Ford's all-new MPV slides in

Last week, we brought you spy shots of a new compact MPV from Ford. And now, the company has released this first official picture

Auto Express Car Reviews

I-MAX takes styling cues from S-MAX, and offers space for seven

29th May 2007

The car is badged the I-MAX, and it promises impressive practicality. Sliding back doors make access to the cabin easy, and inside is a versatile seven-seat layout. Yet it has style to match, with a distinctive side profile, incorporating blacked-out pillars for a wraparound look.

The front end is unmistakably Ford, featuring the brand's current 'kinetic design' styling, which has already been seen on the all-new Mondeo and facelifted C-MAX.

Although the blue oval has yet to introduce a compact seven-seat MPV to the European market, the I-MAX is not expected to be offered in showrooms here. Top brass at the company feel that, in the five-seat C-MAX, plus the seven-seat S-MAX and Galaxy, they already have something for all tastes.

Ford took the wraps off the newcomer in Taiwan, which for now will be the only market in which it is sold. Everywhere else in the Asia-Pacific region - which includes Australia, Japan and China - customers will be offered the larger S-MAX.

Under the bonnet, the I-MAX is fitted with a 2.0-litre petrol engine. There is no diesel option.