FORD'S WB Festiva was a huge commercial success for its maker, but a less than delightful light car. Despite its promising Mazda 121 Bubble heritage, there was something lost in translation between Japan and South Korea, where Kia assembled the car for Ford. Weak performance from 47kW 1.3, very uninspiring steering, ride and handling characteristics, and an overall cheapness about its look and feel outweighed any low price, interior space or dashboard presentation attributes. It was a cynical exercise by Ford that came unstuck when far-superior rivals like the Nissan Micra, Toyota Starlet and Mitsubishi Mirage all arrived to show more discerning baby car buyers how it should be done. And even though the European-sourced Ford Ka that replaced it lacked the right number of doors and an automatic to be a success, it's a far, far better car, while the WP Fiesta from Germany is in another league altogether. Don't get the two confused the Festiva is no celebration.