11th Aug 2009, 10:56

After all the electric problems I described in the comment above on may 24th - ABS and battery light etc... its been back into the garage AGAIN!! This time costing me £800 for a new computer... the whole car has given up and that the only thing that will solve the problem. Seems to be common faults with electrics in these cars, I wouldn't buy another one, no way!!!

29th Aug 2009, 14:44

Have a Streetka 2006, no main problems really 3 yrs on, still OK. Have hardtop wiring diagram so email me at chelseaboy_1999@yahoo.com for info.

26th Sep 2009, 13:02

Streetka 1.6 Lux pack.

I bought our "friday" car nearly one year ago and all seemed to be well. I had the problem with the alarm that people have been describing, and from what I can make out, the "hood" stow cover has two sensors on opposite sides of the cover that have to be in the shut position to let the alarm work properly, hence when we go out with the hood down, we both shut our sides at the same time (with a little elbow grease) and this has stopped that.

Less than two weeks ago, the engine management light reared its ugly head, and took it to Fix Or Repair Daily and was told £75 for the hookup to the computer to tell me what needed doing, so I went to my local garage who charged only £25. Lambda sensor replaced and £100 later the problem seemed to be fixed, but now has come back on today and I could have cried.

Also my window at the rear needed replacing after just two weeks with the car. I was told that I was not allowed to open the soft top when it was cold, because the plastic was brittle, well nothing in the manual about that so I inquired about a replacement and Fix Or Replace Daily wanted £500+ for a poxy bit of plastic, so did a home repair with velcro and tent window plastic at a cost of £34! But have just bought an entire 2nd hand roof from ebay for £62!!! Result.

Lastly, I would just like to say I WILL NEVER BUY A FORD EVER AGAIN AS LONG AS I LIVE. These components they put in cars seem to have a rough "expiry" date enabling the garages to supply and fit parts after draining your pocket when they diagnose it. Hate the car, hate the company!

4th Jun 2010, 03:59

I brought an 03 StreetKa Luxury 6 days ago, and up until yesterday I loved it...

I don't have a very good history with cars, even when they have been brand new (although the majority have been mini's -old shape), but I thought this time I would be "safe" as everyone has always said to me how I need a "reliable" car.

Anyway, yesterday I was in Tescos with my friend and had bags of shopping and the boot would not open, the roof was down, so I put it back up again, turned the engine on and off, and then it seemed to release the boot. Then this morning driving into work, the engine light has come on, it seemed to lose power a bit, but not drastically, a bit like I was in too high a gear for the speed I was going. I called Ford and they said not to worry, it happens a lot in extremes of weather, and also if you have gone through a puddle?! I'm crossing my fingers that it's because I washed the car last night (it's still a novelty at the moment LOL). My alarm just doesn't work, it locks etc, but we tested it out the other day and nothing... Although I have to say, that I'd rather this than it going off constantly, which I found was a problem with my old MR2 Roadster, and this always seemed to be worse in the summer when the convertible was being put up and down...

I also struggle with the soft top when it's a bit colder, like first thing in the morning, and I had that problem with the MR2 as well.

As a driver of old Mini's, I have to say that although they have their own problems, at least you can "see" what the problem is. I hate the fact that a computer dictates whether your car runs correctly or not... Anyway nuff of me ranting on, just needed to get it off my chest. But I would like to say, if nothing else, it looks very pretty!!!

30th Jun 2010, 09:20

I bought my 53 plate StreetKA 3 weeks ago, like the lady above, I was going to buy a Mini Cooper, new shape mind you, however decided I’d go for a StreetKA as they’re Ford, generally seem cheaper and I fancied a convertible for the summer.

I didn’t buy the car from a dealership, I did a private sale with a lady who had had the car since brand new. She told me she’d had no problems with it, and gave me all the service history. She had had every MOT done, and it had passed all of them, with advisories which she didn’t have a copy of, but I assumed it would be a bald tyre or something very minor.

After having the car 2 days, I went to put the heating on and found that only cold air was coming out, I let the car heat up for 10 minutes or so with the heating on full blast, still no hot air though. I called my mobile mechanic (who’s very reasonable) that night, explained the problem and he said it would cost around £35 for the part which was a heating valve (I’m sure somebody above has also had this problem). He said it is still drivable, doesn’t need doing, but means I’d be cold in the winter. At this time I hadn’t been paid, so I was just going to book him in at the end of the month.

Then on Friday, 2 and a half weeks after having the car, on the hottest weekend of the year (perfect for a convertible), I was driving home from work and the temperature light came up on my dash board. I was quite close to my house, so carried on driving, pulled into my estate and I could hear cracking and sizzling coming from under the bonnet. I quickly pulled over, popped the bonnet and I was right, sizzling and cracking.

I left the car there and called the RAC, they came and said most likely to be the thermostat, so again called my mechanic and booked him in for Monday, 2 days ago from now. He came out, fixed my heating and replaced the thermostat for £145 including labour, which isn’t too bad, but even so after buying a new car and having it 3 weeks, I didn’t expect to be paying anything.

I got the car back yesterday, and then today on my lunch break at work, the engine management light came on, I took it to the Ford garage and they kindly plugged it into the computer free of charge, and it said it was the exhaust sensor. I’ve read up and I think its proper name is Labda sensor or something similar? He gave me a rough quote of £300 but said it would be cheaper to go elsewhere. He also said the car was drivable.

I’ve read above, and you seem to have all said the car loses power, as if you’re in a gear too high. I have had that feeling, and just assumed I was imagining it. He also said to me that the warning light will appear, go off for a while and come back on, which leads me to believe the lady I brought it from was fully aware of all its problems.

I really love the car, and I really don’t want to have to sell it, but has anyone actually had a good experience with theirs?

I thought buying a Ford was sensible, but it seems like they keep going wrong? I simply can’t afford to keep paying out for little problems that are costing a lot. Any advice?