State of a city's vehicle model (6)

I believe the answer is:

alaska

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'state' is the definition.
(I know that Alaska is a state)

'a city's vehicle model' is the wordplay.
'city' becomes 'LA' (Los Angeles).
'vehicle model' becomes 'ska' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'a'+'la'+'ska'='ALASKA'

'of' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for alaska that I've seen before include "Most northerly state of America" , "American state, capital Juneau" , "Forty-ninth US state" , "that may be baked? Not by the sun" , "Largest state of the USA" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.