The Ford S-Max may look no more than a slightly Essex people carrier, but it’s likely to be remembered as one of the cleverest cars launched this year. This may seem a surprising thing to say about an MPV, especially as that cleverness is not derived from being able to transform its interior into a hotel room, a wigwam, a Jacuzzi or anything else. No, it’s clever because the S-Max is the first seven-seat MPV I’ve driven that people might want — rather than merely need — to buy.

It is a universal truth that those of us who don’t have to drive big MPVs feel sorry for those that do. I have a friend with a Peugeot 807 and that haunted look people have when forced into a situation they cannot control. He has three closely spaced children, which means three rows of seats unless you want to add half an hour to every journey to mop up the blood. He can’t afford a seven-seat off-roader, and while compact MPVs like the Mazda5 or Vauxhall Zafira look suitable, the rearmost seats are too small for growing lads.

So the first element of the S-Max’s appeal is its size. It’s a little longer than a compact MPV and its sixth and seventh seats are suitable for daily rather than occasional use. But while that might make it more agreeable to someone like my chum, it will not in itself make the S-Max any more appealing to a true car enthusiast trapped in a school-run hell than bathing in cold porridge.

Which is where the second element kicks in. For a decade or more, Ford’s engineers have understood driving dynamics better than any other mass-market manufacturer’s, and I always felt that if anyone could make a seven-seater good to drive they would be the chaps to do it.

The S-Max is the first car to use the Ford platform that will underpin not only the new Galaxy that goes on sale on the same date as the S-Max (June 3), but also next year’s new Mondeo. On to that platform they have squeezed the 220bhp five-cylinder turbo motor that has turned the Focus ST into an overnight classic and, in the process, created an unlikely masterpiece.

It’s not the first fast MPV — you could buy a Galaxy with a 2.8 litre V6 10 years ago — but it is the first I’ve driven that is genuinely good fun. It is absurdly quick for a seven-seater, with a 0-60mph time of 7.4sec and a top speed of 143mph. Ford’s engineers have created a chassis so good that it would not be too much to describe its handling as astonishing for such a car.

At first I wasn’t even that taken with it. It felt odd driving an MPV with the responses of a well-sorted small saloon. But once I learnt to trust it I forgot about all those seats and instead revelled in its superlative body control, grip, slick gearbox and, yes, all that power. It didn’t merely make me smile, it plastered a grin across my face.

What’s more, it really works as an MPV, too. There’s easy access to all seats, and the five in the back fold flat to reveal a load area so large that owners could create even more children in relative comfort. The cabin quality is first rate.

Ford calls the S-Max a crossover car, but it should be thought of as a breakthrough car. The turbo engine is thirsty, but there’s a 2 litre diesel that’ll sip fuel and powers a Galaxy, so should prove fine in the lighter S-Max. The S-Max even looks the part: the wheelarch extensions and the Carlos Fandango alloys give the S-Max a sense of purpose and make no promises it can’t keep.

Which is why I’m going to say something I never expected to say about any MPV, let alone one with seven seats: if I had one more than my current complement of two children, I’d not only have one, I’d go and collect it with a smile on my face. The only car I’ve driven that would suit those circumstances better is a Mercedes-Benz R-class, and that costs more than twice as much.

For all of you with large families who have longed for a car to satisfy your needs as a parent and your desires as a driver, the wait is over.

THE OPPOSITION

Model Vauxhall Zafira VXR £22,145
For Even quicker than the S-Max, clever seating layout
Against Even thirstier than the S-Max, seems expensive

Model Mitsubishi Grandis 2.4 Equippe £20,524
For Best-looking MPV on the road, nicely engineered
Against Not as spacious as other big MPVs, rather slow