Motoring Editor MALCOLM BAYLIS previews Ford's Sportka, which goes on sale next spring

THE Ka is the star in the Ford line-up this week - a performance version and a topless model, the Sportka and the Streetka, both go on sale next spring.

Everyone said Ford should build it and now it is ready to hit the road. Sportka is the new performance flagship of the Ka line-up.

With its new 95PS 1.6-litre engine, tuned chassis and sporty suspension for exciting driving dynamics, the Sportka is being unveiled at the Paris Motor Show later this month.

Sportka sits on a modified Ka chassis tuned for even sportier steering and handling, while the suspension has also been lowered and stiffened, backed up by more powerful brakes.

The new eight-valve Duratec engine develops its lusty 95PS at 5,500rpm and 135Nm at 4,250rpm. It is matched to a five-speed manual gearbox.

From the outside the Sportka provides some snappy styling with flared wheel arches, lowered ride height and new six-spoke 16-inch alloy wheels shod with low-profile tyres.

Its front features bespoke headlamps together with body-coloured front bumper with integrated foglamps, while at the back the tailgate wears a sporty spoiler that blends into the wrap-around rear bumper, incorporating reversing light and rear reflectors.

Inside, driver and front passenger have supportive sports seats in fabric (leather will be an optional extra), and the doors and dashboard are finished in ebony black, with this colour theme extended to the new instruments which feature black dials with white, backlit numerals.

There is also a touch of aluminium with the gear lever topped by an aluminium ball, the oval clock framed in aluminium and the arms of the leather-bound steering wheel also feature aluminium bracelets.

Also arriving with the Sportka is the Streetka, seen as a modern interpretation of the traditional two-seater roadster inspired by classics such as the MG Midget and Frog-Eye Sprite.

Designed by Ford but engineered by Italian Pininfarina, the Streetka uses the same engine as the Sportka, but offers a unique style and character. Its polypropylene body-coloured front bumper seems to flow into the rather exaggerated wheel arches, framing the headlamps and integrated foglights.

The rakish windscreen has been shortened, while the doors have frameless windows. A pair of integrated steel roll-over bars sit behind the driver and passenger and are the only projections above the car's waistline when the hood is down.

At the back, the boot lid features a centrally-mounted brake light and reversing lamp. The lid curves down to meet the bumper and also creates a spoiler.

Streetka rides on six-spoke 16-inch alloy wheels.

Updated: 09:56 Friday, September 27, 2002