Wish the smaller Ford C-Max would make its way stateside? Blame the Focus.

Ford’s already touted the umpteen different takes on its new C-car platform, and used the 2009 Frankfurt show to unveil two: the Grand C-Max and C-Max. Yet in spite of the pledges to carry European models into North American showrooms, only the larger van is coming our way, and that may prove to be a good call.

That’s not to say the smaller C-Max is an ugly duckling. In actuality, it’s better looking than the Grand C-Max; it’s smaller, leaner, and is more evocative of the sporty European Focus we’ve been pining for (and, come 2011, will ultimately receive). That may be just the problem. Aside from some extra head and leg room and a larger cargo hold, the C-Max offers virtually everything a five-door Focus does. Is that enough to lure American shoppers?

For what it’s worth, Volkswagen says nein. The German automaker was presented with a similar quandary in 2004 when the Golf Plus, also a tall C-segment crossover, entered the world. Executives debated whether or not the Golf Plus would come stateside, but eventually compete against the normal Golf/Rabbit. VWoA passed, and we don’t blame them -- cannibalism is hard to swallow.

The Grand C-Max, however, differs considerably from both the C-Max and a normal Focus. Note the sliding doors and the longer wheelbase, both of which help to allow for a third row of seating to be squeezed in over the rear axle. More than anything, this will help the Grand C-Max find its place in the U.S. – young families interested in a Focus or wooed by the social fervor surrounding the Fiesta will now have an equally stylish vehicle, albeit with the practicality and space needed to transport to lug along the kids.

Ironically, the C-Max -- not the Grand C-Max -- would truly be a "white space" vehicle in North America. We already have both the Mazda 5 and Kia Rondo – seven-passenger mini-minivans like the Grand C-Max -- in our market, but we’re hard pressed to think of anything at dealers that mirrors the C-Max.