Ford’s SAV concept, with its imaginative street-bred styling and crisp lines, drew quite a crowd at this year’s Geneva Motor Show and the company has announced that it will soon become a production reality.
Ford’s SAV concept, with its imaginative street-bred styling and crisp lines, drew quite a crowd at this year’s Geneva Motor Show and the company has announced that it will soon become a production reality.
The production version of the SAV (or Sport Activity Vehicle) will feature behind the Ford Mondeo in the company line-up and will be built at Ford’s Belgian plant in Genk.
The final name and full technical details of the production version will be made available as the MPV nears its early-2006 international launch date.
The production vehicle will retain many of the concept’s striking design themes and will offer the two or three adjustable rows of seats to provide seating for up to seven occupants.
“The media and public reaction to the Ford SAV Concept at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show was outstanding, and it supported our decision to put a version of this vehicle into production,” said a Ford spokesman. “Both sleek and purposeful, the Ford SAV Concept demonstrated new ideas for people- and load-carrying flexibility. The production model will stay true to the concept vehicle’s intent, and be highly attractive to our customers.”
The concept, described as a “new design direction” by the manufacturer, had a three-row cabin space and allowed the individual rear seats to be reconfigured via remote control. The middle seat slid back between two fitted luggage trolleys, which provided arm rests for the now-third row passenger, allowing the two outer seats to then slide inward.
Its minimalist exterior is dominated at the front by an imposing grille incorporating the familiar face of Ford and accentuated airducts in the lower section of the grille.
And while Ford have vowed to leave the concept vehicle’s design virtually intact in its production form, it is very unlikely that the interior – a combination of leather and mesh fabrics and a cacophony of bright orange and brushed aluminium inserts – will be seen in the final model.
News from Ford’s local subsidiary, however, is that there are no immediate plans to bring this fetching MPV to South Africa.
