Ikea car news - QuadruSwede - 2009

It seems we were at least partially right about “the car according to Ikea”. The Leko is neither an elaborate April Fool’s joke nor a flat-pack wonder, but just another car-sharing scheme.

All a bit of an anti-climax when you discover that a similar scheme is already available at Ikea stores across Austria.

So what’s the deal? Designed by Ikea France and their pals at Comuto, the company behind France’s ride-sharing web site, Ikea shoppers can hire something called a Leko – a car, details of which remain something of a mystery, but the smart money’s on a sensible French diesel - online  to take them to and from 26 of Ikea’s French stores. And all just for a couple of Euros, leaving you with enough money to buy a houseful of flat-pack wardrobes. Neat.

According to Pierre Deyries, the Director of Sustainable Development at Ikea France, the Leko will be cheaper and more responsible than any other car on the market, allowing customers to spend less on fuel, and is adapted to accommodate literally several MDF monstrosities.

Coinciding with France’s Sustainable Development Week, the launch looks set to extend Ikea’s green credentials, following last year’s energy-saving light bulb campaign. Shouldn’t harm their profit margins either…