Drive: Ford Sportka to Edinburgh

Ford Sportka 1.6L £9,995
Acceleration: 0-62mph 9.7sec
Maximum speed: 108mph
Average fuel consumption: 37.2mpg
Insurance group: 16A

Ford Sportka 1.6L £9,995
Acceleration: 0-62mph 9.7sec
Maximum speed: 108mph
Average fuel consumption: 37.2mpg
Insurance group: 16A

I could tell by the expression on his face that my boyfriend thought I'd finally lost it. All the way to Edinburgh and back in a Ka? Had I gone completely mad? Well, not really. The original Ka - the 1.3-litre runabout beloved of newly qualified drivers - wasn't quite what I had in mind for such a long trip. No, I was planning on testing the new Sportka, an altogether more attractive prospect.

The Sportka has the same 1.6-litre engine as the convertible Streetka (also launched this year). Ford have taken the best elements of the Ka - cheapness, compactness and ease of handling - and made them faster and sportier. The Sportka is lower and sleeker (particularly with the metallic Black Panther paint finish); it has a spoiler, the tyres are wider and the flared wheel-arches give it a more in-your-face expression.

I've been to Edinburgh many times, but I've never really done the tourist bit, so this time I took in the sights. First was Edinburgh Castle, anamazing building sitting atop an extinct volcano in the heart of the city.

If you want serious history, this is the place to go. It houses the Stone of Destiny, taken to Westminster Abbey in 1296 and returned 700 years later, and Edinburgh's oldest building, St Margaret's Chapel.

On our way out, we stopped for dinner at the Witchery, one of the city's most atmospheric restaurants. Housed in a 16th-century building at the gates of the castle, the Witchery's best tables are downstairs in the Secret Garden where, at night, dining is by candlelight.

Nothing so diverting awaits you behind the wheel in Edinburgh; you spend most of your time stuck in traffic jams. But if any car is suitable for cities, it's the Sportka. It's easy to park and slips down narrow roads with ease.

On the motorway - and there was plenty of that - the Sportka is fun to drive. For a relatively nippy car, the fuel consumption is quite good, but don't try to squeeze any tall adults into the back.

The Sportka edges into what used to be called "hot hatch" territory, while the Streetka, advertised by Kylie Minogue, is more obviously a woman's car.

My boyfriend would happily be seen in the Sportka; he was far more dubious about the Streetka. Then again, if Kylie were driving...

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