Anybody who has ever marvelled as a child over the perfection of the hexagon (it's made up of six equilateral triangles and any number of them will fit together with no wasted space - just look at a honeycomb!) will recognise what Hyundai is trying to do with the Hexa Space MPV concept.
Making its world debut at the New Delhi Auto Expo, the Hexa Space - codenamed HND-7 - is a new take on multi-role family transport using one of nature's classic building blocks, with eight hexagonal seats that fit together like puzzle pieces to make the best use of interior space within a compact body-shell that's easy to maneuvre in crowded urban streets.
The centre seat in the first two rows slots in neatly, slightly behind the seats on either side so that passengers can sit three abreast without banging shoulders - or you can fold the centre seats flat for spacious two-abreast seating.
Got a hot date for the prom? Fold the whole centre row flat to create a mini-limo. Need to take the whole family on holiday? Fold the third row flat to make seating for six and a decent-sized boot.
Moving house? Seven seats fold flat for van-dling big cargoes and, if all else fails, you can fold all eight seats flat to provide overnight accommodation.
But this is not a Voyager-sized bus - in fact, it's built on the compact ix20 platform, only 4300mm long overall on a 2750mm wheelbase, 1820mm wide and 1647mm high to provide an airy cabin with plenty of headroom.
A sliding rear door on a special rotating bracket opens out and back to creating a gaping, obstruction-free entry to a cabin with high-tech features such as a touch-screen centre console, push-button gearshift and a 'cluster ioniser' air purifier - and enough storage spaces to satisfy even a French designer.
The Hexa Space concept has Hyundai's new 1.2-litre Kappa GDI direct-injection turbopetrol engine, driving the front wheels via a six-speed auto transmission and running on 19” rims - althopugh the latter are unlikely to survive if and when the concept becomes a production reality.