Ford C-Max at 2009 Frankfurt motor show

By Tim Pollard

First Official Pictures

04 September 2009 00:01

This is our first look at the new Ford Focus family – in C-Max, midi-MPV form. Now called just the straightforward C-Max, having dropped the Focus part of its name, the new car will be shown at the 2009 Frankfurt motor show.

However, there’s still quite a long wait until you can actually buy the new C-Max – it won’t roll into Blue Oval dealers until autumn 2010, when it will pitch into battle with the Renault Scenic and Vauxhall Zafira. That’s around the same time as the new Focus hatchback arrives.

These first official photos of the new C-Max confirm a development of the Iosis Max concept car from Geneva ’09, but now drizzled with plenty of common design themes from the Fiesta, Kuga and S-Max.

It’s a strict five-seater again, with the sort of clever fold-flat seating we’ve seen on the S-Max. There will, however, be a longer wheelbase seven-seat option this time round.

Under the bonnet lies Ford’s first European application of EcoBoost. It’s the company’s tag for downsized engines, and the new 1.6 four-cylinder uses turbocharging and variable valve timing to achieve a claimed 20% economy and CO2 cut compared with engines of comparable cc’s.

The 1.6 EcoBoost engine will come in 148bhp to 178bhp specs, and a bigger 2.0-litre EcoBoost engine is under development for larger cars such as the Mondeo, S-Max and Galaxy. We hear a smaller unit is also being worked on for smaller models, suggesting a 1.2 or 1.4 application.

The new C-segment family, headed by the Focus, will be Ford’s next global car. The Fiesta is crossing the Pond and going on sale in the US, and so will the next Focus. The Blue Oval hopes to sell 2 million cars a year off this new architecture.

Speaking of oily bits and platforms, the new Focus will have a front-drive chassis and plenty of new gadgets, including self-parking, LED headlights and powered tailgates. Gone are the days of stripped-out mid-sized hatches.

By Tim Pollard