Diesel Lover
06-10-2010, 02:08 PM
Ford Ka 1.2 Zetec Fuel Economy Test
http://i50.tinypic.com/2m3p9w0.jpg http://i50.tinypic.com/24qpp9f.jpg
The first generation of the Ford's supermini, the Ka was a resounding success when it was launched in 1996. So successful in fact that it was in production for 12 years and in it's last production year of 2008 it had the most sales of its lifetime. The Mk2 is damned sexy, not just in looks, but in its fuel economy and now it has a diesel option. The Ka was updated to bring it in to line with the rest of the new Ford models and is a beautiful example of Ford's kinetic design philosophy. It shares many traits of the original Ka with the wheels at all four corners making it the ideal small city car, albeit larger than the original, and its high sprung derierre and large rear bumper.
I have been living with the Ford Ka Mk2 for 6 weeks now and have covered 1112 miles in it thus far. It has two main drivers and the lifetime MPG has suffered due to the other driver having an extremely heavy foot and is sitting at 37.5 MPG. The second driver not being the best of drivers considering she is still learning to drive. But on average I seem to squeeze between 40-48 MPG out of it on city / A-Road traffic.
http://i45.tinypic.com/2rghl5j.png
The economy test that I conducted today consisted of mixed city and highway traffic during early rush hour in Glasgow before the M8 became congested to a crawl like it does at 5PM every day. I started out at the east end of Glasgow in the Forge Retail Park and headed towards junction 14-Dennistoun of the M8 highway and merged on and headed west to the Hillington Industrial Estate off of Junction 26. The highway run of the vehicle was 8 miles long and during this time the average MPG of this portion of the journey was an impressive 78.1 MPGuk but this was with a constant level of pressure on the gas pedal on a straight surface to keep it at 50mph and let the car speed up and down as the incline of the highway changed accordingly. This of course annoyed the white van road ragers considering the speed limit was 50 and progressed to 70 once we were passed the city centre. I did have to speed up to 70 once to merge with traffic to avoid a broken down truck in my lane but after that I took the car out of gear and let it coast down to 50mph, re-engaged 5th gear and proceeded on my merry way. Road noise on the highway is definitely noticeable, you really have to turn the stereo up quite a bit to drown it out, and the high speed definitely amplifies the poor suspension the car has after going over bridge bumps by its arse waddling up and down for a few seconds afterwords.
The rest of the journey was conducted along the A-road A761/A8 - Paisely Rd West going through Cardonald heading towards the city centre back to Forge Retail Park along A89 – Gallowgate and traffic here was a nightmare, only a few times did I manage to get up to 30mph and almost every traffic light was red. Since I've lived with this car daily for 6 weeks now, I know it pretty good, so I know to take off very easy with gentle acceleration and I always shift up at 1500 rpm. This of course annoys the hell out of people behind me who are trying to floor it away from the lights, only to race to another red light, but by doing this not only am I driving well and in an orderly fashion to reduce my fuel consumption, but by getting others to follow my acceleration, I'm doing them a favour also as well as the environment. The car handles very very well at 30mph in 5th gear, even on an inclined road without chugging. This is absolutely wonderful. The fuel economy I got in the city was the best I've had in a while at 50.8 MPGuk I feel that 2nd and 4th gears however could be a bit longer, but its something that I just have to live with, and if you're in the United States and considering getting a Fiat 500, it is something you will have to live with too, which brings me on the roots of the Ford Ka.
The Ka is basically a Fiat 500 in drag. Ford has popped on a fancy dress and a bit of makeup and shoved a rear anti-roll bar between the rear wheels which stiffens up the chassis and makes it handle a lot better. It actually makes the car a lot more fun to drive, so much so that Fiat have copied it and now have the same roll bar on the Fiat 500. Speaking of the rear suspension, I would love to know where it is. When I look under the car, I see the springs there, all very lovely, but when you're driving you have to wonder if they've fallen off due to the fact that the chassis picks up every single dent, bump and piece of roadkill you drive over. If you ever drive over a pothole, expect to dislodge a few spinal discs and have a sore neck for a week because it really does not take bumps well, it is brutal. There is a very strange squeak that my friend and I have identified as coming from the rear wheels in front of the suspension whenever someone is sitting in the back where the roll bar meets the chassis, so we're going to have to get the dealer to have a look into that. The cars handling and economy really can't be faulted though, it really is exciting. It does what you want it to do, it goes where you point it, and if you're intentionally over enthusiastic with it, it will over-steer and the arse of the car will kick out in a way that fools you that it might actually be rear wheel drive for a second. Parking the Ka is a breeze, rear visibility is poor due to the C pillar, but when you get used to it, you can park the Ka on a ticks ass.
http://i50.tinypic.com/b7nots.jpg
Image taken from Google Images because my battery died on the camera.
The interior of the Ka is really beautiful and more spacious than it looks in the front. If you're looking for rear leg room its virtually non existent unless your driver or the front passenger is a midget. Since its based upon the Fiat 500, it has the same Italian driving position where your arms are stretched out as far as they can. Whilst the steering column is height adjustable, it doesn't pull out, which is a huge let down. The entire time you drive it you'll keep it in the default position, as the only other option is driving it with your testes.
