Ford Ka - Paris motor show news - 2008

You didn't think Ford would unveil the new Ka without a big song and dance, did you?

The covers have just come the little city car - a whole 12 years after the original - to the accompaniment of bangin' music, gyrating girls, flashing lights and a troupe of evil clowns armed with weapons fashioned from balloons.

OK, we're lying about the clowns, but all the rest was true.

We brought you all the news on the new Ka - including the welcome arrival of a diesel engine - a month ago, but the most obvious aspect of Ford's display stand is how hard they're gunning for the Fiat 500.

There are Kas (is that the plural? Looks wrong, somehow) decked out in black with lumino-yellow stripes, white-on-red (oh, very Cinquecento...) and a host of other 'expressive' colour combinations. There's also a little stand detailing a variety of, er, bold interior options. Sound familiar? Don't forget that the Ka shares its underpinnings with Fiat's award-winning little 500...

The irony (at least, we think it's irony) is that just 50 yards away from the Ka display lurks a 40-foot high Fiat 500, gazing down on the Ford newcomer from its lofty perch. There's something symbolic there, but we can't put our finger on it.

Will the Ka tempt chi-chi fashionistas away from their (regular-sized) 500s? We'll find out when the Ford goes on sale in the UK early next year...