![Geneva preview: 2012 Ford B-Max compact minivan [Image update]](http://cdn.leftlanenews.com/photos/content/january2012/thumbnails5.0/fordbmax_62.jpg)
![Geneva preview: 2012 Ford B-Max compact minivan [Image update]](http://cdn.leftlanenews.com/photos/content/january2012/thumbnails5.0/bmax2_62.jpg)
![Geneva preview: 2012 Ford B-Max compact minivan [Image update]](http://cdn.leftlanenews.com/photos/content/january2012/thumbnails5.0/bmax3_62.jpg)
Ford arrived at the 2011 edition of the Geneva Motor Show with a concept car called the B-Max. At the time, it was said to prefigure an upcoming small minivan designed to take on the Opel Meriva on the European market.
The Blue Oval has released a lone picture of the production-bound B-Max. It depicts a minivan that is very similar to the concept that bowed almost a year ago; the most notable differences are a reworked grille, and the logical addition of exterior door handles.
Ford has fitted the B-Max with rear sliding doors, a feature that is uncommon in the compact minivan segment. This has reportedly enabled designers to omit the B-pillar entirely, creating a nearly five-foot wide side opening. Ford says that the doors have been reinforced, so the lack of a B-pillar does not compromise the van’s structural integrity.
The innovative B-pillar-less setup is an attempt to one-up General Motors’ Opel Meriva, whose rear doors open in a suicide fashion at a 90 degree angle.
“Door systems like this have been a designer’s dream for many years,” said Stefan Lamm, exterior design director, Ford of Europe. “We have taken the concept from an idea on a designer’s sketch pad, to a stylish and versatile product on the showroom floor.”
Interior photos of the B-Max have not yet been released, but the concept car’s interior was fairly close to production-ready. It is not expected to change much more than the exterior has in its transition from concept to production.
The B-Max will be powered by an assortment of gasoline and diesel engines with a displacement of under two liters. One of them will be the three-cylinder 1.0 EcoBoost gasoline engine that is also found in Focus; another will be the Duratorq TDCi diesel.
The new compact minivan will be unveiled at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show by Ford CEO Alan Mulally. It will go on sale across Europe in the fall of 2012.
