Star Cars 2010 part 2 - MPVs - 1

Ford C-Max
Price from £17,000 (est)
On sale September
What is it? New C-Max will be available in five- and seven-seat ‘Grand’ formats

An all-new C-Max is less than a year away from launch. It will be the first model built on Ford’ new mid-sized platform, and the same underpinnings will eventually be used as the basis for up to two million Fords a year, including the third-generation Focus.

Ford has decided to follow the direction taken by Citroën and Renault, and offer a seven-seat ‘Grand’ version of the next C-Max alongside a normal five-seat model. The two variants will have completely different door and seating arrangements, to ensure that both access and versatility aren’t compromised.

The five-seater will have conventional rear doors and a similar interior layout to the current car’. The larger Grand C-Max will get sliding rear doors and a special chair in the middle of the second row, which can be stowed beneath either of the window seats to create a bus-like aisle running down the centre of the vehicle.

The five-seat model looks virtually identical to the Iosis Max concept car, seen at the Geneva motor show in March 2009, while the seven-seater is longer, taller and looks more like a conventional MPV.

As for the interior, it’s clearly been inspired by the latest Fiesta’s, and borrows the mobile phone-style dash layout. The easy-to-reach gearlever is mounted below the stereo and heater controls.

As you’d expect, the new car will also be greener and cheaper to run. Ford is developing a new direct-injection turbocharged petrol engine called the Ecoboost, which it says uses around 20% less petrol than a similarly powerful conventional engine. A 1.6-litre version is expected to make its debut in the C-Max.