested in America's renewed interest in small cars.

But he may be the only one. Word is most in the upper levels at Ford are not 100% on board with the idea. According to BusinessWeek, Mulally gives the final call to Derrick Kuzak, global head of product development. Kuzak and Chief Marketing Officer James Farley are not so keen on bringing the Ka to the States.

The second generation of the reasonably priced minicar comes with a 1.2-liter four-cylinder producing 67 horsepower. With the available five-speed manual transmission and front-wheel-drive, the pilot is lucky to get the car to 100 km/h in 13 seconds. Released just this year, the new Ford Ka also allows a 1.4-liter petrol and 1.3-liter TDCi.
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DaHarder - 1/13/2009 12:37:29 PM

+2 Boost

There's really no reason NOT to consider this for the American market... The Timing Is Spot On!

91z4me - 1/13/2009 2:20:13 PM

-3 Boost

Sorry but this car is TINY. Honestly I don't think it will sell well. It is 2 class sizes smaller than a Fit. It will sell worse than the Smart ForTwo.

Sorry but the market just isn't ready for it YET.

veyron1001 - 1/13/2009 5:41:34 PM

+1 Boost

America is ready for it. The obese will have to deal with not being able to fit in it. The only way I would get this is if insurance costs less than a motorbike and under 7,5k base model new.

atomicbri - 1/13/2009 9:54:28 PM

+1 Boost

Uhhh 91z4me, smart actually has had great sales, with waiting lists still and has sold more than they had expected. So I am not sure where you get the "sell worse than the fortwo"

91z4me - 1/14/2009 11:08:43 AM

+1 Boost

I wouldn't consider 20k sales a success. The Scion cars hit 100k rather quickly in comparison.

http://www.smartusa.com/press/DAI-Joint-Sales-Release-for-December-2008-010509.pdf

snatchandgrab - 1/13/2009 12:40:40 PM

0 Boost

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! Why can't they make a car like this that actually looks good.

Krazeeddd - 1/13/2009 12:53:25 PM

+2 Boost

They should do it. Ford needs to get back to being an entry level car for first time new car buyers. This could help.

91z4me - 1/13/2009 2:21:05 PM

+1 Boost

The Festia will provide a great entry level car without being so small.

downtoearth - 1/13/2009 2:27:59 PM

+1 Boost

Perfectly suited for being crushed by a Suburban without the SUV driver actually noticing anything.

holmstar - 1/13/2009 5:40:16 PM

+1 Boost

While they talk on their phone, do their make-up and eat a cheeseburger. Honestly crashes wouldn't be much of an issue if people would just pay attention to DRIVING.

PlanB - 1/13/2009 5:35:25 PM

+1 Boost

The driver of this thing could never complain about being cut off in traffic. NEVER.

commander104 - 1/13/2009 8:59:22 PM

0 Boost

they should market it like a free mini flashlight when you buy a big flashlight. i.e. Buy a Taurus/F150 and get a free Ka/0%/Cashback.

atomicbri - 1/13/2009 10:01:10 PM

+1 Boost

Judging by the comments so far on here, I guess Americans are not ready for small. I mean there are the few that buy the smarts...more probably for shock effect and a look at me factor than anything else. I for one thing if you live in large cities, and you drive primarily in the city, I don't see why a car like this would be so bad. In NYC here, I never get above 40mph ever, unless I get on the BQE at the right time of evening or early early morning or some weekends to hit it up to 65 or so. So cars like these are perfect for city drivers like me.

Whelan - 1/14/2009 9:40:32 AM

+1 Boost

It could sell for cheaper than the SF2. Not too mention they also could have a Mazda 2 like they do in Europe.

richardposluszny - 1/15/2009 1:33:27 AM

+1 Boost

I think Ford has to bring over attractive options, such as the Euro Ford Focus before they bring the Ka.

LauderdaleDriver - 1/16/2009 9:52:27 AM

+1 Boost

Americans will only buy small cars when the economic realities of the US market resemble those of Europe and Japan: Consistently expensive fuel, the price driven by taxes on motor fuels.

There is a good capitalist solution here: Tax fuels to cover the real cost of oil, including the military needed to keep oil flowing out of the Middle East. Give people the freedom to select the vehicles they want, by eliminating the CAFE standards, and fix the health care and pension systems in the US, which make long-term success of any manufacturing company impossible.

Blaming unions and criticizing Detroit for making profitable vehicles instead of cars nobody wants is not constructive.