Ford Faqs

With the 2007 Car of the Year, the Ford S-MAX taking all the headlines and new, it’s easy to fbypass that Ford also makes a more conventional people-car, the Ford Galaxy. Where the S-MAX is low, sporty and stylish, the Galaxy is tall and conventional, an old-school MPV.

The Ford Galaxy in 2.0 TDCi Ghia trim has a 2-litre diesel engine that only produces 141bhp, but backs this up with 251lb.ft of torque. On the road, this engine feels punchy. Combined with a typically Ford slick six-speed gearbox, the Galaxy can be rowed along at quite a pace.

Ford’s current advertising campaign for the Galaxy makes a big play on its seven-seat capacity, and indeed the Galaxy seems to be sufficiently spacious in all three rows (in 2-3-2 configuration) ensuring that none of the seven passengers feels too hard done by. The big problem is that seven passengers invariably means luggage for seven people; you just can’t have it both ways.

The boot space just simply isn’t big enough if all seven seats are in use. Carry less passengers, and that all changes. All the rear seats can be folded individually and all fold completely flat, creating just about any combination of seating/luggage compromise imaginable.

Ford originally likened the Galaxy to air travel. The simile still works, certainly the full length roof storage reminds one of an aeroplane, even if it’s not quite that capacious. Up front, the pilot and co-pilot have a commanding view even if the nose of the Galaxy completely drops out of sight, but with the base of the windscreen already a long way out front, it’s anyone’s guess where the front bumper finishes.

The tall shape of the Galaxy pays further dividends than the roof storage, as headroom is simply massive good for passengers, good for access to the rear row of seats too, as you don’t have to stoop so far to climb in.