Just one day after it revealed a small portion of the design in a teaser photo, the updated Ford C-Max for the European market has been unveiled ahead of the Paris Motor Show.
With sleeker front styling and a host of new features, the new C-Max will go on sale as a 2015 model in Europe.
U.S. models, which are built in Michigan, may not get new styling and feature updates until next spring--which would likely make them 2016 models.
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And it's entirely possible that details of their styling and equipment will differ in the U.S. versions.
The C-Max is sold only as a Hybrid and an Energi plug-in hybrid model in the U.S., but in Europe it is offered with conventional gasoline and diesel engines.
2015 Ford C-Max Hybrid
It can also be ordered in two lengths: standard and an extended Grand C-Max that has seven seats (although European-size seats that probably wouldn't be viewed as large enough in the U.S. market).
In Europe, the revised C-Max for 2015 will offer lower emissions, as well as standard Start-Stop on updated EcoBoost and diesel engines.
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There will also be a model that uses the 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost engine seen in the U.S. in certain models of the 2014 Fiesta subcompact and 2015 Focus compact.
The European C-Max will offer a new suite of electronic driver assistance technologies, including Active Park Assist, Perpendicular Parking, and Cross-Traffic Alert.
2014 Ford C-Max Hybrid 5dr HB SEL Dashboard
It also adds a function called Park-Out Assist in which the car steers itself out of a parking place to the left or right (after the driver selects one side) while the driver accelerates and brakes.
The Active City Stop crash-avoidance system now operates at speeds up to 31 mph, higher than the previous version's 19 mph. Active Braking does the same, operating between 5 and 112 mph, by issuing warnings and then braking as required.
Finally, adaptive cruise control is now available; it had not previously been fitted to European C-Max models.
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The company hasn't issued any details of updates to the C-Max Hybrid and C-Max Energi lineup for the U.S. market.
Historically, however, Ford has revised its hybrid systems every three or four years, so it's possible that a new generation of hybrid and plug-in hybrid systems could pioneer on the next U.S. C-Max.
Following two consecutive cuts to its fuel-economy ratings, sales of the C-Max appear to have fallen somewhat, but Ford is selling more hybrids than ever--with the Fusion Hybrid and Energi mid-size sedan models more than taking up the slack.
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