It would be a bit of a stretch to say that there is such a car as an exciting Ford B-MAX, but this is probably the closest thing to it.
Thanks to the 124bhp produced by its 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol EcoBoost engine (the recipient of many awards in the past but at risk of being toppled by the smoother unit recently developed by Vauxhall) it's the most powerful model in the range, and in Titanium X form it's also the best equipped. At £18,395 it's nearly the most expensive too, though diesels with the same trim level cost slightly more.
It can accelerate from 0-62mph in 11.2 seconds, which doesn't sound like much. In practice, it feels quicker, and like most three-cylinder cars it sounds terrific during moments of urgency. On the combined fuel cycle it averages 67.3mpg. I couldn't get it out of the mid 40s, but this test included hundreds of miles on motorways, often in bad conditions, so I imagine 50mpg would be possible.
The Titanium X specification includes cruise control, DAB digital radio, a panoramic sunroof, automatic headlights and wipers, a self-dimming rear mirror, the SYNC connectivity system and a heated windscreen. 16-inch wheels are standard, but the test car had the £300 option of 17s which don't do any noticeable damage to the ride quality.
The best way of improving that would be for Ford to tighten up the front suspension. This has been set up by Germans for Germans, and I'm sure it works very well on most German roads since it does so on unusually smooth British ones. If the surface is uneven, though, or if there are a lot of dips and crests to deal with, there's too much front-end body movement.
And the "sport" seats fitted to this car seem to have been designed for shorter drivers. At over six feet tall, I found they didn't give enough support in important areas, and I was shifting uncomfortably within half an hour of the start of any long trip.
Apart from that, the B-MAX handles securely and is easy to drive in town. At 70mph it also withstands side winds very well, which is not bad for a car that has the same wheelbase as a Fiesta but is more than five inches taller.
Other than the larger wheels already mentioned, the test car had various optional extras fitted including satellite navigation (£400), metallic paint (£495), a rear view camera and front and rear parking sensors (£600) and Active City Stop, well worth £200 if you do a lot of driving in town.
The main appeal of the B-MAX is its practicality. Luggage space isn't startling at 304 litres with the rear seats up and 1,372 litres when they're folded down (you can have more if you ask for a tyre repair kit rather than a spare wheel, but don't do that). On the other hand, you have the advantage of those sliding rear doors and the complete lack of a central pillar.
Since Euro NCAP has given the B-MAX a five-star crash test rating, it seems reasonable to assume that none of this affects safety, and access to the rear seats is spectacular, which of course helps a great deal if you have to put a baby or a person with limited mobility in there.