Even though the Ka is a Fiat in drag, its still definitely a Ford with its sharp but light steering, its eagerness to go, and it will put a smile on your face after a nice cruise or even as you're on your way to another tedious day at work. Unfortunately Ford of America have said that the Ka is not coming to the US, but the Fiat 500 is, and they're basically the exact same car, with the exact same engines, only wearing a different frock. I suspect greater hypermilers than myself could get more economy out of the Ka, but I would definitely recommend both the Fiat 500 and the Ford Ka. Great in the city, comfortable but noisy on the highway.
http://i50.tinypic.com/2m3p9w0.jpg http://i50.tinypic.com/24qpp9f.jpg
The first generation of the Ford's supermini, the Ka was a resounding success when it was launched in 1996. So successful in fact that it was in production for 12 years and in it's last production year of 2008 it had the most sales of its lifetime. The Mk2 is damned sexy, not just in looks, but in its fuel economy and now it has a diesel option. The Ka was updated to bring it in to line with the rest of the new Ford models and is a beautiful example of Ford's kinetic design philosophy. It shares many traits of the original Ka with the wheels at all four corners making it the ideal small city car, albeit larger than the original, and its high sprung derierre and large rear bumper.
I have been living with the Ford Ka Mk2 for 6 weeks now and have covered 1112 miles in it thus far. It has two main drivers and the lifetime MPG has suffered due to the other driver having an extremely heavy foot and is sitting at 37.5 MPG. The second driver not being the best of drivers considering she is still learning to drive. But on average I seem to squeeze between 40-48 MPG out of it on city / A-Road traffic.
http://i45.tinypic.com/2rghl5j.png
The economy test that I conducted today consisted of mixed city and highway traffic during early rush hour in Glasgow before the M8 became congested to a crawl like it does at 5PM every day. I started out at the east end of Glasgow in the Forge Retail Park and headed towards junction 14-Dennistoun of the M8 highway and merged on and headed west to the Hillington Industrial Estate off of Junction 26. The highway run of the vehicle was 8 miles long and during this time the average MPG of this portion of the journey was an impressive 78.1 MPGuk but this was with a constant level of pressure on the gas pedal on a straight surface to keep it at 50mph and let the car speed up and down as the incline of the highway changed accordingly. This of course annoyed the white van road ragers considering the speed limit was 50 and progressed to 70 once we were passed the city centre. I did have to speed up to 70 once to merge with traffic to avoid a broken down truck in my lane but after that I took the car out of gear and let it coast down to 50mph, re-engaged 5th gear and proceeded on my merry way. Road noise on the highway is definitely noticeable, you really have to turn the stereo up quite a bit to drown it out, and the high speed definitely amplifies the poor suspension the car has after going over bridge bumps by its arse waddling up and down for a few seconds afterwords.
The rest of the journey was conducted along the A-road A761/A8 - Paisely Rd West going through Cardonald heading towards the city centre back to Forge Retail Park along A89 – Gallowgate and traffic here was a nightmare, only a few times did I manage to get up to 30mph and almost every traffic light was red. Since I've lived with this car daily for 6 weeks now, I know it pretty good, so I know to take off very easy with gentle acceleration and I always shift up at 1500 rpm. This of course annoys the hell out of people behind me who are trying to floor it away from the lights, only to race to another red light, but by doing this not only am I driving well and in an orderly fashion to reduce my fuel consumption, but by getting others to follow my acceleration, I'm doing them a favour also as well as the environment. The car handles very very well at 30mph in 5th gear, even on an inclined road without chugging. This is absolutely wonderful. The fuel economy I got in the city was the best I've had in a while at 50.8 MPGuk I feel that 2nd and 4th gears however could be a bit longer, but its something that I just have to live with, and if you're in the United States and considering getting a Fiat 500, it is something you will have to live with too, which brings me on the roots of the Ford Ka.
The Ka is basically a Fiat 500 in drag. Ford has popped on a fancy dress and a bit of makeup and shoved a rear anti-roll bar between the rear wheels which stiffens up the chassis and makes it handle a lot better. It actually makes the car a lot more fun to drive, so much so that Fiat have copied it and now have the same roll bar on the Fiat 500. Speaking of the rear suspension, I would love to know where it is. When I look under the car, I see the springs there, all very lovely, but when you're driving you have to wonder if they've fallen off due to the fact that the chassis picks up every single dent, bump and piece of roadkill you drive over. If you ever drive over a pothole, expect to dislodge a few spinal discs and have a sore neck for a week because it really does not take bumps well, it is brutal. There is a very strange squeak that my friend and I have identified as coming from the rear wheels in front of the suspension whenever someone is sitting in the back where the roll bar meets the chassis, so we're going to have to get the dealer to have a look into that. The cars handling and economy really can't be faulted though, it really is exciting. It does what you want it to do, it goes where you point it, and if you're intentionally over enthusiastic with it, it will over-steer and the arse of the car will kick out in a way that fools you that it might actually be rear wheel drive for a second. Parking the Ka is a breeze, rear visibility is poor due to the C pillar, but when you get used to it, you can park the Ka on a ticks ass.
http://i50.tinypic.com/b7nots.jpg
Image taken from Google Images because my battery died on the camera.
The interior of the Ka is really beautiful and more spacious than it looks in the front. If you're looking for rear leg room its virtually non existent unless your driver or the front passenger is a midget. Since its based upon the Fiat 500, it has the same Italian driving position where your arms are stretched out as far as they can. Whilst the steering column is height adjustable, it doesn't pull out, which is a huge let down. The entire time you drive it you'll keep it in the default position, as the only other option is driving it with your testes.
Even though the Ka is a Fiat in drag, its still definitely a Ford with its sharp but light steering, its eagerness to go, and it will put a smile on your face after a nice cruise or even as you're on your way to another tedious day at work. Unfortunately Ford of America have said that the Ka is not coming to the US, but the Fiat 500 is, and they're basically the exact same car, with the exact same engines, only wearing a different frock. I suspect greater hypermilers than myself could get more economy out of the Ka, but I would definitely recommend both the Fiat 500 and the Ford Ka. Great in the city, comfortable but noisy on the highway.