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Ford B-Max concept (2011) at 2011 Geneva motor show

By Ben Pulman

First Official Pictures

28 February 2011 16:00

If ever a concept car was just a thinly disguised production car, this is it – this is the Ford B-Max, just unveiled on the eve of the 2011 Geneva motor show.

So the Ford B-Max concept is a Fiesta MPV?

That’s right, and when the B-Max goes on sale in early 2012 it’ll finally be time to bid goodbye to the bland Fusion. On the outside the styling is the latest iteration of Ford’s ‘kinetic design’ DNA, and mixes S-Max, C-Max, Focus and Fiesta elements to create a decent looking little MPV. It even manages to look good despite the metallic brown paint – Ford calls the hue Burnished Glow.

Because it daren’t copy the Vauxhall Meriva’s suicide doors the B-Max concept features a set of twin sliding rear doors, just like the Grand C-Max. But unlike the Grand C-Max, the B-Max does away with the B-pillars to aid ingress and egress. You know the design is destined for production because Ford waxes lyrical about how it’s engineered the new structure to be as safe as its other products – there’s ultra-high-strength Boron steel in key load-bearing areas, and specially reinforced latches to keep the doors in place during an impact, for instance.

'Many concept cars have featured pillarless body designs before, but this time it’s for real,' explained Ford of Europe’s executive design director Martin Smith. 'The Ford B-Max shows how this new format can deliver unmatched practicality, but still achieve outstanding safety as well. Our Iosis Max design study demonstrated the advantages that a pillarless door format can offer the MAV-style vehicle – the B-Max takes this idea to the next level, with a production-ready solution that is neatly integrated into the overall vehicle design.'