Although this week mainly belongs to the exhibitions in New York and Seoul , the European division of Ford found space for the presentation of the new generation of the large MPV Galaxy . And if you're expecting a surprise, you'll probably be disappointed. The blue oval left nothing to chance and, in addition to its familiar appearance, also packed seven seats and a large interior space.
The three-row Galaxy system somewhat copies the previously presented Renault Espace thanks to the "one-click" system. This means that with the push of a button , the seats in the second and third rows slide into the floor. But what the French representative cannot do is extend the third row of seats from the floor by pressing a single button. There's also 10mm more headroom in the second and third rows, and even if you're sitting all the way back, you get your own armrest with storage and cup holders. The engineers devoted a lot of time to the various storage spaces throughout the interior. You can put a 1.5-liter PET bottle in the door, there is a "hidden" drawer under the passenger seat, there is space for storing multimedia devices in the central tunnel, and we can find an extra 20 liters under the trunk floor. The seats, which were designed to reduce muscle fatigue and thus increase comfort on long journeys, also underwent a transformation. Depending on the equipment, orthopedic seats with eight-way electric adjustment, massage function, heating and ventilation are then available. In any case, the headrests can be moved up and down, and their inclination forward or backward can also be changed. For the first time ever, a heated steering wheel will be offered.
The driver's workplace looks similar to the already introduced S-Max and Mondeo, with which, among other things, the Galaxy shares the CD4 floor platform . In selected versions, the center console will be dominated by the eight-inch display of the SYNC 2 multimedia system , which can be controlled by voice in addition to touch. An important and very useful function is Emergency Assistance , which can connect the vehicle crew with the nearest hospital in the event of an accident. Other (in)valuable electronic assistants include automatic opening of the fifth door lid, parking assistant for longitudinal and transverse parking, assistant for safely exiting the parking space, blind spot monitoring, traffic sign recognition , camera system with a range of 180 degrees, electronic parking brake with assistant when starting uphill, a pre-collision system or an intelligent speed limiter. Passive safety is further enhanced by side airbags for the second row of seats, additional front, front side and head bags, respectively the driver's knee airbag. There is a warning on all seats if the seat belt is not fastened, parents will have a better overview of the children in the back seats thanks to the additional interior rearview mirror. It definitely seems to have rung off analog alarm clocks, because even in the Galaxy you can have a digital instrument panel with a size of 10 inches and 3D graphics.
That said, the Galaxy shares the CD4 platform with the Mondeo and S-Max, which means an Intergal Link rear axle with aluminum lower arms. A better feeling of driving should be provided by the standard electronic booster, on the other hand, adaptive shock absorbers with Comfort, Normal and Sport modes will be available for an additional fee. Under the hood, in addition to the 160-horsepower 15-liter EcoBoost and the 240-horsepower two-liter EcoBoost, there will be exclusively diesel units. The single-turbo two-liter TDCi will be offered with 120, 150 or 180 hp, the twin-turbo TDCi BiTurbo has 210 hp and 240 Nm at 2,000 rpm. Driving efficiency is improved by regenerative braking, a stop/start system and active slats in the radiator grille.
The design is a combination of the S-Max and the last generation Galaxy , whose legacy is visible mainly thanks to the group lamps. A characteristic element of the front part is the trapezoidal radiator grille in the shape of Aston Martin, respectively the shape of the headlights, optionally supplied with adaptive LED technology. An optional panoramic roof can increase the already large glazed surface.
Source: Ford
