1999 Ford Ka from UK and Ireland - Comments

Coolant tank split within three weeks of owning the Ka.

New brake discs and pads on second service.

Complete new exhaust at three years old the other fell off.

Since the fourth service, I have had the following:

Knocking noise coming from dash (heating valve I am told).

New brakes and rear cylinders (brake fluid leaking) at fourth service.

Spark plug corroded into head. Yet to have this fixed.

Makes noise like it has a sports box on the back it doesn't!

Get the occasional burning smell coming into the car, think it now needs a new clutch.

Bumpers sticking out from the wings.

Condensation in headlight!

I absolutely loved my Ka until this year. It was (and to some extent still is) a nippy little drive and brilliant on corners. However, it has just turned five years old and is falling apart. It doesn't drive like it used to and so far this year I have paid over £500 on the bits that have gone wrong. The next thing is the clutch and the corroded spark plug! What next!

Five years old... Looked after or not? miles are where? and mostly maintained?.. Come on be fair.. there are thousands of moving parts in a car.. BE FAIR.

To the comments of the cars is only five years old that is still a fair bit that's gone wrong with the car!

Regardless of how many mails it done I agree it shoud'nt be that bad.

Don't think that I want a ka now!!!

I have just purchased a ford KA for my daughter to learn to drive in, it is 5years old, apart from a few minor scratches the engine is very nippy, starts first time, and very comfortable to drive I have found nothing wrong with this car that you would find in any other make at 5 years old.

I am the same as Cheap as chips. I love my KA, I've had it for 5 years and it's a good little runner, it's nippy, easy to park, comfortable to drive and I love my mod cons (i.e. air con, cd player, alloys etc). It's great at long and short journeys. However the amount of money I have spent on parts is unbelievable.

In the first year I had a knocking noise coming from the passengers side of the vehicle every time I went over speed bumps. I went back to the dealer and they told me the arm bushes had snapped. The dealer informed it was due to the speed I was going over the speed bumps at, however about 6 months later I needed new ones again (some how I don't think my driving is that bad -LOL). The dealer replaced them and yet again about 2-3 yrs later I needed new ones. Finally the dealer informed that it's a regular problem on KA's and replaced them again. 5yrs later I have the knocking noise back, I've been told it's not dangerous so I don't need to change them.

In the 5 years I have also had 2 new exhausts, a new air con system, a new horn, a new battery and the regular every yearly bits and bobs. I must admit I expect problems, but just not this many. I will keep my KA till it stops as it's a great first car, however I will not get one again.

I bought my ka in may 2005 it's a 1999 reg and reading most of the problems you have all had with yours seems its just a ka thing. I had a knocking noise from the passenger side too and they changed d-bushes (or something) but I have spent over £300 on it already and I haven't even had the car a year yet! mind you I have taken it back to the garage I bought it from several times as it was under warranty and I'm sure they spent quite a bit on it! my ka was misfiring all the time I've had that sorted twice, my power-steering went after 70k which I was told is normal on fords, so watch out, I nearly killed myself! I went through a puddle and my arches came off lol! to be honest there is too much to name! but I do love my car in a way its cheap and a good little runner after I've spent enough on it! and does anyone else think that their tap its are awfully loud?

Yes I think the tappits are really loud. I've just bought the car, it's fine, nice drive, only problem is the noise. It sounds like a 1984 Escort, not a 1999 KA. Does anyone know what can be done about this old engine noise I always hear?

Another problem is the headlights, they seem to fog up, apart from that the car seems fine.

Ade2500 here.

I've just bought a 1999 Ford Ka as a second car for my partner. It's great fun to drive, goes well, and basically does what it says on the tin!

My only gripe is with the clutch. There's no slippage, and apart from the usual reverse selection palava, no problems. BUT, the bite is fierce compared to our Ford Focus and judders if you're slightly short of revs. You seem to need to give a lot of revs and push through it.

My initial thought is engine mountings. The cars done 56K. Anybody else had trouble with engine mountings?

The tappets are adjusted using a socket set and a feeler gauge.

On this engine the oil holes in the rocker shaft sometimes get blocked and the rockers seize on the shaft - you need to take the shaft out, strip and clean it and reassemble.

Neither of these jobs are particularly difficult.

I have a S-Reg Ka and I love it. The only problem is that it makes a hissing noise, this stops when I turn the steering wheel, but continues if I let go (obviously not when I'm driving). Does anyone else have this problem or know what it is?

I have a ford ka2 1998, which I bought in May. I've been having the same problem for over a month now, and my garage has no idea what to do.

The fuel pump keeps failing. It's been replaced twice now in the last three weeks. I paid €220 to have it fixed the first time, and refused to pay a second time when it failed 5 days later. They replaced it again, and now, 2 weeks later, it's failed again.

The main problem is, if you leave the car sit for a few hours or overnight, it will start up again without a problem. So when I drive it to the garage they have no idea how to fix the car when it appears to be working so well.

Does anyone have any idea what this problem is or how I can fix it?

My lady's first car is a Ka. I have just bought a Haynes manual. There are a couple of valves near the petrol tank that won't help. This car is more hassle than my mk 2 XR2.

My tappets are also noisy, not that I'd know what a tappet was if it bit me. This is apparently common, and I also had condensation in the headlight, which seems to have magically evaporated! Generally a lovely car to drive, but what a rust bucket!!!

I just bought V plate Ka. It drove very well till this morning, but it now sounds very loud like the tappets need setting. I took it to a garage; they are saying it needs a new rocker shaft. Has anyone got any ideas where I could get this from?

I have purchased my first Ford Ka when it was first released in Australia back in 1999.

The car went through a number of power steering hoses every 10,000 Kilometres, which was very annoying at the time.

This was covered by the warranty every time, but at the same time, quite annoying.

This was, according the Ford dealer, a design fault whereas the actual hose was resting against the hot engine and melted away every 10,000 Kilometres. They repositioned the hose so it was no longer resting against the hot engine.

Since then, there has never been another problem with the power steering hose.

The other thing went wrong was the indicator switch did not cancel itself when completing a corner. I believe that was due to wear and tear. The car had clocked over 120 000 Kilometres at the time.

As for the tappet noise that seems to be a common problem with the KA. I have been told that this normal for the Ford as it has a pushrod engine, which it has a noisy tappet noise.

I have since then crashed my Ford KA, the crash was pretty severe as I have managed to walk out of the crash. This proves this car is safe in road accidents. The KA was a write off.

With the insurance money, I have purchased another Ford KA. The same colour and the same year of model.

I must have, in my second attempt, bought a gem of this car.

This car has done 135 000 Kilometres and shows no signs of its age. It runs like new.

I have absolutely no problems with this car. It stills has its original battery and clutch plate, with no signs of any major parts ready to wear out.

Sometimes this can happen as far as getting a fluke model.